Sampeng Lane in Bangkok's Yaowarat Chinatown is the 250-year-old daytime wholesale alley for dried goods, Chinese-Thai pastes and bird's-nest soup vendors, since 1782.
Tip: Daytime trade only; closes by 17:00 before the night market kicks in. Wholesale prices apply for bulk purchases.
Address: Sampeng Lane (Soi Wanit 1), Samphanthawong, Bangkok 10100
Or Tor Kor in Bangkok's Chatuchak is the Marketing Organisation for Farmers' agricultural showcase, the cleanest food market in the city since 1982 with 250 vendors.
Tip: The back corner food court has Bib Gourmand som tam stalls; the front rows are seasonal durian and mangosteen vendors.
Chatuchak Weekend Market in Bangkok's Chatuchak runs Saturday and Sunday only with 15,000 stalls, the city's largest market and a food-court chain across multiple sections.
Tip: Section 26 and 27 are the food clusters. Arrive by 10:00 to beat the heat; the BTS Mo Chit station is two minutes away.
Klong Toey in Bangkok is the city's largest wholesale fresh market, 600-plus vendors selling seafood, butchered meat, curry pastes and produce since the 1940s.
Tip: Arrive 05:00 to 07:00 for the wholesale buying scene; the chef-only window is over by 09:00. Cash only, bring small notes.
Iconsiam SookSiam in Bangkok's Khlong San riverside mall is the indoor floating-market food hall, with 100 stalls representing all four regions of Thailand under one roof.
Tip: Tokenless cashless payment via the Iconsiam app. Each section pulls from a different region, from southern Thai to northern Lanna.
Ratchawat Market in Bangkok's Dusit is a 200-vendor local fresh market with the city's densest pad Thai and sticky-rice-dessert stall stretch, off the tourist circuit.
Tip: Locals only, no English signage. The pad Thai stall near Gate 3 is the local pick; cash only, small notes.