One of my ongoing quests here in the Land of Smiles is the Pursuit of the Perfect Patty (aka: finding Bangkok's Best Burger). I mentioned this challenge to my friend Dennis, a transplanted Canadian who has lived here for over ten years. He told me I needed to go to Nana Burger – a simple food cart located on the street right in front of Nana Plaza. He even told me that he has ridden on the back of a motorcycle clear across town just to get one of these burgers. That was a good enough endorsement for me, so I decided that a trip to Nana Burger now topped my list of priorities.I never eat from the food carts for a couple of reasons. First of all, I don’t really care for Thai food and secondly, I am concerned about hygiene at those places. I’m sure most of them OK, since one cannot walk down a single sidewalk in Bangkok without having to avoid numerous food carts and the throngs of customers who patronize them, but I just don’t feel like taking chances with food I don’t really care much for in the first place. But the opportunity to consume the best burger in Bangkok was too tempting, so I was willing to take a chance.
I went there a few times for lunch, but could not find the Nana Burger food cart. I called Dennis back and he informed me that it was only open at night. I thought that this made perfect sense, considering that Nana Plaza is one of Bangkok’s notorious “night spots.” Unfortunately for me, I don’t really get out much in the evening, especially to places like Nana Plaza, so this was going to put a serious damper on my quest for Bangkok’s Best Burger.
Finally, I made some time one night and found the Nana Burger cart. It was a pretty simple set up with a sign listing prices and toppings (bacon, egg, etc.) and there was a small line of customers. This helped put my mind at ease and made me think that since it was at least popular, it was probably a safe place to eat as well.
I decided to get a bacon cheeseburger, but I was a bit disappointed when I noticed that the patties were just pre-packaged ones from the grocery store. Even the buns were just a standard brand that I could buy myself at grocery stores like Tops or Tesco. I’m not sure what I expected, but I kind of secretly hoped that these burgers would be made from some highly classified recipe that would send me to beef-nirvana, but it didn’t really work out that way. Instead, I got something I could pretty much whip up myself at home. Still, the burger was pretty good for what it was, and they did top it with fresh lettuce, onion and tomato. With that being said, I don’t think that it will change anyone’s perception about the type of meat market that Nana Plaza really is
