The other day, Pinky and I found ourselves wandering along
Charoenkrung Road, a very old part of Bangkok along the riverside that I'm not at all familiar with. Charoenkrung was the first paved road in the city, and it runs along some of Bangkok's most iconic landmarks such as the
Oriental Hotel, the
Grand Post Office,
Assumption Cathedral, and Central Pier.
Hungry, we set out to find something delicious to eat. In Bangkok, it's never difficult to find good food - the hard part is trying to narrow down all of your options! In the end, we decided to visit a famous dim sum shop called Tuang by Chef Yip.
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| Dim Sum Tuang |
It was crowded outside of Chef Yip's tiny dim sum shop. People from all walks of life - Bangkok businesspeople, elderly Thai-Chinese couples, Japanese expats - flock from all over the area to visit what has become known as the best, most affordable dim sum in Bangkok.
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| cooking dim sum |
Dim sum is a famous Cantonese street food, and Tuang is just about as authentic as it could possibly be. The famous Chef Yip himself was born in Hong Kong and brings all of his authentic cooking experience to the streets of Bangkok.
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| various dim sum |
I am a huge fan of dim sum, though I don't get to eat it very often. Dim sum is a Cantonese style of steamed dumpling prepared in small, almost bite-sized portions. This can entail almost anything, and it was difficult to choose which dishes to order off of Tuang's menu, because everything sounded so good.
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| a delicious meal |
After our incredible lunch, we set out on foot to walk up and down Charoenkrung Road, exploring a part of the city neither Pinky nor I had ever been to before.
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| Wat Sutthi Wararam |
First up, we stopped by Wat Sutthi Wararam, a beautiful Buddhist temple with a large statue of the Buddha sitting right in front. At the moment that we arrived, a funeral was in progress, so we didn't enter the grounds. We did get a nice look at the temple from the outside, however.
Further on, we came to a very small and very old Chinese shrine. This one, like a shrine that we had visited on our electric scooter tour a few weeks ago, was dedicated to the Chinese deity Chao Mae Thaptim, or "Grandmother Ruby".
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| Chao Mae Thapthim Shrine 天后聖母廟 |
Chao Mae Thaptim is one of the principal spirits venerated by the Thai-Chinese community, and these small local shrine halls are very important centers of community life and culture.
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| burning incense |
The Ruby Grandmother is a maritime goddess, so it makes sense that she became so important here in Thailand.
The Thai-Chinese were originally oceangoing merchant families who made their homes along the Chaophraya in the Thonburi and early Rattanakosin periods over 200 years ago.
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| shrine courtyard |
After spending a few hours exploring in the heat, we were feeling hungry again! It was time for an early dinner. This time, we visited
Prachak Roasted Duck, a legendary restaurant which was established in 1909!
If you liked reading about my food adventures, and enjoyed the photos of the excellent meals that I had on Charoenkrung Road, check out my food and travel blog
The World of Street Food (
theworldofstreetfood.com). I'll be posting about both of these great restaurants this week, along with the other incredible meals that I have in Thailand and on my travels around the world! Pinky and I started the food blog a few years ago on our journey across Vietnam, and it's become one of my favorite side projects. It's so much fun to document the great food that I have as I travel throughout the region. Stay tuned for much more!
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