sagesex

Yeah, Bangkok is still inspiring us. I believe it’s the mix – between eastern roots and the striving for western ideals, between business and people sleeping at the roadside, traffic chaos and idyllic parks, between worldly commerce and golden temples, and especially between cheap and delicious. Because the only thing that’s more abundant and cheap on Bangkok’s streets than sex is food.

Every other inhabitant seems to be running a little food stall here, offering Thai snacks for 5-20 Baht (about 10-40 Euro cent). Mostly on wheels, with our without a protective pane, featuring a barbecue or a freezer, in front of supermarkets or at the side of main roads – there are many things on offer that you can imagine as a westerner and even more that you neither know nor are able to identify. You eat it either from plastic bags using spits, skewered directly out of your hand or sitting at child-sized plastic seats and tables, from bowls using spoons and chopsticks. The dish washer bucket is always right next on the curbstone.

The sagesex crew has made it their mission to try as many of these culinary Thai treats as possible and give you recommendations for your next trip to Bangkok using an objective, open-minded scale. For three days already we have been eating away at the food scene of “South East Asia’s most saucy capital” (Lonely Planet) and we already had the pleasure of experiencing some highlights.

Bangkok Strange Street Food 1: Varied skewers

Our first presentation is a classic. The lower three of the pictured spits have been the first Bangkok street food we tried. Curious and naive as you are in the beginning, we naturally asked what they were, when the vendor handed us our spits into a plastic bag in loose pieces, drenched in a lot of sweet chili sauce. After some thought, the lowest of these three delicacies was described as “Po”. Whatever that means, we haven’t found out yet. Probably it’s a kind of deep-fried carbohydrates, and as with most of these dishes opinions differ: While “Po” is still Stefan’s favourite snack, I would rather sort it into the lower middle class for lack of taste. Bottom line: Not very spectacular, yet somehow undefinably delectable. Worth a try in any case.

The next spit snack from below is similar in spirit. We’re in agreement that it must be some kind of root. The taste is absolutely comparable to french fries, though maybe a little nuance more rich. Which makes it a definite recommendation in place of french fries, though it’s still not the kind of oddity that we have started this series for.

But luckily there’s the third and last spit that we tried at the enchanting Thai mama’s stall, who regretably we weren’t allowed to photograph. For the first time we had to grant a certain rank on the disgust scale. Obviously this is some kind of cuttlefish noodle – for me it was the first thing at this stall that actually tasted like something, for Stefan the first thing that gave him a slight shiver.

Owing to our disagreement there was no clear winner this time, though at least the middle spit received above average grades from both of us. So stay tuned for more deliciousness and oddities in the next issue of the Bangkok strange street food series!

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Yeah, Bangkok is still inspiring us. I believe it’s the mix – between eastern roots and the striving for western ideals, between business and people sleeping at the roadside, traffic...