Auntie Anne's pretzel, Bangkok

Me: Hey, am headed to IKEA today.. want anything?

A: You are headed all the way to Megabangna? 

Me: Yes.. Am on the train now.. 

A: Wow, have a Auntie Anne's pretzel for me please. It is near the IKEA store. You can't miss it!

Me: Okies.

This is the conversation I had with a friend whilst on the BTS.. And when I reached Megabangna, I discovered it was huge and I kept walking, exploring places, shops and realised it went on and on like a never ending path. Maybe this was the rabbit hole and I was Alice.. 

Finally I took a turn and was told IKEA was down the end and that is where I noticed Auntie Annie's pretzel stall. I have never had a pretzel, but heard a lot about it from people who have been abroad. So, when I saw one up close, I was quite excited. 

I noticed there were quite a few varieties, but i opted for two plain ones and along with a drink, it costed me 25Baht [if i remember right].. I ate one and put the other in my bag and nearly forgot about the pretzel till we boarded the flight back to Chennai. The pretzel was soft, fresh and yummy.. I thought Pretzels were just the crispy kind, but this is where I discovered a whole different kind of pretzel.. 

What is that one new dish/item that you tried and was pleasantly surprised by? 

Flavours of Bangkok -III- Fresh & juicy

The four- five days that I spent in Bangkok, if I had to list down the things that appealed and impressed me, I could count them on one hand. 

And one of them was the number of fresh fruit stalls and bottles of fresh fruit juices that I came upon almost everywhere on the street. Be it the pavement, outside Wat Pho, along the way to the jetty to head to Wat Arun and in ChatuChak market as well. Am sure this system is followed everywhere and you will find these colourful sealed bottles all across the town. 

Not only where the street hawkers selling juices, but they also had fresh fruits/slices being sold in packets everywhere. In the market, I also came upon strawberry-vanilla shakes. Most of them were priced around 20-30Baht and were chill and fresh.. No added sugar, no preservatives.. And the bottles were small enough that you could just hold the bottle in your hand and sip on it as you walked around. 

Flavours of Bangkok -II- Street food

We had just stepped out of Wat Pho and were quite hungry.. We walked around the place trying to find a cafe or a eating joint, and finally spotted a row of street vendors and decided to give them a shot. 

The 1st guy was selling non veg, my friend chose what looked closest to Chicken and picked up a skewer with freshly grilled chicken. She ate it, but was quite sceptical about what it was.. Asked me to click a picture so she could ask someone.. lol.. The reason for her fear- most meat sold here was pork and she dint eat pork.. Told her it dint matter cos she was eating it out of sheer hunger.. 

Moving along, I spotted a guy standing near a big pan that small dips in them, almost like our Kuzhipaniyaram/appam pans.. I then saw him break an egg into each of these and cook them for a few minutes, before plating them up. Instantly I told him I wanted a plate.. A minute later he picked up a handful of eggs and repeated the process, which is when I discovered these were quail eggs.. They were quite good- crisp at the bottom and gooey on top- with a sprinkle of salt & pepper. 

And finally we grabbed a potato twirl /Twistato [it is basically an entire potato peeled onto a wooden stick, deep friend with masala- had it 1st time in Bangalore and this was the 2nd time I saw it] 

All the above was priced between 20-40 baht, served piping hot and were perfect after our long walk around Wat Pho. 

We also spotted quite a few other stalls, some selling fresh fruit juices, while others had elaborate meat dishes and then there were few stocked with a wide variety of mushrooms [which would become soup come evening] 

Flavours of Bangkok- Part I- Pad Thai noodles

There we were all set to bid adieu to Bangkok and head back to Chennai. With about two hours left for our flight, we wandered about the airport- the stores, the big brands and that is when we spotted the restaurant with a board that said "Asian, Thai and Japanese cuisine". With hunger bells ringing away in our tummies we walked in and ordered food.

I ordered Pad Thai noodles in red curry sauce while my friend ordered rice and Thai green curry with prawns..

The Pad Thai noodles we get here in India is quite different from what we had in Bangkok- it had far less spice and was served with a side of fresh Chinese sprouts and a lime wedge.

The noodles was good and we slurped it up within minutes.

The one thing I have always enjoyed during my trips is exploring the local cuisine and in Bangkok we were I heaven- I Love Thai food.. :))