Thai Food is internationally famous. Whether hot chilli or comparatively bland, harmony is the guiding principle behind each dish. Thai cuisine is essentially a marriage of centuries-old Eastern and Western influences harmoniously combined into something uniquely Thai. The characteristics of Thai food depend on who cooks it, for whom it is cooked, for what occasion, and where it is cooked to suit all palates. Originally, Thai cooking reflected the characteristics of a waterborne lifestyle. Aquatic animals, plants and herbs were major ingredients. Large chunks of meat were eschewed. Subsequent influences introduced the use of sizeable chunks to Thai cooking.

With their Buddhist background, Thais shunned the use of large animals in big  chunks. Big cuts of meat were shredded and laced with herbs and spices. Traditional Thai cooking methods were stewing and baking, or grilling. Chinese influences saw the introduction of frying, stir frying and deep-frying. Culinary influences from the 17th century onwards included Portuguese, Dutch, French and Japanese. Chillies were introduced to Thai cooking during the late 1600s by Portuguese missionaries who had acquired a taste for  them while serving in South America.

Thais were very adapt at 'Siamese-ising' foreign cooking methods, and substituting ingredients. The ghee used in Indian cooking was replaced by coconut oil, and coconut milk substituted for other daily products. Overpowering pure spices were toned down and enhanced by fresh herbs such as lemon grass and galanga. Eventually, fewer and less spices were used in Thai curries, while the use of fresh herbs   increased. It is generally acknowledged that Thai curries burn intensely, but briefly, whereas other curries, with strong spices, burn for longer periods. Instead of serving dishes in courses, a Thai meal is served all at once, permitting dinners to enjoy complementary combinations of different tastes. 

Dining in Pattaya

Restaurants are available in most of the hotels and some are even popular with outside guests. However, tourists may go out to try the differentiated and variety of food menus at the actual Pattaya dining venues where a large number of specialty restaurants serving different kinds of food. There are variety of restaurants, located at all corners of the city. Be aware that most of them serve Thai food and some have waiters and waitresses who cannot speak English well. Restaurants in the hotels are more convenient and reliable since the staffs can speak better English than outside but the price is normally more expensive as usual. Although some Thai dishes are quite spicy, far more dishes are completely mild. Much of the heat of the spicy dishes comes from red or green peppers, commonly referred to as chilies. One handy Thai word at all eateries if you are not particularly fond of hot spicy food, is to learn the words "Mai Phet" (not spicy) as if you don't ask, you may be served Thai style and then you will really know the mean of the words "FIRE" (...in the mouth). Some restaurants may serve less spicy food to the tourists since they know that foreigners cannot eat spicy food.