Eat and meet

Nakhon Pathom

Nakhon Pathom certainly isn't overflowing in five star eateries, but you won't starve either -- especially with the mother-of-all night markets setting up by the mother-of-all stupas every evening. Dozens of food stalls set up here as the sun recedes over the Chedi, and it's easily the number one spot in town among the locals. It's typical night market fare -- with everything from khao phat gai (fried rice with chicken) to sah-lah bow (steamed buns with filling).

For a sit-down scene, head to the aptly named Rice and Noodles. It dishes out run-of-the-mill Thai dishes in a no-nonsense setting. There are no English-language menus, so if you're not up on your Thai just look at what some else is eating, use the point and smile technique and you will be well looked after. Rice and Noodles is about 500m down Ratchadamnoen Rd as you walk away from the Chedi on the right side of the road.

Just bend your head to the left as you walk in the door of Chokdee Dimsum to discover if this place is going to be your cup-of-tea. Therein lies an array of dozens of dim sum dishes mostly using fish, corn or sushi as the main ingredient. Chokdee (which means good luck in Thai) is a friendly place and you'll be well looked after even if you can't bridge the language barrier. A speciality is the Bak Kut The, a spicy Chinese broth that's said to keep you looking young and healthy. To reach Chokdee Dimsum take the first right on Ratchadamnoen Rd as you walk west away from the Chedi. It's opposite the Siam Hotel, Ratchadamnoen Rd.

 

Visitors with a macchiato addiction have only got one option in Nakhon Pathom -- the divinely named Angel Coffee. The coffee shop also does sandwiches, Western breakfasts and the best ice-cream this side of the Chedi. Customers can sit inside or out on the footpath, and staff sometimes pump out French music from early last century for a real cultural juxtaposition. It's next door to Rice and Noodles at 178/2 Ratchadamnoen Rd.