Thailand’s Ministry of Commerce recently released Thai SELECT Guide 2025, a nationwide shortlist of 202 restaurants carrying the official Thai SELECT quality mark, spread across all provinces. The breakdown is designed to be easy to follow with 12 three-star, 30 two-star, and 160 one-star restaurants.

For foodies and gastronomy travelers, Thai SELECT is meant to signal authentic Thai taste, a Thai-style atmosphere, and guaranteed standards of hygiene and service that rises above online hype. The guide also shares practical details, with listings including details like addresses, contact numbers, opening hours, and social media channels.

The awardees are intentionally spread out across major tourist hubs and smaller provincial cities, supporting travelers to discover hidden gems across Thailand. Crucially, the Thai SELECT certifications are also awarded to Thai restaurants all over the world. This invites foodies to try authentic dishes closer to home and inspires them to take the plunge and travel to the home of Thai cuisine.

What the stars really mean (and how to use them)

Thai SELECT restaurants around the world. Source: thaiselect.com/restaurants

Thai SELECT’s updated tier system divides Thai restaurants into intuitive categories based on their flavor and presentation, ambience and customer experience, hygiene standards, chef expertise, and ingredient quality.

• Thai SELECT Casual: Who says the only good dining is fine dining? Foodies can expect great flavors in a laid-back, approachable setting. 
• Thai SELECT 1-Star (160 places): Great for road trips and smaller cities where you don’t want to gamble, most new favorites will come from this tier, which promises high-quality menus and “full-service hospitality.” 
• Thai SELECT 2-Star (30 places): Taking things up a notch, two-star restaurants provide both “excellent quality” and “beautiful atmosphere.” 
• Thai SELECT 3-Star (12 places): The crème de la crème, these restaurants are perfect for celebrating milestones, when you want to impress a special someone, or are simply seeking the most polished and elevated version of Thai dining.

Thai SELECT also applies to products, encouraging cooking enthusiasts and the wider food & beverage industry to discover and make use of Thai raw ingredients, seasonings, and other food products.

Where Thai SELECT meets MICHELIN

Source: @restaurant_suhring Instagram account

For many diners, Thai SELECT now sits comfortably alongside another familiar benchmark: the MICHELIN Guide, serving as both a domestic reference and a recognizable standard for Thai cuisine in cities around the world. While MICHELIN underscores how far Thailand’s top end has risen, including with three-star restaurants such as Sorn and Sühring, Thai SELECT showcases how the nation’s strength isn’t just at the summit but also in its depth and breadth, reflected in regional cooking, chef-driven casual dining, and well-run restaurants outside obvious culinary circuits. For locals and travelers navigating secondary cities or unfamiliar provinces, it acts as a low-risk shortcut, much like Bib Gourmand does for value-focused dining.

As a state-backed standard, there are specific reassurances for Thai food lovers. Eligibility rules include being open for at least six months, having at least 40 seats with service staff, and offering a menu that’s at least 80% Thai food items (excluding desserts and beverages). It also excludes certain formats (like single-dish or made-to-order stall-style concepts), while emphasizing a hygienic, well-kept environment, including kitchens and bathrooms.

The full catalog of Thai SELECT restaurants from every year across the world is available from its website, where users can filter by location and tier.

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