Drink and Dine
Laying the table.
Southern Thai, from a husband and wife who have cooked it for 40 years
Ta Khai
Restaurant
Small bites open the card, then salads, then a page headed Phuketian — the island's own cooking rather than the country's.
Rice and noodles follow, then soups and curries, and a plant-based page of 6 at the end. There is a set dinner too, 9 dishes drawn from across the card, for a table that would rather not choose.
One section on the card is not a list of dishes. Live fish and shrimp are kept in a pond and sold by weight, 100 grams at a time, and what you choose is the cooking rather than the plate: steamed with lime and chilli, grilled over a banana leaf, deep-fried with young mango, stir-fried with black pepper and garlic. There are 10 preparations in all. The farm behind it is closed-loop, makes its own fish-free feed, and uses no hormones, chemicals or antibiotics.
There are 6 desserts, built on coconut, jackfruit and palm sugar, and 4 ice creams served 2 scoops at a time. Children have a card of their own.
Kismet Recommends
- Khao Yum
- Gaeng Som
- Moo Hong
- Gaeng Pu
- Nam Pla Warn
The kitchen
Uncle Nun and Aunt Yai
They are strongest on seafood and on the aromatic side of Southern cooking, and one page of the card is given over to their own favourites.
One section on the card is not a list of dishes.
