15 Best Restaurants in Silom and Bang Rak, Bangkok

Inspired by mid-20th century Thai cookbooks, Australian chef David Thompson revives traditional tastes and rare dishes at the Michelin-starred Aksorn, on the top floor of Central: The Original store in Bang Rak. During the cooler months, request a table on the outdoor terrace.

This unassuming storefront beneath an overpass is the sort of establishment that brings international foodies flocking to Bangkok. The interior here is nothing special, with poor lighting and bluish walls, but you'll barely notice or care with the lively buzz of the local Thai clientele, expert preparations with balanced flavors, and reasonable prices compared to many other seafood joints. 

This neighborhood restaurant has little in the way of atmosphere, but seafood aficionados still brave the traffic to Yannawa in order to splurge. Pen is expensive by Thai restaurant standards, but it's still a bargain compared to most hotel restaurants for charcoal-grilled seafood and a range of classic Thai fare.

Founded by young chefs in a minimally restored old shophouse in Bang Rak, 80/20 earned its first Michelin star in record time. The kitchen team brings together rare Thai ingredients and European cooking techniques to produce a 14-bite tasting menu. Signature dishes include gaeng hoy shell bai chaplu (Hokkaido scallop, southern yellow curry, betel leaves), ped nam prik nam liap (dry-aged Muscovy duck, Chinese black olive relish, black pepper, and garlic rice) and naem phad phak fak meaw (stir-fried fermented pork and chayote).

This restaurant in a converted house with a pleasant outdoor garden balances a casually upmarket feel with fairly authentic Thai cuisine oriented toward less adventurous palates. The basics are done well here, from chu chee goong mae nam (curried river prawns) to khao yum (southern Thai-style rice salad). Local artwork adorns the walls.

This old wooden house is an oasis in the concrete city; the decor is turn-of-the-20th-century Bangkok, with antique prints and old photographs adorning the walls. Ban Chiang is a Thai restaurant popular with the foreigner and tourist set, so your food won't come spicy unless you request it that way but despite this caveat, the dishes are otherwise prepared true to form.

Lotus ponds reflect the city's beautiful evening lights at this romantic restaurant. The upmarket Thai food is good, with elegant touches that cater to locals as well as foreigners. A classic Thai dance performance takes place nightly at 7:30 and 8:30, complementing well-known Thai dishes served à la carte or as a seven-course tasting menu for B2,800.

A good sign of quality, this restaurant is packed with Thais sharing tables filled with northeastern favorites like grilled chicken, spicy papaya salad, and minced duck salad. The open-air dining area can be hot, it's often crowded and noisy, and the staff don’t speak much English, so you’ll need to pick and point from the menu—but that's part of the fun.

This small house near the river is filled with Thai antiques and antique chests scattered with bric-a-brac, which all give the ambience of dining at a relative's house. The staff is very good at helping indecisive diners choose from the brief menu, and although the restaurant has become more touristy over the years, it also retains a loyal and regular local clientele.

Set in a rambling 1920s Thai-European villa with colorful decor by Dutch interior designer Hans B. Christensen, Issaya both surprises and charms with its delightfully laid-back atmosphere. The dining room is cozy with big couches and lots of antique touches, coupled with fun platings and garnishes and impeccable service. Lamb shank in Massaman curry is a highlight of the carefully curated menu. Both à la carte and prix fixe are available. A tropical garden outdoors is peppered with colorful bean bags during dry season. 

At this modern Michelin-starred Thai restaurant helmed by chef Thitid “Ton” Tassanakajohn, even a well-traveled gourmand is likely to try something new in the 4-course (B3,900) and 6-course (B4,500) tasting menus (no à la carte)—maybe a crunchy ant larvae topping or a charcoal-grilled pork jowl curry. Sleek minimalist surroundings put the focus on the food and drink, and since the chef is also a sommelier, you can expect wine pairings that perfectly complement each course.

The menu at Saffron mixes creative modern Thai with classic dishes, and the food is just as exciting as the stunning views from the 52nd floor of the Banyan Tree Bangkok. Even if you don't come for dinner, stop by the adjoining bar on the balcony for a cocktail or some street food–inspired snacks—the comfy seating, cool breeze, and vistas are superb.

In Thai-style teak pavilions facing the Chao Phraya River, this restaurant has a setting that practically guarantees a romantic evening—book an outside table so you can enjoy the breeze. Although the food may not have as many chilies as locals would like, the Thai standards are represented on the menu, including an excellent yum som o pu nim (spicy pomelo salad with prawns, roasted coconut, and crisped shallots).

In this century-old corner building in Bang Rak, a small team of Thai chefs turn out gub glam---simple dishes that are traditionally meant to accompany an evening of drinking---but the food more than stands up on its own. Signature dishes include Jay Joe’s crab omelette, thick with chunks of fresh crab; fried chicken wings in a fish-sauce glaze; and pork ribs braised in a soy-ginger sauce and served with garlic rice and greens. On the same premises, a Japanese partner makes world-class homemade ice cream with Thai ingredients.

This small two-story shophouse serves some of the best Isan (northeastern Thai) cooking in the entire neighborhood, and since it opened a decade ago, the owners have expanded to branches in New York, Tokyo, and Taipei. The menu boasts several varieties of the namesake somtum, including a few that use plaa raa, a more pungent version of the fish sauce used in most Thai cooking. The varieties of laap---the spicy minced-meat salad---are done particularly well here, as is the goi, a similar salad heavy on fresh lemongrass. Almost everyone orders the fried chicken, served here with a thick dark-red chili sauce called jaew.