There aren’t too many good Thai restaurants in Manila and Marikina is lucky to have two of them. DCF contributor, Lee, tells the story of Krung Thai and its latest offshoot, Moo Baan Krung Thai. Perhaps it’s time for a food trip to the area. – Lori
The first time I ate Thai food was in a mall in Metro Manila. It was a restaurant whose exteriors were lavishly decorated with carved teakwood gilt with gold. I remember thinking, as several Buddha heads looked down on me, that the place looked expensive. (It was.) Thus, it was drummed in my head that authentic Thai food (unless you are having it in Thailand) isn?t cheap.
The next time I had Thai food, it couldn?t have been more different and unexpected. My husband, who grew up in Marikina, brought me to a Thai restaurant located at its local public market. There was no teak furniture, and any gold that covered the decorations was flaking off. A lone image of Buddha
smiled serenely down on me as I had the best and cheapest Thai food this eastern side of the metro.
Since 1997, Krung Thai has been serving authentic Thai food at a corner of the Marikina public market in Barangay Sta. Elena. The space featured a few tables and looked more like a canteen with its shelves of Thai condiments and sauces for sale. But the space was bright and made cheery by the colorful lamps hanging from the ceiling.

Last year, the owners, a Filipina married to a Thai, opened a second branch in Marikina Heights called Moo Baan Krun...