Why Bangkok street food sucks: Opinion

[vijer]

As with most things in life, one has to inspect the merchandise before making a decision and choosing to make a purchase. There are plenty of places that you can see everything, the food, the cooking equipment, the dishes, etc., if it doesn't look clean don't eat there. There are plenty of clean vendors and in all my years visiting (over 15) and living (2 years) in Thailand I have eaten a lot of street food. I've never gotten sick.

[GirlDrinkDrunk]

As with most things in life, one has to inspect the merchandise before making a decision and choosing to make a purchase. There are plenty of places that you can see everything, the food, the cooking equipment, the dishes, etc., if it doesn't look clean don't eat there. There are plenty of clean vendors and in all my years visiting (over 15) and living (2 years) in Thailand I have eaten a lot of street food. I've never gotten sick.

haha you got them both in. well done sir!

"I’ve lived here for two-and-a-half years, so I know a lot more than most people about street “cuisine.”" - This is just priceless!

surpassed only by "I've been coming to thailand for 2 weeks every year for the last 10 years, so i know ...".

[fasteddie]

God help us all if Bangkok ever gets like that sterile hole Singapore. Thailand's changed loads since I first came here 47yrs ago, and NONE of it for the better!

[wave]

There is some great street food out there but it takes time find it, often by recommendation. I'd say that most street food is average at best but that's true for most restaurants, bars, shops as well.

Maybe 1 in 20 vendors are good, possibly 1 in 500 are GREAT

The sheer volume of food available in Thailand means you're going to kiss a lot of frogs before you find a prince.

I don't mind the carts clogging up the streets, it's part of the street culture.

I enjoy the fact that people engage on the street, something that's been increasingly legislated against in the West.

The OP bemoans that it isn't organic or artisanal, when has Thai street food ever claimed to be....

How much food sold in Thailand is?

Do most Thais even care?

Street food provides quick, cheap, fuel.

When you consider the amount of Thais, living in one room, that have limited or no cooking facilities, street food could be considered a social service.

I like Singapore but I also like Bangkok.

Why would you want to turn Bangkok into Singapore?

[manxninja]

steet food as a rule varies, when im pissed out of my head its great, if im sober not so great.

[malt25]

A quarter century of traveling to/living in Thailand and I never once ate food off the street. Being a vegetarian put that right out of the realm of possibility. However, if I did eat carrion, I'd still not eat off the street. As the old saying goes, you don't eat where dog's poop...or something like that. (And I steer clear of restaurants in general.)

We, man, didn't spend a million or so years getting to the top of the food chain to eat grass !

[xen]

Street Food has been and will always be a gamble , just as restaurant and home cooked meals will be similar in regards to food poisoning. Unless it is a completely controlled system ( like McDonald's and other fast food chains have and even then it is still possible) , the element of food poisoning can be added anywhere along the chain from the source to the transportation to the wholesale or wet markets to final cooking process. Meat & seafood left for a few minutes in the sun , off ice is not good, sitting in a van without refrigeration is not good . I will not eat meat from Tesco because of their hygiene practices and often in the wet markets i have to quickly move away because of the smell of produce than has gone off ( and smell is one of the last indicators) . Why is chilli and spices/herbs so popular but to mask bad ingredients ( beside adding flavour) ?.

So all of those who can give their blessings to street food or any other food based on how many times they have had food poisoning are not looking at the whole picture. Understand that it is a gamble and if you think it tastes good and it fits your budget then go for it. Don't let me stop you . Me , I'll pass on most street food tho and take my chances on home cooked meals .

[isawasnake]

I agree with the nuisance of street vendors on sidewalks, the grease left behind that runs into the streets and causes pedestrians to slip and falls, not to mention the chili pepper spray that burns eyes and lungs, the grilled chicken smoke that sticks to the hair and skin as you zig-zag your way down a soi. A happy day for me is when rain pours down hard washing everything!

I don't eat street food, never had, never will, so I don't really care what they put on it. However MSG is poison to me, and unfortunately is vastly used everywhere including at some fine dining places. My body reacts immediately after the smallest amount of MSG enters it, so I have learned to cook Thai food and only eat my own homemade ones.

Would I love to see street food banned from the sidewalks? Yes. Will it ever happen? Not in Bangkok. Not ever.

I saw with my own eyes once a vendor throw what must have been soapy water into the street behind him. A motorbike then ran over the tossed water and was immediately toppled over by a loss of traction. I don't know where this instinctive moves comes to THROW the water. A nice clean, slow pouring into the gutter would seem to serve all much better.

Edited August 14, 2013 by isawasnake

[slipperylobster]

Now, as for the ambiance offered by a street vendor, roadside eating is not everybody's cup of tea, but isn't the romantic image of a sidewalk cafe in Paris iconic in the world of dining?

LOL ..... Paris and Bangkok ...ambiance . I don't get the connection here, when I look at that big pot of rancid oil and plastic stools, compared to the Champs Elysee and their upscale outdoor cafes. Methinks you have never been to Paris ! I am trying to put the idea in my head that they are the same, but I keep cracking up.

[Bkungbank]

Some tips when buying hawker foods.

Cloth that they are using must be clean, mean the owner take care of personal hygiene then it's okay but if you see black and unwash, please choose other one to buy.

Oil if you buy some fry items, like 'Pa tong ko', chicken, fish balls etc check the colour of the oil if it not dark as the Klong water then it's okay but if it's dark it may cause you cancer later on.

I think Thai vendor foods are much cleaner then in others countries like India, Indonesia, Manila, Cambodia which you can flies every where.

[Kruzon]

What you say is true. The street vendors food requires a cast iron stomach. Cleanliness is something foreigners understand not Thai street vendors. Dark brown oil is days old, food fried in it will be dark brown instead of light brown, food is served that been out several days in the heat or a watery waste of melted ice and and it may not have be been reheated. Top it all off instead of real ingredients you will receive a large dose of MSG E621 for flavor instead of quality ingredients.

If you see shark fin soup please educate them on how soup will extinct sharks.

Always carry your Immodium!

[BudRight]

Two and half years is such a loooooong time. /sarcasm. That sure is a lot of khaosan rd pad thai and spring rolls.

[gemini81]

Due to most people's financial situation here, many such as laborers cannot afford to sit inside of a new, air conditioned supermarket every meal, c'mon. Most need a quick meal and don't have time anyway due to Bangkok's horrendous traffic and other things.
Street food and the spontaneous feel of Bangkok is what makes it special.

I don't see the need for moaning. If you're fussy, have a high budget & think you're so great, then go to greyhound, sit down & shut up, especially a spoiled little kid who has been here all of 2.5 years!

Edited August 15, 2013 by gemini81

[Andre0720]

I avoid eating street food if I can . It's just not healthy for you , even if some of it tastes good.

Yes I am paying 100 baht for my dinner inside a small restaurant instead of 30 baht outside.

And you think the ingredients are different???

[anon210]

I generally eat at a restaurant where people cook in front of the customers with fresh ingredients, hygiene, and professional attention to cooking. The price is just 60 THB rather than 30, but hygiene at least is decent (they cook before the customers, the kitchen staff just cooks and does not handle money, etv). Food is also good and there is no excessive taste. Never using street food again. The few times I Ate it, I ended sick once on twice.

[Kayahammer]

Don't like street food? Don't eat it!

Don't like pavements filled with vendors of all descriptions? Leave and live somewhere else!

These moaners would find fault anywhere they lived. The problem is not the place but themselves.

[aryehgizbar]

what makes the author think that restaurants don't use MSG? I'm not a fan of MSG and don't use it when I cook my food, but I'm not totally against it.

I agree with certain parts of the article and I could probably compare it to some street foods here in the Philippines that are not healthy and clean. But I think it basically boils down to your own judgment. When I go to Thailand, I eat on the stalls that lets you take your food home and I eat on-the-go or at home. If I can find hot water to splash my utensils with if I dine in, that would be better. Some of you might find it funny but I buy those yakult drinks (those with live microorganisms) in 7-11 to help protect my stomach with whatever I eat. I don't necessarily think it sucks because some of the food really do taste great. Plus, I'd rather go to the street food vendor than go to the mall and eat at fast food chains.

[roiethome]

Two and a half years of living in Thailand is way too short a time to be considered an expert on street food.

I have lived here for nearly 18 years and very often et foods from the street, and never once have I had a bad stomach. Usually I fell unwell after eating at some of the big restaurants in hotels. I know from personal experience in food distribution that often the foods for the larger hotels is distributed by companies who keep frozen food on a loading dock in ambient temperatures, so it defrosts slightly, then back into a chilled vehicle for delivery, checked in ambient conditions at the back of hotel, thaws again, before being put back into freezers; this is how the food becomes contaminated.

I am not saying all business is like this, but certainly some I have known.

Streetfood is cooked at high temperature and this kills off any bacteria etc. After a few years of eating street food, the body becomes immune to small amounts of contaminants; problem being some western stomachs are so used to sterile foods that they cant handle the foods in Thailand.

One last point, Please don't turn Thailand into another Singapore; it is the most boring selfish city state in Asia, and I don't know how any sane person could live there, after six months of living and working there I was going up the walls and desperate to get back to LOS.

[Jasun]

No worse than a McDonalds or KFC. In fact, a lot of the street food carts are actually a franchise, particularly anything that is based around noodles, BBQ chicken or fish and pork balls. The majority of ingredients are prepared off-site and delivered to the seller.

[mbeau]

This person has been in Bangkok for two and a half years and is an expert on Street food! That in itself is an amusing proposition - but the sweeping generalizations that follow are the biggest load of crapola I've read in a long time! In my opinion, and I have been based in Bangkok since 1987, Bangkok street food is excellent, and is second only to Bangkok restaurant food! When I first arrived I was given a valuable tip: sure there are cases of unsanitary practices, but if you see lots of Thai people consistently eating at a given venue, the chances are there aren't too many people getting sick. And where in the world is there 100% safe and sanitary food? In all my years here I was sick once - and that was after eating at a steakhouse back in 1990. In contrast, I have been sick several times in Australia, England, Germany and the USA - each time after attending a very sanitary looking restaurant.

As for MSG, if you take the trouble to learn the lingo and specifically ask for it to be omitted, you will normally be accommodated. Unless of course it is all pre-prepared, in which case you have a choice. Diversity is one of the best things about eating in this city!

I remember the days when eating in Singapore used to be almost as good as in Bangkok - but those days are long gone!The "clean-up", regulation and sterilization of food in Singapore has turned it into a boring Western replica. I would urge the author of the article to take up residence in any number of countries that offer uniformity and blandness under the illusion of safe and regulated sanitary practices and nutrition.

[kamahele]

Huh? Yeah for the most part, street food is not that healthy and is certainly unsanitary but not much more so than most restaurants here. Have you ever stepped foot inside the kitchens at the restaurants here?? However, there is nothing like getting some good, old fashioned street food late at night after a few beers (or more) at the pub. If one has lived here for a long time, one probably knows which stalls have the best tasting food and perhaps the cleanest cooking environment. I must say that I've only gotten food poisoning once in four years from eating street food and that says a lot as I eat a lot of street food.

[rosswlkr]

2.5 years LMAFO

I seldom pitch in here and most of what I could say has already been said. But can't help myself on this one. Street food is awesome. This article is nonsense. Small street vendors typically get all their ingredients fresh every day, and it's flash cooked lava hot right in front of you. Not so in restaurants. Do you have any idea what goes on in restaurants? Far more dangerous I assure you. Just read some Anthony Bourdain he can explain much better than I.

I lived in Singapore for 10 years, coming to Thailand very very frequently all that time, until finally moving here earlier this year.. In Sg hawker center rents are so high, and costs of meat and other ingredients so high, you often end up with the most pathetic scraps of meat and a pathetically over cooked single piece of yukky kale (chinese cabbage) in your mound of bland noodles, soaked in MSG ridden soup for 125 baht. Oh, and if you want one of the more 'popular' meals at lunchtime in a hawker - have you seen the lines of people 30-40 deep at one single stall, all the other stalls with no customers? And have you tried getting a table at lunchtime? Have you??? Make sure you 'Chope' the table with a paper napkin pack before wasting 30 minutes of your life (and everyone else's because now nobody can use that table) you will never get back queuing for the food! All the tables are 'choped' with napkins and empty because people are queuing up - and then you can't find a free table. Singapore needs to BAN this practice it is completely illogical!!!!

Bangkok street food? Generous hunks of pork, chicken or beef, farmed locally, fresh boiled egg, chunks of veg, generously ridden with highly nutritious slices of garlic, ginger, chili etc, etc, .... 30-40 baht - instant and a place to sit. Common man street food is what life is all about!

I moved to Bangkok because it is full of life, culture, atmosphere and smiles - it still is if you keep an open mind, stay calm and be nice to everybody. Yes it's not perfect - but it has SOUL and that's what counts. Big hunks of fresh cut fruits right of the sidewalk, huge cauldrons of simmering pork, cheap and good right of the sidewalk? I'd give my left <deleted> to see that in Singapore again ..... mind you, one bad thing about street food is I do have a paranoia of one day tripping drunk face first into a wok of boiling oil - perhaps Bkk should do something about that one because it does seem a little dangerous.

Singapore, any and all of what has soul or culture was repressed and diluted by the governments dictorial crackdowns through the 70's and 80's - overcrowding, overpricing, greed and inflation, rich and poor divide is wider than you think or know these days ... resentment to foreigners and a general sense of zenophobia runs deep. Let's turn Bangkok into Singapore? I don't think so. So Thailand let's fix the traffic, corruption and education, the rest will fall into place. And spend a few billion baht to reopen the klongs with river taxis all through the city - 2 in 1 fix: flooding issues and traffic!!! And you'll get to keep all your beautiful culture atmosphere and vibe along the way, which Singapore is now trying in baby steps to reinstall - unfortunately, that is no easy task.

There's my manifest for Bangkok! Next?

[rsokolowski]

Organic food is over rated (IMO), overpriced, and studies have shown it to not be any better than non-organic food. How about buyer beware (caveat emptor) and eat at the street food stalls that serve good food which lots of Thai's frequent. Is a nanny state like Singapore really an option? Don't get me wrong, I like Singapore for a short visit but would never want to live there.

[siamjimi]

Pretty much agree that most, not all, soi chow has too much oil, salt, sugar, Ajinimoto and no real balance/flavor profiles.

I'd also like to see more food courts like Singapore, which, as the author points out, had a similar problem with street vendors.

"Bangkok is in dire need of a solution to the street food problem. As is often the case with issues of urban management, the city must look to Singapore for the answer. Aware of the problem since the 1950s, the authorities in Singapore moved troublesome vendors into “hawker centers” and, later, air-conditioned food courts. Happily, street food in today’s Singapore is sold in an environment the authorities can control. It’s safe, regulated and the streets of the city are a pleasure to stroll down."

This is the spot on reply of this thread - if Thailand can adopt proven methods to clean up the streets and sidewalks by consolidating the food vendors into reasonably located lots accessible by the area the vendors operate in currently - everyone wins.

[razorramone]

Fair enough then. But can you imagine if a bowl of noodles went from 30 to 125 baht overnight in Thailand?

I agree as well about controlling the street food a bit more, though there are some great places around my neighborhood that I would hate to see shut down, esp. as nothing else is open as late as they are.

Nice hyperbole but a meal costs 50 baht in centralworld food court.

[Familyonthemove]

Pretty much agree that most, not all, soi chow has too much oil, salt, sugar, Ajinimoto and no real balance/flavor profiles.

 

I'd also like to see more food courts like Singapore, which, as the author points out, had a similar problem with street vendors.

 

"Bangkok is in dire need of a solution to the street food problem. As is often the case with issues of urban management, the city must look to Singapore for the answer. Aware of the problem since the 1950s, the authorities in Singapore moved troublesome vendors into “hawker centers” and, later, air-conditioned food courts. Happily, street food in today’s Singapore is sold in an environment the authorities can control. It’s safe, regulated and the streets of the city are a pleasure to stroll down."

 

This is the spot on reply of this thread - if Thailand can adopt proven methods to clean up the streets and sidewalks by consolidating the food vendors into reasonably located lots accessible by the area the vendors operate in currently - everyone wins.

.... or loses depending on your point of view.

If people like the Singapore model so much - why live in Bangkok?

Sent from my i-mobile IQ 9A using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[Wavefloater]

2.5 years LMAFO

I seldom pitch in here and most of what I could say has already been said. But can't help myself on this one. Street food is awesome. This article is nonsense. Small street vendors typically get all their ingredients fresh every day, and it's flash cooked lava hot right in front of you. Not so in restaurants. Do you have any idea what goes on in restaurants? Far more dangerous I assure you. Just read some Anthony Bourdain he can explain much better than I.

I lived in Singapore for 10 years, coming to Thailand very very frequently all that time, until finally moving here earlier this year.. In Sg hawker center rents are so high, and costs of meat and other ingredients so high, you often end up with the most pathetic scraps of meat and a pathetically over cooked single piece of yukky kale (chinese cabbage) in your mound of bland noodles, soaked in MSG ridden soup for 125 baht. Oh, and if you want one of the more 'popular' meals at lunchtime in a hawker - have you seen the lines of people 30-40 deep at one single stall, all the other stalls with no customers? And have you tried getting a table at lunchtime? Have you??? Make sure you 'Chope' the table with a paper napkin pack before wasting 30 minutes of your life (and everyone else's because now nobody can use that table) you will never get back queuing for the food! All the tables are 'choped' with napkins and empty because people are queuing up - and then you can't find a free table. Singapore needs to BAN this practice it is completely illogical!!!!

Bangkok street food? Generous hunks of pork, chicken or beef, farmed locally, fresh boiled egg, chunks of veg, generously ridden with highly nutritious slices of garlic, ginger, chili etc, etc, .... 30-40 baht - instant and a place to sit. Common man street food is what life is all about!

I moved to Bangkok because it is full of life, culture, atmosphere and smiles - it still is if you keep an open mind, stay calm and be nice to everybody. Yes it's not perfect - but it has SOUL and that's what counts. Big hunks of fresh cut fruits right of the sidewalk, huge cauldrons of simmering pork, cheap and good right of the sidewalk? I'd give my left <deleted> to see that in Singapore again ..... mind you, one bad thing about street food is I do have a paranoia of one day tripping drunk face first into a wok of boiling oil - perhaps Bkk should do something about that one because it does seem a little dangerous.

Singapore, any and all of what has soul or culture was repressed and diluted by the governments dictorial crackdowns through the 70's and 80's - overcrowding, overpricing, greed and inflation, rich and poor divide is wider than you think or know these days ... resentment to foreigners and a general sense of zenophobia runs deep. Let's turn Bangkok into Singapore? I don't think so. So Thailand let's fix the traffic, corruption and education, the rest will fall into place. And spend a few billion baht to reopen the klongs with river taxis all through the city - 2 in 1 fix: flooding issues and traffic!!! And you'll get to keep all your beautiful culture atmosphere and vibe along the way, which Singapore is now trying in baby steps to reinstall - unfortunately, that is no easy task.

There's my manifest for Bangkok! Next?

It's nice to get a well-expressed perspective from someone who has an understanding of both situations. (I realize that others have given the sterile Singapore perspective and warned us of not going that way, so I'm happy that many or most of us want to keep some of the grittiness of Bangkok and not turn into a Singapore.)

[Bolsta]

Man I love street food and take it for what it is.

Here is great link where someone eats nothing but street food a month.

http://www.enjoythaifood.com/thai-street-food/thai-street-food-challenge.html

There is some great food in there.

Enjoy

[rayw]

Of course most of us do not want the long faces of Singapore here in Bangkok or any other Thai city, but I have to agree about Bangkok street food. Very dangerous and causes blocked pavements which are also dangerous to pedestrians. That can be changed without creating another Singapore surely, why would that be so difficult?

IF we are to keep street food vendors then they need very very strict food hygiene controls as in most civilised countries and make that a condition of their trading licence. Cannot see it happening here as such food hygiene inspectors would most likely just give a clean bill of health for some nice tea money. Much like the police as well such official inspectors need to be well paid with pensions so they do not want to risk their good jobs with the corruption of tea money. IT is really not complicated and a no brainer IMHO.

For me I will NEVER use street food vendors in Bangkok or any other place in Thailand, or India or similar such poorly hygiene controlled places. I hope it does change as I love Thailand and love living here as sure I simply just personally avoid street food and anyway try to avoid MSG even though I know it tastes good.

[JCaligula]

Dear Terence Wang

100% agreed..and i'm with you all the way on this topic..those who had stayed in this city for more then 2 years and myself been here for 5 years now..only for people who loves street food and i think street food elsewhere do have some sort of quality even though it is called "Street Food" would have understood what we're talking about when we compare with Singapore..leave those alone that just being naive as everybody knows especially those had stayed here for certain of time and eat out a lot most of times and you knew the experience of eating street food..In street of Bangkok..it depends also where you eat..most part of the city does the street hawkers depends a lot on MSG,Sugar,Nam Pla..that's it..

Just yesterday i was tempted to try this Kuay Teaw noodle(as the locals called it) stall which just happen to open in the noon and i was the first customer there..normally i will ask for more soup'Nam yek yek'..the ingredients looks good with the fish balls,some meats etc..turns out my soup was extremely sweet with lots of sugar in it and i have to modify the taste to add more Nam Pla in it..this is the first time but it happens most time...and in this big population city you can see most hawkers do not care about hygiene and depends so much on MSG...

It is very annoying when travel media like CNN Go and recent Bloomberg giving a misleading reports about the street foods in Bangkok...It's all dirty news..

So much to talk about the street food here..and yes Singapore,Japan,Korea,Hong Kong..this cities are not perfect too but they are far from Bangkok in terms of quality and hygiene should be the example of how the street food are regulated and the public are happy about it..anyway some part of this city you can still find some hawkers are clean and well organized but if you want to have street food ..it's better to have it in a food court in any malls in Bangkok..they are clean and safe to eat but still they still depends on stuff like MSG and lots of sugar...and it's nothing to do with being poor or what so ever...the street food here doesn't seem to cost that cheap for the locals unless if you're an expat or being a foreigner or tourist..it's the same with in Singapore or Hong Kong where the street food is according to the local living cost standard..

It is sad to see sometimes the Som Tum stalls on the streets are blend with the black smokes from the buses and all sorts of pollution coming from the streets..

By the way in Singapore or any Chinese noodles 'Keow Teaw' almost the same type of noodle soup and the soup is based on chicken or pork broth not from MSG,Sugar and some rubbish...