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OK, so we’ve done the tourist thing and very nice it was too. Where else can we graze where locals also frequent? Baan Khanitha, of course. This long established Thai restaurant in the Sukhumvit Road area is located in a large old house. The furnishings and artwork immediately throws a welcoming arm around you as you step over the threshold. The dark teakwood and whitewashed walls of the sprawling interior gave respite to the balmy evening air outside. The staff is well trained, knowledgeable and friendly. I saw a dish being taken back for a replacement by the waiter, spontaneously, when a tourist next to me seemed hesitant to answer the question, “How was it for you?” This was despite 80% of the dish already consumed!  A colourful and tart tropical drink to excite the taste buds while looking through the menu. Love the cocktail sticks. 
The actual Mai Tai was not important. Just kick back and
let the vision of a lithe, exotic Thai beauty with
downcast, soulful eyes wafting cool air with a palm
leaf, over your heated brow. Take a deep abdominal
breath and snuggle down on your cushioned chair. Relax.
The oil-lamps cast evocative shadows as the wait-staff
flit silently around. The dulcet tones of Thai
percussion and woodwind flutter unobtrusively. In real
life, we had everything but the wafting palm
leaf........jpg) The drinks for serious Thai food; brewed in Thailand. .jpg) Complimentary nibbles - Basil leaf wraps. The leaf is folded into a cone shape and filled with chopped peanuts, dried shrimp, calamansi lime wedges, ginger, chilli, onion, minced coconut and spicy turmeric sauce. Imagine the balmy tropical aromas and textures mingling in your mouth before being washed down with ice cold beer... mmm.... mmm. Can you almost hear the shrimp laden surf lapping on the beach and swaying coconut fronds suddenly turning into a lash of tropical spice. .jpg) Tod Man Pla Krai – fishcakes with traditional dipping sauce. This is an illustration of Thai cuisine, which is all about ‘balance’. The flavours should not be harsh and emphasize just one note. Instead, there was salty, sweet, sour and spice complementing each other…..you smile indulgently in appreciation of the nothingness of balance. Tom Yum Ghoong Nang – spicy river prawn soup. This must be the national soup. The secret here is a balanced sweet chilli paste incorporated with real chicken stock and infused with flavours of fresh galangal, lemon grass, kaffir lime leaves, chilli, prawns and finished with coriander leaves, lime juice and chives. Baan Khanitha's version also has the goodness of strained prawn heads added to the stock. .jpg) Clockwise from top left: Nam Prig Makua Phao – spicy eggplant dip and vegetable crudités. The dip contained a semi-fermented salty fish compote which was married with the usual sweet, sour and chilli flavours. The vegetables provided cool relief from the spiciness. Gaeng Massaman Nua – Beef Massaman curry. Although the exotic showmanship of green and red curries have been exported worldwide, this curry varietal is the quintessential Thailand on a plate. You guessed it – balanced flavours and harmony are the bywords. Pla Krapong Nung Manao – Steamed Sea Bass with lime and garlic. I have no words  .Yam Som O – pomelo salad with shrimp and chicken. This perennial favourite makes another appearance. At Baan Khanitha, the pomelo is torn into chunkier bits. .jpg) Steamed rice (fragrant or glutinous) in their quaint serving pots. There was no room for desserts or digestive elixirs so we sauntered into the balmy night air for a post-prandial “constitutional”. By the time, we made it to a lounge-bar, I managed to find room to slip a double Mekong whisky on the rocks somewhere
.To be continued ........ MTF
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