In June 2015, The Hubby and I traveled for 5 weeks through 8 different countries, exploring historic sites, taking in breathtaking views, and indulging in delicious local cuisines. So delicious and indulgent, that I gained a pound per country, souvenirs that I still carry with me today. The last stop on our journey was 36 packed hours in Bangkok. Landing in the afternoon, I had booked dinner at Nahm our first night. We then had 24 solid hours to tour the city before flying out early the next morning.

To help streamline our time, we booked a private tour guide for the day and joined a food tour that night. I had first read about Bangkok Food Tours on the Tiny Urban Kitchen blog and their Yaowarat Street Food Tour (Chinatown) fit our itinerary perfectly. I also contemplated the Midnight Tour by Tuk Tuk, but was worried about catching our morning flight the next day. If I had more time in Bangkok, I would have definitely tried the full day Floating Market tour. Before deciding to book a tour, I had researched where to go and thought about exploring the city ourselves. However, I was worried about time, finding hidden vendors and possible language barriers. There was also just so many things I wanted to try. By choosing to go with a tour, we were trusting local experts to make our lives easier and we had a great time.

Our tour ran from 6pm-9:30pm and cost ~ $50/person with 7 stops. The tour would take us through Yaowarat, Chinatown, home to many of Bangkok’s famous street foods. Although there was a set itinerary, ours changed right off the bat to accommodate a restaurant closure. I don’t have the names of all spots we hit, but each was unique and tasty. Since Bangkok was the last stop of our South East Asia adventure, we had become familiar with certain ingredients (like pandan and durian) and weren’t as wowed as some of our tour mates. Also, perhaps because we were in Chinatown, many of the flavours were already familiar.

Here are the stops we made that night:
Canton House – Thai style dim sum featuring pandan noodle dumplings and pandan leave siu mai.
Kan Kee Nam Toua Thong – Famous tea stand serving sweet chrysanthemum tea and an incredibly bitter herbal drink. The herbal tea is popular in the summer as it’s “cool” and help balance out the “hot” in a person. I had one sip, but could not handle any more. The Hubby has had experience with Eastern herbal medicine and had a few more sips than me. I much prefered the floral chrysanthemum tea.
Noodle Stall – Stir fried noodles with chicken and Yu Choy. A simple dish but amazing, especially the gravy. Standing on a stool over a hot wok, the owner fries up noodles to order. This is the only dish the shop sold and it was the only one needed.
Dragon’s Beard Stall – Along the way to our next stop, we walked by a sand making fresh Dragon’s beard candy. A few of our tour mates were fascinated by the long strands of candy and our guide picked up a pack for everyone to taste.
L&R Seafood – This was a famous seafood food shop that has spawned many competitors in the neighbourhood (like R&L Seafood). We tried a curry shrimp, stir fried water spinach and scallops. The seafood tasted sweet, fresh and was seasoned with strong flavours. I would’ve loved to try more dishes.
Black Pepper Soup Stall – Rolled rice noodles in a peppery pork broth and topped with roast pork. I really enjoyed the strong, spicy broth and the chewy texture of the noodles.
Tong Yong – The last two stops were both sweet ones, starting first with a bowl of tong yuan, glutinous rice balls. Filled with black sesame or peanut and served in a sweet ginger broth, tong yuan is one of my favourite Asian desserts.
Tipparot Ice Cream – (Not Pictured) The evening ended with scoops of rich, creamy, durian ice cream

Continuing our Asian street food adventures, on our first night in Luang Prabang The Hubby and I headed straight to the night market for dinner. We would visit again pretty much every night either to shop at the handicraft market, grab a fresh juice or beer and sometimes more food. The food section of the market was located on a side street past aisles of tents with souvenirs ranging from tea, to chopsticks to “Beerlao” t-shirts. Vendors grilled up fish and meats in the tight alleyway. On our first night, we walked the whole alley to get a sense of the offerings. We squeezed past food stalls jammed next to each other and communal tables filled with backpackers.

For many of the vendors, it was hard to tell when one ended and the next began. Charcoal grills were often shared and there were few seats to sit and eat. Most vendors sold iced beer, which was perfect with a grilled fish.

In general, I noticed 3 main types of vendors:
1. Grilled Meats – Ranging from fish to pork belly to sausages, the meat was often pre-cooked and finished up on the grill when ordered. I prefered the pork options (pork belly and sausage) to the fish. For the large fish, the meat was overcooked and for the smaller fish, there were a ton of bones.
2. Buffet Style – A selection of pre-cooked dishes were set up, including vegetables, fried rice, noodles and tofu. Priced by the plate ($5-$7/plate), diners piled their plates high with whatever they wanted for the low price. All of the contents was then warmed up in a hot wok. This was definitely the option with the best value and I liked the many vegetable dishes, but everything does get combined in the wok and our guide warned us that many vendors will sell the dishes over multiple nights until it sells out.
3. Hot Pot Noodles – Priced based on the number of ingredients chosen, we were given a basket to pick fresh vegetables, a choice of noodle and tofu/soy based products to be hot-potted in a broth. I really liked this type of stall, the ingredients were fresh and thoroughly cooked. Also, depending on the time of night, the broth used for boiling the vegetables grew in flavour and depth (just like hot pot!). This did mean that the bowls could get very spicy.

Apart from these types of vendors, there were also fresh fried dumplings, BBQ pork and sandwich stalls. To satisfy my sweet tooth, I also visited the crepe stalls and fresh fruit juice stands nightly. Compared to other night markets we visited during our Asian trip, the one in Luang Prabang was smaller and cozier, but with their own distinct foods.

One morning, our guide also took us through the morning market in town where farmers brought fresh fish and butchered livestock from that morning to sell. All the parts of an animal were displayed from cuts of meat to every innard, which was sold by weight. My favourite discovery at the morning market was kanom krok, coconut pudding, made fresh street side. A thin batter was poured into heated round molds, once the pudding began to firm up, two halves were flipped together to create a pudding sandwich. The texture was gooey but solid (aka like pudding), and the flavour was a creamy coconut. Despite how hot the snack was, right from the pan, and the glaring sun, I wolved these down quickly. Later in Bangkok, we were served kanom krok as part of dessert at Nahm, while more elegantly presented, I much prefered the ones I had from the street vendor.

Hanoi is famed for their street food. Walking through old town,I was drooling at all the fried foods and pots of boiling broth. The vendors were also serious, sometimes packing their entire setup on a bicycle to get around. Setup including the normal plastic stools and tables, but also stoves, pots and pails of ingredients. Our guide took us on a night tour through Hanoi’s streets and into hidden cafes to visit the spots where locals go.

Chicken Pho – Unlike in North America where beef pho reigns supreme, Hanoi’s preferred protein was chicken, which turned out to be 10x more flavourful than 99% of the broths I’ve had in Toronto (except of Pho Dau Bo!). Another regional difference was just how much lime juice they use, and the little wedges were so fragrant. Adding the sharp acidity to the broth really made the flavours pop. The first bowl of pho we had was topped with hand-shredded chicken and fresh chives. Despite the sweltering weather, The Hubby and I both slurped up the hot broth, wiping sweat in between bites.

Banh Mi – Banh Mi sandwich stalls were located on almost every block. Our tour guide brought us to one setup in an alleyway with a long line and we split a sandwich filled with pickled vegetables and various meats. The sandwich was good, but the best Banh Mi we had in Vietnam was at Banh Mi Huynh Hoa in Ho Chi Minh City. That sandwich was filled with 6 different kinds of meat including pate, terrine and pork floss. Locals picked up sandwiches by the dozen and some were even dropped off by taxi to wait in line.

Beef Pho – We did try the beef pho in Hanoi and the chicken was far superior. Our guide explained that chicken was much more accessible in Vietnam than beef, but many North American tourists are only used to beed. The bowl was served with a plate of fried dough fritters and sliced chili peppers. Again, our guide recommended generous squeeze of lime juice and then to dip the fritters in the broth. Broth soaked fritters were the best part of the meal.

Wormwood Egg Omelette – Made with fresh wormwood leaves and eggs, a lady fried up the omelette for us using a propane camper stove. The eggs had a strong natural taste that heavy in yolk. I couldn’t really make out the flavour of the wormwood, which should have been bitter, but I only tasted a hint of liquorice.

Vietnamese Egg Coffee – Made with whipped egg yolks, sugar, condensed milk and coffee, the espresso cup sized drink was a creamy dream. We enjoyed the coffee at one of Hanoi’s famed hidden rooftop cafes. Walking through a souvenir shop to the space in between buildings, we climbed up 4 flights of a narrow, winding staircase that led to a rooftop terrace with a stunning view of Hoan Kiem Lake lit by the neon signs of buildings around us. The thick froth was sweet and the coffee was strong. Watching the sun set over the lake was a great way to spend the evening.

Swan Pho – Our last stop of the night was one more bowl of pho. Originally, our guide wanted to bring us to a duck pho street stall but evert plastic stool was taken. Plan B was swan pho. We sat down at a table on the street as the vendor assembled our order. The swan tasted gamier than chicken and closer to duck. There was a big chunk of blood included that was savoury but mild. The broth’s key flavour was bamboo, which I loved. IF you like bamboo, I would highly recommend stopping by (although I wouldn’t be able to find the stall again on my own).

In addition to pho and banh mi, Hanoi has a variety of delicious street foods to offer. I’d recommend being adventurous and to give exotic ingredients a chance.

2013 marked the 20th birthday of Taste of the Danforth, an annual street festival celebrating Greek cuisine in Toronto. It seems like every year the festival is growing with more restaurants and inspiring similar events throughout Toronto’s many cultural neighbourhoods.

Tents line both sides of the street in front of each restaurant transforming blocks of Danforth Ave with smoky lamb chops, spits of quail and delicious grilled souvlaki.

Atmosphere: It gets crowded. Bring a water bottle, wet wipes and good cheer. Special sponsor tents are set up in the middle of the street and around the performance stage, but for the most part there’s little shade and lots of standing in line. Personally, I’m much more purposeful now when I attend with a checklist in mind of foods and vendors I want to visit. The festival gets a little boozy at night, all in good fun. If you’re visiting with family, I’d try to beat the rush by starting early and walking the street at a leisurely pace.

Service: Every stall I visited was efficient and friendly. Like most street festivals though, it can be hard to find napkins and food is served on a variety of options from paper plates to wax paper. Be prepared to get your hands a little greasy, the food’s worth it.

Food: This year, the BF and I only had a couple of hours to satiate our appetite for Greek cuisine so we had a gameplan. We were focused on lamb chops, souvlaki, crab gratin (a yearly favourite of the BF’s) and quail.

I don’t remember where we grabbed our quail and the first set of lamb chops from (bad blogger right?) but we chose one with a short line and best value. 2 fatty chops for $5. They were greasy as the picture shows and therefore full of flavour. I liked the quail but there were a lot of bones and it was a bit hard to eat, walk and not choke.

At Ocean Treasure’s Fish Market’s stall, they grill the most amazing crab shell gratin. Usually the line will span the block. Luckily we were early enough and didn’t have to wait long for our cheesy seafood goodness, served with two pieces of bread to soak up all the sauce. This dish is a stand out for me and the first stall I’ll run to. We finishing this year’s Taste of the Danforth with two more lamb chops and souvlaki from Ella’s Meat Market. I didn’t have any room left for a gyro from Messini, that’ll have to wait for next year.

Night it Up! is an annual outdoor summer food event in Markham that highlights street food from Taiwan, Hong Kong and other parts of Asia. The style is set up to feel like a “night market” with vendor booths in aisles, a performance stage and sports area with competition and events. The event this year was the 12th edition and I was kindly invited to take part in a blogger taste tour on the Saturday.

I haven’t been to Night it Up! for at least 3-4 years, but I used to go annually during university before the venue was moved to the Markham Civic Centre. The event has grown so much with more corporate sponsorships, food and merchandising booths in the larger location.

In total, I was able to sample the wares of 11 booths. Many of these vendors appear at events only and will also be participating in T&T’s Waterfront Night Market this weekend (July 19-21) so be sure to swing by.

Disclaimer: All food samples were provided free of charge by the vendors. All opinions expressed below are wholly mine.

Saturday was hot, heat stroke inducing hot. I was very thankful our first stop was at Juicy Melons. The watermelon juice was fresh, rich and you had the option of with or without fresh mint. We also tried their chilled watermelon balls, topped with coconut brittle, which was sweet and crunchy.

El Perro Heffe Tacos – Octopus ‘El Diablo’: This was an octopus (non-battered) taco with a spicy sauce topped with cilantro and bonito flakes. I loved the texture of the octopus and the big meaty chunks. The cilantro and bonito flakes contrasted the spicy sauce and was a nice East meets West flavour combination, highly recommended.

Papa Chang – Fried Fish/Chicken skewers with Japanese Mayo and Seaweed, Stinky Tofu: Yes! Stinky Tofu! I love stinky tofu and when visiting China will stop at literally every instance to grab a serving. The tofu at Papa Chang’s was the softer kind and didn’t have too strong a smell. I really liked the pickled cabbage that was served with it, which also helps mellow out the taste for those trying the dish for the first time. I liked the fried fish more than the chicken, both skewers were lightly battered, moist and tender inside.

OH OH Hotgod (Japadog?) – Japanese Hotdogs: This booth offered 3 types of Asian inspired hotdogs. They are not affiliated with Japadogs from the West coast, but their menu items were pretty much the same offering. I tried the hotdog topped with kimchi and green onions and it was great. The sausage was homemade, large meaty and cooked to a crisp outside.

Me.n.u – Porkzilla: A fried rice ball stuffed with pork belly and mozzarella. This was again bit of a fusion dish and done so well. The deep fried rice was crunchy on the outside and creamy and sticky, soaking up all the nice fat from the pork belly on the inside. The filling was amazing with melted fresh mozzarella cheese that oozed out. I would’ve gone back for seconds and to try all the flavours if I had the room left to eat.

Tacocat – Calamari Taco: The taco was topped with pineapple salsa and pineapple mayo. I didn’t taste much pineapple in the taco, it was more sour than sweet. I would’ve liked to try the Mapo Tofu Fritters which sounded interesting, deep fried spicy pork stuffed tofu pockets with mapo aioli and cilantro.

Sugar Love – Deep Fried Mochi and Ice Cream: I had the mango ice cream and peanut mochi combination. Portions were really great with each serving coming with 4 mochi balls, a giant scoop of ice cream and 2 wafer cookies. You’re able to choose your mochi (sesame, peanut or red bean) and ice cream (mango, green tea, black sesame or vanilla) flavour combination along with toppings (wafers, pocky, frosted flakes, etc). The ice cream was great relief on the hot day and the fried mochi were nice bites, soft and chewy on the inside, lightly battered and crispy on the outside.

Cup Cup Dessert – Bubble Waffles: Cup Cup Dessert served up classic bubble waffles with 5 different topping flavours, four sweet and one savoury. My favourite was the savoury choice with imitation crab, julienned cucumber and wasabi mayo. It had the same feel as a savoury crepe and I loved the contrast of the wasabi mayo to the sweet batter. For the sweet flavours the cinnaberry stuck out the most for me with it’s unique pairing of cinnamon with a berry sauce. The chocolate and bacon topping was also a great mix of flavours.

Dat Chick Craze – Fried Chicken: We sampled all three kinds of fried chicken from Dat Chick Craze, the pop’n chicken (a dry spice rub with basil), hot blazin’ chicken (a sweet spicy sauce) and the chicken waffle (sandwiched between two half waffles and topped with syrup). The fried chicken was crisp and had a nice batter. My favourite was the pop’n chicken. The dry spice and basil was salty and really accented the natural fried chicken flavour without masking it.

Maobo – Bubble Waffles: Maobo offered bubble waffles in 3 different flavours, green tea, original or chocolate and a variety of toppings (mini marshmallows, syrups, cookie bits, etc). They made a sample for us with all three flavours in the waffle and a selection of toppings. I liked the amount of choice you had and the green tea base was a nice change. This reminded me a bit of funnel cake where I use the cake 80% as a vessel for the toppings.