Restaurants don't seem to have prominent signage or branding. As such it is difficult to label one better than another. Fortunately most of the food is good Thai food with a noticeable lack of Western franchises such as McDonald's or Starbucks. Don't be afraid to walk up to any place that looks as if it's serving food and just use sign language or simple English to order food. Most people are very receptive and will go out of their way to help you get something in your belly. Phonetically "Pad See Ewe" is fried noodles with various vegetable bits and perhaps some meat. Be adventurous, chew slowly, and watch out for bones.
You cannot go to Satun without eating at Kwong Look Chin Plaa, next to the Rain Tong Hotel and the fresh food market. It stands out from the surrounding buildings because of its bright red and yellow décor and it is immaculately clean. They specialise in seafood noodles and the most amazing chicken soup. The taste is out of this world!! They also have some rice dishes and extraordinarily delicious ice cream sundaes, which can be compared to Swensons but at a fraction of the price. You can sit outside next to a serene mangrove forest full of fauna. It's possible to see giant lizards, otters, turtles, and sea eagles on most days. Recently, however, there has been at least one report that food quality has declined: seafood noodles contained old, rotten prawns.