Friday, December 29, 2023
A look at various meals in Chiang Mai

Over my many visits to Chiang Mai I’m often asked what does the food look like? The answer is that the food looks much like the food we eat at home. A slight challenge in sharing pictures of the food is that I am usually hungry and start eating before I think to photograph my meal. And often, when I do take a photo, I forget to include it when I’m writing a post for this blog. In this post, I’ll show some pictures and describe my meals a little.

A note: I’m often asked, “Why do you eat non-Thai or Western-style food in Thailand?” I do eat a LOT of Thai food. All the food is very good, because the distance from the farm to your plate is very short, so the ingredients are fresh. Farmers pick their crops ripe and sell them that day in the market. Mueang Mai market, north of the old city not far from the U.S. Consulate, operates 24 hours per day. The egg for breakfast might have been laid yesterday, and they do taste better here. The ingredients for Italian or Mexican or other types of food are fresh, and the food just tastes good here. An Italian man who used to run a restaurant told me that he can make better-tasting food here than even at his home in Italy because the ingredients here are so fresh: the tomatoes, the garlic, the shallots, the basil, the peppers, the onions – all very fresh.

Breakfast at The 3-Sis

I start almost every day with breakfast at The 3-Sis since I opted to include breakfast in my accommodation (as I have every year here). I may have shared this already. I frequently get the Thai omelette which is a thin omelette with bell peppers over a mound of rice. The rice is there, just under the omelette. I also get a small plate of fruit, and a cafe latte.

The Story 106

The Story 106 is a co-working space on Tha Phae Road, about 1.6 kilometers (1 mile) from The 3-Sis and an easy walk. I often spend time working on my blog at Story 106, since it is air-conditioned, very quiet, and the internet service is good. They provide a login for access to the internet with purchases. I often get an iced latte and sometimes splurge and get a cinnamon roll – a guilty pleasure, especially after a workout at the gym or a strong yoga class.

Khao Soi

A favorite northern Thai dish is khao soi. Khao soi is common in northern Thailand and not very common in central and southern Thailand. Khao soi is a noodle curry soup that uses rice-egg noodles and is served in a coconut milk curry broth. It’s typically made with chicken or beef, the bowl is topped with crispy deep fried noodles, and a small plate of lime, shallots, fermented mustard greens can be added. The name khao soi means “cut rice,” the words are derived from the Burmese term for the noodles, “khao swè.” Traditionally, the dough for the rice noodles is spread out on a cloth stretched over boiling water. After steaming the large sheet noodle is then rolled and cut with scissors. The dish is believed to have evolved from Chinese Muslim traders who plied the spice route when what is now modern-day northern Thailand was controlled by the Burmese.

When I was here for the first time after the pandemic, I had to have a Covid PCR test after 6 days. To celebrate my negative test result, I asked a friend where a good place for khao soi might be. He replied with a link to a YouTube video from Mark Weins in which Mark and two friends visited the five best khao soi places in Chiang Mai – in one day! One is in Mae Rim, about 20 kilometers north of Chiang Mai, a little far for me, and the traffic to Mae Rim is difficult. I visited the other 4, although not in one day. (Oh my, that would be a LOT of food!). Khao soi is often eaten by Thais for breakfast or lunch, so many of the khao soi places frequented by the locals close at 2 or 3 pm. Also, the broth is complex, similar to the complexity of good Vietnamese pho, so some of the khao soi places make a batch of broth in the morning, and when it is gone, it is gone. All of the places in the Mark Weins’ video close mid-afternoon. I am typically not that hungry at lunchtime, and trying to find good khao soi for dinner can be a bit of a challenge. Dash, a well-known Thai restaurant in the old city, has very good khao soi. I had it there recently, and will likely have it there again unless I get hungry at lunch and go to Khao Soi Khun Yai (my favorite from the Mark Weins’ video).

Pad Krapow

The most well-known Thai dish outside Thailand is Pad Thai, the Thai rice-noodle stir fry with a sweet-savoury-sour sauce scattered with crushed peanuts. The most common dish Thais eat is not Pad Thai, but Pad Krapow, also spelled pad kraphao, pad kaprao, or pad gaprao, is one of the most popular Thai dishes in Thailand. This dish might be considered the equivalent of a sandwich or a burger, something quick, and easy, that many people have for lunch. Pad Krapow is often found at street food vendors, but I avoid street food. It is another dish that the places catering to locals for lunch are closed by mid-afternoon. Pad Krapow is essentially stir-fried ground meat (commonly pork, chicken, or beef) holy basil (a version of basil, with a peppery, spicer flavor), garlic, sugar, and Thai chili. The dish is seasoned with a combination of soy sauce, oyster sauce, and (of course) fish sauce. Sometimes other ingredients such as onions and bell peppers are added. It is often served with a fried, “sunny side up” egg on top. One traditional style is where the holy basil, instead of being stir-fried in with the ground meat and spice mixture, is fried to be crunchy and served on top of the ground meat (my least favorite version). Here are three versions of Pad Krapow with pork. On the left is from Dash with the crunchy holy basil on top, in the middle is from a wooden building near Wild Rose Yoga (closes at 4 PM), and the third is from a restaurant named Aroy Dee on Moon Muang Road near Soi 6 and Somphet Market.

Street Pizza and Wine House

After a long day of going to the gym or a yoga session then walking around exploring, sometimes a salad and a pizza sounds very appealing. I like two places, Street Pizza and La Fontana. I am going to try another place very soon, Two Sisters Pizza. Both Street Pizza and La Fontana make their sauce fresh every day. I like to get a salad and a small pizza. Here is a recent meal from Street Pizza, basalmic salad, pepperoni, olive, jalapeno pizza, and a watermelon smoothie:

Gazpacho

Gazpacho is typically associated with Spain, and more commonly southern Spain. It is a cold, blended soup primarily made of tomato, cucumber, and bell pepper. I love gazpacho. I was surprised to see it on the menu at La Fontana, an Italian restaurant. When I asked the owner about it being primarily Spanish, he told me that the ingredients are so fresh here and many customers like it, so he keeps it on the menu. There are many, many variations of gazpacho. The versions I have eaten in Spain are completely blended. At La Fontana, their version is a little more chunky. Here are both:

La Casita

Another type of food that I like here is Mexican. The salsa with the very fresh ingredients just tastes good (and the Thais like it spicy). My recent favorite is La Casita. In particular, I like the red chili pork burrito. It is excellent! The crispy tacos are also very good. And they serve some chips with fresh salsa and fresh guacamole (avocados grow well in northern Thailand).

Burgers – Maya Burger Queen

According to the story, Maya started a burger restaurant in Pai, it was successful, so she opened another in Chiang Rai, and now one in Chiang Mai. I really, really like their salad. The burger & fries are above average, but not on par with Arnos, Smash Daddy, or The Duke’s. Next time I return to Burger Queen, I’ll have the salad and a grilled chicken sandwich.

Burgers – Smash Daddy

Smash Daddy Burger is out towards the sort-of trendy area of Nimmanhaeman, northwest of the old city. From CNXMAG.com, “This American-style burger joint, the brainchild of Chef John Jasins and May St. Onge, is a nod to the global influence of American cuisine. Smash Daddy’s basics are burgers, fries, and shakes. And they are freaking good!” I agree – the burgers and fries are very good. And I went on a day in which I had survived (that’s a bit of an overstatement) both a strength training session in the morning and a strong yoga class in the afternoon, I also treated myself to a chocolate shake. Does it match The Duke’s or Chief’s Burgers in Solana Beach? Close to The Duke’s, and good, not quite up to Chief’s level.

Oh – you want to see the food, not just the signs?

After all this writing about food, I’m hungry. And just for the record, in the years of writing blog entries, sharing my Camino de Santiago pilgrimage walks in Spain and my yoga-focused visits to Chiang Mai, Thailand, this post is number 401. The number does not really matter, nobody is counting; I’m just happy to share these adventures.

Next: Preparations for New Year Celebration