Metallic straw? Like, reusable? Fairly sure that wouldn't fly anywhere else, I mean, even plastic straws are individually packaged right now due to hygiene considerations.
I ate street food, while sitting on rickety plastic chairs on small metal tables, covered in noise and moped fumes in Penang, Bangkok and Ha Noi among other places.
I ate a lot of it and never, ever got sick.
Here's my golden rule from which I never deviate:
Make sure that you see how they cook the food on premises
It needs to be well visited, preferably by locals
As I said I never got sick (or even felt slight discomfort) and I had a number of memorable meals under such conditions.
Would a western health inspector tolerate the setup? Hell; no!
But, so what?
Sure, you can stick to the hotel restaurant of The Intercontinental in Bangkok, but you'll be hardly any safer than eating on a wobbly table in some small soi in the area.
I have yet to see evidence that individually packaged plastic forks and knives are more hygienic, or that any poorly-cleaned utensil ever made anyone sick.
Metal straws are very popular in upscale bars in financial cities such as New York, London and Hong Kong. It’s usually a sign you’re paying way too much for your drink!
I ate a lot of it and never, ever got sick.
Here's my golden rule from which I never deviate:
As I said I never got sick (or even felt slight discomfort) and I had a number of memorable meals under such conditions.Would a western health inspector tolerate the setup? Hell; no!
But, so what?
Sure, you can stick to the hotel restaurant of The Intercontinental in Bangkok, but you'll be hardly any safer than eating on a wobbly table in some small soi in the area.
But man, will you be missing out...