Samran Rat (, ), popularly known as Pratu Phi (, ), is a historic neighbourhood in Bangkok. The neighbourhood roughly occupies the area of its namesake subdistrict and road junction in Phra Nakhon district.

History

The name ''Pratu Phi'' means "ghost's gate", because the area used to be the location of the city gate used to transport dead bodies out of the

fortified city A defensive wall is a fortification usually used to protect a city, town or other settlement from potential aggressors. The walls can range from simple palisades or earthworks to extensive military fortifications such as curtain walls with to ...

for cremation during the early Rattanakosin period. Cremations were usually held at the nearby

Wat Saket Wat Saket Ratchawora Mahawihan (), usually shortened to Wat Saket, is a Buddhist temple (''wat'') in Pom Prap Sattru Phai district, Bangkok, Thailand. The temple dates back to the Ayutthaya kingdom, Ayutthaya era, when it was known as Wat Sak ...

, just across the city moat of

Khlong Rop Krung Rattanakosin Island (, , ) is a historic area in the Phra Nakhon District in the city of Bangkok, Thailand. It is bordered by the Chao Phraya River to the west and various canals to the east that were dug to serve as moats for what was originall ...

. The area was later officially named ''Samran Rat'' ("happiness citizen") for auspiciousness. But the name Pratu Phi remains in use by many people. In modern times, Samran Rat is known as the hub of notable restaurants, serving a variety of Thai

street food Street food is food sold by a Hawker (trade), hawker or vendor on a street or at another public place, such as a market, fair, or park. It is often sold from a portable food booth, food cart, or food truck and is meant for immediate consumption ...

such as

pad thai Pad Thai ( or ; , , ISO: ''p̄hạd thịy'', ), also spelled phat Thai or phad Thai, is a stir-fried rice noodle dish commonly served as a street food in Thailand as part of the country's cuisine. It is typically made with rice noodles, shrim ...

, yen ta fo, salapao as well as multiple traditional cafés (

kopitiam A ''kopitiam'' or ''kopi tiam'' () is a type of coffee shop mostly found in parts of Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei and Southern Thailand patronised for meals and beverages, and traditionally operated by the Chinese communities o ...

). The neighbourhood's better known restaurants include Jay Fai, which received one

Michelin Guide The ''Michelin Guides'' ( ; ) are a series of guide books that have been published by the French tyre company Michelin since 1900. The ''Guide'' awards up to three Michelin star (classification), stars for excellence to a select few restaurants ...

star in 2017, and Thipsamai, which is famous for pad thai. Samran Rat is also home to the first

pawn shop A pawnbroker is an individual that offers secured loans to people, with items of personal property used as collateral. A pawnbrokering business is called a pawnshop, and while many items can be pawned, pawnshops typically accept jewelry, ...

in Thailand. It has been operating since the reign of King

Mongkut Mongkut (18 October 18041 October 1868) was the fourth Monarchy of Thailand, king of Siam from the Chakri dynasty, titled Rama IV. He reigned from 1851 until his death in 1868. The reign of Mongkut was marked by significant modernization ini ...

(Rama IV). At the behind of the Mahakan Fort, one of the fortresses of Rattanakosin. It is the site of a Mahakan Fort Community where people in this community lived for a long time since the early Rattanakosin period. They are considered one of the oldest and most unique communities in Bangkok. But in the year 2018 their houses were ordered by the government and

Bangkok Metropolitan Administration The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) is the local government of Bangkok, which includes the capital of Thailand. The government is composed of two branches: the executive (or the Governor of Bangkok) and the legislative (or Bangkok Metro ...

(BMA) to demolish and expel them from here, because to open the way to create a new

urban park An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a city park, municipal park (North America), public park, public open space, or municipal gardens (United Kingdom, UK), is a park or botanical garden in cities, densely populated suburbia and oth ...

of Bangkok.

Geography

Samran Rat is considered to be the central part indented to the east of the Bangkok's old town zone or

Rattanakosin Island Rattanakosin Island (, , ) is a historic area in the Phra Nakhon District in the city of Bangkok, Thailand. It is bordered by the Chao Phraya River to the west and various canals to the east that were dug to serve as moats for what was originall ...

. Within the area there are two main traffic junctions: Samran Rat Intersection is a four-way intersection of Bamrung Mueang and

Maha Chai Samut Sakhon (, , is a city in Thailand; it is the capital of Samut Sakhon province. It is also part of the Bangkok Metropolitan Region. Toponymy Samut Sakhon was formerly called Tha Chin (Chinese Pier) probably because, in the old days, it had b ...

roads. From the intersection, Bamrung Mueang road crosses the nearby Sommot Amonmak bridge into Pom Prap Sattru Phai district's Ban Bat subdistrict. The next junction on Bamrung Mueang is Maen Si. Ruan Cham Junction is a

T junction A three-way junction (or three-way intersection) is a type of road intersection with three arms. A Y junction (or Y intersection) generally has three arms of equal size coming at an acute or obtuse angle to each other; while a T junction (or T ...

where Maha Chai and

Luang road 250px, Luang road as seen from footbridge near Wat Debsirin, Phlapphla Chai intersection and Klang Hospital are ahead 250px, Nopphawong bridge Luang Road (, , ) is a road in downtown Bangkok, it runs in a short distance of just . The road start ...

s meet. The point is known by this name because it used to be the location of the Special Bangkok Metropolitan Prison (''ruan cham'' in Thai), built by the order of King

Chulalongkorn Chulalongkorn (20 September 1853 – 23 October 1910), posthumously honoured as King Chulalongkorn the Great, was the fifth king of Siam from the Chakri dynasty, titled Rama V. Chulalongkorn's reign from 1868 until his death in 1910 was cha ...

(Rama V) in 1889. It served to detain and train prisoners so that they could become good citizens. Later in 1987, the

Department of Corrections In criminal justice, particularly in North America, correction, corrections, and correctional, are umbrella terms describing a variety of functions typically carried out by government agencies, and involving the punishment, treatment, and su ...

moved the prison from this place to where is now Khlong Prem Prison in Chatuchak district's Lat Yao subdistrict. BMA turned it into an urban park, named Rommaninat, to present to the Queen

Sirikit Sirikit (born ''Mom Rajawongse'' Sirikit Kitiyakara; 12 August 1932) is a member of the Thai royal family who was List of Thai royal consorts#Rattanakosin Kingdom, Queen of Thailand from 28 April 1950 to 13 October 2016 as the wife of King Bhum ...

on her fifth cycle birthday in 1992. Some of the buildings were developed into a Bangkok Corrections Museum.

Surroundings

Gallery

file:Fort Mahakan at evening.jpg,

Fort Mahakan The fortifications of Bangkok consist of several series of defensive structures built to protect the city during the late Ayutthaya to early Rattanakosin periods. The earliest structures were built when Bangkok was an outpost of Ayutthaya guardi ...

one of landmarks of Samran Rat area (although in truth, it is located in neighbouring

Bowon Niwet subdistrict Bowon Niwet (, ) is a ''khwaeng'' (subdistrict) of Phra Nakhon District, in Bangkok, Thailand. In 2017 it had a total population of 4,837 people. Name and geography Bowon Niwet is considered to be the central part indented to the east of the Bang ...

file:Thanon Bamrung Muang rd, Samran rat, Phra nakhon, Thailand - panoramio.jpg,

Shophouses A shophouse is a building type serving both as a residence and a commercial business. It is defined in the dictionary as a building type found in Southeast Asia that is "a shop opening on to the pavement and also used as the owner's residence ...

along Bamrung Mueang road, Samran Rat intersection is ahead file:Behind the wall - panoramio (1).jpg, Community behind the Mahakan Fort File:Raan jay fai stove (4430455561) (2).jpg, Cooking area of Jay Fai restaurant file:Thailand 2016 (66 of 422) (32215543992).jpg, Thipsamai

restaurant file:Krungthepmahanakorn.jpg,

Bangkok City Hall The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) is the local government of Bangkok, which includes the capital of Thailand. The government is composed of two branches: the executive (or the Governor of Bangkok) and the legislative (or Bangkok Metrop ...

file:Luang, Samran Rat, phra nakhon, Bangkok - panoramio.jpg, Ruan Cham Junction (seen from Luang road, Bangkok Corrections Museum is ahead)

Notes

References

{{reflist Neighbourhoods of Bangkok Phra Nakhon district Road junctions in Bangkok Subdistricts of Bangkok