"Sommay Jaijong has cooked vegan Thai in Banglamphu since 1988, no fish sauce anywhere — go for an easy meat-free first date."
About May Kaidee
Sommay Jaijong started with a single street cart near Khao San Road in 1988, cooking Thai food with no fish sauce and no meat. Nearly four decades on, May Kaidee is a Banglamphu institution and the name most people give when asked where to eat vegan in Bangkok. The restaurant added a cooking school in 2007, and the founder is widely credited with helping put plant-based Thai food on the map for visitors. It is a plain canteen rather than a polished room, and that is the point. See the rest of the Bangkok dining guide.
The Kitchen
The whole menu is built around one rule: Thai flavour without fish sauce, shrimp paste or meat. The proof is the pad thai, made with tamarind and soy instead of the usual fish sauce, which shows the dish does not need it. The massaman curry is the other plate to order, deep and warm with potato and peanuts, and the tom yum and the black sticky rice with mango round out a first visit. Most dishes land between ฿100 and ฿250, roughly $3 to $7, which makes a full meal one of the best-value sit-downs in the old city. Sommay Jaijong, known to everyone as May, has cooked here since 1988 and teaches the same recipes at the school on Tanao Road. For the wider picture, see the best vegetarian restaurants worldwide and the best Thai restaurants.
The Room
The room is a simple open-front Bangkok shophouse: bright lighting, fan-cooled, plastic-and-wood tables, the kitchen clattering a few feet away. It is functional rather than romantic, busy with backpackers and Thai regulars in roughly equal measure, and the turnover is quick. Sound is lively, there is no dress code, and you order at the table from a laminated menu. The appeal is the food and the price, not the setting, and the Banglamphu location keeps it walkable from Khao San Road and the old-city sights.
Best for a First Date
May Kaidee works for a low-key first date, especially a meat-free one, because it takes all the pressure off: the bill is tiny, the menu is easy to share, and there is zero pretension to navigate. It is a good read of whether someone is relaxed and curious rather than fussy. Share a pad thai and a massaman, finish with mango sticky rice, and carry the evening on into Banglamphu afterwards. For grander rooms, see our first-date restaurant guide.
Not for
Not for a special-occasion splurge or a quiet, romantic room. May Kaidee is a bright, busy budget canteen; the value and the cooking are the draw, not the setting.
Frequently Asked
Is May Kaidee worth it?
Yes, as one of Bangkok’s original and best-value vegan kitchens. Founded by chef Sommay Jaijong in 1988, May Kaidee proves Thai food works without fish sauce or meat, and most dishes cost just ฿100 to ฿250. It is a plain, busy canteen rather than a refined room, but for plant-based Thai cooking in the old city it is the benchmark and the easiest recommendation.
What should I order at May Kaidee?
Start with the pad thai, made without fish sauce, then the massaman curry with potato and peanuts. Add a tom yum and finish with black sticky rice and mango. Everything is vegan, so there is no need to check, and the kitchen is used to first-timers. If you enjoy it, the attached cooking school teaches these same dishes.
Is May Kaidee fully vegan?
Yes. The entire menu is vegetarian and vegan, with no fish sauce, shrimp paste or meat anywhere, which has been the founding principle since 1988. That makes it one of the most reliable spots in Bangkok for diners who want to order anything on the menu without asking questions. The cooking school follows the same plant-based approach.
Where is May Kaidee in Bangkok?
In Banglamphu, the old-city district around Khao San Road, with the long-running branch on Tanao Road and a cooking school nearby. It is walkable from the Grand Palace and the backpacker quarter, which makes it an easy lunch or dinner stop while sightseeing. See our Bangkok dining guide for more in the area.
