Every time someone mentions Bangkok, its world-famous street food automatically comes to mind. The exuberant city probably has some of the best street food on the planet, but you better get there before the end of 2017 for one last hurrah before it’s all gone forever.
The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) is banning street food stalls around the city, ordering food vendors to shut down by year end in a move to emphasise “order and hygiene.” Several roads from the central district of Siam have already been cleared, with Chinatown and Khao San Road said to be next.
Street food has long been a crucial part of Bangkok’s DNA and there are over 20,000 vendors across the city serving meals and snacks to both locals and foreigners alike. Heck, the irresistible and affordable street food is one of many reasons why tourists flock to Bangkok, aside from shopping of course.
There’s good news though: Vendors with pushcarts and those set up away from the sidewalks may be permitted to stay. Evidently, this ban is causing an outcry, but we truly do hope Bangkok’s thriving street food scene will be able to live on.