The huge variety of dining available on Sukhumvit Road is a wonderful testament to the diversity of people and cultures that converge here. Eateries range from old noodle shops and street vendors to international restaurants and fast food outlets, settings from the luxurious to the non-descript, prices from the astoundingly cheap to the prohibitively expensive.
The Joy of Streetfood
Global fast-food franchises like Burger King, Subway, McDonalds, StarBucks, KFC are scattered all over Sukhumvit. More intriguing though is the streetfood, which is among the best in town. Whether it be the spicy Isaan delights of Soi 4's street carts, the bowl-slurping joys of beef noodle soup at the end of Soi 11, or the Thai-Chinese delights of the 40-year-old '55' restaurant out on Soi 55, there's no end to what these perpetually steaming and smoking streets have in store for the adventurous. These budget, down-to-earth joys are best discovered by using follow-your-nose intuition.
Bon Appetit!
As interesting, but nowhere near as cheap, are Sukhumvit's many restaurants. Some are on Sukhumvit Road itself, near the hotels, but most are tucked away down one of the area's many side streets (sois). Great places for lunch, dinner or a snack these offer cuisine from across the globe, usually in a decorative setting that befits their menu.
Lebanese, Italian, Vietnamese, Chinese, European, Japanese, Mexican, Indian, French, Greek, Swiss, Steakhouse - if there's a dish you fancy, it's very likely here. Soi Nana 3, an aromatic enclave known as Little Arabia, is especially good for Middle Eastern bites followed by a puff on a 'shisha' (hubbly bubbly pipe). And Japanese restaurants congregate in Little Japan, near Soi 33 and the adjacent Soi 24.
Thonglor (Soi 55) has an abundance of hip, upmarket eateries featuring fusion foods popular with the city's hip, young and fabulous. And scattered here, there and everywhere are what can only be described as gastronomic oddities: places like Mediterranean-inspired Crêpes & Co, Soi 24's Amaltery and its alcoholic, adults-only ice-cream, or the authentic New Orleans Creole cuisine of Bourbon Street.
For tried and tested restaurants in the Sukhumvit area, read these authoritative Thailand Tatler Reviews.
Learn more about Sukhumvit: Where to Stay, List of Sukhumvit Hotels, What to See and Do, Nightlife, Shopping, Getting Around
Learn more about where to eat: Chidlom - Ploenchit, Riverside, Silom, Siam, Ratchaprasong, Sathorn, Khao San Road, Old City, Chinatown, Chatuchak, Pratunam, Ratchadapisek |
