Places to eat in Sukhothai
Sukhothai has a decent amount of eating options to choose from though overall New Sukhothai has a better range of places than Old Sukhothai and we recommend you to stay in New Sukhothai if food plays a big part in your holiday.
Generally most places to eat are cheap and offer authentic Thai dishes, from day and night markets to food courts and restaurants, there are many different selections to pick from.
What to eat in Sukhothai
The speciality food in Sukhothai is their twist on noodles called kuay tiao sukhothai, which blends noodles, beans, peanuts and lime juice and is something you will see all over the city. The second dish not to miss is also noodles, namely the local version of the famous pad thai. Both have a very specific flavour and are a step up to our opinion compared to their ubiquitous prototypes.
Food markets in New Sukhothai
In New Sukhothai, the cheapest places to eat at are found at the day and night markets, with former unfolding along Jarod Vithithong and the latter on Nikorn Kasem road on Saturday night. Here you can try a whole host of vendors and taste delicious Thai dishes including various curries, soups, vegetarian dishes, stir fries and much more for around THB50 a meal.
Just around the corner from the Saturday night market is an open-air food court that opens every day, day and night. It is located around Wat Ratchathani and is a really great and cheap place to have your bite any time of the day, especially in the evening. We found similar dishes to those found at the markets but there were different options like fish and some Chinese-style food stalls too. You can drink beers whilst watching soccer and seeing the world go by from here. Some stalls have English menu what actually facilitates a lot the process of ordering your meal.
Thai restaurants in New Sukhothai
For more upscale places in the new area, try Fueng Far which is located by the Yom River and serves various fish dishes including some interesting ones like tom yum hua bla (fish head, THB300) and non-fish dishes like kob phat kra pao (stir fried basil frog, THB400).
Kru Eew is one of the most celebrated noodle restaurants in the city and is famed for its Sukhothai noodle meals but also cooks up various exquisite Thai and Vietnamese dishes as well as divine deserts.
Western and international food
The new part also has a good amount of western places like Chopper Bar, which is set on a rooftop and has live acoustic music and supplies western and Thai dishes and these start from THB40. Dream Café offers Italian and other European cuisines as well as Thai meals for around THB120. Other places we suggest include the Poo (means crab) restaurant for the curries and Felice for a range of Thai and Italian dishes.
Where to eat in Old Sukhothai
If you decide to go to the old part of the city then don’t expect as many cheap places to choose from. There is a line of vendors just outside the historical park where you can get all your favourite Thai dishes and they stay open pretty much all day until around sunset and even later on Saturdays.
Otherwise we suggest trying Ta Pui on the main street which has a good reputation for its pork dishes including roasted pork, pork satay, pork balls and pork flour dumplings. Most dishes are around THB250 and they have a good range of desserts.
In terms of non-Thai places, the Ali Baba Indian Restaurant is one of the most popular places and we tried the gorgeous chicken vindaloo, lamb madras, coconut rice and roti and this only came to THB700.
Most restaurants sit along the main street (route 12) so you will find something that suits you and there a lot of hotel restaurants that offer Thai and western meals.
Cafes and Coffee Houses
If you fancy a coffee shop or bakery then definitely go to New Sukhothaiwhere you will find the majority of coffee related places dotted around the centre. Our pick was Nuan Bakery as it has a great range of cakes, sandwiches and breakfast snacks.