RFK Cuisine · Thai · Singapore
Best Thai Restaurants in Singapore 2026
Thai & Isaan cooking · Singapore · 6 rooms ranked · Updated June 2026
Compiled by the Restaurants for Kings editorial team · Published June 20, 2026 · Updated June 20, 2026
David Thompson, the Australian chef whose Bangkok restaurant Nahm was the first Thai restaurant to top Asia's 50 Best, cooks in Singapore too, at Long Chim inside Marina Bay Sands. That is the high end of a Thai scene most visitors never see past the food-court phad thai. Singapore has a real Thai dining culture, built first around the Golden Mile Complex on Beach Road, the old Little Thailand where the Thai community ate, and now spread across Purvis Street, Tanjong Pagar and the heartland after the complex closed for redevelopment. The cooking runs from refined Bangkok street food to fiery Isaan and the comforting boat noodles of the relocated stalls. Ranked here on the cooking, the room and what the bill buys, with the dish to order at each.
1.Long Chim
David Thompson's full-service Bangkok street-food room at Marina Bay Sands; book for the city's best sit-down Thai with a celebrated chef's name behind it.
Long Chim, at The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands, is the Singapore restaurant of David Thompson, the chef behind Bangkok's Nahm, the first Thai restaurant ever to top Asia's 50 Best. The name means "come and taste", and the kitchen does exactly that: the bold, punchy street food of Bangkok, son-in-law eggs, fiery curries, stir-fries and grilled dishes, cooked in open view and served in a proper restaurant and bar rather than a stall. It is the most polished Thai cooking in the city and the one to book for an occasion. It is open daily from noon to midnight. Reserve ahead for dinner, especially on weekends; lunch and early evenings are easier.
Book ahead via the MBS site for dinner; the son-in-law eggs and a Bangkok-style curry.
2.Un-Yang-Kor-Dai
A repeat Bib Gourmand winner for fiery north-eastern Thai; book for the real Isaan flavours that the tourist rooms never attempt.
Un-Yang-Kor-Dai, in the Tanjong Pagar area, is the city's standout for the cooking of Isaan, the north-eastern Thai region known for its herbal, sour and chilli-forward food. It earned the Michelin Plate in its first year and went on to take Bib Gourmand status across multiple recent guides, a rare run for a regional specialist. The PenLaos signature chicken and the Leng Saeb, a peppery pork-rib soup, are the dishes that built its reputation, alongside som tam and larb done with proper heat. It is the pick when you want authentic regional Thai rather than the curry-and-phad-thai greatest hits. Book ahead for dinner; the room is small and the regulars know it.
Reserve for dinner; the PenLaos signature chicken and the Leng Saeb pork ribs.
3.Yhingthai Palace
A Purvis Street institution since the 1990s and a Bib Gourmand stalwart; book for the crowd-pleasing Thai classics done properly.
Yhingthai Palace, at 36 Purvis Street near Bugis, is the old-school sit-down Thai room that has anchored this little restaurant strip since the 1990s, founded by a couple devoted to Thai cooking and a longtime Michelin Bib Gourmand pick. It does the popular canon and does it well: phad thai, the famous olive fried rice, garlic prawns, stir-fried morning glory, tom yum and green curry, all in a comfortable, slightly old-fashioned dining room. It is the dependable, full-menu Thai restaurant to bring a group to when you want range rather than regional specialism. Book ahead at weekends, when Purvis Street fills; the olive fried rice and garlic prawns are the orders to anchor the table.
Reserve for weekend dinner; the olive fried rice, garlic prawns and green curry.
4.Diandin Leluk
The Golden Mile institution reborn at City Gate; go for boat noodles and som tam from a kitchen that fed Little Thailand for decades.
Diandin Leluk, now at City Gate on Beach Road after decades as the heart of the old Golden Mile Complex, is the survivor of Singapore's original Little Thailand. The complex closed for redevelopment and the restaurant moved nearby, but the cooking carried over: affordable, generous Bangkok and northern Thai food that fed the Thai community for thirty years. The boat noodles, som tam, green curry and grilled dishes are the draws, and the prices remain among the friendliest on this list. It is the pick for unfussy, authentic, value Thai with real history behind it. Walk in or book for groups; the boat noodles and a fiery som tam are where to start.
Walk in or reserve for groups at City Gate; the boat noodles and som tam.
5.Nakhon Kitchen
The heartland Thai chain that locals actually queue for; go for pineapple rice and tom yum at prices the city centre can't touch.
Nakhon Kitchen, with outlets across the island including VivoCity and Tampines, is the heartland Thai operation that built a cult following on consistency and value rather than refinement. It is zi-char-style Thai: a long menu of stir-fries, curries and grills meant for sharing, with the pineapple rice, tom yum, pandan chicken and basil pork among the regulars' standbys. The rooms are casual and the prices keep a full meal well under what the city-centre rooms charge. It is the pick for an easy, cheap, genuinely satisfying Thai dinner in the neighbourhoods rather than a destination meal. Expect a queue at peak; it does not take reservations at most outlets, so go early or off-peak.
No reservations at most outlets, go early; the pineapple rice and tom yum.
6.Jai Thai
A long-running, wallet-friendly Thai favourite; go for the basil chicken and tom yum that have kept regulars loyal for decades.
Jai Thai, with branches on Purvis Street near Bugis and at Clover Way off Serangoon, has built its name as one of the city's most wallet-friendly authentic Thai kitchens, running since the late 1980s. The menu is the comforting, everyday Thai canon, basil chicken, tom yum, green and red curries, pineapple rice and stir-fried kang kong, cooked with more punch than the price suggests. It is the neighbourhood Thai that regulars return to weekly, unpretentious and reliable. It is the pick for a cheap, fast, satisfying Thai meal without a tourist mark-up. The Purvis Street branch sits steps from Yhingthai Palace, so it is an easy swap if one is full; walk in off-peak or book at weekends.
Walk in off-peak or book weekends; the basil chicken and a bowl of tom yum.
How Singapore eats Thai
Singapore's Thai scene has a clear geography. The original hub was the Golden Mile Complex on Beach Road, nicknamed Little Thailand, where the Thai community shopped, ate and gathered; when the complex closed for redevelopment, its tenants scattered, with anchors like Diandin Leluk moving to nearby City Gate. The other long-standing cluster is Purvis Street near Bugis, home to the old-school sit-down rooms Yhingthai Palace and Jai Thai. The high end sits in the Marina Bay area at Long Chim, and the heartland neighbourhoods hold the value chains like Nakhon Kitchen. Thai food here is meant to be shared, ordered family-style across curries, stir-fries, a som tam and a soup.
Booking is mostly relaxed. The Bib Gourmand and Purvis Street rooms reward a reservation at weekends; the heartland spots run on walk-ins and queues; Long Chim should be booked ahead for dinner. There is no tipping culture beyond the standard service charge added to most bills. For the wider city beyond Thai, the Singapore dining guide maps the hawker centres, the fine dining and the neighbourhoods, and the best Thai restaurants worldwide pillar sets these rooms against Bangkok itself.
Where not to look for it
Skip these for real Singapore Thai
The mall food-court "Thai express" counters. Most shopping-centre food courts have a generic Thai stall selling a sweet, watered-down phad thai and green curry to a captive lunch crowd. For Thai cooking with real heat and balance at a similar price, go to a Nakhon Kitchen outlet or a Purvis Street room, where the kitchen is Thai and the seasoning is not dialled down.
Hotel "pan-Asian" buffets with a Thai corner. The all-you-can-eat international buffets fold a few tired Thai dishes into a long line of everything else. If you want Thai food rather than a bit of everything, a focused room like Un-Yang-Kor-Dai for Isaan or Long Chim for Bangkok cooking delivers far more flavour for the money than a chafing-dish curry.
Frequently asked
What is the best Thai restaurant in Singapore?
For a sit-down, full-service Thai meal, Long Chim at Marina Bay Sands is the top pick: it is the Singapore restaurant of David Thompson, the chef whose Bangkok restaurant Nahm was the first Thai restaurant to top Asia's 50 Best, and it serves refined Bangkok street food in a proper room. For authentic regional cooking at a fraction of the price, the Isaan specialist Un-Yang-Kor-Dai is the standout, a multiple-time Michelin Bib Gourmand winner. Pick Long Chim for an occasion and Un-Yang-Kor-Dai for the real, fiery north-eastern Thai flavours.
Where is the most authentic Thai food in Singapore?
The old Thai heartland was the Golden Mile Complex on Beach Road, long nicknamed Little Thailand, where stalls like Diandin Leluk fed the Thai community for decades. Since the complex closed for redevelopment, those tenants relocated, with Diandin Leluk moving to City Gate nearby. For regional authenticity, Un-Yang-Kor-Dai does Isaan cooking, while the Purvis Street strip near Bugis holds the old-school sit-down rooms Yhingthai Palace and Jai Thai. Nakhon Kitchen brings affordable Thai to the heartland neighbourhoods. Follow the Thai diners, not the tourist menus.
How much does Thai food cost in Singapore?
It spans a wide range. Long Chim at Marina Bay Sands is the splurge, with a full meal of dishes to share landing around 60 to 90 Singapore dollars a head before drinks. The Bib Gourmand and Purvis Street rooms, Un-Yang-Kor-Dai, Yhingthai Palace and Jai Thai, sit in the 30-to-50-dollar range for a shared meal, and the heartland spots like Nakhon Kitchen and Diandin Leluk can keep it under 25 dollars a head. Thai food in Singapore is one of the better-value cuisines, so order generously and share.
What Thai dishes should I order in Singapore?
At Long Chim, order the signature Bangkok-street dishes such as the son-in-law eggs and the curries David Thompson built his name on. At Un-Yang-Kor-Dai, go for the Isaan specialities, the PenLaos signature chicken and the Leng Saeb pork-rib soup. The Purvis Street rooms do the crowd-pleasers well: phad thai, olive fried rice, garlic prawns and stir-fried morning glory. For boat noodles and a proper som tam, Diandin Leluk is the address. Across all of them, a green or red curry and a som tam are safe, satisfying anchors.
Is Long Chim at Marina Bay Sands still open?
Yes. Long Chim is open daily at The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands, typically from noon until midnight, with the kitchen taking last orders around 11pm. It is David Thompson's Singapore outpost, serving the Bangkok street food he is known for in a full-service restaurant and bar setting rather than a hawker stall. Because it sits in a prime Marina Bay Sands location and draws both tourists and locals, booking ahead for dinner, especially on weekends, is wise. Walk-ins are easier at lunch and earlier in the evening.
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