Thai Style Ordering Food

Why do Thai people feel free to change almost anything when they order food? This lesson explores Thai food-ordering culture: asking for extra sauces, choosing your spice level, leaving out ingredients you don’t like, and even ordering pad kaphrao without the basil leaves! You’ll also hear why adding sauces to a chef’s dish can be seen very differently abroad, how Thai restaurants use customer feedback to improve their food, and which condiments you’ll find on almost every table.

Useful Thai Phrases:
มีเมนูแนะนำไหมคะ (mii mee-nuu nɛ́-nam mǎi ká) – Do you have any recommended dishes?
เอาเหมือนโต๊ะนั้น (ao mʉ̌an tó nán) – I’ll have the same as that table
เอาเหมือนเดิม (ao mʉ̌an dəəm) – The usual, please
ลูกค้าประจำ (lûuk-káa prà-jam) – Regular customer

The lesson finishes with a look ahead to Songkran, the Thai New Year celebrated in April.