Phuket Old Town Hokkien and Peranakan food
Eat Phuket Town for Hokkien-Peranakan house cooking, not a Kata grill. Morning roti at 30 to 60 THB, evening porridge except Monday, and crab yellow curry in a Sino-Portuguese room.
Phuket Town is a UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy. The useful circuit is Thalang, Dibuk, and Krabi Roads, not a Patong barbecue. Rotee Thaew Nam is the morning charcoal roti with massaman or fish curry at 30 to 60 THB. Lock Tien food court is the Hokkien mee and `oh aew` shaved-ice jelly hall. Go Benz is dry rice porridge with crispy pork at 70 to 100 THB, open evenings except Mondays.
Tu Kab Khao and Raya serve the mansion plates: crab yellow curry `gaeng poo bai chaplu` (ใบชะพลู, wild betel) and the sour-and-sweet Peranakan set. Town is 45 to 70 minutes from the west-coast hotels. Make it a half day or sleep a night among the shophouses. For the wider southern map, use [South and Baba-Nyonya](/thai-food/southern-and-baba-nyonya).
Morning roti to mansion curry
Start at Rotee Thaew Nam while the charcoal is hot. Walk Thalang to Lock Tien for Hokkien mee or a later `oh aew`. Keep Go Benz for an evening that is not Monday. Book or walk into Tu Kab Khao or Raya for crab curry when you want a table in a Sino-Portuguese room. Sunday Lard Yai on Thalang is the walking-street add-on if the date matches.
| Stop | Order | Clock |
|---|---|---|
| Rotee Thaew Nam | Charcoal roti, massaman or fish curry, 30 to 60 THB | Morning |
| Lock Tien | Hokkien mee and oh aew | Food-court hours |
| Go Benz | Dry rice porridge, crispy pork, 70 to 100 THB | Evenings except Monday |
| Tu Kab Khao / Raya | Gaeng poo bai chaplu in a mansion | Lunch or dinner sit-down |
Keep going
Book
Common questions
- Is Old Town worth it from Kata or Kamala?
- Yes as a half day if you already have an inland errand. No as a 20-minute lunch before a west-coast sunset.
- What is closed on Monday?
- Go Benz rests Monday evenings. Check Raya and Tu Kab Khao on the day. Roti shops still open in the morning.
- Hokkien mee or crab curry if you only have one meal?
- Crab curry at Tu Kab Khao or Raya if you want the mansion plate. Lock Tien if you want a food-court Hokkien mee and oh aew.