Thursday 01 January 2026
Happy New Year! Let’s eat!

[I’m spitting this blog post into two, because there is so much food to show.]

I eat food every day…every day. And while I am here in Thailand, I eat Thai food most days. A question I was often asked after my first few winters in Chiang Mai —when I first spent a month or more here—and is still asked frequently: “what does the food there look like?” The simple answer is that it looks like food. When I was first visiting Thailand a very pleasant surprise was how fresh the food is, how good it tastes, and consistently so. It is noticeable and many food items just taste better here than at home because of the freshness or the freshness of the ingredients.

In Thailand, the distance from the farm to your plate here is very short. I have seen the largest fruit and produce market in Chiang Mai, Mueang Mai Market. It is very, very large, and operates 24 hours per day. Farmers drive in with a pickup truck full of produce, stop at their stall, and sometimes before they can even unload, people are buying their produce. All the hotels, guest houses, and restaurants come here every day. Mueang Mai Market is fun to watch, almost like organized chaos.

This post will be mostly photos of food with brief descriptions. A note: there are many, many vegetarian and vegan restaurants here. I am not vegetarian. Having said that, one of my favorite smaller meals is the vegetarian tacos at Wrap ‘n Roll Burritos at Plaphoen Market.

Thai Food

As I said, I eat a lot of Thai food. For no particular reason, I forget to photograph the Thai food. [Maybe because my eating western-style food is less common, I remember to photograph that.]

One of my favorite Thai restaurants is Aroy Dee. In Thai, the word for “tasty” is phonetically spelled “aroy” in English. The “r” in “aroy” is in between an “l” and an “r” sound. (Remember, in the Thai alphabet, there are 44 consanants, where in English, there are only 21.) And in Thai, the word for “good” is typically spelled “dee” or “di.” I have never heard Thais adding “dee” to “aroy.” To say “very good taste,” the term “very” is “mahk” so in Thai it would be “aroy mahk.” Nevertheless, the name of the restaurant being Aroy Dee is probably just a play on the words.

Aroy Dee has been here for many years, is very popular, and can be very busy, especially at dinner time. Because they cater to so many foreigners, the spicy-level of their food is less than the more extreme spiciness Thais like. The food is made right in front part of the restaurant. Every dish is made as you watch by two chefs working the woks and just behind them are two assistants who get everything ready for each order.

I like their somtum, spicy papaya salad. It is made up of shredded unripe papaya tossed in a tangy, spicy, and sweet dressing made with fish sauce, lime juice, palm sugar, and fresh chilies. They add in cut snake beans, sliced cherry tomatoes, and crushed peanuts. This is a favorite of the Thais, and can be very, very spicy. I definitely feel the spiciness of the somtum at Aroy Dee even though the spicy level is toned down. The flavors are sooooo good. I typically get somtum plus another dish, stir-fried chicken and vegetables, pad kaprow, or sometimes crispy fried pork.

Pad Kaprow or Pad Kaphrao is the dish the Thais eat the most. It is also the Thai dish I eat the most. [Maybe I’ll photograph all of the Pad Kaprow I eat at various places for a photo comparison.] Pad Kaprow is ground meat, spices, and holy basil, also known as tulsi or tulasi. (Both basil and holy basil belong to the Lamiaceae family, commonly known as the mint family, and are part of the Ocimum genus. But they distinct species. Holy basil has a spiciness to its flavor.) Here is a meal of pad kaprow (this photo is from Bangkok) with rice and the traditional egg (and notice all the red chilis). Too spicy for me.

Here is a plate or somtum and a plate of stir-fried chicken and vegetables.

And both somtum and crispy fried pork with rice:

Breakfast at The 3-Sis

I have breakfast included with my room reservation at The 3-Sis. The attached restaurant, called “Poppy’s Kitchen” is where I eat breakfast and occasionally lunch or dinner. There are so many good places to eat in Chiang Mai and I am at Poppy’s Kitchen every morning, so I seldom eat other meals there. Breakfast varies. If I am having a strength training session or yoga at Wild Rose in the morning, my breakfast is typically less protein-based, and I might have oatmeal or corn flakes with a banana and a small dish of other fruit. Here is a breakfast of corn flakes with a banana, a fruit dish with watermelon, pineapple, and avacado, and jasmine tea.

For more protein-based breakfast I love what they call the Thai omelette (or “omelet” for those speaking American English…oh, that’s me, too…but I like the French spelling, it is just…sexier looking), a thin omelette with bell peppers over a mound of rice, or an omelette with bacon over a thick toasted bread.

Lunch (?!?)

Me & Bacon

I do not eat lunch every day. If I eat a lighter breakfast and then have a strength training session at the gym or a yoga class and find myself hungry, I sometimes go to Me & Bacon. [I know, it is gramatically incorrect.] They have what might be the best grilled ham and cheese on sourdough. Not too big, not too small. A cheese that seems to be higher quality and tastier than American or some processed cheese (even though it looks like melted Velveeta). If I want something different, I might get the two poached eggs with bacon on toast with hollandaise.

Chouquette

Another favorite of mine for lunch is a French Boulangerie called Chouquette. John and Rose introduced me to Chouquette a year ago on Christmas Day. I am forever grateful to them; Chouquette quickly became a favorite. The baguette sandwiches are so good. The owner is French and the staff are all Thai. They import flour from France, and from that they bake their bread. The baguettes are almost exactly like what I had in Spain while walking the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage routes. Fresh, hearty, crusty, so good. Here is a photo of the flour in the 55 pound sacks, and also a brie and apple baguette sandwich. (In Spain, the baguette sandwich would be called a bocadillo.) I also get a honey-lime iced tea every time I go to Chouquette.

Here are two photographs of ham & cheese baguette sandwiches. In the second, I added a slice of blueberry crumble for a little sweetness after the baguette. Also note, in the ham & cheese baguette, they add in these very tasty little pickles.

Next: More Food