Serious Southern Thai Food: Feeding the Addiction at Lan Luam Dtai Restaurant


Southern Thai Food
For me, nothing can compare to the bursts of extreme flavor and the internal inferno of heat that is synonymous with Southern Thai food.
I sometimes dream about southern Gaeng Som, drooling in my imagination as my mouth reacts to the harsh combinations of spices and sour bites that never fail to excite my taste buds.
One of my reining favorite hoods for southern Thai food is right around Siriraj Hospital. There are a small cluster of restaurants, 3 in particular that serve nothing but the best (you might remember Puk Tai Dao?).
Each restaurant is managed by a group of old ladies who take delight in our utmost passion of devouring their food.
Using any form of self-control would be in vain.

Southern Thai Food

Goong Pad Sataw (กุ้งผัดสะตอ) - Shrimp Stir Fried with Stink Beans
I ordered up a normal smorgasbord mix of dishes. It all looked so good that it took extreme effort to limit the quantity.
In restaurant situation like this I just want to give them my credit card and start a running tab, not caring the least bit how high that bill may run (though it won’t be much).
The Goong Pad Sataw (กุ้งผัดสะตอ) – shrimp stir fried with stink beans was outstanding, probably the best thing we ordered. It was flawlessly curried in a powerful sauce and the beans were cooked so they were naturally crunchy and took on that wonderful curry flavor.

Gaeng Kee Lek (แกงขี้เหล็ก) - Cassia Leaf Curry
The bowl of Gaeng Kee Lek (แกงขี้เหล็ก) was equally amazing, a thick coconut cream based curry filled with Kee Lek leaves (known as cassia leaves in English – as identified by Eating Asia).

Gaeng Som
There are a few southern Thai dishes that are prerequisites for any meal, and southern style Gaeng Som, of any variation is mandatory. There was no messing around with this version.

Kua Kling Moo (คั่วกลิ้งหมู) - Dry Pork Curry
The Kua Kling Moo (คั่วกลิ้งหมู) was excellent, each morsel meat coated by the dry curry and laced with fragrant slices of kaffir lime leaf.

Nam Prik Makam (น้ำพริกมะขาม)
Nam Prik Makam (น้ำพริกมะขาม) is a pounded chili paste made form tamarind pulp mixed with chilies, roasted garlic and a few other ingredients. It acts like a dip topping for raw green vegetables. They did it incredibly at Lan Luam Dtai ร้านรวมใต้.

Cha Om Kai (ชะอมไข่) and Nam Prik Kaphi (น้ำพริกกะปิ)
After such a glorious hit of Nam Prik Makam, we deemed it necessary to sample the classic Nam Prik Kaphi (น้ำพริกกะปิ), a spicy chili sauce combined with fermented shrimp paste and heavy on lime juice.
Along with the vegetables we also got a plate of Cha Om Kai (ชะอมไข่), an omelet filled with some kind of acacia leaves.
After working up the courage to stand, I waddled out of the premises, a very very happy man indeed!

Southern Thai Food at Lan Luam Dtai ร้านรวมใต้
The Bottom Line
The food at Lan Luam Dtai is exactly what I want when I think of Southern Thai food.
All of their dishes are incredible creations of flavorful explosion. I highly recommend their Nam Prik Makam (น้ำพริกมะขาม) and I was extremely fond of the Goong Pad Sataw (กุ้งผัดสะตอ).

Lan Luam Dtai ร้านรวมใต้
If you are looking for Southern Thai food – this is your heaven on earth!
Lan Luam Dtai ร้านรวมใต้
Address: 375/4 P้hrannok Rd, Bangkoknoy, Bangkok, Thailand 10700
Phone: 02-4110842
Hours: Daily 6:00 – 20:00
Price: About 30 THB ($1) per dish, 2 of us ate this giant feast for 240 THB ($8).
ร้านรวมใต้
375/4 ถ.พรานนก เขตบางกอกน้อย กทม. 10700
โทร. 02-4110842
เปิด-ปิด 6.00-20.00
How to Get There

Lan Luam Dtai ร้านรวมใต้
The restaurant is located just a short walk down the road from Siriraj Hospital, directly across the street from Lan Ahan Puk. Here’s the map:
View Eating Thai Food Map in a larger map
Harsh Patel
3 years ago
Food Look awesome, will surely have hands-on on visit
kimball le
3 years ago
Great resource, thanks for the content Mark!
Joel Bruner
3 years ago
Hi Kimballle, thank you for the comment! Have a great day today!
ca
4 years ago
Really enjoy your videos Mark, Ying and Micah. Recently started planning our family trip to Thailand, and found so many useful resources — Thank You!
Brett goss
6 years ago
Just went here today – amazing food, amazing experience – did you know they have a laminated copy of this review they gave to us on entry to act as a menu? I think they might be a little proud…
Mark Wiens
6 years ago
Hey Brett, great to hear that, haha no I didn’t know that. I used to eat here like twice a week, but since I’ve gotten busy over the last few years, haven’t been here in a while. That’s awesome, and the owner is such a kind lady!
Richard Hintz
6 years ago
I think the map pin may be too far west. Is the restaurant the same one identified on Google Maps as Ruam Tai? The Streetview photo shows the address you give.
Roger King
7 years ago
Hi
I am staying at the Pathumwan Princess Hotel for 6 days this week and am keen to try as many of the street food picks as poss within relatively easy access. Any steers greatly appreciated and keep up the great work !
Courtney
7 years ago
Hello Mark!
Your vlogs are the best! You are a big part of what helped my husband and I choose Thailand for our biggest vacation ever! Would love any advice you can give us! We are staying at the Meredian near the Patpong district in early September. Then off to Krabi to stay in Koh Lanta. How far in relation to Patpong is this delicious looking Lan Luan Dtai restaurant? We can’t wait to try stink beans and so much more! Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thank you
Courtney
Lenny
7 years ago
Hi Mark, thanks for your last recommendation for Tom Yum at Pochana 55. I went there last year and it was AWESOME. I will be going to BKK end May, and since you’re a lover of Gaeng Som (as am I), could you point me in the right direction? Only catch is I’ll be with my wife and two kids, so somewhere easily accesible (by MRT, even better) would be great. Also if the place serves the version without too much baboo shoots, and allows special orders (as I am allergic to prawns).
Thanks in advance, and keep up the great work. I’ve been a fan for a long time now and always catch your videos the moment you post them.
Regards to you and Ying,
Lenny
Mark Wiens
7 years ago
Hi Lenny, great to hear from you, glad you liked 55 Pochana. Did you try this restaurant yet? This is normally where I would go for southern Thai style gaeng som. Otherwise, really the best you can get is outside of Bangkok in southern Thailand. Will you be traveling outside of Bangkok this trip, somewhere in the south? If you visit Phuket, this place is amazing: https://www.eatingthaifood.com/2015/08/spicy-southern-thai-food-phuket-town/
Gwen
7 years ago
Hi Mark,
I finally got to try the curry with cassia leaves at a restaurant in LA. Do you know what type of curry is used and what leaves can I replace it since cassia leaves are obviously not available in the States? I will make sure our family go to the southern part of Thailand in our next trip. The last few times we stayed in Bangkok to be close to our mother.
Mark Wiens
7 years ago
Hi Gwen, usually the curry is made with coconut milk, and a southern Thai curry paste like this (https://www.eatingthaifood.com/2014/11/how-to-make-southern-thai-curry-paste/). As for a replacement, I think you could use any leaf that’s chewy, it can’t be like a spinach which would fall apart, but needs to be more like kale or grape leaves.
Ian
8 years ago
Just so happens I was Googling Ki Lek to explain to my colleagues here at work what I was eating and came across this article. It all looks so good I sent my wife the link in hopes she will latch a hold of one and whip me up a good meal. Cannot wait to get back to home to Thailand to grab ALL the dishes you mentioned. Thanks for sharing – Ian
Mark Wiens
8 years ago
Hey Ian, great to hear that, thank you for sharing and reading. Ki lek is such a delicious leaf in curry!
Karan Vaswani
8 years ago
Thanks for this amazing recommendation Mark. My wife and I were in Bangkok (visiting from Mumbai) for a week, and ended up eating three meals at Lan Luam Dtai, because we just loved it so much (Lan Ahan Puk Tai Dao Tai was temporarily closed, or we would have sampled their wares as well). Tried pretty much everything on the menu. :D Let us know the next time you plan a trip to India, would be happy to reciprocate with some great food recommendations for Mumbai / Delhi / Kolkata / Hyderabad. We also loved Nai Mong Hoy Tod, Krua Apsorn and Lan Kuay Jab Jaedang, btw. Also found Yam Saap on the 5th floor of MBK surprisingly excellent; you should check it out if you haven’t already. Their som tam with crispy pork skin, and tom yum soup with shanghai noodles and seafood, were both really good.
Mark Wiens
8 years ago
Hi Karan, great to hear from you, thank you very much, glad you found this restaurant! Yes, I’ve been to Yum Saap a few times, but not recently, thanks for the report. That would be great, will let you know if I visit India again in the future. Glad you had a great visit.
Frans
9 years ago
Where would you advise me to go for great Southern food located more towards the “center” of Bangkok…since I myself live at Punnawithi?
aon
9 years ago
sawasdee ka.mark..
I am from the South..i like southern Thai food mak mak
i miss southern food …Southern food Spicy with chili and spices……
i can cook..Food I made Is a simple…my boyfriend .He and his friends like my food. say aroi mak mak…one day If I’ve got to open a restaurant.I want you to try..(dream 555555)
Your site is nice.
khop khun ka :D
Mark Wiens
9 years ago
Hello Aon, great to hear from you and that you’re from the south! My wife is also from the south. Hope you can open a restaurant, we will come to eat for sure!!
Geoff Saunders
10 years ago
I ate at this modest-looking but marvellous little establishment just a couple of hours ago. The friendly ladies had a good laugh at my broken Thai, but I still managed to order a couple of stunning dishes. The gaeng som was wonderfully powerful and morishly sour. And I had a fiery, flavoursome beef curry with some kind of tailed beans. I don’t think they were stink beans, but they were wonderful. I would have loved to order more, but I have a wife who shies from very spicy fare…and it was only a few hours since Som Tam Boo Maa. But that is another story…
Mark Wiens
10 years ago
Hey Geoff, it’s great to hear from you, thank you for sharing! Awesome that you got to try these two restaurant, both are my favorites in BKK!
Ko
10 years ago
Hi! Nice article. I just wanted to add that the leaves for Gaeng Kee Lek come from the Senna siamea tree! One of my favorite curries.
Mark Wiens
10 years ago
Thank you for sharing Ko!
John Sungkamee
10 years ago
Hey Mark… I have never seen anyone described the Southern Thai food as good as you are!. I was borne in Southern Thailand, pak phanang nakhon si thammarat but moved to BKK when I was 8-years old and has been living in USA since I was 20. I have been watching your journey of testing Thai dishes especially Southern Thai food… Oh man… really you made me cry and wanted to go back home so bad. I am currently run a Thai restaurant in Los Angeles, CA and we specialized in Southern Thai dishes. Some of the dishes I got its descriptions from your menu. Hope you don’t mind!
Let me know when you are in town!
Best,
John
Mark Wiens
10 years ago
Hey John, great to hear from you, and just awesome that you love southern Thai food as well and now have a restaurant. My wife is actually from Krabi, so that’s part of the reason that I have grown to love southern Thai cuisine so much. If we are in LA at anytime in the future, I will definitely have to search you out for some amazing food! Thanks!
Mark Wiens
12 years ago
Great to hear that Ray! It’s still remains one of my favorite restaurants in Bangkok!
Ray Sone Hovijitra
12 years ago
Mark, thanks for the recommendation. We would have never known about it otherwise. Had an awesome meal there this past Wednesday. Cheers -Ray and Nok
Traveling Ted
12 years ago
Wow, amazing mouth watering pictures. I just ate, and I am hungry again. Everything looks so flavorful and spicy.
Mark Wiens
12 years ago
Thanks Ted!
Kevin Revolinski
12 years ago
Sounds like a great place to eat after a visit to the Siriraj Forensics museum. Judging by the photos this is good enough to coax back an appetite after that experience. Lol!
Mark Wiens
12 years ago
Haha, let me know how that goes Kevin!
jade
12 years ago
Can I just say yum?!
Mark Wiens
12 years ago
Definitely, the food sparks surely sparks a “Yum!”
Natalie
12 years ago
It is only breakfast time here but I could eat all of that food. Great pictures and write up. I am hungry now!!
Mark Wiens
12 years ago
Thanks Natalie – I know it would be awesome for breakfast too!
Nancie
12 years ago
See I can’t even write…………………that should be “I have not had”…..:)
Nancie
12 years ago
Okay….I think I hate you right about now………………….:):) (truly I joke) I have not have a hit of Thai food in a week, and I am dying for some………Great article, as I clean the drool off of my keyboard.
Mark Wiens
12 years ago
Hahaha! Thanks Nancie – don’t blame me – it’s the fooood!! Thanks for checking out this article!