Jok Si Phing is a traditional diner in Chiang Mai specializing in congee. Congee (rice porridge) is a popular breakfast dish in Thailand. (Jok, from Cantonese, is one of the ways to call congee in Thai.)
The visit
The diner faces a busy road.
Inside on the wall there are many pictures with famous customers that stopped by.
Cutlery is kept in closed boxes. Similarly to noodle places, chopsticks are provided instead of forks; a nod to the Chinese origin of these dishes.
A number of condiments are available.
And now let’s get to the congee. There were a number of variants available on the menu (luckily they had a one-pager English menu). I settled for pork and mushrooms. I am not a fan of congee. But this was good. The rice was super creamy and all the ingredients were palatable. Other options included fish and preserved egg.
An interesting ingredient that added a dimension to its texture were some thin white filaments that I later discovered to be deep fried vermicelli.
I also tried their crispy pork belly with rice. To my disappointment it came with an oily sauce. But the pork belly was reasonably good. A soup and thick soy sauce were also included.
The check
The congee cost me 40 THB and the crispy pork belly and rice 50 THB. That’s 2.75 USD.
The congee they serve is indeed remarkable and deserve a stop if porridge is your thing.
Where in Chiang Mai:
99/25 Suthep Road, Mueang Chiang Mai.