Spread Some Awesome

Budget : ~100-200 Baht (~Php175-350) per dish – (exchange rate used is 1 Baht = Php1.75, rate during my trip)

Duration : ~1-2 hours

Bummers : none

Nomnom Rating : 5/5

Since we planned our trip to Bangkok, eating in this restaurant whose name could always give me a smirk when I mention it has been on top of my bucket list. Cabbages and Condoms or C&C isn’t a regular restaurant. Aside from serving “excellent dishes that are guaranteed not cause pregnancy”, Cabbages and Condoms promotes the use of condoms in an amusing and non-profane way.

I have no idea why the menu had “Japan” in it. So I Googled it and found that there is also a C&C in Kumamoto, Japan. Not sure if they are related though.

Though the name of the restaurant can stir malice, there are serious reasons in conceptualization of the name. The name is Cabbages and Condoms because cabbages is believed to be an aphrodisiac in Thai folklore.

Cabbages and Condoms is operated by Population and Community Development Association (PDA), a non-profit organization in Thailand. Mechai Viravaidya, PDA’s founder, is known as Mr. Condom. PDA’s objective is to promote reproductive health and family planning because in the late 80′s to early 90′s, the Thai population was greatly affected by AIDS. During this time the PDA started getting attention.

When you enter C&C, you will be welcomed by Santa Condom – a life-size Santa Claus made from condoms.

At Cabbages and Condoms, they always remind you to put “Safety First!”. Ooops!

There are 2 ways how you can eat at Cabbages and Condoms. You can choose to dine Al Fresco, under the moonlight or inside the air-conditioned restaurant. We chose to dine inside the restaurant because it looked like it was going to rain that night.

Inside the restaurant, many posters reminding diners about “safety” are posted on the walls.

Even the table setting is lined with condoms.

While ordering, they gave us some free chips.

Cabbages and Condoms is known for serving traditional Thai dishes. It also offers vegetarian dishes, which is uncommon in other Thai restaurants.

Carrying the name of the restaurant, we ordered the Cabbages and Condoms Steak (250 Baht/Php437.50). It’s grilled pork served with papaya salad. The papaya salad is perfect for vegetarians.

The Kai Obb Nam Peaung (250 Baht/Php350) is roasted young mountain chicken bathed in wild honey. This dish is served with 2 sauces which are both spicy.

Though the name is long, it didn’t prevent us from getting the Tao Hoo Song Krueng Mungsawirat (100 Baht = Php175).  This is soft tofu cooked with black mushrooms and peas, and stir-fried in tomato sauce.

The Tod Mun Gung (250 Baht = Php437.50) is a favorite of the group. It’s deep fried shrimp cakes. This is popular in Thailand because I have also devoured some of this outside of C&C.

We rendezvoused with Sit, our Thai friend, for the first time at Cabbages and Condoms. He ordered the Tom Yum Soup, a well-known Thai dish. It’s a spicy and sour soup with large shrimps. It’s served in a hot pot to keep the soup warm. It’s hot and yummy!

I experienced authentic Thai dishes at Cabbages and Condoms and Thai hospitality with Sit serving us with Tom Yum Soup. Thanks Sit!

To complete the experience, I had Sticky Rice (25 Baht = Php43.75). I didn’t know that it should be eaten like how you eat bread. I was giving my entire effort eating it with fork and spoon on a plate. Lol.

After paying the bill, I was surprised that the waiter handed us these as souvenirs. Khob Khun Ka!

Yep, they don’t have mints but they have free condoms. I wonder if there are diners who wish there were free cabbages as well.

Dining at Cabbages and Condoms was fun. Food was great and service was good. If you happen to be in Bangkok, make sure you pay this restaurant a visit. Hmm, after all, the money you spend here is for a good cause. According to C&C, all proceeds from the restaurant will be used to fund development and social welfare activities of PDA.

To Isabel, Pamela, Lester, and Sit – Thanks for helping me cross Cabbages and Condoms from my Bangkok Bucket List. Til our next gastronomic journeys to controversial and non-controversial locations.

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How to Get There:

Cabbages and Condoms has many branches in Thailand, but the one I visited is near Asok Station.

- Take the BTS SkyTrain Sukhumvit Line

- Get off Asok Station

- Walk down Exit 2

- Take a left at the first block after Times Square Building (Sukhumvit Soi 12)

- Walk a couple of hundred meters to Cabbages and Condoms

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Spread some awesome..ness..

Tags: chicken, pork, seafood, steaks, Thai food, tofu, vegetables