Get ready to rethink what you know about Thai food on this full-day tour of Rattanakosin Island, the place where today’s Bangkok – and its vibrant cooking – was born.
Summary Description
Highlights
- Bangkok food tour adventure.
- Discover authentic Thai flavors downtown.
- Culinary journey through Ko Ratanakosin.
- Cradle of Thai cuisine exploration.
Description
Even those who have just arrived in Bangkok are most likely already familiar with Thai cooking. In recent years, Thai restaurants have proliferated the world over, with pad Thai now as familiar a takeout dish as chow mein. But what we think of as Thai food is really a tapestry of culinary influences from throughout Thailand and beyond. And the best place to unravel and understand all these delicious strands that make up Thai cuisine is Bangkok’s oldest neighborhood, Ko Ratanakosin, a man-made island where the city and its cooking were born.
We’ll kick off our day in a little-visited fresh market that also functions as a microcosm of Bangkok, with Thai, northeastern Thai, Muslim-Thai and Chinese-Thai vendors. We’ll taste sweets and snacks made by these groups, as well as stop in at a traditional coconut milk maker, a Chinese-Thai dry goods vendor and stalls that sell the vegetables, herbs, fruit and more that make up Bangkok’s cuisine. From here, we’ll weave through a neighborhood known for making Buddha statues before paying respect at a Chinese shrine. It’s at this point that we’ll dive into the cuisines of the Chinese diaspora, one of the biggest influences on Thai cuisine, at decades-old shophouse restaurants. After a stop at some Hindu-Buddhist monuments, we’ll sit down at a nearly 150-year-old former mansion that also doubles as a restaurant preparing classic Bangkok/Central Thai dishes that have largely disappeared from the city. Recent immigration from Thailand’s northeast has brought a different culinary influence to the city, and we’ll taste spicy papaya salad and sticky rice, two of the region’s most famous culinary imports, at a decades-old lauded restaurant. Continuing our walk through Ko Ratanakosin, we’ll take in the area’s English- and Portuguese-influenced secular architecture, and see the canals that shaped the early city before ending the tour at a locale that may have the largest selection of traditional sweets in the country. By the end of our tour, you may never look at the food in your local Thai take-out place back home the same way again.
Included / Excluded
- All food consumed on the walk – almost a dozen different edible specialties
- Culinary Backstreets Guide
- Includes market visits
- Transportation to and from the meeting point
Start / End Locations
Important Information
Know Before You Book
- Food Tasting - Let us know if you have any allergies
- Wear comfortable shoes
Cancellation
Cancellation Cutoff: 72 hours
Cancellation Notes: 90% refund if given 1 week notice prior to walk. 50% refund if given 72 hours notice or more. Less than 72 hours before the beginning of the activity or no-show: no refund
Options and Pricing
| Backstreet Bangkok - Food tour | RETAIL PRICE |
|---|---|
| Adult (13 - years) | $125.00 |
| Child (6 - 12 years) | $62.50 |
Points of interest
- Wat Pho, Wat Pho, 10130, Thailand
- Wat Arun Ratchawararam Ratchawaramahawihan, 158 Thanon Wang Doem, Khwaeng Wat Arun, Khet Bangkok Yai, Krung Thep Maha Nakhon 10600, Thailand
- Wat Ratchanatdaram Worawihan, 2 Maha Chai Rd, Khwaeng Wat Bowon Niwet, Khet Phra Nakhon, Krung Thep Maha Nakhon 10200, Thailand
- Pak Khlong Talat Mai Flower Market, Phran Nok Phutthamonthon Sai 4 Road, Bang Phrom, Taling Chan, Bangkok, Thailand
- Chinatown, Yaowarat Road, Samphanthawong, Bangkok, Thailand
- Jim Thompson House Museum, 6 Soi Kasem San 2, Khwaeng Wang Mai, Pathum Wan, Krung Thep Maha Nakhon 10330, Thailand
- Sri Maha Mariamman Temple (Wat Khaek), 2 Thanon Pan, Khwaeng Bang Rak, Khet Bang Rak, Krung Thep Maha Nakhon 10500, Thailand
- Chatuchak Weekend Market, 587, 10 Kamphaeng Phet 2 Rd, Khwaeng Chatuchak, Khet Chatuchak, Krung Thep Maha Nakhon 10900, Thailand
- Lumpini Park, Lumphini, Pathum Wan, Bangkok, Thailand
- Thao Maha Brahma, 494 Thanon Ratchadamri, Khwaeng Lumphini, Pathum Wan, Krung Thep Maha Nakhon 10330, Thailand
Terms and Conditions
Liability Waiver
By completing the reservation you acknowledge the following:
If you have food allergies, you are ultimately responsible to ensure your own health and safety. If you share information about your allergies, we can provide you with some guidance about the food purveyors on your tour, but we are not responsible for any allergic reactions that you may have. We are not responsible for any damages or losses incurred as result of acts by entities beyond our control, including but not limited to restaurants, shops, market stalls, eateries and food carts. We are not responsible for acts beyond our control, including but not limited to acts of God, act of nature, acts of war, or other unrest caused by state or non-state actors. If you are disruptive, we have the right to ask you to leave the tour without refunding you or providing you with a credit for your tour. You are aware of and responsible for all damages or losses that may arise during the course of the tour resulting from:
Risks associated with food, water or other drinks, including alcoholic beverages; physical accidents during the tour or at any of the locations visited; transportation failures; forces of nature; criminal activity; damage, loss or misplaced property; or accident or illness without means of rapid evacuation or availability of medical supplies or services. You agree that any claims that may arise will first go to arbitration and only if not resolved in that manner shall be heard in court. In both cases, grievances shall be heard in the jurisdiction of Washington, DC. You further agree to be responsible for your own welfare and property and accept any and all risks of delay, unanticipated events, inconvenience, illness, injury, emotional trauma or death. You further acknowledge that participation in Culinary Backstreets tours is based upon execution of this Liability Waiver. By completing the reservation process you release and discharge forever Culinary Backstreets, its employees, owners, affiliates, officers, directors, successors, agents, and assigns, from and against any liability arising from participating in this tour. You further agree that this release shall be legally binding upon you personally, all members of your family, all minors traveling with you, your heirs, successors, assigns, and legal representatives, to the maximum extent of the law.
I am aware that while on or traveling to or from my activity with Culinary Backstreets, I might be exposed to COVID-19 from other people, animals or objects. I assume all risk of any such contacts, including sickness, incapacity or death and agree to hold harmless Culinary Backstreets from any such developments. In addition, I recognize that the World Health Organization, U.S. Department of State as well as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention may have warnings concerning same and am choosing to travel and assume all risk myself.
