Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Habits & Customs
Like most of Thai culture, eating conventions appear relaxed and informal but are orches-
trated by many implied rules.
Whether at home or in a restaurant, Thai meals are always served 'family-style' - that
is, from common serving platters - and the plates appear in whatever order the kitchen can
prepare them. When serving yourself from a common platter, put no more than one spoon-
ful onto your plate at a time. Heaping your plate with all 'your' portions at once will look
greedy to Thais unfamiliar with Western conventions. Another important factor in a Thai
meal is achieving a balance of flavours and textures. Traditionally, the party orders a curry,
a steamed or fried fish, a stir-fried vegetable dish and a soup, taking great care to balance
cool and hot, sour and sweet, salty and plain.
Written, photographed and maintained by the author of this section,
www.austinbushphotography.com
covers food and dining in both Bangkok and provincial Thailand.
Originally Thai food was eaten with the fingers, and it still is in certain regions of the
kingdom. In the early 1900s, Thais began setting their tables with fork and spoon to affect
a 'royal' setting, and it wasn't long before fork-and-spoon dining became the norm in
Bangkok and later spread throughout the kingdom. To use these tools the Thai way, use a
serving spoon to take a single mouthful of food from a central dish, and ladle it over a por-
tion of your rice. The fork is then used to push the now food-soaked portion of rice back
onto the spoon before entering the mouth.
THE RIGHT TOOL FOR THE JOB
If you're not offered chopsticks, don't ask for them. Thai food is eaten with fork and spoon, not chopsticks. When
fa·ràng
(Westerners) ask for chopsticks to eat Thai food, it only puzzles the restaurant proprietors.
Chopsticks are reserved for eating Chinese-style food (such as noodles) from bowls, or for eating in all-Chinese
restaurants. In either case you will be supplied with chopsticks without having to ask. Unlike their counterparts in
many Western countries, restaurateurs in Thailand won't assume you don't know how to use them.
