Restaurants in Koh Phangan
Koh Phangan eats better than an island this size has any right to, and for a specific reason: the wellness community that settled here brought a demand for good vegetarian food, and the party economy brought everything else. The result is a night market, a row of vegan cafés and a scattering of seafood restaurants, all within half an hour of each other.
Getting your bearings
Thong Sala is where the market and most of the everyday eating is. Sri Thanu, just north, is the health-food end. Ban Tai and the south coast carry the seafood restaurants. Haad Rin has the party food, and the remote north and east coasts have a handful of restaurants attached to resorts.
Thong Sala Night Market
The best value on the island and the one thing every visitor should do. Pad thai, grilled seafood, curries, sushi, roti pancakes and fruit smoothies, made in front of you for very little. It is also where the island socialises, which makes it worth an evening rather than a stop.
Thai food and local kitchens
Mama Pooh's Kitchen at Sri Thanu is the one people recommend to each other: home-style Thai cooking, generous plates and prices that have not moved much. Ying Ying's Kitchen near Haad Yuan is the same idea closer to the beach, cooked fresh to order in a small room with a handful of tables.
The vegan end
Sri Thanu is unusually good for plant-based food, and not as an afterthought. Orion Café, attached to a yoga centre, does smoothies, bowls and raw desserts. Eat.co is the more designed version — vegetable burgers, cold-pressed juices and kombucha. Both are comfortable places to spend a couple of hours with a laptop.
Beachfront and international
Fisherman's Restaurant at Ban Tai for fresh seafood with the water in front of it, and one of the island's most booked tables. Luna Lounge at Thong Nai Pan for upscale Mediterranean and Asian cooking in a quiet setting. Beachlounge at Haad Rin for wood-fired pizza and barbecue, which is exactly what you want before a long night.
Practical notes
- Many places close for parts of October and November — check before you set out
- Tipping is not expected; rounding up is normal
- Street food is safe and good; pick the stalls with a queue
- Cash is easier everywhere outside Thong Sala
- On the remote beaches, eat where you are staying or plan the boat ride
Eating on a budget
Thong Sala Night Market is cheap enough that eating there most evenings is a reasonable plan, and good enough that it is not a sacrifice. The restaurants are for when you want a table, a view or a wine list. That split — market most nights, restaurant occasionally — is how most long-stay visitors here actually eat.
What to order
- Grilled seafood at the night market, chosen from the ice
- Massaman or green curry from a local kitchen rather than a resort
- A roti pancake, made in front of you, for almost nothing
- A smoothie bowl at Sri Thanu, which is the island's other speciality
Sri Thanu and the long-stay crowd
The cafés around Sri Thanu are built for people who are on the island for weeks rather than days: good coffee, reliable wifi, tables you can sit at for hours, and food that suits eating three meals a day in the same place. Even if you are only visiting for an afternoon, it is the most comfortable stretch of the island to spend one on.