Strips of pork, chicken balls, bean sprouts, liver, peppered with leafy greens, and swimming in piping hot soup flavored with pork blood. We wanted some local noodles and that’s what we had for lunch during our last day in Pai.

CRAZY BACKPACKERS IN PAI

When we asked Kiki, the sweet owner of House of Love Pai, where we can get the most authentic local food in Pai, she not only directed us to one, but she even drove us to the place herself! I told you she’s sweet. Passing by crazy backpackers near the Pai Walking Street en route to the public market, we eventually found our way to Phee-Bon Restaurant.

► CHECK HOUSE OF LOVE DISCOUNTED ROOM RATES

INSIDE PHEE-BON’S NOODLE HOUSE

The place is literally a hole-in-the-wall type of eatery with simple wooden benches and tables. There’s no air-conditioning and we were lucky there weren’t that many diners that day. I can imagine how hot it must get here during peak hours.

► BOOK A DISCOUNTED PAI PUB CRAWL

ALL IN THAI SCRIPT

Phee-Bon is actually the name of both the owner and her noodle place. With no English sign, it’s kinda hard for foreigners like us who find Thailand’s cryptic scrawl beautiful to look at but ultimately heirogyphian in nature.

PREPARING OUR NUMTOK NOODLES / PORK RIND!

Anyways, we went here for their noodles, keaw tiew numtok noodles to be exact. Quite a mouthful eh, considering I have absolutely have no idea what that was until it was set right before us on huge steaming bowls. One order would take you back thirty to forty baht, depending on the size. I also snagged a pack of pork rind (chicharon for us Filipinos). They were neatly set right beside our table and were just begging for customers to grab them.

A RICH MIX OF NOODLES, PORK BLOOD, MEET AND GREENS

So finally, I got to acquaint myself with keaw tiew numtok or numtok noodles for us who don’t speak Thai. I’m a big fan of noodles and I actually liked this one quite a lot. I love how flavorful and rich the soup is, which I guess is due in part to the pork blood, and the meat swimming within was pretty tender. It is a bit spicy, as is the norm for Thai food, but you can actually ask them to tame it down a bit if you’re not that tolerant with spicy dishes.

I declare that this is the best numtok noodles I’ve had in my life. Err, well, even if it’s the first time I’ve ever tried it. Joking aside, Phee-Bon’s unassuming stall is worth a visit when you’re looking for a more authentic local dish to try when in Pai.

Phee-Bon Noodle Shop
Address: Wiang Tai, Pai District, Mae Hong Son, Thailand
Opening Hours:
GPS Coordinates Map: 19.356848, 98.437504

• BOOK CHEAP TOURS AROUND MAE HONG SON •
• CHECK DISCOUNTED HOTELS IN PAI •