Good Thai Food Restaurants

[Bill97]

Thanom near Darats.

[amexpat]

48 minutes ago, kalbo123 said:

When I get guest from abroad they always ask me to take them to a good Thai restaurant, I tell them I don't know of any in Chiang Mai, I know popular restaurants, but don't think they are really good. I dare to even say that in most European cities the Thai restaurants are better then in Thailand, because the ingredients they use are of better quality then is available in Thailand.

 

Exactly.  A Thai restaurant in Thailand serves "authentic" Thai food.

 

Authentic isn't necessarily better or even good.  Progress, you know. Innovation and improvement happen. 

 

Thai and Chinese food is also better in the USA. 

[Bill97]

 
Thai and Chinese food is also better in the USA. 

There is undoubtedly some good Thai food in America but much of it sucks like Mexican food here.

[stament]

On 2017-6-23 at 1:12 PM, Bill97 said:

Thanom near Darats.

Can you pls give more info on location pls as Google didn't help ?

[Bill97]

Google gets you the Lonely Planet recommendation, Bing gets at least 3 hits and if you go to Darats and do not see it, ask inside for help. You will only be about 20 meters from it. You may not like it, I do not recall ever seeing alcohol there.

[canthai55]

On 6/23/2017 at 2:46 AM, amexpat said:

Thai and Chinese food is also better in the USA. 

??? 555

[amexpat]

^  Compare the produce, poultry, etc.  There are plenty of Thai cooks and all the ingredients are available and better.

 

But if you are a stickler for authentic re-used palm oil, you are in the right place.  Enjoy. 

[canthai55]

4 minutes ago, amexpat said:

^  Compare the produce, poultry, etc.  There are plenty of Thai cooks and all the ingredients are available and better.

 

But if you are a stickler for authentic re-used palm oil, you are in the right place.  Enjoy. 

We cook at home, but even when going out to eat it is obvious that our knowledge of local cuisine and the best places to eat far exceed yours.

To say that Thai ( which area, there are many) - or Chinese (which Chinese, there are many) cuisine is better after being exported to another country ... Again, I give you ... 555

[elektrified]

deleted -messed up the quotes

Edited June 25, 2017 by elektrified

[elektrified]

1 hour ago, amexpat said:

^  Compare the produce, poultry, etc.  There are plenty of Thai cooks and all the ingredients are available and better.

 

But if you are a stickler for authentic re-used palm oil, you are in the right place.  Enjoy. 

I agree with this. Actually even my Thai family agreed that the Thai food in USA and some places in Europe is superior. They use much higher quality ingredients, better cuts of meat, larger portions, etc.

 

As far as the Chinese food is concerned, you can find some good Chinese food in Bangkok and of course get "the real deal" in Hat Yai. But I think what people mean is that the Cantonese food that many of us grew up with in the 1950's-1990's in Europe and America suits our tastes better; that's all.

Edited June 25, 2017 by elektrified

[elektrified]

40 minutes ago, canthai55 said:

... it is obvious that our knowledge of local cuisine and the best places to eat far exceed yours.

To say that Thai ( which area, there are many) - or Chinese (which Chinese, there are many) cuisine is better after being exported to another country ... Again, I give you ... 555

Well my family is from Thailand and we rarely go out to eat as we cook at home too. But they don't get excited about Thai restaurants until we get to Bangkok.

 

And yes, the cuisine is better when it has been exported to another country as the ingredients are much higher quality. And besides the chefs are from Thailand/China....etc...

[heybruce]

 

On 6/23/2017 at 4:52 AM, kalbo123 said:

When I get guest from abroad they always ask me to take them to a good Thai restaurant, I tell them I don't know of any in Chiang Mai, I know popular restaurants, but don't think they are really good. I dare to even say that in most European cities the Thai restaurants are better then in Thailand, because the ingredients they use are of better quality then is available in Thailand.

 

 

3 hours ago, elektrified said:

Well my family is from Thailand and we rarely go out to eat as we cook at home too. But they don't get excited about Thai restaurants until we get to Bangkok.

 

And yes, the cuisine is better when it has been exported to another country as the ingredients are much higher quality. And besides the chefs are from Thailand/China....etc...

kalbo:  I can only assume you have no Thai friends.  You may think you do, but if these people liked you they would show you some good Thai restaurants.

 

electrified:  I don't consider dried and powdered ingredients used as replacements for the fresh bay leaves, lemon grass, ginger, mangoes, etc. to be higher quality.

 

I think it is more likely that both of you don't like Thai food unless it has been westernized.

[amexpat]

1 hour ago, heybruce said:

fresh bay leaves, lemon grass, ginger, mangoes, etc.

None of which are grown exclusively in Thailand. 

 

Have you heard about globalization?  Marco Polo was a key player but it really took off a few decades ago.

Check it out. 

[heybruce]

4 minutes ago, amexpat said:

None of which are grown exclusively in Thailand. 

 

Have you heard about globalization?  Marco Polo was a key player but it really took off a few decades ago.

Check it out. 

Most of which are not grown in large quantities in the US and Europe, and none of which appear to be used fresh in the western Thai restaurants I've been to.

 

There are good Thai food restaurants all over Chiang Mai.  If you can't find them, you need to get a Thai friend to help you.  If authentic Thai food isn't to your taste, you shouldn't be posting on this thread.

[amexpat]

Please, sir, let me post a little more.

 

Of course there are good Thai restaurants in CM.  But "authentic" can be improved with superior ingredients.

 

[heybruce]

6 minutes ago, amexpat said:

Please, sir, let me post a little more.

 

Of course there are good Thai restaurants in CM.  But "authentic" can be improved with superior ingredients.

 

Fair enough.  When I look at how meat, chicken and pork are kept in Thai markets I remind myself to always ask for "well-done".

[kalbo123]

As I said before, it's about the quality of the ingredients, most vegetables and fruits in Thailand are contaminated with over the limited pesticides, even so called organic grown vegetables and fruits.

Then the quality of meat is also not up to western standards, especially beef dishes I avoid here, 9 out of 10 Thai dishes that contain beef  are uneatable. simply because imported beef is too expensive to use for most Thai restaurants,

 

[kalbo123]

37 minutes ago, heybruce said:

Fair enough.  When I look at how meat, chicken and pork are kept in Thai markets I remind myself to always ask for "well-done".

 

You should not even have to ask for that, all chicken and pork should be cooked well done, as it's dangerous to eat those products medium or rare.

[Sandy Freckle]

Khao Soi Khun Yai..., off Sri Phum..., inside a small walled compound.., easy to miss..., they're only open between 10am and 2 pm and pretty much only sell Kho Soi and cold drinks..., best Khao Soi I've tasted anywhere..., only 35bt.
Sometimes people have to wait for a table.

[heybruce]

5 hours ago, kalbo123 said:

 

You should not even have to ask for that, all chicken and pork should be cooked well done, as it's dangerous to eat those products medium or rare.

That's true, it was a rhetorical comment.  Thai's always cook meats thoroughly.  I've talked to a manager of a western restaurant who expressed extreme frustration that he can't keep his cook from grilling expensive imported beef until it's hard and dry.

[JaseTheBass]

 
You should not even have to ask for that, all chicken and pork should be cooked well done, as it's dangerous to eat those products medium or rare.

Here it is, yes, because the meat isn't looked after properly. Pork doesn't need to be cooked well done if it's looked after properly (ask a proper chef the next time you visit the West).

Chicken is another matter entirely.

Sent from my SM-T815Y using Tapatalk

[jobin]

Is beef a traditional Thai meat?  In China eating beef is not at all part of the food culture of the Han.  And the 'beef' animals here, esp in the past, were water buffalo which may not be so tasty or easy to eat. 

The beef of the west is a very modern cut of meat.  So maybe authentic Thai beef dishes are a western invention.   

[elektrified]

8 hours ago, heybruce said:

 

 

kalbo:  I can only assume you have no Thai friends.  You may think you do, but if these people liked you they would show you some good Thai restaurants.

 

electrified:  I don't consider dried and powdered ingredients used as replacements for the fresh bay leaves, lemon grass, ginger, mangoes, etc. to be higher quality.

 

I think it is more likely that both of you don't like Thai food unless it has been westernized.

heybruce I was friends with a Thai restaurant owner in Europe. Her mother traveled to Thailand about 4 times a year and brought back many boxes of authentic Thai cooking herbs, spices, dry chilies, etc. As far as the lemongrass, ginger, etc. the Vietnamese have that covered. They supply all the Thai restaurants in Europe.

[canthai55]

7 hours ago, Sandy Freckle said:

 best Khao Soi I've tasted anywhere..., only 35bt.

Lady in our village makes the best I have ever eaten - Huge bowl, melt-in-your-mouth Gai, pickled cabbage on the side.  Will have to taste test your recommendation

[heybruce]

4 hours ago, elektrified said:

heybruce I was friends with a Thai restaurant owner in Europe. Her mother traveled to Thailand about 4 times a year and brought back many boxes of authentic Thai cooking herbs, spices, dry chilies, etc. As far as the lemongrass, ginger, etc. the Vietnamese have that covered. They supply all the Thai restaurants in Europe.

Boxes of dried stuff, got it.  Are the lemongrass, ginger, etc available in Europe as fresh as that used in local Thai kitchens?

 

It does seem like you developed a taste for westernized Thai food in Europe.  Understandable.  I tried pizza in Italy and decided I liked the American version better.

[elektrified]

4 hours ago, heybruce said:

Boxes of dried stuff, got it.  Are the lemongrass, ginger, etc available in Europe as fresh as that used in local Thai kitchens?

 

It does seem like you developed a taste for westernized Thai food in Europe.  Understandable.  I tried pizza in Italy and decided I liked the American version better.

Of course they are fresh. They are grown by the Vietnamese and distributed all over Europe.

 

"Westernized"? I am talking quality; quality and clean cooking oil, higher quality meats and poultry, as well as a high standard of hygiene. As I said, the Thais in the family all thought the Thai food served at Thai restaurants in USA and in some European cities was better. 

[Dante99]

Some folks do not appreciate da kine and prefer the watered down doctored up, others are convinced their da kine is the same as other's.

 

 

When is the last time any of you "CM Thai food is no good folks" have tried the food at Thanom?  Or Yawt Aroy?

[Sandy Freckle]

8 hours ago, canthai55 said:

Lady in our village makes the best I have ever eaten - Huge bowl, melt-in-your-mouth Gai, pickled cabbage on the side.  Will have to taste test your recommendation

"Melt in your mouth chicken sounds good.., I'd like to taste the one you mention in your village..., although I'd guess it's out of my potential travel area..., personally, I enjoy the taste of extra spice in the local Thai fare...., plus I believe the capsaicin within the chillies are good for me.

Edited June 26, 2017 by Sandy Freckle

[heybruce]

4 hours ago, elektrified said:

Of course they are fresh. They are grown by the Vietnamese and distributed all over Europe.

 

"Westernized"? I am talking quality; quality and clean cooking oil, higher quality meats and poultry, as well as a high standard of hygiene. As I said, the Thais in the family all thought the Thai food served at Thai restaurants in USA and in some European cities was better. 

Grown in Vietnam, packaged, shipped to a logistics hub, (presumably) flown to Europe, shipped to another logistics hub, distribute across Europe.  Not as fresh as what is used locally, especially if the spices are dried.  The spices used are what make Thai food distinctive, and the spices used in Thailand are much fresher than the spices used in Europe. 

 

That has been my point through-out, fresh is better than dried, and fruits and vegetables that are two days or less out of the farm are better than those that have spent days in transit, and have been chosen to be hard (green) enough to survive the transit.

 

I don't argue that food hygiene standards are higher in much of Europe, but the ingredients are much further, in time and distance, form their origins.  You will not find tom yam gung or mango salad in Europe that compares to what is in Thailand.  More plain dishes, such as pad thai gai, may be comparable and have better quality chicken, but I don't consider the plain dishes to be representative of Thai food.

[Bill97]

Yeh yeh yeh, a month ago you would be adamant that the fire safety standards in England(and Europe?) were 1000 times better than here too.