Nana Bangkok: A Taste of Thailand in Gwangju

By Maryam Ali

ana Bangkok is a Thai restaurant chain based in Korea. I was recommended this restaurant by a friend who kept ordering from it on a food delivery app. We visited in person to see if the taste carried over to the restaurant. As a restaurant chain, there are four Nana Bangkok dotted around Gwangju with one located in Seo-gu, another situated in Dong-gu and two located in Gwangsan-gu. For this article, I decided to visit the Seo-gu location, as it is the headquarters in Gwangju.

Visit to the Restaurant

The first thing I noticed while visiting the restaurant was the big elephant head protruding from the outer wall to the left of the entrance. The restaurant is decorated in a cohesive minimalistic style, and I was able to take in the atmosphere of the restaurant. I initially visited Nana Bangkok with my friend. When entering the restaurant, we were asked the number of people in our party and directed to a table. I used the tablet on the table to read the menu and order a meal. I selected the lemon chicken, beef rice noodles, garlic shrimp fried rice, spring rolls, and a grapefruit ade.

The wait time in the restaurant wasn’t long during my first visit. However, since the visit for this article, I have experienced having to wait.

The server politely notified me of the expected wait time. The restaurant has a system where you can input a phone number into a machine to know your number in the queue. The ambiance of the restaurant was bright and the music playlist was pleasant. The staff were friendly from the beginning and promptly cleared tables after customers left when the restaurant wasn’t exceedingly busy.

When it comes to the meal, I loved the garlic shrimp fried rice. I believe it’s the standout dish on the menu. The beef rice noodles and lemon chicken were enjoyable. For the side dishes, the vegetable spring roll was delicious. All the dishes had a fantastic taste. Lastly, I found the grapefruit drink satiating, but that might be due to my propensity for grapefruit-flavored drinks in Korea.

Menu Highlights

The main highlight of this restaurant as I’ve mentioned is the fried rice. At the restaurant, there is a wide variety of drinks that look appetizing and optional herbs to fragrance the meals. The restaurant offers menu sets recommended for two, three, and four people. They allow customers to try a variety of meals in a single visit.

Ordering from the Delivery App

To verify whether I could stand behind the restaurant, I ordered from the establishment using the delivery app Baemin (배달의민족), a popular food delivery app in South Korea. To find the restaurant, I typed in “Nana Bangkok” (나나방콕) in Hangeul as it is easier to find the branch this way. My closest branch was the Dongmyeong-dong branch.

When ordering from the delivery app, there is a slight difference in the drinks menu. Only soft drinks like Cola, Fanta, Pepsi, Sprite, and canned Thai milk teas are offered. The minimum order from the restaurant for delivery is 20,000 won.

The meal arrived piping hot, but this is my personal experience. I can confirm that the Garlic Shrimp Fried Rice tasted just as good delivered as it did in the restaurant. The portions were sufficient for one person. I was able to try more side dishes and the customary side of pickled onions. I particularly savored the Tteotmankung, a Thai-style fried shrimp dish and enjoyed it with the sweet chilli dipping sauce.

Would I Recommend It?

Of course. If you like Thai food and you’re around Gwangju, I recommend that you try Nana Bangkok whether in person or through delivery. Since this review, I’ve personally ordered from the restaurant again and been to the branch at least twice, and each visit was as satisfying as the first.