Jay Fai

Jay Fai is a roadside shophouse kitchen in the old town run by Supinya Junsuta, known to everyone by her nickname. She cooks over charcoal-fired woks in ski goggles, turning out seafood dishes that cost far more than typical street food, because the crab and prawns are bought for size and freshness.

She opened in the 1980s, building on her mother's noodle recipes, and became the first street-side stall in Bangkok to receive a Michelin star in the inaugural 2018 guide. It still holds the star in the 2026 guide. Expect plastic stools, a clipboard queue system and a long wait, which most visitors accept as part of the experience.

What to order

• Crab omelette: a thick, golden roll packed with lump crab meat, the dish that made her famous
• Stir-fried prawns in yellow curry: big prawns in a rich, eggy curry sauce
• Drunken noodles with seafood: wide rice noodles wok-fried hard with chilli and holy basil
• Tom yum with seafood: a hot and sour broth loaded with prawns and squid

Good to know

• Arrive well before opening and put your name on the list, then expect to wait anywhere from one to several hours at peak times.
• Bring plenty of cash: card payment is not accepted and the crab omelette alone is priced like a restaurant main course.
• It is open Wednesday to Saturday only, so plan old town sightseeing around those days.