GEOGRAPHICALLY AND CULTURALLY, northern Malaysia and southern Thailand share a porous border. The Thai provinces of Satun and Songkhla touch Kedah and Perlis, while Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat connect to Kelantan and Terengganu. This closeness made exchanges in language, religion and food inevitable.
The Kedah Siamese, in particular, became key carriers of Thai food culture into Penang. Over centuries, Thai and Malaysian cuisines absorbed influences from China, India and Indonesia, producing a spectrum of flavours both familiar and distinct. Penang’s proximity to Kedah and the long history of cross-border marriages and trade brought Thai culinary traditions southward, introducing the intense, spicy-sour palate that still defines much of northern Malaysian food today.
