2 Best Restaurants in Dusit and Northern Bangkok, Bangkok

Inundated with colors, sounds, and smells, this is where Bangkok's top Thai chefs shop for quality produce, herbs, and cooking gear. The market's food court is a legendary spot where spicy Thai fare is scooped onto plastic plates; you pick up the cutlery from trays, and grab a seat at one of the tables in the center.

An alley near the National Library leads to this off-the-beaten-track restaurant on a ramshackle pier overlooking the Chao Phraya River. Kaloang Home Kitchen might not look like much with its plastic seats and simple tables, but it's a local favorite for waterfront breezes that keeping things comfortably cool, as well as generous grilled seafood platters and giant river prawns.