The Sydney Morning Herald logo
Advertisement

Signing up: Thai Town gets recognised as a cultural hub

Esther Han
Esther Han

"It gives us an identity here": Biravij Suwanpradhes.
"It gives us an identity here": Biravij Suwanpradhes.Tamara Dean

For the past decade, a block on the southern end of the city near Central Station has been dubbed ''Thai Town'' by residents and business owners as Thai grocery shops, restaurants and Thai-focused travel agencies proliferated.

On Tuesday, the Thai consulate-general will celebrate the council-approved installation of three street signs that now mark the corners of George and Campbell streets, Pitt and Campbell Streets, and Pitt and Goulburn streets.

''We want to contribute to the diversity of Sydney and to the economy of NSW,'' the consul-general, Biravij Suwanpradhes, said. ''For us, it gives us an identity here, like with Koreatown and Chinatown. For many Thai people, this area is a home away from home.''

Sydney's Thai Town is the second in the world after the creation of the first in 1999 on a strip of Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles, where many of California's Thai community live and work.

Advertisement

''The Thai language is the third most spoken language in the city after Mandarin and Cantonese in Sydney CBD,'' Mr Suwanpradhes said. ''In NSW, there are a thousand Thai restaurants, most of them in Sydney.''

Sydney lord mayor Clover Moore said businesses in the area employed 420 people, making it a ''vital'' city area.

''Sydneysiders and visitors to the city are attracted to this unique character and come to the area in search of Thai ingredients, meals and culture, boosting business and visitor numbers,'' she said.

Sujet Saenkham, co-owner and head chef of the Spice I Am restaurants in the inner-city, said: ''When people ask me where to buy Thai groceries or find a restaurant, I can just say, 'Go to Thai Town', and they will know where it is. It promotes the culture and the businesses and a lot of that is food.''

The restaurateur arrived in Sydney in 1985 and was thrilled to discover Pontip Thai grocery store on Campbell Street, where he bought fresh Thai basil and lemongrass, ingredients he thought would be hard to find.

Advertisement

The council installed a Koreatown street sign in August last year on the corner of Pitt and Liverpool streets, helping the Korean community establish a cultural and business presence in the area.

Luke Song, president of the Korean Society, told Fairfax Media in September that the group had campaigned for an official precinct for a long time.

''We are very excited about it, to create and distinguish a Koreatown, making this area very attractive to tourists as well. We want to do many things,'' he said, referring to plans to roll out Korean food carts.

Restaurant reviews, news and the hottest openings served to your inbox.

Sign up
Esther HanEsther Han is a homepage editor at The Sydney Morning Herald. She was the overnight homepage editor based in New York City, and previously covered state politics, health and consumer affairs.

From our partners

Advertisement
Advertisement