Going to Court

By : Amit Gilboa

The entrance to Emporium’s bustling ‘Garden Terrace’

Bangkok is justly famous for both its excellent restaurants and the wide variety of its street food. But, for this Bangkok resident, there is no better place to dine than in the city's many food courts. These clean, comfortable and efficient smorgasbords provide delicious, inexpensive food and offer some of the funkiest decor, not to mention some of the best views, of any eating establishments in the city.

Mah Boon Krong's Food Centre is one of the many places you can sample the Thai version of fast food

At 30-40 Baht (one US dollar or less) per dish, the value is unbeatable. Street food can be cheaper but the heat, dirt and pollution in this gigantic city make the air-conditioned haven of a food court well worth the extra few Baht. Food courts also offer a higher level of hygiene than most of the street-side stalls and they are convenient as well. Every major shopping mall and most smaller ones have at least one ‘suan ahan’ (food garden). They're much faster than restaurants as you generally give your order directly to the cook and then watch as your meal is prepared. Many stalls have the dishes laid out, buffet style, so those wary of menu translations can just ‘point and click’ for their food. With numerous stalls offering a variety of dishes, even the pickiest eaters can find something to eat.

For some diners, the real magic of food courts goes way beyond good, cheap and convenient food. Feel like dining under a four-meter-tall Roman centurion? Head to Central Plaza Pinklao's Colosseum Food Centre. Prefer your meal in a wooden boat stranded in a plastic jungle? Seacon Square's Land of Food: Jungle Park fits your bill. How about a totally over-the-top trippy Alice in Wonderland motif? Central Plaza Rama III's Food Pavilion does the trick. Or, if it's just nice views you want, the food courts at Empire Tower and Emporium both offer scenic seating rivalling vastly more expensive restaurants.

Your meal ‘tickets’

Adding to the food court mystique is the rite of the coupons. The process is quite painless once you are familiar with procedure: Exchange cash for coupons at the coupon window, use the coupons to buy food, then exchange your unused coupons back into cold, hard cash (on the day of purchase only, please).

The whole coupon system may seem awkward but there is a rhyme and reason for its existence. First, the coupons make it less likely for your 30 or 40 Baht to find their way into the server's pocket if the owner is away. Second, in addition to paying a monthly rental, the stalls also give the food court a percentage of their take; the coupons make it easier for the food court management to keep track of each vendor’s sales. The logic behind this is that the court provides services, such as bussing and washing dishes, so busier stalls should pay a larger share.

Food Pavilion: A cornucopia of shapes & colours, not to mention good food

Practicalities aside, I prefer a more romantic view of the coupons: When you exchange your Baht for the coupons, it's as if you are entering a new country with its own currency. Here the air is clean; the food is cheap and delicious. With the coupons, you have become part of a special micro-economy devoted purely to human sustenance. Like Club Med's chits, exchanging cash for coupons frees you from ordinary money and the everyday concerns which cling to it. This is a currency devoted solely to nourishment.

Regardless of whether you share my romantic vision, your favourite food court will depend on personal taste. Following are but a few of the city’s many food courts; ranked using a number of criteria, such as decor, size, comfort, view and value.

Currency trading at the Vegetarian Society food court

The decor category is hotly contested but the winner is Food Pavilion at Central Plaza Rama III. Giant metallic mushrooms sprout out of huge tiled vases. The walls sport alternating blue and beige tiles. Street lamps scattered around are done in a style best described as high-tech flower power. Strange metal shapes hang from the ceiling, which is painted entirely in psychedelic blue. The whole area is an unforgettable riot of shapes and colours. As an added bonus, one wall of windows provides a lovely view of the Rama IX Bridge to Klong Toey port and beyond.