Takua Pa Street Food Tour from Khao Lak with Chef Wandee

Pakinnaka Thai Cooking School in Khao Lak runs this five-hour private food tour of Takua Pa, an old trading town on Thailand’s west coast. Your guide is Wandee, who owns the cooking school and, according to the operator, taught two finalists of The World Cook Season 2 on Amazon Prime. Pickup is at your hotel in Khao Lak.

The operator says you taste over 10 dishes from more than 20 stalls and restaurants where locals eat out. The route starts with gai kolae, chicken in a coconut milk curry sauce grilled over charcoal, then a small pork sausage made with preserved rice. You watch kanom krok (coconut pancakes) cooked in front of you, and sit down for hoi mok pla, Southern-style steamed curried fish in banana leaf. Dessert is a volcano roti pancake with cha yen (Thai milk tea). The tour finishes with Thai coffee at a Chinese-Portuguese cafe in the old town. For more on the area, see Takua Pa and Takua Pa Old Town.

Included are the local guide, hotel pickup and drop-off by air-conditioned minivan, snacks, dinner, tea and coffee. Alcoholic drinks cost extra. The tour runs in English, French and Italian, and children must be accompanied by an adult. The operator says it suits all fitness levels.

Insider Tip: Skip a big lunch beforehand. Over 10 dishes plus dinner is a lot, and you will want room for the volcano roti at the end.

Watch out: The menu includes pork, fish and chicken dishes. If you avoid any ingredient, tell the operator when you book.

If you prefer to cook rather than eat, the same area has the Riverside Thai cooking half-day class. This tour suits food lovers who want a private guide, though most of the five hours is spent eating, not cooking.