Places to eat in Kamphaeng Phet
We won’t call Kamphaeng Phet the foodie’s capital if Thailand, yet there are a couple of addresses which will make your culinary acquaintance with this amiable town a pleasant one.
Markets and Street Food
Make sure you don’t miss the night market close to the river if you stay in town just for one night. We personally love to visit night markets when we travel in Thailand, and this is one of the best we’ve been to for the variety and quality of food, the welcoming vendors and the cheap prices.
While in many other towns, the markets are more like a place to go and grab food that will be consumed somewhere else, in Kamphaeng Phet it is some kind of a place for socializing where the city dwellers come to spend all their evening. Lots of tables and chairs are provided and you won’t have any problem to find a place to sit.
The market opens from 4pm till 10pm but wait until 6pm when all the stalls will be in full operation and don’t go too late when many places run out of food. Expect to pay THB30/THB40 for a basic dish like pad thai or pad krap pao (chicken or pork stir-fried with basil leaf) while the most expensive one will probably be full freshwater grilled fish (THB120). The menus in English are not available but everything is cooked right in front of you so it shouldn’t be impossible to understand what they’re cooking.
Our absolute pick in street food category is ba mi kyao chagangrao stand dishing out THB25 bowls of crazy tasty noodles traditional style. It is the best breakfast in the whole Kamphaeng Phet, and they close before 3pm. Look for their stand at the corner of Ratchadamnoen 1 and Ratchadamnoen 1 Soi 1. There are several tables to sit and free tea is also provided.
Mu Katha Restaurants
One of the local favorite meal is mu katha, a combination of Korean barbecue and Chinese hot pot. The pot in the centre of the table is made in such a way that you can grill sliced meat (pork and chicken usually) in the middle while on the side there’s the space for the soup where the vegetables and other ingredients will be steamed. There are many places around town that offer mu katha in combination with a buffet (with a large selection of ready to eat food) where you can eat as much as you want for a price of THB160 (drinks are usually not included).
Thai Food
For a comfortable dinner in an air-conditioned restaurant head over Tasty Café (115-119 Thesa 1 Road, open every day from 10.30am till 11pm). Located close to the bridge over the river Ping, few steps from Chakungrao Riverside Hotel. This is a good option if you still want to taste traditional Thai food but you feel like you need a nice, clean and quiet restaurant. Staff are professional and speak good English and you also have an English menu. Prices are obviously a bit higher than what you pay in the market, but they’re still reasonable (starting at THB80) and the food is tasty and presented in an innovative way. Highlight of our dinner was the Bavarian draught beer. It’s also a good spot during the day for a good ice cream or a delicious coconut cake.
Even if it’s a bit out of the centre and you’ll need a taxi to get there Baan Nichapa Restaurant (47/17 Moo 1, Ban Wang Yang, Nakhon Chum, open every day 11am – 11pm) is a real dining experience. Located on the opposite side of the river, the location is impressive itself. Don’t stop inside unless you really need an air-con and head to one of the two open-air river side balcony or even better to the lower level right on the river bank where few different dining areas are nicely separated from each other for a more private atmosphere with a stunning view of the river. The food is delicious; the chef Nichapa is mainly focused on country-style traditional Thai food which is cooked with a modern touch always respectful of the original taste. The several variations of chicken curry are all worth it.
Western and International Food
For western food you have no choice but heading to one of the guesthouses’ restaurants or to Big C department store where you’ll find some of the international chains (KFC and Pizza Company).
Cafes and Coffee Shops
There is an impressive amount of tiny coffee shops in town like Suea Yim Coffee in So1 1 Rachavitee relatively near Three J Guesthouse. To our great surprise we found there coffee from Vietnam at a very reasonable price (THB35).
The most popular coffee house and bakery is Western-style Pa Yao Bakery Coffee House. It looks nice from outside but unfortunately it was closed when we passed by, but other travellers recommend it strongly.
