Sawadika~

There's great stigma surrounding Thai food, brewed by all the shitty fast/takeaway Western style joints. So when I first visited Thailand, almost three years ago, I was completely blown away at how bloody flavoursome and complex Thai food actually is - holy sht, what crap have I been eating all this time? 

While shitty pad thais are still aplenty in tourist trap zones, we ventured out of town to find where the locals eat after a hard day of hustling and experienced Thai food at its truly best. Carts of questionable meats charring and colour dessert stalls lined the after hours street markets, all very curious but so inviting.

The most memorable dish was from this soup noodle cart with all the inner trimmings (think intestines, livers...) and it was so spicy but I kept on wanting more. You know the food is good when the chilli pain is too real but you still want to keep eating T_T. Do Dee Paidang is no joke when it comes to spicy Thai food and reminds me why I love it so much.  

As you walk in you'll see a beautiful display of Khanom Wan Ruam Mit (yes, I had to Google that), a Thai dessert concoction of mixed fruits, jelly, or whatever you want really served with shaved ice, coconut milk and sugar syrup. It's similar to Vietnamese Chè or Halo Halo in the Philippines. Basically fantastic for a hot day or cooling yourself down because you thought you could handle the chilli and you really couldn't. 

It was packed for a weeknight and our party of two grabbed the last seats. There were lots of students and young families, and crowds of Thai customers - a good sign, surely. 

Thai Ice Milk Tea $3.90

Thai Sausages $8?

Kiki wanted to try the Thai sausages and it was a house speciality apparently. I'm not a fan in general tbh, but they're not bad. Lots of herbs and spice with strong hint of lemongrass, great with some sticky rice.

BBQ Pork Neck $11.90

I love eating weird cuts of meat and read good reviews about this dish so had to order it. It looked simple on the plate, but this dish was simply bam-wow in flavour. The meat was tender and juicy, with a saahhh tasty sweet sticky glaze. It's reminds me of a good ol' home BBQ spit roast, and you simply can't argue with that. 

Doo Dee Devil (Level 2) - Small $4.90

Finally we get to the soul of this restaurant - the spicy noodles. My stomach hurts now just thinking of how spicy it was, and this was only level 2!! As someone who can generally eat really spicy food, tears were had after a few mouthfuls. A generous amount of different meats and fish balls, sprinkle of deep fried wonton skin, fried onions and clear noodles. I was taken to an "omg, I'm dying but I can't stop eating it" moment, again. Spiciness aside, the broth had intense depth of flavour - it was tangy, subtly sweet and salty; pretty much the epitome of Thai food and reminded me of the noodle street carts. Though it was an uphill battle, we both finished our bowls (but left the soup) and felt like winners. It was a close call but Us 1, Thai food 0. 

Mango with Sticky Rice $7

To give ourselves a pat on the back for surviving, we had to order one of my fav Asian desserts. I can never go past sticky rice with coconut milk, it is simplicity at its best. The rice is gelatinous and the stickiness goes amazingly well with the sweet coconut milk and refreshing pieces of mango. Not too sweet or heavy, it was the perfect end to a punchy meal. 

It doesn't look like much, but we were completely coma-ing by the end. The staff of entirely Thai folks were super friendly and quick to service. Much like the streets of Thailand, the place can get a bit noisy and cramped, but nothing we were fussed about. It is as authentic as you can get in Sydney and bang for buck. Just try not to be a daredevil with the noodles spiciness level... you have been warned!