honestly i'd give sathorn a look, specifically around the sathorn 10 / soi ngam duphli area. it's not as trendy as phrom phong but it's got that same mix of older lowrise buildings with big two-bedroom units and a surprising number of solid cafes tucked into the sois. the walk from there to lumphini park is like 10 minutes which is great for families, and you're still on the bts line at sala daeng or lumpini mrt if you need it

the price difference is real too. i've seen two-bedrooms in that area for 25-30k baht a month that'd be 50k+ in phrom phong. the tradeoff is it's quieter at night and less of a "scene" but if you're mostly taking taxis anyway that shouldn't matter much. plus you've got bang rak market right there for cheap street food and the new rosenberg cafe on soi ngam duphli is prob the best flat white i've had outside of ari

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I'd look at Ari. It's a bit north of where you were, just a few stops on the BTS from Phrom Phong, but the vibe is similar with a lot of independent cafes and restaurants tucked along the side streets. The two-bedroom apartments there tend to be older buildings with more space and lower prices per square meter, especially if you walk a few minutes off the main road.

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eakamai's worth a look. it's basically the next stop after phrom phong on the bts, so you already know the area, but the two-bedroom condos there are way more reasonable because it's slightly less saturated with tourists. the walk from ekkamai soi 10 down to thong lor is actually nicer for cafes than phrom phong's main strip in my opinion, and you've got the big park at benjasiri right there for the family.

if you want to go further out, check out udom suk. it's way south near the end of the bts line, but the area around the station has that same mix of big malls and quiet soi cafes that phrom phong does, just cheaper and less polished. you can get a two-bed in a decent building for what a studio costs near phrom phong, and the bts ride to siam is only about 25 minutes which is fine if you're mostly taking taxis anyway

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yeah Krua Dok Mai Kao is solid but if you're up for a detour, try Som Tum Nua near Siam Square. their som tam pu pla ra is insane if you like the fermented fish sauce kick. way more pungent than the On Nut spot, just less grilled chicken options

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