Sydneysiders don’t like queuing on an empty stomach. Despite this, lines of hungry patrons snake up the street every night for a table at popular Haymarket favourite Chat Thai. So, grab a number and settle in for the wait. When your lucky ticket is finally called, you can be assured that service will be swift and polite, and food will be on the table within minutes. It’s authentic, traditional Thai food made with experience and – more importantly – great quality ingredients.

You don’t need to be ‘in- the-know’ to navigate the long menu, which has detailed dish descriptions, however, there are some essentials, like the turmeric-hued crepe exploding with crispy tofu, peanuts, bean sprouts and chilli (ditch the chopsticks for this one!) or owner Palisa Anderson’s favourite yellow curry with crab meat. A pillowy Thai crab omelette with chilli and Thai basil hits all the right notes of salty, sweet and sour, the culinary trifecta of Southeast Asian food.

Gai yaang, Bangkok’s answer to barbecue chicken, is marinated in turmeric and lemongrass then charred until golden with a delightfully crunchy skin. Baskets of sticky rice soak up morsels of grilled beef in coconut curry with roughly torn betel leaves – order a Tsingtao beer in advance to wash the chilli down.

If you’re willing to stray from your favourite pad Thai, ‘suki’ noodles are traditional fermented rice noodles, tossed with egg, chicken, shallots and tendrils of water spinach.

A late-night supper menu available until 2am features cheap and cheerful northern Thai favourites, such as khao soi, a coconuty broth with egg noodles and braised chicken.

Portions are generous, so box up any leftovers for a lunch you can look forward to.

Must eat dish: suki noodles with water spinach
Instagram: @chatthailife