she works at night

smiley "i cream"

walk down pradipat road during the day and you feel like you're in any generic part of asia. you got your stores, your street vendors, your restaurants, your hotels. but glory! when night falls, pradipat explodes into a thriving street-walking hotspot. we can thank the thriving "massage" industry for that (not so glory). all sorts of things come out at night.

you want to get your happy ending?

stop for ice cream. what were you thinking? you and your dirty mind! it's not that kind of post. 270/19 pradipat is a generic gold shop by day - but oh ho! by night, it unfurls as a homemade ice cream shop.

want a sign? too bad, you won't find one. the nice owner-lady had to tell us the name of the shop, "smiley," since apparently secret ice cream shops are more fitting with the massage parlors.

when i went, the very nice lady told us about her ice cream: it's more like sorbet rather than a heavy, thick gelato. hers are refreshing, using traditional thai flavors like farang buey (syrup-soaked guava), dragonfruit & cranberry, or coconut among other traditional flavors like cookies & cream or strawberry.

for 20B a scoop, your ice cream comes with specially paired toppings like spicy sugar or thai sour plums.

i also like the old guy sitting out in the shop. he's like the sweet lady's sour plum - all he said was, "hey, did they pay you, yet?" of course, nothing on pradipat is free.

smiley ice cream

270/19 pradipat rd. (btw soi 19 & 21)

nearest bts @ saphan kwai

your perfect greasy picnic

roti mataba

it's perhaps for everyone's benefit that they don't post roti nutrition facts. i'm willing to bet you could lubricate an entire freight train with the amount of grease roti mataba goes through in a week.step into this infernal, southern-fried kitchen, grab a couple rotis for about 40B each (get the chicken one and one with curry), a wadful of napkins and head across the street to the phra sumen fort & park. picnic on the rim of the chao phraya river overlooking the gorgeous rama VIII bridge and people-watch. this is probably the most relaxing, urban activity you'll find in bangkok. roti mataba, 136 phra athit road, banglumpoo.
phone: 0 2282 2119

god bless the military

JUSMAG

it isn't the gourmet delicacies and rare ethnic fare that make their residence in my brain's craving cortex, it's the common, the mundane, and the frequent conveniences i miss: the bagels, the sandwiches, the cereal. and because i refuse to spend $10 on a box of cereal, it's a forlorn memory of the familiar here.

i wouldn't have found the jusmag if a friend hadn't told me about it. why? because it's the joint u.s. military advisory group. the little hidden secret is the little diner-esque restaurant inside the complex. 60B usda hamburgers, deli sandwiches, 300B usda steak, bbq pork sandwiches that are nothing more than pork with kc masterpiece sauce...don't expect special, just expect dime-a-dozen american.the heavy, easily-missed steel door on the street requires your us govt-issued id to pass security. and once you're in the jusmag complex, the restaurant in the back is quiet, fluorescently lit, and pastel vinyl furnishings, the basic crowd is primarily jusmag personnel, vets, and other americans running errands at the jusmag, lending a small-town dive environment. even the wait staff, though thai, are quite un-thai in their indifferent, distracted airs. they might as well have blue hair, horn-rimmed glasses, and huge butts.

off to the side, there are american snacks available, meaning you can pick up pop tarts, mounds bars, cream soda, combos and dr. pepper as readily as you can in the states.

also, they have a us postal service office, barber shop, and athletic courts on campus, but no staff was available to tell me if it's available for all us citizens to use or military/govt personnel only. comment if you know.

jusmagthai
south sathorn rd., across from the suan lum night bazaar.
restaurant: mon-sat 6:30a-3p; bar opens 3p
webby: http://www.jusmagthai.com/jusmagthai.html

feeling krabi

krabi

wasn't feeling the ever-popular trek to phuket, koh samui nor any of the lamer-but-closer beaches to bkk. so to krabi it was. mostly, it's cheaper to stay here, pretty cheap to get here, and lots of options for getting around to the hotspots, like phi phi islands or any of the other million islands.

DO STUFF.
honestly, krabi town isn't really all that exciting. you need to get out. there are a million and one tours available and everyone's trying to sell you one. pick a place you like and ask around - you can always get a bargain. scratch that; you should always get a bargain. if you bargain thai style, you'll get further: keep it fun and humorous and you'll always get a better deal if you can make a friend. (our phi phi island day tour costs 1800B/adult if you book online, but after bargaining with our hotel, we got 1000B/head. *self-congratulatory hand gesture*). and they always pick you up at your hotel, so no anxieties about additional transpo.

we ended up with koh phi phi tours. - they've got other boat and bus tours available in the area. we took the phi phi island tour. tell me this isn't beautiful.maya bay on phi phi le. beautiful cove.viking cave, where birds' nests are harvested. for what? for eating. ask a chinese person. we went snorkeling near here. i wish i had an underwater camera.bamboo island off phi phi. crystal clear waters, pure white sands.
webby: www.phiphitours.com
you can book online, but you'll be charged 1800B/adult. if you happen to acquire a great deal with koh phi phi tours, great - i give them a thumbs up; but again, ask around for tour deals for whatever company.

railay bay - though not an island, you can only get to railay beach via half-hour longtail boat ride (either from 150B krabi town pier or 90B aonang bay) because of the rocky, mountainous terrain. the pics don't do it justice - the water is glass-clear.known for its rock climbing, railay draws a younger crowd. there are 3 beaches on this peninsular land mass. east is ugly and dirty (and therefore used mainly for transportation), phra nang cave beach which has beautiful rock climbing and tall cliff faces guarding the beach, and west which hosts most of the accomodations. watch out for the mini undetectable jellyfish that can give you a nice smart. between east and phra nang beaches, you'll find a steep 200-300m climb (think 45+degrees) up to a view point and the lagoon. not for the faint of heart. we couldn't make it to the lagoon which required an additional steeper climb down and up a gorge. pity.

we also saw a tour to go to the tiger cave temple, hot springs, and waterfall. after finding out that we could rent a motorcycle for 250B/day through our hotel, we opted for the less-safe, free-scheduled, and 10-times-cheaper motorcycle rental. if you don't know how to ride a motorbike, yet - you can learn in 5 minutes.
here are our motorcycle escapades:
huay toh waterfall - 3 tiers with an option for a longer hiking trail into the khao phanom bencha national park (to the peak of the mountain).22km from krabi town, 100B entrance, 20B parking.

tiger cave temple (wat tam sua) - buddhist shrine built into a cave with many monks and nuns living in tiny shelters in the rock. for the fit and pious, there is an imprint of buddha's footprint located 1000+ steps up the mountain. also fyi, no tigers. there's just a rock formation that looks like a tiger paw.another sight they feature here: "big tree." i coudn't figure which one of the "big trees" was "the big tree." the coolest one was this one with the nun meditating in it. 16km from krabi town, free.

hot waterfall - think natural jacuzzi (unlike other hot springs which are boiling or sulfur-stinky). very, very nice. i could spend all day here. crystal clear water, strong jacuzzi-strength streams, natural rock formations that are various sized tubs, and a chilly river it flows into (so you can get the whole hot-cold alternations).~60 km from krabi town, 90B entrance, 5B parking.

emerald lagoon/pool - about 1km in from the entrance, you come upon a crystal clear, natural pool (almost exactly like a swimming pool) fed by mineral streams, which have tinted the rocks a slight blue-green hue. room temp, very refreshing. again, i could stay here all day. if you come late afternoon, there are much less people and the surrounding forest shades the pool. we ran out of time and couldn't make it to their less popular (superstition) blue pool.~60 km from krabi town (only several km from the hot waterfall), a hefty 200B entrance (yikes! if you can pass for thai, it's only 20B), 10B parking.

krabi town night markets - you want fruit, southern curries, the normal market fare? head over to the open market at thanon maharat soi 10.want street-side dinner off carts? head over to the night market at thanon khlongkha @ the longtail boat pier.
want to see where these places are? check out this google map.

getting there:
i like ease and domestic flights in thailand are relatively cheap. fly into the small krabi airport and you can take either a taxi (about 350+B) or a shuttle bus to your hotel (90B/person for krabi city, 150B/p for aonang)

lodging: baan andaman
i have to give a rec for baan andaman; thai-style, simple, free wi-fi, wide-screen tvs, and we found great tour/day activity deals from them. it's situated away from the center of the city, but definitely within walking distance to restaurants and markets (10 min to the pier). and it smells nice (fresh, like thai herbs). oh, and my favorite was that they left a little snack in our room every day.
(i went through agoda.com, and got a pretty good price. i've used agoda a couple of times and have been really satisfied with their service.)

spaghetti godfarther

farm fresh vegetable

generally, italian in bangkok means big baht. fortunately, the thai are particularly entrepreneurial and have a knack for reproduction; just walk through any night/street market and you'll find every kind of fendi, vuitton, or prada.

farm fresh vegetable is no different in appearance or thai cuisine than any other run-of-the-mill storefront restaurant in bangkok, except for its decent italian menu. nothing to call home about, but not bad if you're in the pridi area and looking for some italian food that you'd rather not cook yourself.their menu's pretty good, including a dish called "spaghetti godfarther" which essentially is chicken parm. pesto was the best sauce in my opinion, packing punch; marinara is on the sweeter end, and the alfredo is good by alfredo standards (though, you should ask someone else, since i'm not the biggest fan of alfredo), squid ink fettucine is nice.
a couple 'honorable mention' menu items are boar meat, curry spaghetti, fettucine panang, and thai esan style tagliatele. unfortunately, didn't get to try to the boar meat. boo.

round out your bill with some thai favorites (their tom kha is particularly creamy and aroy) and one of their many fish dishes and you'll leave satisfied with a wallet with some baht left in it.

farm fresh vegetable. 45 pridi 2 (sukhumvit 71)
4:30p-1am, closed sundays.
dishes ranging 50-220B

laborer's rejoice!

บะหมี่ จับกัง (bami jap gang)

i love dives. love love love dives. the more difficult to find, the cheaper the cost, the dingier the place, the more i love it. i attribute this to my chinese dna. so the quest began when my teacher told me about the ultimate noodle dive in chinatown, bami jap gang. it literally translates to "laborer's egg noodles."located down a skinny, covered little soi in chinatown, this place is all about portion size and speed. the uber-mechanical employees churn out bowls and to-go packs (translate: wrapped in newspaper) of pork and egg noodles with apt speed. we didn't even have to order, we just got a bowl flung in front of us.the noodles are all about simplicity and sheer nutrition on-the-go: you get a heaping portion of egg noodles, roast pork, and green onions; extra greasy. season with the normal thai noodle seasonings they have on the table (chili peppers, vinegar, fish sauce, sugar) and you're done. get your day's worth of calories before you head off to your laborious job...or shopping.there is only one sign, and it's obviously one that was created in about a minute and a half on a word processor. basically all it says is the name of the place "bami jap gang" and the price. normal ("tamada") is 25B; special ("pi-set"), which just means bigger is 35B.

bami jap gang (laborer's noodles) in chinatown/yaowarat on Trok Charoen Chai Soi 2 about 50-100m. near Wat Mangkorn (a.k.a wat leng heng yee - the chinese name).

no way is there a webby.

wait your turn, bub

12 อร่อย ซาลาเปา (12 aroy salapao)

crowds around food always pique my curiosity. especially if they're waiting.
i just joined the line of chinese thai folks waiting around stacks of steamers at '12 aroy salapao.' and i ended up being the only one who didn't buy a batch. being chinese, i've had a few salapao buns (chinese: bao zi) in my lifetime and they're usually pretty run of the mill: airy white bread encasing a sweet or savory filling. good for on-the-go.
i tried a black sesame paste bun fresh out of the steamer. i have never had a fluffier, lighter bun with a just-sweet-enough black sesame paste. i had no idea salapao could be so much better than what i'd had before. no savoring possible. next time i'm getting one of each filling.

flavors: red bean, black sesame, cream, ground pork, and red pork (18B). taro and ba gway (20B).
12 aroy salapao (look for '12'), 53 thanon mahannop (at the corner of trok wat mahanop 1) , rattanakosin
18-20B per bun

ruby ruby ruby rubyyyyy (tribute to the kaiser chiefs)

ทับทิมกรอบ (tup tim grob)

tup tim grob. literally translated they mean "crunchy rubies." ruby is also the word for pomegranates - see the resemblance to their seeds? i stinkin' love these little buggers, and the best i've had is from Lek (below, in red). what they are like little water chestnut mochis in shaved ice and coconut milk. super refreshing in scorching thailand with just the right mix of chewy and crispy. Lek specially smokes fragrance into her tup tim grob, making them particularly aromatic.

Lek has lots of other things you can have in shaved ice, but she's famous for her tup tim grob. She sells in conjunction with a boat-noodle soup stand (the kind made with cow's blood - it's actually good) so you can come for a complete meal for cheap. during the week, this place is always packed. Lek's little stand - "tup tim grob", pratunam boat pier (under the awning, past the tattoo shop)
15B a bowl. closed weekends.

how can they profit?

รสเด็ด (rot det)

honestly, how do you make a profit when you charge the equivalent of $3 for all-you-can-eat?
the best part about this place is the gata, which is a coal-fired pan that has a raised grill in the center and a soup moat that holds whatever kind of soup you decide to make that collects all the meat juices that have run off the grill. take a moment to wipe the drool off your face.

this place has "shrimp" in its name so they have pretty large raw prawns, but they go quick, so keep alive. there's also raw beef, pork, seafoods, chicken, various processed meats (like fish cakes & hot dogs) for the grilling. not high quality meat, but very tasty. for brevity, i will only list some of the other non-grill items: grilled whole fish, pre-grilled pepper steak, raw veggies for the soup, pad thai, spring rolls, siu mai, squid salad, som tam, fried crab rangoon, chicken wings, coconut ice cream, fresh fruit, donuts, muffins, sticky rice and mango, shaved ice with thai sweets. oh yeah, 99B gets you all that and you can stay till they close if you like.
note: it's all outdoors. don't expect an 'A' health code rating.rot det shrimp gata (sign is in thai only). nawamin on the corner of soi 155. (also at sukhumvit 71)
99B per person, all you can eat. if you don't finish too much of what you get, you get charged 20B for every extra 0.1kg. don't load up on the questionable meats.
open from 4pm to midnight, you can stay the whole time if you like.