If someone asked you if it was possible to eat foods that Thailand is known for in Bangkok for $10USD for the day, a lot of people would say no way.  But I beg to differ.  Let’s set the ground rules here.  This applies to lunch and dinner, from noontime to, let’s say, 9pm.  You have to eat more than one dish and you must have variety, after all, that’s why you’re a foodie, you want to try different things.  And, you want to get Thai staples, what Thailand is known for.

So let’s go.  Let’s eat great Thai staples in one day for less than $10USD.

So how did I start?  Walk around the city and just stop and eat.  Find small shops, find small food courts, find small stands on the street.  You will definitely find good deals.

I made it a conscious effort not to eat from the street.  Not because I can’t or won’t do it, but I thought that I would put myself in someone’s shoes who is less daring than I.  So I went for small shops, food courts, etc.

My first stop, a nice helping of Pad Thai with Chicken.

Now, everyone knows Pad Thai.  It is a Thai staple and this is one dish that all tourists and visitors to Thailand eat.  A nice generous portion in a small shop.  50 Baht. The noodles were soft and fragrant, egg cooked nicely, the chicken a little bland, but still nice, and the spices were great.

My next dish that I found was a nice Dry Beef Noodle.  The Beef is slowly braised and simmered, then served with a dry egg noodle, some bean sprouts and herbs.  45 Baht.

The beef was surprisingly moist, and the basil and mint added to the great flavor.

I continued on with my walk through the afternoon, and the next stop was a small shopping mall, where I found some very nice Fishball Rice Vermicelli.  40 Baht.

A generous helping of Rice Vermicelli, fishballs, fishcakes, fried fishcakes were all put into it.  Soup was really flavorful, a really filling meal!

I am pretty full at this point, starting at noon and finishing my fishballs at around 4pm.  But, I continue on with my work and finding things to eat.

I arrive at a nice little food court and decide to try this nice little Minced Meat Noodles.  Not bad for what it is.  30 Baht.

As you can see, the soup is really fragrant and the noodles nice, with some bean sprouts and some minced meat on the top.  The little fried dumpling is also a nice addition to the meal.  30 Baht!  How can you go wrong?

About two hours later, I need to get another of my favorites in somehow.  The Pork Leg with Rice.  I love it.

So I duck into a little mall and find a food court that is serving it.  40 Baht.

The meat tender, the rice nice, the juice, yum.  And then the egg was nice and the fresh veggie and the preserved veggie quite appetizing.  Really good.

About now, it’s 8pm and I am beat, full and ready for something sweet that will fit the budget.  And lo and behold, Mango Sticky Rice.  30 Baht.

You have to be joking right?  This much for 30 Baht?  Half a mango and a scoop of rice.  What a deal, but that’s what you get in some of these small places.  And since it’s mango season in Bangkok, so sweet.  Yum.  What a great way to end the day.

So let’s add it up.  50+45+40+30+40+30=235 Baht.

I will confess, I did bring my own water, but I also had one Iced Thai Coffee, at 40 Baht.

So my total for the day in eating and drinking = 275 Baht.  At the exchange rate of $1.00USD = 30.92 Baht, that is a total of $8.89USD spent on my meals for the day.

Full, happy, great tastes.  All for under $10.00USD.