Country Article / Postcards

Cheap Eats in Bangkok

Date: 03/02/2004

Dear Reader,

We're lunching in the Amarin, a second-floor air-conditioned restaurant in Bangkok, specializing in Thai, Chinese and Japanese cuisine. Compared to the food stalls in the street, it's expensive, but still great value for western travelers:

* Stir-fried spring greens in oyster sauce: 55 baht ($1.40)

* Stir-fried beef with basil and chilies: 70 baht ($1.75)

* Chicken satay: 85 baht ($2.15)

* Sweet and sour pork: 95 baht ($2.45)

* Roast duck in green curry: 105 baht ($2.70)

* Squid stuffed with minced prawns: 195 baht ($5)

This is only a tiny selection from the huge menu. (Tip for travel writers: always try and grab menus; scribbling prices on paper napkins invariably ends in disaster.)

Rather than having one dish to yourself (especially when you're in company), it's usual to order a selection that everyone can share. You generally order one dish more than the number of people in your party.

You'll find Amarin at 518 Ploenchit Road, near the city's World Trade Center shopping complex.

Steenie Harvey
Roving Travel Writer, International Living

P.S. On Soi 11, a street just off Sukhumvit Road, my husband has come across Narry's bespoke tailors. He's looking at the $199 package deal: two suits (cashmere, gabardine, merino or mohair wool), two shirts, one summer suit (linen, cotton or light wool), two silk ties, one silk kimono and two leather belts. The deal for women costs the same and you get: three suits, two blouses, one dress (silk, wool, viscose), one silk kimono and two silk scarves.

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