Category: Cuisine: Thai

350 THB luxury khao soi vs. 40 THB street khao soi: which is better?

In my trip to Chiang Mai of course I had to try the khao soi, one of Northern Thailand’s iconic dishes. Khao soi is basically a curry soup (but in the curry there is also coconut juice) with deep-fried crispy egg noodles on top and normal boiled egg noodles soaked in the soup. It comes with either beef, chicken and pork and it is usually served with a side dish of  pickled mustard greens, shallots and lime as a condiment, along with chili paste. Normally it is a mildly spicy dish, but the level of spiciness can vary depending on the establishment.

The street khao soi: Khao Soi Khun Yai

Following food youtuber and blogger Mark Wiens’ advise, I tried my street khoi soi in a diner located along the northern perimeter of Chiang Mai’s old city called Khao Soi Khun Yai.

The diner is open only until 2pm, so I went for a breakfast. I was not the only tourist, I guess Mark Wiens can really make a difference with his recommendations! They are tourist friendly with an English menu now:

I am not a fan of noodles, ramen and such, but I found this khao soi a delicious dish. Mixing the soft boiled and the crispy fried noodles gave the dish a particular texture. I chose to have chicken in mine and I enjoyed every bite. I finished the soup. (Looking back with more experience I can add that the fried noodles were a bit soggy and that overall this was a very spicy khao soi, which may be good or bad depending on your taste.)

Special bonus: I enjoyed their longan juice too!

Total price: 40 THB for the small khao soi, that would be 1.20 USD (plus 20 THB for the drink).

The luxury khao soi: Le Grand Lanna

Le Grand Lanna is a luxury Thai restaurant located on the ground of the five-star resort Dhara Devi. It is around 8 km outside the old city.

Their khao soi was pretty much the same size as the one tried in the other restaurant and came with the usual pickles, lime and chili paste.

What to say? I enjoyed this bowl as well, but I found it more of a soft ball. The soup was less tasty, less spicy and the egg noodles gave me the impression to be cut by a machine, if not bought ready-made (I am pretty sure that at Khao Soi Khun Yai were hand-made).

The khao soi was part of a set menu, but the cost from a la carte menu (after service charge and tax) was a little over 350 THB, around 11 USD.

The verdict

Was the luxury khao soi worth the extra money? While I am not a khao soi expert by any stretch of the imagination, I do not think it was worth. Clearly you are paying for the ambience, not for the food.

To be honest, the two dishes were quite similar, but I found the soup of the khao soi served at Khao Soi Khun Yai more tasty and spicy. Also, their noodles, especially the dried noodles on top, presented a better texture.

For other reasons, I would not recommend Le Grand Lanna as a destination in Chiang Mai. On the other side, khoi soi is really a dish to try while visiting the city and the multitude of diners serving khoi soi are certainly more interesting than the glossy environment of Le Grand Lanna.

A gourmet oasis in the old city: Baan Landai in Chiang Mai

In every trip it is nice to come across an exciting eatery that was not part of the original planning. This happened with the Thai restaurant Baan Landai – Fine Thai Cuisine during my trip to Chiang Mai. I came across the restaurant mainly because it was near my hotel. I visited it twice and found it an excellent venue where to taste traditional and creative Thai dishes in a comfortable dining environment.

The visit(s)

The restaurant is located very close to the North Gate of Chiang Mai’s old city in the ground floor or a hotel.

The dining room is spacious and nicely decorated. The owner meant to bestow a homey feeling to the restaurant. “Baan” means “home” in Thai and “Landai” was the nickname given to the owner when he was studying at the Faculty of Architecture at Chiang Mai University. This location was brand new at the time of my visit in August 2018 as they were also operating another smaller venue in Chang Phueak district (I am not entirely sure if the original location is being phased out or will continue to operate, just be aware that there might be another address popping up on the web).

In both visits I was there for lunch and I ordered an appetizer and a main (plus something else).

To start, from their appetizers list I chose the fried fish and squid cakes. Fish cakes are a staple of Thai cuisine; in this version they were enriched by a squid ring and soy-vinegar dip sauce was provided. The dish was ok, honestly not that tasty, but I guess it was what to expect from fish cakes. One issue that I had was that this appetizer platter was really meant for sharing, it was a bit boring to have six fish cakes all by myself.

Then I had a ruby fish baked with turmeric. The dish was mildy spicy and delicious. The fish was meaty and the condiments enhanced its flavor. Another big dish that could have been split between two people.

Finally, I had one of their cocktails. Here I made a rookie mistake. I though it was a mocktail (non alcoholic), but actually the herbs were added to a base of Thai rum. I do not like alcohol and I could not finish it.

In my second visit I opted for water!

As an appetizer I opted for Thai fried sausage. I expected to get the classic Northerner Thai sausage, but I got something different. Honestly, it was not very tasty (the accompanying dip sauce partially helped). Again, this was an appetizer ideal for sharing.

Then I had a grapefruit and pomegranate shrimp salad. This was a delicious dish, the grapefruit scored very well with the shrimps (not many…). Also some nuts helped aligning the flavors. I did not really taste much the pomegranate component.

Finally, I tested one of their desserts. It was an impressive “flower jelly”. The flower motive inside the jelly was very realistic and overall very lightly sweet. A small work of art.

Also a plus that the staff spoke English and was very friendly.

The check(s)

The first visit cost me 613 THB (around 18.50 USD), of these 139 THB were wasted for the cocktail. The second visit cost me 427 THB (around 13 USD). The prices were very affordable, considering the quality of the dishes and the nice dining ambiance.

Should I visit Chiang Mai again, I would certainly be motivated to go back to Baan Landai to try more dishes from their extensive menu. For a solo diner like me, I would probably suggest to skip the appetizers since the portions are too large for an individual.

Where in Chiang Mai:
252/13-14 Prapokklao Rd., Sripoom, Muang Chiang Mai.
Check the restaurant’s Facebook page for the menu and updated information. 

One of the best meals of my life in this hidden gem in Chiang Mai: The Redbox Restaurant

My best meal in my first trip to Chiang Mai turned up to be totally unplanned. After skipping lunch, I was craving for an early dinner when I came across an article on Chiang Mai City Life about a new fine dining restaurant, The Redbox Restaurant. (By the way, Chiang Mai City life turned out to be the best source for reliable information about the city.) The backstory was really stimulating: a relatively young chef, Dan, with experience in Brunei and Australia, coming home with his wife Proud to open their dream restaurant. Luckily they had no problem accepting my booking for a very early dinner and the rest is history.

The visit

The restaurant is located in an elegant villa in a quiet residential “soi” (alleyway), not far away from the Maya Shopping Center. I suggest you to get there using Grabcar app as I did.

The interior is very nicely decorated. It feels like to be in a private home. They have seating both indoor and outdoor. The indoor dining room is very intimate and warm.

They have an extensive menu! It was not easy to limit my choice to three dishes.

I started my meal with a bang. I ordered what I later discovered was meant to be one of their signature dishes: watermelon and foie gras (but they also have a version with fried tofu). I really wanted to try how the flavors would combine. This was a very refreshing and tasty appetizer. The sweetness of the watermelon and the foie gras were balanced by the bitterness of the rocket salad and the balsamic vinegar sauce. I can see how the use of fruit as an ingredient can be regarded as an homage to Thai cuisine where combining fruit with meat or seafood is not uncommon. At the same time, the dish possessed the creativity to be in the menu of  a Michelin-rated venue. I was later explained that the watermelons are handpicked to ensure that the piece used for the dish is seedless, perfectly ripe and solid. This dish was a great introduction to the Redbox philosophy and their care for all the details of their dishes.

Then I opted for something substantial (remember that I had skipped lunch!) that I had never tried before: a crispy pata, a Filipino dish consisting of deep fried pig knuckles served with a soy-vinegar dip. Every bite of this pork meat was sensational and the skin was super crispy and tasty (it reminded me Spanish fried pork skin). They use a quality of pork imported from Japan that is famous for its thick skin and juicy meat.

The dish came with salad and some delicious sauces, in addition to some mustard and the traditional soy-vinegar for the meat (honestly the meat was so good that mustard and dip sauce were hardly indispensable).

I had room for another main course (honestly the previous dish could have been easily split between two people…). I asked for a traditional Thai dish and I was recommended the tamarind prawns. In the pictures above you can see it both how it came nicely presented out of the kitchen and how its content looked spread on my dish. I was particularly impressed by the big size and meatiness of the prawns that made this traditional dish particularly satisfying.

At this point chef Dan came to greet me and we had a brief chat. He explained me how the “RED” philosophy came into being and gave me more insights about the dishes I had. RED stands for “ready, edible and distinctive”. The philosophy came to be in the Brunei where Dan’s family runs a restaurant business and where he introduced gourmet boxes catering to expat workers that were not entirely happy with the local food options. He also shared that his mum is Filipino and this explained the crispy pata on the menu. I was then invited to have my dessert in their tearoom downstairs.

The tearoom is even more intimate and some of the desserts are on display.

I had a slice of banoffee pie and a teapot of a custom Siam tea blend. The dessert was on par with the previous magnificent dishes. In the pie I could clearly distinguish the sweet crumble base, the banana and the tiramisu cream (made using sugar cane from Northern Thailand).

Finally, on the house, I was offered two bites of a traditional Thai shortbread cookie called lambduan. To make them more special, they were presented inside a special teapot where some aromatic substance was burning giving them additional fragrance. Marvelous finale.

The check

This first class meal cost me 1,530 THB, around 46 USD. For three substantial dishes, tea and dessert, this is incredible value for money. Among other things, I appreciate that they charged water at a nominal rate (I start hating restaurants that charge me 10 USD or more for a bottle of water…).

My only regret is that the following day they were full and could not accommodate me for another meal. This is the kind of restaurant that would prompt me to organize another trip to Chiang Mai. I wish the best to Dan and Proud for their business because what I saw was talent combined with true passion and care. I am just afraid that in the near future, as soon as word starts spreading, it will be very tough to secure a table in this world class restaurant.

Where in Chiang Mai:
No. 6 Jannsaap Alley, Huay Keaw Road.
Check their Facebook page for updated information. Currently open for lunch and dinner and closed on Tuesdays.
They are active on LINE app: @redboxth.