Located just a few minutes walk away from Bangkok’s hottest lifestyle destination, The Commons, is a casual Thai eatery called Khao Jao. If you are tired of the hipster cafes in Bangkok, check out this place for a good variety of local dishes that will not disappoint.

Their Thai-centric menu features stir-fried Thai noodles, classic Thai fried rice and omelette served in various styles. Prices of the mains range from THB50/S$2.05 to THB70/S$2.88, so you are getting extremely good value for the quality and portions of the food.

There is nothing fancy about the interior at Khao Jao as it is a simple place that will make you feel at ease when you dine there. Take a look at the many miniature toys on display at the wooden shelves while you are waiting for your food!

Khao Jao’s Stir Fried Spicy Noodle Pork (THB55/S$2.23) left a deep impression on us as every mouthful of noodles was flavourful. The addition of crunchy vegetables also gave the dish a variety of textures when we had it together with smooth rice noodles. We also liked how the spice level was just right, without it being overbearing.

Next up, we tried their Green Curry Fried Rice (THB60/S$2.47) which came with fried fish and fresh cucumbers. Although we felt that it was slightly underwhelming when compared to the Stir Fried Spicy Noodle, we thoroughly enjoyed the crispy fried fish as the meat was juicy and tender.

Those are looking for some side dishes to complement your meal, we highly recommend the Omelette with minced shrimp (THB60/S$2.47). This classic Thai dish is masterfully executed there—think fluffy egg omelette with savoury bits of shrimp that enhances the overall taste of the omelette. Yes, it was so good that we finished every morsel of it.

Khao Jao
Thonglor Soi 17
Bangkok, Thailand
Tel: +66 02 712 5665
Daily: 10am – 8.30pm
Nearest BTS: Thonglor

This Tom Yum UFO from Sansab Restaurant has been making waves in Bangkok, and it is one of the more commonly photographed food dish on Instagram these days,

In case you are wondering what it is, it really is a simple steamboat of sorts, with additional ingredients on the side. Is it really that worth the hype though?

We made a trip to the restaurant during our recent trip to Bangkok, and here’s our take.

San Sab is a pretty comfortable restaurant that sits on level 4 of Siam Paragon. It is spacious, brightly lit, and has booth seats for big groups.

Its regular menu is unassuming – your regular Thai dishes, occasional inserts of random Western dishes, and a whole menu of sweet and colourful drinks that you would typically see in Bangkok. Nothing too out of the norm.

But the recent introduction of this Tom Yum UFO got everyone going gaga over. More than just a steamboat, it has four separate pockets on the circumference of the pot, and in its pocket are complements to the steamboat.

The UFO comes in three variations – all meat (THB499), regular seafood (THB579) and premium seafood (THB799). Whichever variation you are going to order, they all come with the extra ingredients on the outside – cheese, corn, quail eggs and seaweed soup.

San Sab probably got this inspiration from famous K-bbq Kang Ho Dong Baekjeong, which is famous for the addition of cheese, corn and steamed eggs on the outer pockets of their grills.

Unfortunately, the whole pot didn’t taste as good as it looked in pictures. We went for the premium seafood version, but it was not worth THB799 at all. The big prawns as pictured were far from fresh, and while the tom yum soup tasted decent, it was nothing much to shout about. But we made ours a tad better by adding the cheese to the soup, and the melted goodness added a nice sweetness to the soup.

Stick to the regular version and don’t bother “splurging” on the expensive version. It still makes a fun meal with pals, and its location makes it a convenient spot for a quick dinner.