BANGKOK · RATCHADA TRAIN MARKET

Ratchada Train Market Route

The Ratchada train market (Talad Rot Fai), spread behind Esplanade. In a food zone open only Thursday to Sunday nights: volcano pork ribs (leng saap), charcoal-grilled river prawns, som tam with gai yang, and moo kratha. A whole Thai night market walked end to end in one place.

🚇 MRT Blue Line, Thailand Cultural Centre Stn🚶 ~120 min on foot🍽 6 dishes

What the Ratchada train market is

The Ratchada train market (Talad Rot Fai Ratchada) spreads right beside MRT Blue Line's Thailand Cultural Centre station, behind a shopping mall called Esplanade. The name comes from the market that once ran alongside the railway; now it is a wide lot ringed by towers, tents packed in rows. Seen from the car park above, the coloured tents glowing at night are a famous sight. It opens only Thursday to Sunday, evening to late, split into vintage-and-goods zones, a bar zone, and a food zone.

What to eat at the night market

The heart of the walk is the food zone. Its headline is leng saap (volcano pork ribs), pork spine stewed in sour-hot soup and piled high; gathering a few people around the red mountain is how the market eats. There are also seafood grills that move prawns and shellfish from ice to charcoal on the spot, som tam of green papaya with grilled gai yang, and moo kratha that grills and simmers in one pan. For sweets, banana-filled roti gluay and gaudy shaved ice. Each stall dish is cheap, and sharing a little of everything among a few people lets you eat more kinds.

Getting there and walking it

Getting there is easy: about five minutes on foot from Exit 3 of MRT Blue Line's Thailand Cultural Centre station. Cut through the Esplanade mall, or take the passage beside it, to reach the market behind. It runs Thursday to Sunday, from around 5pm to 1am. It is closed on some days, so always check before you go. The suggested order is to go up to the car park first, look down over the coloured tents, then come down into the food zone. Stalls take mostly cash only (Thai baht). Much of the food is spicy, so say "mai phet" (not spicy) if you prefer. Since many dishes are shared sitting down, a group of a few enjoys it more than one or two.

Route map

Thailand Cultural Centre → behind Esplanade → food zone (Thu–Sun nights, 5min walk)　·　numbers match the dishes below

The dishes on this route (6)

Tap through to each shop and dish

肉1MeatLeng Saap stall×Volcano Pork Ribsเล้งแซ่บPork spine stewed in a sour, chilli-and-lime broth and piled into a mountain on the plate. You suck the meat and cartilage off the bones and drink the soup. Portioned for a few people to share, eaten sweating through the heat and sour. It caught on across Bangkok after Jodd Fairs and became the train market's signature.Nearest Food zone (behind Esplanade)Price ฿150–300 魚2SeafoodSeafood grill stall×Grilled River Prawnsกุ้งเผาBig river prawns grilled in the shell over charcoal until the tomalley melts and the shells turn red. Split in half and dipped in the sour-hot seafood sauce (nam jim seafood). Whole grilled squid and shellfish too, laid out on ice to point at. The smoke and smell of the market centre on this corner.Nearest Food zone (seafood grill corner)Price market price, prawns ฿200–500 肉3MeatIsaan stall×Som Tam & Gai Yangส้มตำ + ไก่ย่างGreen papaya pounded in a mortar with chilli, lime, fish sauce and dried shrimp — som tam — ordered together with charcoal-grilled chicken, gai yang. Roll the sticky rice into a ball by hand and alternate the sour-hot salad with the fatty chicken. A classic Isaan (northeastern) pairing; the heat is set when you order.Nearest Food zone (Isaan stall)Price som tam ฿50–80, gai yang ฿80–150 肉4MeatMoo Kratha×Moo KrathaหมูกระทะA domed iron pan set over a charcoal brazier: pork grilled on the peak while vegetables and noodles simmer in the broth-filled moat around it. Grilling and boiling in one pan at once — Thai grill-and-hotpot. Usually all-you-can-eat, with raw meat and vegetables you fetch yourself. A dish for a few people, taken slowly.Nearest Food zone (moo kratha)Price buffet ฿200–300 pp 甘5SweetsRoti Gluay stall×Banana Rotiโรตีกล้วยDough stretched thin, fried in butter and folded around chopped banana. Condensed milk, chocolate and sugar over the top, cut into squares on a paper plate. The same thing as Khao San's banana roti, but the market offers more toppings — egg, Nutella, strawberry. Eaten hot off the griddle, standing.Nearest Food zone (sweet stalls)Price ฿40–70 甘6SweetsShaved-ice stall×Rainbow Shaved Iceน้ำแข็งไสShaved ice heaped with brightly coloured syrups, jellies, beans, bread and corn, condensed milk poured over. Showy to look at — the stalls are built for the photo. The taste is plainly sweet, the ice cooling you fast. A dish for cooling down after circling the hot market.Nearest Food zone (shaved-ice stalls)Price ฿40–60

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