Thai street food is everywhere (for now!). All over the country, in Thailand, open-air street restaurants and stalls serve up local flavours around the clock.
It is no secret that pockets of Bangkok have clusters of stands, trolleys and markets devoted to the pursuit of eating, from dusk til dawn - despite the efforts to 'tidy up'!
For anything from meat and fish balls on sticks, deep-fried crispy insects, and freshly cut tropical fruit, to Pad Thai, noodle soups and sweet rice dumplings or ice cream sandwiches in actual bread rolls, grazing continuously, at all hours, is a national pastime, especially in Bangkok.
Popping up all over the city, in more recent times, the international obsession with food trucks is slowly but surely taking hold, in this already street food rich culture. Not to be overshadowed by the more established local tradition, the food truck craze sweeping the globe has some great contenders in Bangkok. Many of the emerging food trucks tend to focus on more western styles, particularly American, each with signature snacks, often inspired by Thai flavours.
One of the first to have kicked off the food truck fever in Bangkok is the gourmet Daniel Thaiger (@danielthaiger), founded in 2013 and now a Bangkok institution, on Sukhumvit soi 30/1. Serving luxury burgers (above), stacked high and laced with a special Thaiger sauce, track this truck down from Tuesday to Friday, 4.30pm to 9.30pm, also appearing at Sathorn Square on Wednesday lunchtimes.
A little out of the way, but ideal if floating around the Khao Sarn Road backpacking area, badboy Mother Trucker (@mothertruckerburger) is a hardcore burger mobile. The sheer size of the burgers measures up to the true American standard of ‘bigger is better’ – think quadruple stack! Customers wait in line before the truck even opens for business. Closed on Mondays, Mother Trucker is open from 11.30am to 2.30pm and again from 4pm to 8pm, on Soi Kraisi. Try the 150g jumbo patty loaded with Australian cheese, bacon, greens, onion rings and a rich dressing.
Summer Street (@summerstreets) is the first charcoal grilled seafood truck in the city. They are found shucking fresh oysters in Aree soi 2, from Monday to Saturday, from 4pm-10pm.
To end on a sweet note and beat the heat, although not strictly a food truck, as the name suggests, Annette I Tim Tuk Tuk (@annetteitimtuktuk) is the prettiest quality gelato on a stick that are almost a shame to crack into. Find one of their showpiece tuk tuks in front of Platinum Mall, throughout the day.
An exciting time for food truck fans in Bangkok, new arrivals are pulling up in the city, all the time at all hours, with all types of international and fusion cuisines.
*Photos courtesy of the respective food trucks*