Last night I was asked by a non mongering friend who will be spending one day in BKK "If you where only going to have one meal in BKK where would you go and what would you order" to make the question more interesting this guy is allergic to shell fish, any ideas I was thinking of Yam Saap or the Royal Tea Garden

Be sure to warn your friend that in Thai cooking shellfish is sometimes used as a condiment.

Good point Bendejo, what do you think of the buffets at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel, great view of the rive and a little taste of everything or the Sala Rim Naam has a set Thai dinner with traditional taste of Thai show and the food is not bad if a little overpriced by Thai standards.

For lunch buffets, my friends and I really enjoy eating at the JW Marriott. A lot to choose from, and a lot of pretty women on staff. Bon apetit!

LOL! Sorry Iswal, you're asking the wrong guy, no big fan of fine dining. I'm the guy you see eating at the street stalls. I read your post just after having a som tam that included a whole tiny crab crunched up in it and thought I should mention it.

But I know that many of the hotels that cater to farang realize some guests can't handle most of the local foods, and they'll offer fairly bland versions of Thai dishes, as well as Western food. Still, a bland pad thai may contain dried shrimp for its saltiness.

For someone who has food allergies or is a picky eater buffets are always best, as it allows you to get a look at it before it goes on the plate and there are no communication ambiguities with the wait staff (it's tough enough even without the language gap). I'm no fan of Brazilian food, but I do like "a kilo" buffet system.

Bendejo

Don't nock street stalls, some of the best meals I have had in LOS have been on the street, and I have never got sick from street food, the same can not be said about hotels I once had some red curry at the Indra that had me running to the bathroom for over a week!

Queue at Bangkok's first taco bell.