27 editor picks across Thailand.
27 budget eating worth the trip across Thailand, editor-ranked by TableJourney. All Thailand guides.
Go-Ang Pratunam in Bangkok is the pink-uniform chicken-rice counter on Petchaburi, Bib Gourmand since 2018 with khao man gai plates under 100 baht since 1960.
OrderKhao man gai Hainanese chicken rice
TipCash only. Queues from 10:00-14:00 then 16:00-21:00. The original Pratunam location, six total branches in the city.
Thipsamai in Bangkok's Old Town has cooked the city's most famous Bib Gourmand pad Thai since 1966 with plates under 200 baht, even with the shrimp oil.
OrderPad Thai wrapped in egg
TipCash only. Closed Tuesdays. Open Wed-Mon 09:00 to midnight; the wrapped-in-egg pad Thai is the canonical order.
Polo Fried Chicken in Bangkok's Soi Polo is the Bib Gourmand garlic-fried-chicken room, a 1989 family business deep-frying half birds with crispy fried.
OrderGarlic fried chicken with sticky rice
TipCash only. Lunch crowds fill the room by 12:00; arrive before opening or after 14:00. Open 07:00-21:00 daily.
Mor Mu Dong serves Southern Thai seafood from rustic pavilions over the Mu Dong Canal in Chalong, Phuket, its live seafood tanks proving the daily catch.
OrderSouthern Thai seafood, live tanks to table
TipOrder three or four dishes to share and ask for a table with a canal view at high tide.
One Chun is a Michelin Bib Gourmand fixture in a vintage-styled 19th century building in Phuket Town, cooking family recipes passed down the generations.
OrderMu hong (braised pork belly) and family Southern Thai dishes
TipTry the spicy shrimp and shrimp-paste salad alongside the mu hong, and bring cash: the Michelin Guide lists One Chun as cash only.
Or Tor Kor in Bangkok's Chatuchak is the cleanest food court in the city with curry plates and som tam stalls under 200 baht, the Bib Gourmand som tam pla ra.
OrderSom tam, grilled chicken, curry plates
TipThe som tam pla ra stall in the back corner is the canonical order; the durian and mangosteen vendors are seasonal.
The Cowboy Hat Lady's braised pork leg over rice at the North Gate market is the classic 50-baht Chiang Mai dinner, soft, sweet and reliably packed.
OrderKhao kha moo over rice
Go Ang Seafood grew from a zinc-roofed shop into a Phuket institution on Phuket Road, its blue crab and mantis shrimp sourced from five markets daily.
OrderSouthern Thai seafood, blue crab and mantis shrimp
TipOrder the steamed crab with tangy dip and the fried mantis shrimp with garlic; the kitchen opens at 17:00 and runs to 23:30.
Nai Ek in Bangkok's Yaowarat has cooked Bib Gourmand kuay jab in peppery pork-offal broth since 1960, bowls with crispy pork belly all under 120 baht.
OrderKuay jab Yaowarat in pork broth
TipOpen 08:00 to midnight, cash only. Closed for Chinese New Year. Queue from 11:00 onwards on weekdays.
A Bib Gourmand bowl of coconut khao soi for 50 to 75 baht near the Ratchaphuek lane, proof the city's best noodles cost less than a coffee in Nimman.
OrderKhao soi
Chom Chan serves Phuket-style Southern Thai recipes in a Sino-Portuguese house on Yaowarat Road, its curry soup with barramundi belly a local favourite.
OrderPhuket-style Southern Thai family recipes
TipOrder the tangy orange curry soup with barramundi belly and share a few plates; the bill stays easy on the wallet.
Krua Baan Platong cooks intensely flavoured Southern Thai dishes down a small Thalang alley in Phuket, its budu-dipped steamed pork belly a highlight.
OrderSteamed pork belly with budu dipping sauce
TipBook and order ahead; the alley location and small dining room mean tables go quickly.
Charcoal gai yang, papaya salad and sticky rice near Wat Phra Singh make SP Chicken one of the Old City's best-value Isan-style lunches under 150 baht.
OrderGrilled chicken and som tam
Herb-roasted chicken and Isan grills at student prices off Nimman, where a smoky half-chicken with sticky rice and som tam lands well under 200 baht.
OrderRoast chicken and larb
A packed Old City morning canteen famous for Hainanese chicken rice and charcoal pork satay, a classic khao man gai counter near the market.
OrderKhao man gai and pork satay
Boat Noodle Alley off Victory Monument in Bangkok serves 50-baht bowls of kuay teow ruea pork or beef noodles from a row of canal-side stalls.
OrderBoat noodles (kuay teow ruea)
TipCash only. Order three or four small bowls to rotate flavours; locals stack five bowls at the bigger Boat Noodle Heaven stall.
Beef khao soi, roti and biryani for well under 100 baht in the Ban Haw quarter, a cheap, filling window into the dish's Yunnanese-Muslim origins.
OrderBeef khao soi and roti
A Bib Gourmand bowl of peppery rolled-noodle guay jub near Warorot for 40 to 60 baht, one of the best cheap midday feeds anywhere in the old town.
OrderGuay jub noodle soup
Crisp pa thong ko fried to order at Ton Lamyai Market, dipped in pandan custard for a few coins, the cheapest Bib Gourmand snack in the whole city.
OrderFried dough with custard
A Bib Gourmand khao man gai shop on Old San Sai Road northeast of the city, poaching chicken over fat-cooked rice for about 45 baht until the pot runs dry.
OrderChicken rice
Rung Rueang in Bangkok's Sukhumvit 26 is the Bib Gourmand pork-noodle counter, four generations of pork balls in kuay teow rice noodles, all bowls under 100.
OrderTom yum pork noodles
TipCash only. Open 08:00-17:00 daily; lunch queues from 11:30. Two branches on Sukhumvit 26, both run by the same family.
Sang Ka Si serves generous individual and sharing plates from a red zinc-roofed shop on Yaowarat Road in Phuket, its fresh squid with herbs drawing a wait.
OrderFresh squid with herbs and sharing plates
TipExpect a short wait for a table; order the fresh squid with herbs and a shared plate to split.
One of the oldest northern kitchens in the Old City keeps most plates under 100 baht, a no-frills, decades-deep option for hang lay and larb on a budget.
OrderNorthern curries and rice
Hong Khao Tom Pla draws a nightly queue on Kra Road in Phuket for its whiteboard daily catch, the fresh prawns and seafood mainstay of a small owner-run shop.
OrderWhiteboard daily-catch seafood and prawns
TipCheck the whiteboard for the daily catch and expect a queue after 18:00 most evenings.
Krua Kao Kuk carries on a roadside-stall legacy on Phatthana Road in Phuket, its khao tom pla and deep-fried meatballs cooked to the family recipe.
OrderKhao tom pla and deep-fried meatballs
TipOrder the boiled rice with fish and the deep-fried meatballs; the granddaughter still runs the kitchen.
Ton Mayom cooks Phuket town classics under an old mayom tree in Ratsada, its deep-fried local fish topped with fragrant curry paste a house favourite.
OrderDeep-fried local fish with curry paste
TipAsk for the deep-fried local fish with curry paste; the short menu suits small groups well.
Gorjan is a simple family-run kitchen near Gorjan Bridge on Kra Road in Phuket, where the owner cooks rich-flavoured house recipes to order for each table.
OrderHome-style Thai dishes cooked to order
TipAsk the owner what to order; many dishes are the family's own recipes and each is cooked to order.
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