Best Places to Eat in Koh Phangan (6 Spots I’d Go Back To)
Koh Phangan is one of those islands where the food is much better than the party reputation suggests.
I went in expecting beaches, buckets, and a lot of average pad thai near Haad Rin. And yes, you can absolutely find that if you go looking for it.
But spend a bit of time riding around the island and the food scene starts to make more sense. Thong Sala has the markets, Sri Thanu has the healthier cafe and expat stuff, the west coast has small family Thai restaurants, and every now and then you find a place doing something weirdly excellent.
These are the spots I would actually go back to.
Table of Contents
The Short Version
If I only had one proper meal on Koh Phangan, I would go to At Chiang Mai for the khao soi and fried chicken. It was the single best thing I ate on the island, and honestly, that is enough to put it first.
It immediately took me back to the first time I tried khao soi in (the actual) Chiang Mai up north. Still one of my favourite dishes. When a random island bowl can drag that memory back up, you pay attention.
That is also the rough food map of the island: markets in Thong Sala, better cafes around Sri Thanu, small Thai restaurants along the west coast, and one properly excellent northern Thai meal hiding in plain sight.
Tip: If you want a guided first pass, check Klook’s Koh Phangan food, cooking and island experiences. Otherwise, rent a scooter, save these places on Google Maps, and follow your stomach around the island.
1. At Chiang Mai
If I was sending you to one restaurant on Koh Phangan, it would be At Chiang Mai.
That sounds a bit dramatic for a bowl of noodles, but I stand by it. Rich coconut curry, soft noodles, crispy noodles, the little pickled bits on the side, and then fried chicken next to it because apparently restraint was not on the menu that day.
It also hit a very specific memory button for me. The first time I had khao soi was up in Chiang Mai, and I remember thinking: right, this is why people get annoying about regional food. It is creamy, crunchy, spicy, salty, comforting, and somehow still bright enough that you do not feel like you have been flattened by curry.
Koh Phangan has a lot of beach-town menus where every restaurant serves the same Thai / burger / smoothie / pasta situation. At Chiang Mai feels more specific. Northern Thai food, small place, relaxed tables, and a menu that gives you something you are not seeing everywhere else.
Their khao soi is the single best thing I ate on the island. That is still the whole recommendation. Go for that.
2. Pantip Market
Pantip Market is the easiest food recommendation on Koh Phangan because almost everyone passes through Thong Sala at some point.
It is close to the ferry, easy to find, and good when you want to wander around pointing at things until dinner happens. Grilled seafood was my pick here, especially the prawns, which were smoky, simple, and exactly what I wanted after a hot day on the scooter.
Is it the most romantic food experience on the island? No. It is a food market. There are bright lights, plastic chairs, people standing in the way, and at least one stall selling something you will deeply regret if you have to ride home afterwards.
But that is also why it works. You can go cheap, you can graze, you can split a few things, and if one stall looks average you can just walk ten steps and try again.
3. Saturday Walking Street Market
If you are on Koh Phangan over the weekend, Saturday Walking Street is worth making time for.
It has the same easy market logic as Pantip, but stretched into more of a night-out wander: food, crafts, music, people moving too slowly in front of you, the usual market theatre. I ended up buying a small painting from a local artist, which is not dinner, obviously, but it tells you the vibe.
Food-wise, the Thai pancake was the thing I would go back for. Crispy outside, soft inside, condensed milk doing the heavy lifting. Not exactly health food.
Good.
Come hungry, bring cash, and do not make this your only dinner plan if you hate crowds. It is still a market, and markets are always a tiny bit annoying in the exact same way they are fun.
4. Kika’s Place
Kika’s Place is the one that sounds wrong on paper: go to a Thai island and eat Italian food.
And yet. After enough curries, noodles, grilled things and beach-road menus, a proper plate of pasta starts to look extremely sensible. My slightly ridiculous verdict at the time was: “Better Italian than I had in Italy – Yes you heard that right!”
That is probably unfair to the entire country of Italy, but I understand what I meant. The seafood pasta was genuinely good, the place felt relaxed without being sloppy, and it was the rare non-Thai dinner on the island that did not feel like a tourist-menu compromise.
It is also a good option around Sri Thanu if you are travelling with someone who has hit their chilli limit. There are vegetarian and lighter options, and it feels like somewhere you could settle in for a slower dinner rather than just refuelling and leaving.
5. LEO Thai Food
There are a lot of places on Koh Phangan doing the whole “authentic Thai family restaurant” thing. LEO was the best one I tried.
It is not fancy, and I would not overcomplicate the recommendation. Go because you want a simple west-coast Thai dinner that feels cooked by people who know exactly what they are doing.
I had the massaman curry, and it landed exactly where massaman should: rich, warm, slightly sweet, and big enough that you stop pretending you are going anywhere afterwards. Portions were generous, prices were kind, and the whole place had that easy family-run feeling that is much harder to fake than people think.
This is a good one if you are staying around Haad Yao, Salad Beach or the north-west side and do not want to ride all the way back into Thong Sala for dinner.
6. Grandma’s Kitchen
Grandma’s Kitchen is the comfort-food fallback, and I mean that as a compliment.
Not every meal on Koh Phangan needs to be a market wander or a regional Thai revelation. Sometimes you just want something easy, filling, and reliably good, especially if you are travelling with a group and everyone is quietly becoming impossible.
The thing I would still order is the sizzling pepper chicken. It is not the most adventurous recommendation in this guide, but it is exactly the kind of dish you want when you are hungry, tired, and done pretending a smoothie bowl counts as dinner.
7. Hundred Islands Coffee Bar
Hundred Islands Coffee Bar is where I would go when I wanted coffee that felt vaguely like home.
For a flat white as good as they make them back home? That is a very specific Kiwi compliment. Most island coffee does the job, but this was one of the few places where I actually enjoyed it.
It is also useful as a proper breakfast / laptop / sit-down cafe, which matters more than you think on a long island stay. Sometimes you do not want another roadside fruit shake. Sometimes you want coffee, pancakes, a table, and a little moment of civilisation.
Special Mention: Alfa Coffee Roaster
Alfa Coffee Roaster is the other coffee stop I would keep on the map, especially if you like the nerdier side of coffee. I had their affogato with homemade vanilla ice cream and a dark roast espresso double shot, which is a ridiculous thing to casually stumble into on a Thai island.
How I’d Actually Eat My Way Around Koh Phangan
The best version of this is not booking fancy dinners every night. It is keeping the plan loose.
Do Pantip after you arrive in Thong Sala, ride out for At Chiang Mai when you want the best actual meal, save Saturday Walking Street if your timing works, and use Hundred Islands as your recovery cafe when the humidity, scooter dust and island nonsense have started to catch up with you.
Then work the rest around where you are staying. Koh Phangan is not huge, but riding across the island just for dinner gets old quickly, especially after dark.
Food-first base? Stay around Thong Sala or Ban Tai for markets, ferries and easy riding: Phangan Island View Hotel is the practical pick, while Explorar Koh Phangan is the nicer option. Beach-first trip? Go north-east with Anantara Rasananda or Panviman Resort, and accept you will ride further for the cheap eats.
That is how Koh Phangan works best anyway.
A little messy, but usually worth it.
Thailand Travel Cheatsheet
🚑 Should I buy travel insurance for Thailand?
100% YES! — Thailand has some of the best healthcare in Asia (and the world) but it’s not free for tourists.. well – it is and it isn’t.
The thai government has extended it’s tourist healthcare policy for ‘up to $15,000 medical cover’ for tourist accidents, up until the end of 2024. That will cover you for small dings, but won’t be enough for anything major.
If you DO get insurance, also be aware many policies won’t cover adventure activities like diving, or motorcylce riding (as it’s a high risk activity)!
(that’s right, check the t&c’s on your complimentary credit card insurance)
I highly recommend World Nomads as you can get specific add-ons for diving, or motorcyle riding (Which is one of the main reasons I went to Thailand!)
🎫 Do I need a visa for Thailand?
Probably not — 93 countries are entitled to visa exemption for the purpose of tourism for up to 60 days.
However, some other countries do need a pre-approved eVisa or a Visa on Arrival (VoA) (check here!). These start at 2,000 THB for 15 days and prices go up from there!
💉Do I need any vaccinations for Thailand?
YES! Make sure you are up-to-date with all your vaccines. Common travel vaccines include Hep A/B + Typhoid, and Diphtheria + Tetanus.
Thailand is commited to rabies eradication, though there are still a few cases each year. Generally the risk in Thailand is seen as extremely low.
As always, talk to your GP or specialised travel doctor a few weeks BEFORE you leave.
💸How do you pay for things in Thailand?
Cash is king in Thailand, but electronic payments have come a long way in the 5 years since I last visitied. You’ll want to get some folding tender out from an ATM when you land.
Generally street food stalls, mum-and-dad shops and small businesses will only take cash, whereas larger bars, resturants, hotels and resorts will be perfectly happy taking card.
I personally use a Wise debit card for all my international money needs as they only convert the funds when you make payment, plus they offer a much better spread (margin on the true exhange rate) than the banks do. They work in all the Thai ATMs I tried although the ATMs to charge a fee of 220 baht to withdraw.
🚌 What’s the public transport like in Thailand?
In short. FANTASTIC
There is a good network inter-city busses in Thailand and travel this way is very cheap and very comfortable. Domestic flight are also very affordable.
The best part about Thailand is booking agencies all work together to offer combined tickets that will get you exactly where you want to go. For example, we got a hotel transfer to the ferry terminal -> Ferry to Surat Thani -> Bus to Krabi -> Mini Van tranfer to Ao Nang all on the same booking. So easy!!
📲 How do I get internet/data/wifi in Thailand?
This one needs a whole nother article, but the short version is prepaid SIM cards are cheap and availible to tourists and locals alike (You don’t need a pricey tourst SIM!)
Don’t get tricked into getting a tourist SIM at the airport. Go to any 7-Eleven store and buy a local pre-paid SIM card which is cheaper, faster and gives you more data.
NB: Make sure to bring your passport for ID verification!
Another option is the Saily eSIM. This is a little more expensive but works from the moment you land is is SOOOOO much easier than the in person verification process required for a local sim.
TIP: I used to use Airalo but now find Saily a much better product – you can get 5% off with code SPECIAL5
✈️ What’s the best site to buy flights to Thailand?
For finding cheap flights, I recommend Skyscanner. Once you find the flight you’re looking for, I’d then suggest booking directly with the carrier (even if it costs a few $$ more than with one of the agreggators/agencies).
💧Can you drink the water in Thailand?
Safest not to — tap water in Thailand may be OK (the locals drink it) but is generally untreated and not reccommended for tourists. Purchase bottled water for drinking and teeth brushing, or get water purification tablets.
I always use these Aquatabs and also recommend a Brita Water Bottle for as some of the tab water wasn’t exactly clear either!
