Night Food Trip in Chinatown, Hua Lamphong

Chinatown is a famous location for a walk tour! Aside from the mouthwatering dimsums and Chinese cuisine there are lots of things to do there!

How to get there:

The easiest way to get to Chinatown is to take the MRT to Hua Lamphong Station - the last station for MRT from Bang Sue. Alternatively you can take bus number 113 or 99 from Siam Area, MBK and Pratunam. You can also try the Chao Phraya Express boat (stop at Ratchawong Pier and walk to Sampeng Lane or Yaowarat Road). Or If you are coming from other city, the train will be the perfect way to get to Chinatown (Stop at Hua Lamphong Train Station and cross the bridge to reach Chinatown). If all else fail, take a Taxi, or Tuk-Tuk, but do some calculation first and make sure to agree with a fixed price first, before boarding the tuktuk.

My trip to Chinatown happened on my 3rd night at Bangkok. I fetch my friend Ate Nika from her hotel near BTS Nana Station before going to Chinatown. I accidentally found her check-in status at facebook and offered to meet her for dinner. She’s with Agoda and currently attending seminar training from Agoda Head Office at Bangkok. 

From her hotel accommodation, we took the BTS going to Sukhumvit for the interchange with MRT Line. We had a little detour at BTS Sukhumvit Station to observe and watch the Thais protest. It was lively and crowded, a live band is performing on the stage and nothing looks like a protest but rather a street party. 

We took some pictures and then rode the MRT train to Hua Lamphong where Chinatown is just a few walks away.   

Upon arriving at Hua Lamphong station, we had no idea how to get to Chinatown and just decided to trust our instinct. We crossed a bridge, turned left and right, crossed some streets and finally, we found ourselves in Chinatown! LOL.

On our way to Chinatown we came across a temple that I later found out to be Wat Traimit. Although we did not have the chance to explore the temple (since it was already closed at that time), based on some of my readings, Wat Traimit shelters a 3 meter tall solid gold Buddha image (hmmmmm.. GOLD!). There is an admission fee of 40 Baht with operating hours from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM open every day except during Mondays. It would have been perfect to learn the history of Bangkok’s Chinatown and its residents through this temple but there’s always a next time.  

Upon arriving at Yaowarat we were greeted by the cramped and crowded Chinatown. Exploring it at night when it is lit up like a Christmas tree and filled with food vendors is fun and different! Feeling hungry from our little adventure on finding our way to Chinatown, we immediately looked for a restaurant to eat dinner. We a found a cute restaurant with an amazing menu that issue a receipt. Yes, Ate Nika needed the receipt to reimburse our food expenses. We each ordered a ‘rice topping’ meal and three sets of dimsums. Yay! Free dinner! LOL…

We spent more than an hour eating dinner and finally called it a night. She needed to go back early since it was her first day of training the next day. Even though we already know our way back to Hua Lamphong MRT station, we decided to try the tuktuk just for fun and experience. We immediately found a tuktuk outside the restaurant and agreed for 50 Baht ride to the MRT station.

The ride was fun and the tuktuk was beautiful. It was decorated with neon color lights and painted with creative designs. The tuktuk driver was a delight; he was friendly and helpful as well. We arrived at the station after a 3 minute obligatory tuktuk ride. We paid the driver the agreed price. My friend and I, parted ways and promised to meet again some other time.

A helpful reminder!

Other place worth a visit at Chinatown is the famous Sampaeng Lane. Sampeng Lane is a popular wholesale market in Chinatown area, and considered as the most crowded area in this district. This lane runs from Songsawat Road in the east to Chakraphet Road in the west. This area sells almost everything, starting from various kinds of food, souvenirs, clothes, gifts, toys, household items, herbs, and many more.