BANGKOK \u2013 With its bustling street food culture and mastery of spices, Bangkok is a food haven.<\/p>\n
From savoury boat noodles to tom yum soup to sweet treats such as mango sticky rice, I am spoilt for choice in every soi, or street. On a trip to the Thai capital in August, where I spend most of my time in the central Asok neighbourhood, I shortlist five must-try F&B joints that are worth coming back to.<\/p>\n
Best pad krapow in town: Gapow Tapae<\/h2>\n
For me, no Bangkok trip is complete without a plate of pad krapow, or meat stir-fried with holy basil, from Gapow Tapae.<\/p>\n
A friend took me to the eatery a few years ago, and I have never failed to return on subsequent trips.<\/p>\n
Housed in a small, air-conditioned shophouse a stone\u2019s throw from the popular Terminal 21 mall, it specialises in pad krapow, with five levels of spice to choose from. I usually opt for level two, which is similar to a medium-spicy mala stir-fry.<\/p>\n
Lunchtime queues can stretch beyond an hour, so it is best to avoid peak periods and their hour-long break at 3pm. Go instead around 2pm or 4pm when the wait is shortest.<\/p>\n
The original dish is made with minced pork and topped with a fried duck egg (129 baht or S$5), but there are also chicken and beef options.<\/p>\n
For extra crunch, I go for a combination of crispy pork belly and minced pork (219 baht), and swop the sunny-side-up for fluffy scrambled eggs instead (59 baht).<\/p>\n
This is not the cheapest pad krapow in town, but portions are huge and the flavours are lip-smacking.<\/p>\n
Other notable dishes include tom yum soup with crispy sea bass (219 baht). The fish is fresh and served on the side for maximum crisp, while the tangy broth comes with a generous serving of onions, tomatoes and other vegetables.<\/p>\n
Save room for dessert. The coconut milk ice cream (50 baht) and chrysanthemum tea (35 baht), both housemade, are soothing antidotes to Bangkok\u2019s sweltering heat.<\/p>\n
Value for money seafood brasserie: Scuba<\/h2>\n
Scuba BKK is a modern seafood brasserie in Ekkamai, a residential area that includes trendy cafes, bars and vintage boutiques.<\/p>\n
The restaurant lives up to its marine moniker. Live lobsters and king crabs greet us from tanks, while dry-aged turbot and hake hang in display fridges. A decorative aquarium channels the movie Finding Nemo (2003), with blue tangs, yellow foxfaces and orange clownfish.<\/p>\n
The three-course weekday set lunch (1,150 baht; 990 baht for two courses) is value for money. The starter is a juicy platter of oysters, whelks and Obsiblue shrimp dipped in cocktail sauce.<\/p>\n
My main of mariniere mussels bursts with the richness of a white wine and butter sauce. Even after polishing off the mussels, the sauce is too good to waste, so I mop up the remnants with pommes frites, or fries.<\/p>\n A pot of mussels bursting with white wine and butter sauce, served with fries at Scuba BKK.<\/p>\n PHOTO: YEO SAM JO<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n Dessert is an Earl Grey creme brulee, a lovely blend of bergamot and caramelised custard.<\/p>\n From the a la carte menu, go for the horse mackerel sashimi (1,490 baht), which comes as a whole, delicately deconstructed fish and is enough to share. The mackerel\u2019s pink, silken flesh goes wonderfully with the accompanying sauce \u2013 a wickedly tasty green concoction of aji amarillo (a Peruvian chilli pepper), coriander and briny clams.<\/p>\n Whole deconstructed horse mackerel sashimi paired with a tangy Peruvian aji amarillo sauce, alongside a chilled seafood platter at Scuba BKK.<\/p>\n PHOTO: YEO SAM JO<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n I pair my meal with a potent Scuba dirty martini (320 baht) fashioned from lobster fat-washed gin and garnished with an anchovy and pickled green chilli.<\/p>\n One of the city\u2019s newest dining spots is Cante, a Spanish fire grill and taberna at Canopy Bangkok Sukhumvit, a Hilton property that opened in August.<\/p>\n Mosaic table tops and azulejo tiles bring a serene sense of place to Cante inside Canopy Bangkok Sukhumvit.<\/p>\n PHOTO: CANOPY BANGKOK SUKHUMVIT<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n A five-minute walk from Asok BTS station, both the hotel and restaurant feel calm amid the bustling district.<\/p>\n Cante, which is Spanish for singing, serves a medley of tapas and hearty grill dishes. Mosaic tabletops and azulejo tiles give it a sense of place.<\/p>\n The pulpo, or grilled Galician octopus (1,200 baht), and gambas al ajillo, or flash-fried red shrimp with garlic (590 baht), are both tender, nicely charred and well seasoned.<\/p>\n The juicy lentejas con ternera, or wagyu beef with braised lentils (1,100 baht), melts in my mouth.<\/p>\n Tender, nicely charred grilled Galician octopus (pulpo, left) with seasoned Spanish garnishes and succulent wagyu beef paired with braised lentils (lentejas con ternera) at Cante.<\/p>\n PHOTOS: YEO SAM JO<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n Good for sharing are the paella dishes. The marisco or seafood paella (2,500 baht) includes a mix of red prawns, clams and baby squid.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the fideua de pollo a la brasa (1,200 baht) is a smoky sizzle of baked pasta and moist chunks of chicken.<\/p>\n A pan of fideua de pollo a la brasa, featuring baked Spanish pasta cooked with moist chunks of chicken at Cante.<\/p>\n PHOTO: YEO SAM JO<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n It is late afternoon when I sit down to a much-needed cup of joe at Bartels Asok.<\/p>\n Three levels of blond oak furniture, cream cushions and lush greenery create an inviting Scandinavian lounge at Bartels Asok.<\/p>\n PHOTO: YEO SAM JO<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n Slightly hungover and in need of both caffeine and electrolytes, I get the coconut americano (180 baht), a bottled cold brew served with fresh coconut and ice that hits the spot. The coconut water is sweet, refreshing and evens out the coffee\u2019s heavier, bitter notes.<\/p>\n A bottled cold brew concentrate served with fresh coconut water and ice at Bartels Asok.<\/p>\n PHOTO: YEO SAM JO<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n The cafe has several other outlets in Bangkok, Phuket and Ho Chi Minh City. Its beans, a blend of organic Ethiopian and Thai Catimor, are from Bangkok-based micro-roastery Paga.<\/p>\n Bartels is also known for its cold-pressed juices and freshly baked sourdough. The grilled cheese sandwich (220 baht) is a glorious stack of creamy pesto, cheddar, mozzarella, parmesan and toasted sourdough, topped with a gherkin for zing.<\/p>\n Freshly baked sourdough grilled cheese sandwich layered with creamy pesto, cheddar, mozzarella and parmesan, topped with a gherkin.<\/p>\n PHOTO: YEO SAM JO<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n I round off my meal with the \u201cForget Me Not\u201d immunity shot (120 baht) \u2013 170ml of broccoli, spinach, kale and lime juice that supposedly enhances brain power and energy levels.<\/p>\n Perhaps it is a placebo effect, but the shot\u2019s astringent and herbaceous flavours perk me up and jolt me out of a food coma.<\/p>\n If you are in no hurry, I recommend lounging in the cafe\u2019s Scandinavian-inspired interior. Three levels of blond oak furniture, cream cushions and lush greenery feel homely and inviting \u2013 and, going by the number of laptops, make for a conducive work-from-cafe spot.<\/p>\n When one thinks of tea plantations, one often imagines rows of cultivated shrubs in China, the birthplace of tea.<\/p>\n Monsoon Tea Company’s vibrant green teahouse in Asok, offering a welcoming change of pace from Bangkok’s frantic streets.<\/p>\n PHOTO: YEO SAM JO<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n Yet, even as the Chinese were drinking their tea, the people of northern Thailand\u2019s ancient Lanna kingdom were fermenting the same Camellia sinensis<\/i> leaves and munching on them, in the form of snacks known as \u201cmiang\u201d.<\/p>\n I learn this at a tea workshop led by Kenneth Rimdal, a Swedish entrepreneur who founded the Monsoon Tea Company in 2013 and produces \u201cforest-friendly\u201d tea from Chiang Mai and its surrounding mountains.<\/p>\n Monsoon harvests its tea leaves from wild trees, avoiding deforestation, pesticides and fertilisers, he says.<\/p>\n The tea workshop costs 650 baht a person and takes place at the company\u2019s teahouse in Asok, though Rimdal does not always lead it. Reservations are essential.<\/p>\n A hands-on tea-tasting workshop where participants sample wild, forest-friendly teas at Monsoon Tea Company in Asok.<\/p>\n PHOTO: YEO SAM JO<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n Available in Thai and English, the hour-long session covers the history of \u201cmiang\u201d and tea from Thailand, a tasting of 10 pure and flavoured teas, and how to distinguish between the different varieties.<\/p>\n Sipping on aromatic blends of ginger, rose petals and cinnamon, I find this hands-on segment cathartic. Much of Bangkok, from its honking tuk-tuks to frenzied night markets, demands that people rush through their holiday, so slowing down to savour tea is a lovely change of pace.<\/p>\n If you are thirsty for more, the gift shop has plenty of unusual blends that make good souvenirs. Think tom yum white tea and apple pie oolong (360 baht for a 50g tin).<\/p>\n Singapore Airlines, Thai Airways and Scoot fly non-stop from Singapore to Bangkok\u2019s Suvarnabhumi Airport in about 2\u00bd hours.<\/p>\n A round-trip flight on Singapore Airlines in November costs around $380, based on checks by The Straits Times in October.<\/p>\n The Asok area is accessible from Asok BTS station or Sukhumvit MRT station, which starts at 17 baht a ride. Private-hire cars and motorcycles can be booked on the Grab app. A five- to 10-minute bike ride starts at around 60 baht for non-surge periods.<\/p>\n I stay at Canopy Bangkok Sukhumvit, where rooms start at 4,700++ baht a night, including breakfast.<\/p>\n Leaving the hotel is hard at times, thanks to its spacious rooms, verdant courtyard and a rooftop pool with cushy cabanas.<\/p>\n The design and decor are meaningful and tasteful \u2013 sleek bronze finishes and globe light bulbs pay homage to Asok\u2019s now-defunct Sri Krung Sound Film Studio, a symbol of Thailand\u2019s first cinematic golden age from 1932 to 1942.<\/p>\n The writer is a former Straits Times journalist. His trip was hosted by Canopy Bangkok Sukhumvit.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Weekend Trip is a series that looks at regional destinations through fresh eyes. For more travel stories, go to str.sg\/travel<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n BANGKOK \u2013 With its bustling street food culture and mastery of spices, Bangkok is a food haven. From savoury boat noodles to tom yum soup…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":95332,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2611],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-95331","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-buzz-headlines","wpcat-2611-id"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/95331","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=95331"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/95331\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/95332"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=95331"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=95331"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=95331"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}<\/picture><\/div>
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Hearty Spanish food: Cante at Canopy<\/h2>\n
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Solid coffee and sandwiches in a work-from-cafe spot: Bartels<\/h2>\n
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Sip and learn about tea: Monsoon Tea<\/h2>\n
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Travel tips<\/h2>\n
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