Thailand is called the “Land of smiles”, but I think its other name should be the “Land of Pot Bellies”. This is because the foods here are very delicious, cheap, and most importantly it is ubiquitous! Cheap and delicious food can be found virtually everywhere in Thailand, this is no joke at all. Besides the standalone restaurants, food courts, malls, and fresh markets, foods can also be found at nearly every street corners and sidewalks. From quick snacks like steamed corns, grilled calamari, pad thai, to hearty meals such deep fried whole fish, tomyum goong, stewed pork legs, stir fried crabs, noodle soups, and even shark fin soup! The list goes on and on, and there are popular foods from different regions of Thailand as well. There are Southern dishes known for its lip smacking and ass burning spiciness, the North has its famous sausage called “Sai Aua” and its dipping sauce known as “Nam prik noom”, the Central region dishes are of curry based like chicken or pork curry, and of course the North-East (Issan) has got the most popular dishes such as “Somtum”, “Larb”, grilled chicken and sticky rice. The kitchen of the entire nation can be found at a single street corner, especially at busy areas such as in front of a hospital, office buildings, or densely populated area.

The reason why there are so many selections of street foods to choose from is because these “restaurant” are mobile. It’s a restaurant on wheels that’s manually pushed, pulled, or dragged along by a motorcycle. From Tuesday to Sunday, the vendors gather at a designated area during breakfast, lunch, and dinner time (It’s illegal for them to sell street foods on Mondays because the city needs to clean the streets, at least it’s what the city claims). Certain areas have vendors selling late into the night as they cater to party-goers needing some spicy food to sober up, or taxi drivers and ladies of nights needing a quick meal before heading home.

So you see, this is the number one contributing factor as to why so many Thai men have a pot belly (that’s my excuse anyway). We get paid peanuts here and yet managed to get a pot belly, Amazing Thailand huh? This is quite evident amongst the Thai policemen who are the worst paid of them all. To their credit though, they are still able to catch the bad guys with their bulging bellies, because those bad guys have got a pot belly as well. The only guys you’ll see without a belly is perhaps the Muay Thai boxers

Thailand, the “Land of Pot Bellies”….OK, it doesn’t sound that attractive as the “Land of Smiles”, but I have to say with a full belly, it’s one of the reasons that makes us smiles 

Enjoy the foods here and do share your Thai Xperience with us