Discovering Bangkok – Preparing for the feeding frenzy!

As lunchtime approaches Bangkok’s shopping malls, food courts and streets suddenly become choked with the mass of hungry workers searching for a quick meal. Resembling a chaotic feeding frenzy appetites are easily satisfied by the overwhelming abundance of food that is on offer. It goes without saying that food is probably one of the most exciting ways of discovering Bangkok, and as for the world famous street food, you don’t need a silver fork to eat great food!
 

“Hello I’m Peter, I hope that after watching the video some of you guys will remember me! Today I will take you for a short walk along a typical sidewalk and through a small local market in the Central Business District of Bangkok. Surprisingly we are only 5 minutes away from our peaceful Clubhouse, as we always just cycle through this area on our Siam Sawan bicycle tour I thought it would be interesting to show you where the local office staff go for lunch and explain what’s on the menu”

Peter – tour guide at Follow Me Bangkok Bicycle Tours

You may not be aware that the majority of the large office buildings throughout Bangkok have food courts, these are typically located in the basements and mainly serve authentic Thai dishes, snacks and drinks. Although these can be convenient and hygienic with comfortable air conditioning they can get overcrowded and offer no change of scenery, and usually they are relatively expensive.
 

Thankfully in this none tourist area of the Central Business District of Sathorn, local street food vendors and market stall vendors have filled the void, providing quick food that is either already prepared and ready to eat, or made to order and cooked fresh. The different types of food can be packed as a takeaway, or alternatively like in the food court, they can be eaten and enjoyed in the dining area where tables are shared with work colleagues and strangers.
 

Many hours before the office staff descend from the heights of the glistening towers these food vendors, many who are probably undiscovered great chefs, would have been busy preparing the colourful and aromatic foodie paradise. With the office working week being Monday to Friday, and Monday being the Bangkok street cleaning day, these vendors will only be seen in this area from Tuesday to Friday and typically they will disappear shortly after the lunchtime rush.
 

For some reason, which is unknown to us, most food vendors tend to be women who use pushcarts or food trucks so that they can easily move from one area to another. As we have seen before in our Bangkok Street Life videos they enjoy this sense of freedom that comes with being their own boss.
 

Providing both value for money and fantastic fast food, these vendors will always be an integral part of the vibrant Bangkok street life.