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Falafel restaurants in Chiang Mai

Northerner — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 17:15:25 +0000

Gone are the days when visitors to Chiang Mai had to dine on Thai staples such as fried noodles (pad Thai) or fried rice (kow pat). The city’s cosmopolitan atmosphere and choice of eateries now allows people to eat anything from cannelloni to Korean kimchi.

Yesterday I happened to be walking through the newer backpacker area of Chiang Mai and spotted a hole-in-the-wall café called the Funky Monkey that was advertising falafels on its menu. I am rather partial to this Middle Eastern speciality and thought I would sample one, especially as it was only 50 Baht.

When the falafel arrived at my streetside table 10 minutes later it seemed a little small, but on the whole was quite a tasty sandwich with firm chickpea balls and a tangy sauce. One of the café’s no ice fruit smoothies was a refreshing beverage to wash it down with.

The Funky Monkey is located on Rachapakinai Road, which is just back from the east side of the moat and Moonmuang Road. The Jerusalem Restaurant behind Thapae Gate on Moonmuang is another falafel eatery, albeit a little more expensive. The Galare Food Centre on Changklan Road also has a booth that dishes up a passable falafel sandwich.

Typically British: Complaining about the weather!

admin — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 10:28:53 +0000

I’m always being told by my friends back in England how jealous they are that I live out here and how crap the weather is back home. This week, however, and possibly for the first time since I’ve been here, I’ve envied their situation.

After you’ve lived out here for a while, it’s true that the hot weather becomes less and less exotic feeling and more of a daily chore that you must struggle through. In that way, Chiang Mai in the winter can be quite refreshing, as unlike the weather farther down south, you still have the benefit of sunshine but without the usual suffocatingly muggy feeling.

This week, however, this has not been the case. All day today I have been held up in my apartment as the rain streams unrelentingly from the sky like you might expect it to do in Manchester. Meanwhile, in merry Manchester itself, and across pretty much the whole of the UK in fact, they are enjoying an extended white Christmas.

While I know it gets tiresome after a day or so, I’ve always had rather a soft spot for snow. And perhaps I’m being either ungrateful, or greedy, or both, but is it too much to ask for just a bit of the white stuff instead of the wet stuff?

Thailand’s unique Doi Inthanon National Park

paul — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 01:06:20 +0000

Situated in the northern province of Chiang Mai, the Doi Inthanon National Park boasts Thailand’s highest mountain, Doi Inthanon, along with several less higher peaks. The largest part of the mountain is created out of granite, which forms the divide between the river, Nam Mae Chaem to the west and the river, Nam Mae Ping to the east. Less-higher elevations in the park’s most easterly pant are limestone rock formations, which feature several interesting caves.

Originally named Doi Angka, since 1899 the mountain is named after a shortened name’s version of the last sovereign king of Chiang Mai, Inthawichayanon. During his rule, he had expressed concerns for the northern hill country’s forests as well as for the entire territory of central Siam’s watershed. This king’s early convictions provided the rain forests hydrology’s fundament. Before Chiang Mai’s last king died, he gave the order for placing his remains at this mountain’s summit. Throughout the year large crowds of people visit the stupa on the top, which contains the king’s ashes.

Doi Inthanon National Park covers a territory of 48,240 ha. The park’s lowlands, elevated below 800 metres are incredibly dry and warm in the rain-free season, but Doi Inthanon’s 2565 metres high peak experiences weather conditions, which are more like a Canadian climate. Sometimes the temperature drops as low as -8 degrees Celsius, and frosts aren’t uncommon during the dry, cool season. Online guide to Doi Inthanon

The month of January is the coldest with an average temperature of 5.5 degrees Celsius. At any time of the year, Doi Inthanon offers a cool getaway from the hot temperatures of the lowlands. The amount of rainfall exceeds 2500 mm at altitudes higher than 1000 metres, which is significantly more compared with nearby Chiang Mai.

Even between November and April in the dry season, there occurs occasional rainfall or for a part of the day, clouds may surround the peak; the continuing mist here is a pivotal factor with regards to the moist forest’s maintenance.

Doi Inthanon National Park boasts unbeatable natural beauty!

Another unique asset of the national park is formed by the various forests located at higher elevations. These forest formations house several dominant species which are usually found in cooler environments rather than in tropical. Thailand’s sole red rhododendron grows on the summit area and is blooming from December until the end of February. Additionally, on Doi Inthanon there are numerous of two white-blossomed types growing, which can be found at only a few other locations.

The differences between Thai and North American food

paul — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 01:16:11 +0000

We Americans embrace our greasy hamburgers, sweet soft drinks and crispy fried French fries. In Thailand the people have a portion of plain rice with nearly every meal. Today, I am retired and two years ago settled down in the Northern Thai provincial capital of Chiang Mai and having lived for many years in Chicago, I should know by now which food is preferable.

In Thailand’s larger cities you’ll find a wide and varied range of restaurants serving dishes to all budgets and tastes. Chiang Mai is no exception. The locals here truly love to eat! Most of the city’s numerous restaurants are filled with Thais and Westerners alike enjoying a selection of various culinary delights. In this article I will not focus on the glitzy quality restaurants in which we only now and than eat. I would like to tell something about the Chiang Mai local’s day to day eating customs.

The most popular fast-food establishments in the US are restaurants such as Burger King, Harvey’s, and off course McDonalds. In Chiang Mai we have the food stalls positioned across the city’s streets. The cheaply priced meals these street vendors prepare are ready and served within just a few minutes. The end result usually is a healthy and tasty meal. In addition, many of these stalls sell superb fresh Thai fruits including: strawberries, watermelon, mango, pineapple and oranges. The fruit of your choice will be cut into small parts, put in a plastic bag and you can eat it with the help of the provided sharp wooden stick. The price for this healthy portion of vitamins is only 10 baht, which is about 30 cents U.S. and the various fruits are always stored in ice and therefore having a refreshingly cool taste.

Northern style snacks and fast-foods are available in the streets as well. Two of the most popular snacks are known as “Saikor” (Northern Thai sausages) and “Luuchin” (barbecued or fried meat balls on a stick) For 10 baht you can buy the sausage while a stick with about five meatballs on it costs five baht.

Popular among the Chiang Mai locals, “Saikor” sausages

However, these snacks are rather fatty. It might be better to sample a dish of cooked rice with in soy sauce stir fried vegetables and pork, chicken or beef. Again the vendor will deposit the take-away meal in a plastic bag, tightly sealed with elastic band. A dish like this will cost about 20 to 25 baht, which isn’t more than 70 dollar cents.

You can buy a substantial meal together with a Northern Thai snack for less than one dollar. For most of the locals in Chiang Mai this is their most common daily dish. After receiving the bags with hot food they drive home on their light motorbikes, once they arrive at home the bag(s) are opened, one larger bowl is getting filled with plain rice, and several cups are being put on the table along with a cold bottle of water or a bucket of ice to cool the water.

Most of us love quickly prepared, yet tasty and healthy food and we all like it to be affordably priced. Well, the big differences between the food in Chiang Mai and any city in the US are the services, qualities and prices…

Introductory online guide to Thai cuisine

Stay tuned for part 2