How to Eat?
The traditional way of eating Thai food is to have a few different types of dishes to share and a plate of rice to yourself. This allows you to be adventurous and to sample a lot of different dishes. Soup is taken with the main meal, not as a starter. A proper Thai meal should consist of a soup, a curry dish with condiments, a dip with accompanying fish or meat and vegetables. There should be harmony of tastes and textures within individual dishes and the entire meal.
One of the most popular condiments you will come across is prik naam plaa. This is fish sauce with sliced chillies. Occassionally it will also have some garlic and a slice of lime. Thais like to sprinkle a little of this on their food to add some saltiness and chilli. With Chinese-style food, instead of fish sauce you will have soya sauce as a condiment.
Thai food is eaten with a spoon and fork. You will never need a knife in a Thai restaurant as all the meat is cut into bite-sized chunks. Chopsticks are often used at noodle shops together with soup spoons but you should always be able to get hold of a fork.