2021-2022 Chiang Mai, Thailand Restaurant Reviews by ALEDM

NOTE: we always share our meals. That makes a big difference in the cost of our meals and the expansion of our waistlines. We don’t have the kitchen split the meals because Audre doesn’t eat as much as Dimitri. We just ask for an extra plate and Audre takes what she thinks she should eat. Almost no restaurant charged corkage for bringing our own wine. 

ALE and DM discussed adding ratings to our restaurant reviews and compromised on the following ratings:

HR: Highly recommended
R++: Recommended almost as much as HR
R: Recommended
NR: Not recommended
A: Awful

1. Chiang Mai Thai Restaurants 

    1. 1 HR: Ajarn Saiyud and Doctor Sai Kitchen (MICHELIN Bib Gourmand 2022) 32 CHOTANA SOI 12 ROAD, PA TAN, CHIANG MAI,  +66 81 530 1172. WOW, we had a fantastic meal and highly recommend this restaurant. It is much more important than a Bib Gourmand. We really only ordered small plates so we have much more of Doctor Sai’s (the daughter of Ajarn Saiyut) food to try. The food is beautifully presented on Celadon ceramic dishes and fabulously tasty. It is designated a Bib Gourmand but deserves at least a Michelin Plate. If we just describe the dishes we ordered it won’t do justice to them. We were given the menu in English which didn’t have prices. We just ordered what sounded good. First beautifully carved cucumber slices arrived with a tamarind sauce. A yummy way to start the meal. We decided to have the Phad Thai there because it should have been the best. It was good but Phad Thai is one of the least interesting Thai dishes. We ordered herbal chicken in pastry shell which was great. Even greater was the deep-fried curry mousse with fish meat. Very unusual and delicious. The stir-fried chiangda leaves with egg was wonderful. The only curry-like dish we ordered was the stir-fried chile paste with river snails and coconut milk. It was very tasty. The plate of fried prawns and nut wrapped in egg net (with a great vinegar and sugar sauce) and the steamed puff with fish filling was so beautiful we photographed it as well as ate it. We ordered something called deep-fried rice sheet with peanut sauce topping that turned out to be rice crackers with a delicious sauce. Because they were out of the famous sweet potato dessert, we ordered the wheat flour dumplings with egg yolks. They were really, really good. We thought that they had made a mistake because the bill was THB 909/ US $27. We left very happy and vowed to return which we did! Our second visit was just as good as our first. This is a great restaurant!

    1.2 HR: Ginger House, 199 Moonmuang Rd., T.Sriphum, A.Muang, Chiang Mai (50200), (+66) 53 287 681, https://www.thehousebygingercm.com. We found the place on foot (Google maps got us close but around the corner) and there was parking! The staff was helpful and friendly. We found a table (regular height) that we liked and were given it. The room inside is decorated in a way reminiscent of a classic Budapest coffee shop—chandeliers, oils on the walls, the wooden tables and chairs and so on. The music was cool jazz—very much to our liking. When we studied the menu we saw items of Northern Thai food that we wanted to try. Then we saw an appetizer plate of Northern Thai snacks  (THB 365). It was a treasure trove. Everything that was deep-fried was incredibly crispy on the outside but not everything was fried. There was a Crispy Prawn Spring Roll but also there was a tiny cup  called Meang Kham holding a big cha-pu leaf in it which was filled with a snack of herbs and peanut that was delectable. There was also a deep-fried parcel filled with hot and sour minced chicken served with a plum sauce that was yummy. Another exquisite offering was called Mahor and it was a tiny patty of minced marinated chicken, prawn and peanuts on a slice of pineapple. The other offering on the plate was called Pak Bang Grob and it was a very crispy leaf served with a tamarind sauce that was kind of like eating a French Fry! We decided to stick with small plates rather than a soup, salad or curry so we chose the Goong Gra Buang described as crispy shrimp and pork pancakes (BHT 155). We thought that the Watermelon with dried fish, sugar, and salmon caviar (BHT 135) was excellent but couldn’t find any salmon roe. Going back to deep-fried food, we ordered the Lotus Root Fries with a curry mayo sauce (BHT 115). We were very happy with our choices although we couldn’t finish them. But we did try 2 desserts! The sago in cane sugar with coconut milk and dried longan (THB 95) was our favorite. The ginger and salted caramel ice cream (THB 110) was not nearly as good. We left stuffed and happy; it took us about ½ hour to get back to the Four Seasons instead of the 1 ½ hours it took to get there during rush hour. We spent THB 1314.60 / US$40, including THB 300 for corkage for our Tocornal Carmenere (which we were happy to pay after we looked at their wine list).

     1.3 R: Kiew Kai Ka Restaurant, One Nimman, D116 & D120,, 1/9 Nimmanhaemin Rd., Suthep, Muang Chiang Mai 50200, +66 91 074 0498. We spent 1 hour trying to get from Maya Shopping Center Parking lot to the One Nimman shopping center and trying to park for the Kiew Kai Ka Restaurant. It was a nightmare. By the time we got to Kiew Kai Ka Restaurant, we were exhausted and stressed. Fortunately, they honored our reservation and were still willing to serve us. We were very happy with the food and the service. We bought a bottle of their white Sauvignon Blanc from Chile (THB 890) and it was good. We ordered the crab tomalley relish with crispy gourami fish (THB 260) and we loved it. It came with winged bean, cucumber, cabbage, 3 kinds of eggplant, and crispy pork rind. It was a perfect starter. We had the red curry duck with fruits (THB 390) and we liked it. For dessert, we had the rice pearls in coconut milk (THB75). We spent THB 2001/ US $59.28 and were mellow by the time we left.

    1.4 R: Samsen Villa Chiang Mai, (Michelin Plate),  201 Charoenrat Rd. Rim Ping Condominiumม Wat Gate Subdistrict, Chiang Mai 50000 Thailand +66 53 240 455, https://www.samsenvilla.com/. Num was our server and we had a delightful dinner, sitting by the Ying River. It was a pretty location, outside the old town of Chiang Mai. There was parking and a helpful attendant which made it easy for us. The menu was voluminous and the food was very good—an unusual combination. The first thing to arrive was the crispy rice crackers and dip (THB 150) which we really liked. Then came the Thai curry with seafood souffle served in a coconut (THB 220) which we had had before in Koh Samui. This one was too spicy for us. The Fried Chicken in Pandan Leaves was delicious (THB 180) and the sauce was excellent. The deep-fried papaya and banana flower (THB 220) was the Thai version of French fries and very well done. It was served “salad Samsen villa style” and the sauce was yummy. We had wanted to get the crispy pork belly but they did not have that; instead, we had the fried crispy catfish served with spicy mango salad (THB 180). It was more like shredded, airy crispy stuff that had a fish taste. We liked it! We had brought our own bottle of wine and usually, there is a THB 300 corkage but it was waived for us. We spent THB 1350 plus a tip for Num and were very happy.

    1.5 R: Baan Landai, MICHELIN Bib Gourmand 2022, Changphuak Rd, Soi 4, Chiang Mai 50200 Thailand+66 88 253 3848. We had a wonderful meal. We were able to park in the Vista Hotel parking lot next door and got reimbursed by the restaurant for the  BHT 50 charge. We brought our own wine and were not charged corkage even though they sell wine there. The room is charming and so was our server. She spoke English and was helpful. First came an amuse-bouche of watermelon with a dried fish and shallot mixture to dip the watermelon cubes in. It was very good and we like amuses. We ordered the Miang Kham (BHT 139) which was beautiful and was described as savory leaf wraps with a blend of coconut, ginger, fresh bitter leaves, peanut, lime, and chile. We tried to pop the whole thing in our mouths but couldn’t. We ordered the mango and crispy fish spicy salad (BHT 179) and it was excellent. The Chicken in Red Wine sauce that had been mentioned in the Michelin write-up (BHT 219) had a really tasty sauce but it didn’t taste Thai to Audre. The stir-fried eggplant with minced pork (BHT 149) was excellent. We ordered the Suri Muang (BHT 189) in order to have rice noodles with our meal instead of rice. It turned out to be much more interesting than we thought it would be. There was a soup-like curry dish and a spicy sauce as well. It was delicious and we really, really liked the vermicelli noodles, cooked just right. We ordered two desserts: one was a coconut pudding (BHT 89) and one was called Met Khanoon Thai Mung Bean Marzipan and an egg yolk dessert (BHT 109) in sweet coconut milk. It was unusual and interesting. We spent BHT 1043/ US$30 and were thrilled with our success.

    1.6 R: Good Souls Kitchen, Singhart Road (Old City), 52/3 Singhart Rd., CM 52000, tel 088-819-9669, goodsoulskitchen.com. It was a great lunch restaurant with pleasant décor and good service. We found Northern Thai dishes—in the vegetarian version—that we wanted to try. Dimitri had the famous Khao Soi—wheat noodles, coconut milk, mushrooms, onion, tomatoes, herbs, and spices (THB 130) and he loved it. Originally he ordered the mango and passion fruit lassi (THB110) but the juice contained the passion fruit seeds that he hates. So he ordered a mango lassi instead and was happy (and not charged for the first one). Audre had the Four Seasons Smoothie that contained banana, pineapple, papaya, mango, and coconut yogurt (THB 115) and she was happy. We spent THB 355/ US $10 and we both were happy.

    1.7 NR: Ohkajhu Organic Farm to table restaurant, House No. 400 Village, Nong Chom, Sansai, Chiang Mai 50210. The place was huge, partially indoors and partially outdoors. At first, we were brought to an indoor table that we didn’t like. It struck as a bit odd and not in a good way but we stayed. We had a nice server. We ordered the Thai Fresh Spring Rolls with crab (THB 145) that were not memorable. We ordered the Northern Thai salad with crispy pork rind and peppermint dressing (THB 90) that arrived with a huge mound of lettuce. It was too much for 8 people, let alone two. What a waste. On the plate were mushrooms, tomatoes, beef sausage, and pumpkin. All of the vegetables were good. We ordered the Truffle soup and Japanese sweet potato (THB 145) that was made with lentils, not truffles. We also ordered the Northern Thai Curry with rice that had red rice, pineapple, lettuce, tomato, and cucumber (THB 125). It was good. Another dish we ordered was spicy Thai mackerel with konjac (THB 185). It was good too. For dessert, we had sweet sorghum with coconut milk (THB 85) and coconut sago with longan (THB125). The coconut sago with longan was very good. We spent THB905 US$26.80 and decided we could not recommend this place.

2. Local Mae Rim Thai Restaurants 

     2.1 R: Baan Suan Mae Rim (Michelin Plate), 261 Moo 2, Chiang Mai-Fang Rd, San Pong, Mae Rim District, Chiang Dao 50170 Thailand,  053 297 421. We brought our own wine and were not charged corkage. We had Lon Plakhem with salted fish dipping sauce (THB 120). The vegetables were good and the dipping sauce was absolutely delicious. We had their signature dish of Pad Woon Sen Khai Kem, stir-fried cellophane noodles with salted eggs, and savory pork (THB 100). It was very good. We also ordered the Mou Prek Kee Nou—deep-fried chile minced pork (THB 100). It was a good meal and we spent THB 400/ US $12.44.

    2.2  R:  View Doi Restaurant, 12 Moo 12 Tambon Mae Ram, Mae Rim, Chiang Mai 50180 +66 85 708 9656.  We went with the folks we had met the night before at dinner. It is their favorite restaurant and they live in Mae Rim. By the time we got there, the 5 of us were sloshed so I can’t say much about the food. We were the only ones at the restaurant (and our friends said that there are never any customers). Because the owners live there, they just fire up the kitchen and start to cook when our friends arrive. We were happy enough with the food as far as I remember. We ordered a catfish salad with green mango, spiced beef, a seafood salad, a chicken with broccoli dish, a Moo dae gao dish, and spare ribs baked in honey sauce. Can’t say how much it cost because our friend refused to allow us to pay.

    2.3 R: North Restaurant, Four Seasons Resort Chiang Mai,  502 MOO 1, MAE RIM-SAMOENG OLD ROAD Samoeng District, Chiang Mai 50180, 053 298 181. We had two very good meals at North. Our service was good enough, although we noticed the restaurant is short-staffed (tables weren’t being cleared). The setting is very nice, seeing the rice field and pond lit with kerosene lamps. We could also sort of see the Christmas tree from our table. There were a good number of guests when we were there. We ordered one Gaeng Hanglay (THB 600) described as Chiang Mai Curry with slow-cooked Pork Belly, Ginger, Cashews, Pearl Garlic. Dimitri liked it and ordered rice to accompany the dish. Audre had the BBQ Pork Spare Ribs (THB 500) that were Western US-style smoked over longan wood with spicy & sweet BBQ sauce. Audre liked them very much although she couldn’t finish them—even the appetizer size portion was too much for her. They came with cole slaw that was very good. She also ordered the wood-fired pumpkin with feta and parsley (THB 300) that was good although she couldn’t eat it—too much food. For dessert, Dimitri ordered the Exotic Baba (TBB 400) that was really, really good and was served with a flourish of smoky dry ice. It was described as frozen coconut, phu-lae pineapple compote, and mango sorbet. It was an enjoyable and successful dinner. We spent THB 1835/US $54 and were happy.

    2.4 R: Hug House,  5/2 หมู่ 5 บ้านป่าม่วง, Mae Raem, Mae Rim District, Chiang Mai,  099 497 3082. We had a wonderful meal in this hidden gem. It was crowded and people were waiting to get in before they closed at 7:30 pm. None of the benches have backs so we chose a table next to the wall where we could lean back against the wall using pillows. The menu had so many items we wanted to try that we ordered too much, of course. The server spoke good English and was helpful. We ordered the crab fat paste (THB 87) and it was like eating essence of crab roe-really, really good. At the same time, we ordered the pounded young jackfruit (THB 95) that had a complex and delectable taste. The grilled fermented pork in banana leaf (THB 92) was very tasty and soft. The spicy grilled Northern Thai herb sausage (THB 99) was too spicy for Dimitri but Audre really liked it. The Northern Thai Style Chicken soup (THB 95) was too spicy for both of us but the chicken was tender and good. The puff ball mushrooms that popped in your mouth when you took a bite were unbelievably good. We did not use the galangal chili dip at all. We had sticky rice with our meal. We had brought our own wine and there was no corkage (and no wine glasses either). The Hug House does not serve dessert. The road to the Hug House had some challenges (like turning onto the bridge) but we got there and back without any issues. It is close to the Four Seasons and that was great! We spent THB 615/US $18 and we were very happy.

    2.5 R: Rimm Phi Romm, Steak of the Day, Maerim Plaza, Mae Rim 50180 Thailand+66 81 256 7292. We were surprised and delighted by this restaurant in our neighborhood! It was excellent; the front of the house is run with charm and efficiency by Tiger. We think the cook is Tiger’s husband. Whoever is the cook is talented and creative. We started with the fish mousse (THB 280) which is a steamed fish souffle served in an oyster shell. It was very delicious. The chicken curry in coconut milk was a little too spicy for us but the chicken and the herbs in it were very tender and excellent-tasting. The eggplant dish (THB 120) was fabulous. We had rice (THB 15) and water (THB 20) and there was a THB 200 corkage fee for bringing our own wine. For dessert, we had the Jurassic Nest (THB 250) that was nothing short of spectacular and as well as wonderful-tasting. We think that it was made with semolina but we are not sure. We spent THB 1182/ US $35 and were extremely happy.

    2.6 R: Mai Saigon Restaurant And Bar, 399/8 Palm Spa Village Rim Tai Subdistrict, Mae Rim 50180 Thailand+66 97 084 9479. The food was very good and we sat outside by a water feature that was lovely. Inside there was only one table and it had 10 noisy people and they never quieted down. The server served but not much else. We ordered 3 starters: the Goi Buoi pomelo salad was delicious with shrimp and pork (THB 180). It was served with very crispy rice crackers. The second starter was Dau Hu Chien Sa (THB 150) with garlic and lemongrass. It was okay but not worth eating when we had other very delicious dishes to eat. Our third starter was Bo Cuon La Lot which was many tiny “dolmade-like” rolls. The tasty ground pork was wrapped in piper samentosum (wild betel) leaves which themselves were very tasty. For our main, we had the Banh Xeo (THB 220), a Vietnamese crepe with pork belly and shrimps. This rendition was excellent. The chef, Muthita Thanawong did a great job. For dessert, because the interesting desserts weren’t available, we had the Bhaek Jelly syrup (THB 40). We spent THB 795/ $US 23.55 and were happy with our meal.

    2.7 R: Ironwood Cafe, Michelin BIb Gourmand, 592/1, Mae Rim-Sameung Road Mae Raem, Mae Rim 50180 Thailand, +66 81 858 3555, https://www.facebook.com/theironwoodmaerim/. We were greeted by a gaggle of guinea fowl rushing by us. Then a big white duck waddled up to us. Then we got to the garden, which was really lovely. We chose a table that had comfortable chairs and had a Paco Fern Salad (THB 170) which turned out to be a fiddlehead fern with lots of lovely herbs and a delicious dressing with flowers in it too. We also had the watermelon with fried fish flakes (THB 150). Both dishes were really, really good. Audre had a lime butterfly pea tea (THB 80) that she asked for the hot version. It was very good. The manager came to talk to us and offered Dimitri a macadamia tart that he loved. It was a great lunch spot. We spent THB 420/ US $12.44 and left happy.

    2.8 R: Sala Cafe, Maerim-Samoeng Road, Mae Rim 50180 Thailand, +66 53 860 996, facebook.com/mysalacafe/ Travel shoulder. We recommend this lovely spot for a light lunch. We had a salad, a young coconut, and a smoothie and we were happy. We spent THB380.

    2.9 R: Baan Mon Muan, (Michelin Plate), Pong Yaeng, Mae Rim District, Chiang Mai 50180, 083 318 6444, http://www.baanmonmuan.com/. We went after going to the Queen Mother’s Botanical Garden and doing the canopy walk. It’s beautiful, the views are terrific and we liked the food although the first dish we ordered was too spicy! We ordered the special Mon Muan Hot Tea  Pot (THB 120) and it was delicious. At 3879’ we needed a warm drink. The first dish we ordered was a soup with mixed vegetables and herbs (THB 110) and then we ordered a stir-fried vegetable with tofu and mixed vegetables (THB 150) that was not at all spicy so Dimitri liked it with rice (THB 20). We were happy and spent THB 484/ US $14.34.

     2.10 NR: Krua Lawng Khao, Michelin Bib Gourmand, 18 Mu 2, Soi Sukhaphiban Mae Rim, Ban Duang Di 1, Rim Tai, Chiang Mai, 50180, Thailand. This was not a great meal; it wasn’t even very good. They didn’t care whether we had a reservation. There were only about 6 tables eating when we arrived. We ordered the grilled crab with egg (THB 70) and when it came at the end of the meal, it was more other stuff than roe and overcooked. The Northern-style jelly leg of pork (THB 50) was a dish we hadn’t seen on any menu before. It was the first dish to arrive and it gave us a very good impression of the place. The steamed mushrooms with dry galangal chili dip (THB 80) was okay. The sticky rice was stickier than usual. The Northern style stir-fried mixed local vegetables with hinley curry and sour bamboo shoots (THB 90) was okay too. We ordered one young coconut and one pudding. We spent THB 465/ US $14. We wouldn’t recommend this restaurant. It is certainly not of the same quality as other Michelin Bibs that we have been to in Chiang Mai.

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