The front, floral-tiled patio of this seafood haunt is reminiscent of a wet market after everything’s been meticulously hosed down. Plastic baskets of seafood on ice sit beside the kitchen and customers eat whole kaem pla too tod, garlicky mackerel heads so light and crisp they could have come from a chip packet. Visit hungry and order hot-as-hell tom yum pla too (mackerel tom yum soup); blood cockle salad lavished with herbs, shallots and galangal and aromatic pu pad pong garee (soft shell crab curry).

Soei Restaurant is one of our all-time favourite local eateries in Bangkok as the food they serve is so unique, of excellent quality and well-priced. Each and every dish that’s about to be served gets inspected by the chef, similar to what you expect at a fancy restaurant. Soei Restaurant received many prices and mentions from (inter)national media and a visit to this place is a must if you’re looking for unique, tasty Thai dishes.

Though farther out from central Bangkok and not quite as charming in terms of décor as Steve Cafe—don’t be surprised if you end up sitting down on a folding chair at a folding table on linoleum under a backlit gallery of the dishes for sale—the food at Soei is the real thing, and it has an impressively comprehensive menu of Thai dishes, Lucci says.

Soei restaurant is listed in many of our articles, as it’s simply one of our favourite Thai restaurants in the city. Every dish is approved by chef and owner P’Soei, who’s known for his full-on spicy specialities. If you’re looking for an unusual Thai dish, phone ahead to reserve the Fried Mackerel Cheeks (100 THB) as these are often sold out.

Soei is among the top restaurants in Bangkok, known for its bold and flavorful dishes that cater to those with a taste for rich flavors. One unique aspect of Soei is that it has only one chef, P’Soei, who oversees the cooking process from start to finish. This ensures that the flavors of the dishes remain consistent and never disappoint.

Soei serves some of the most intensely flavourful Thai food in Bangkok and is exceptionally authentic. It sits right beside Samsen Train Station and is always, always busy. Waiting time can be very long, but when you finally have your meal here, you will be sure it’s worth it.

I trust Mark Wiens when it comes to Thai cuisine, so when he said Soei was one of his favorite places in Bangkok, I knew I’d like it. That’s exactly what I did. A banner showing Mark, his buddy Dwight, and P’Soei, the chef/owner, hangs on the wall outside the restaurant.

This was another restaurant I learned about from Mark Wiens. He called it one of his favorite restaurants in Bangkok and it wasn’t hard to see why. I followed Mark’s recommendation and started with this appetizer of fried Indian mackerel cheeks called kaem pla too tod.

Here’s a useful tip if you’re planning to eat at Soei: be prepared. Do not go famished and expect to be served a hot meal right away. The wait for a table or for food could take up to 2 hours.