When I first visited Thailand years ago, I was hoping to do some of my own cooking at the villa I rented. At the age of 16, I started cooking on the line at a large restaurant, so it is just something I do. So my search for some groceries began in Pattaya.
Yes you can get western food in Thailand. But it also depends on what you mean by “western”. Here’s what I mean.
What is “western” Food?
Well……?American, English, Australian, etc.,etc.,etc.,. Not all western food is the same from one country to the next. And, do you mean, “groceries, fast food, sit down restaurants? All this can be different in each country also. I think we should try and break this down a bit.
Fast food in Thailand.
The last thing I expected to see when I arrived in Thailand, was the amount of American fast food companies there. I don’t eat fast food and haven’t for around 17 years so this was kind of a bummer for me to see. I thought I was “getting away” so to speak.
Well I was wrong about that. I found McDonald’s, KFC’s, Pizza Hut’s, Burger King’s, Dunkin Donuts. I even found a Carl’s Jr. in a mall in Bangkok. There are more that I can’t remember. Oh, I saw a Dairy Queen. Now, some of these places have Thai food on their menus also. But still, I thought “really”?
In my experience, (in the large malls) most of the people I saw in these restaurants seemed to be mostly kids and older teens. The malls are largely filled with western store brands so these fast food chains fit right in. But go out into the cities and towns and they are out of place for the most part.
Culturally, I think they mess with the simple elegance of Thailand. Not to mention the food being completely out of place and unhealthy compared to most Thai food. Anyway, so yes Thailand does have American style western fast food.
Western sit down restaurants.
The only American Chain sit down restaurants I saw was Sizzler. There could be more but I never saw any. On the other hand there are many local Thai restaurants that serve western food. Usually to accommodate tourists. The same problem applies here as well. What part of the western world does the food represent.
From looking around at all the menus in front of restaurants, (most menus have many pictures) the American breakfast was the most prevalent. The problem for me was they were not really American. Yes they have eggs any-way, sausage, toast with jam, but the product was not from America. It all looked European.
I went to one Irish style restaurant and the menu said “American breakfast” but it was clearly not American sausage and bread. I’m not really sure why they don’t just call it English breakfast. And besides, all the patrons there had a European accent.
As far as I can tell, most of the western food products come from Europe or Australia. Burgers for an example. Usually the menu will say Australian beef. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining here. I’m just pointing out that I didn’t see any menu item say “American this or American that”.
So don’t get your hopes up that you will get Aidels brand Chicken apple sausage on the breakfast plate. Or a Hebrew National all beef frank when you find hot dogs on a menu. It just isn’t going to happen. At least not yet anyway.
Western food is considered a luxury to the Thai government so there is a higher tax on the food that is brought in from some countries. This, along with shipping, makes “western” food more expensive than Thai food. You will spend more money on these dishes, and they might not live up to your expectations depending on where you are from.
There is no shortage of privately owned restaurants serving western food. You can find Italian, German, Irish Pubs and more in most large cities. Another popular restaurant, although not western, is Indian cuisine. The best samosas I ever had was in an Indian restaurant in Pattaya.
In most touristy areas and big cities you will be able to find an eatery with a western menu. Even some catering entirely to western style food. The majority of hotels will have some western meals like sandwiches, burgers and “american” breakfasts.
Another thing about the smaller mom and pop Thai restaurants, serving American breakfast. Don’t always count on them being open as early as you want them to be. Thai people, for the most part, are not on the western time schedule. But hey, you’re on vacation right? Get up a little later.
Finding western groceries.
This is mostly the same problem as restaurants. There are several grocery store chains in Thailand that sell “western” food. But most of it is European and Australian. But, there are American products in some of these stores. I have seen quite a lot of American products in a couple in particular. Friendship Market and Foodland.
- Foodland in Pattaya. Foodland is a big chain and can be found in Bangkok 16 locations, Pattaya 2 locations and 1 store in Korat.
- Friendship Market has 1 location on South Pattaya Road, Pattaya. This is one of my favorites.
- Tops market has a good selection of western food and is located in almost every city in Thailand. I am not sure if they sell western food in the smaller non touristy areas, but it’s worth a look.
- Villa Market has around 20 locations in Bangkok and has a wide range of western products.
- Gourmet Market has 4 locations in Bangkok. It is what the name says. Gourmet. More expensive than most but more selection and better quality. They also have an organic section which is right up my alley.
- Chiang Mai has a grocery called Kasem Store that is stocked with imported products. Vegetarian and vegan food. Baked goods that are made in-house.
- There are also the Walmart types that have the least selection of western food on the shelves. Big C and Tesco Lotus. These are located all over Thailand.
All these stores will have something for you. I myself eat mostly Thai food when I am in Thailand. The problem for me is most of what these stores have is not what or how I eat. In the US, I eat all natural and Organic food without exception.
I have found some organic and natural food, but very little. Maybe as time goes by, more and more demand will bring that food to the grocery stores of Thailand. How about a Thailand version of Trader Joe’s? Hmmmm!!??
Coffee?
Coffee has been seeing an uptick in Thailand for some time now. Thailand is also a major coffee-producing country. In the 80’s, Thailand’s Government, along with the Royal Family, decided to rid the Golden Triangle region of it’s notorious drug trade. They provided the opium farmers a replacement crop. Coffee was a perfect solution to that problem.
Although Thailand has Starbucks, Thailand has thousand of privately owned cafes and coffee houses along with its larger chains. Black Canyon and Coffee World.
- Starbucks Is the biggest and trendiest. The last I checked, they don’t have free WiFi. It is around 100 baht an hour. The prices are about double what you would pay at a mom and pop.
- Black Canyon Coffee offers more food choices so it’s more like a restaurant. They don’t have free WiFi either, but it is about half the price of Starbucks. There coffee prices are lower than most chains.
- Coffee World has free WiFi. The prices are about the same as Starbucks, depending on what you get.
I say if you like trendy, go with the chains. If you like free WiFi with cheaper and more personal service, stick with the mom and pop’s. The coffee will probably be good no matter where you go. After all they produce their own coffee beans in Thailand.
My conclusion?
Well, lets see. Eat Thai food! Yes! I said it. If you like to cook and your accommodations has a kitchen, take a Thai cooking lesson and then try it on your own.
If you want to cook western food from scratch while you are in Thailand, you will need to do some adjusting to get it right. Thailand just doesn’t have all the ingredients you will need for everything you might want to create as far as western food go’s. You will have to adjust and tweak here and there to get it right.
Every time I am in Thailand I try to eat less and less American food. I also eat more and more Thai and Indian food in the US. It just has more flavor than most American food. I feel less bloated and lazy after eating Thai food.
But like all Americans, I get those cravings for certain foods from home. In time, more and more Americans will travel or retire in Thailand and demand will rise to the occasion.
Happy Thailand Travels!