When I was talking to Khun Wanna, owner of Spoon Thai restaurant in Chicago, my main objective was to get from her the recipe for (Yam) Naem Khao Tod [1] which apparently is a favorite among hard-core Thai food lovers in Chicago many of whom gather virtually to express their love for this restaurant and this dish on LTHForum. Well, that objective was achieved.
But my conversation with Khun Wanna also touched on many issues pertinent to Thai food as found in the US, how a restaurant must walk the delicate line between serving food that we Thais consider good and food that will appeal to the non-Thai palate and ensure profitability, etc. It was very interesting and made me think about things. However, to relay all that to you in this post will only detract from the attention which this great dish so richly deserves. Therefore, I’ll keep all that for a later time.
