This way to Thaitown
On my recent trip to Sydney, I had my Thai wife and 3 members of her family in tow for an Australian holiday. We had done all the sites of Sydney, or so I thought. While wandering the streets and shops we bumped into some local Sydney Thais. As Thai people do, they got to chatting like old friends and quizzed if we'd been to Thaitown yet? Thaitown??? I have had many great meals in the restaurants of Chinatown in Sydney, but had never heard of this until now. Anyway, they pointed us in the right direction and we set off on foot. We followed our trusty Google map up George street until we got there.
From Circular Quay follow George St. until you hit Cambell St.
When we reached Campbell Street, it wasn't difficult to know that we were in the correct place. Thai restaurants, grocery stores, video shops and massage shops all made it obvious we had arrived. I could even smell the cooking chili in the restaurants wafting out to the footpath and stinging my nostrils.
Thai town has essentially grown as an offshoot of Sydney Chinatown, and while small, has enough authentic feel to make my Thai guests feel like they were back at home.
Thaitown consists of a variety of different stores catering to Thais and locals alike. . Sydney has the highest population of Thais in Australia, with a current population of around 100,000 that is growing.
Thaitown also celebrates traditional Thai festivals such as Songkran every April. Songkran is Thai New Year.
Chat Thai Restaurant
We decided to eat at the very popular "Chat Thai" Restaurant. By Sydney standards the food was cheap, and by Thai standards according to my guests, the food was very good. There were big smiles around the table as our dishes arrived. We went for a mix of our favourite dishes, and every one was superb. Satisfied and full, we decided it was best to get a cab back to the hotel.
The Interior of Chat Thai
Larb Mu
Pad-See_Oo
Pla-muk Kana
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