Secret Corner This month Krabi Magazine stumbled across a little place called “Northern Food Restaurant”, just on the outskirts of Ao Nang on the main road to Krabi. I say “stumbled” as, if there wasn’t a sign on the road proclaiming their existence, you would never guess that there was food for sale inside.
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fter parking on the grass in front of a building that, quite frankly does not look much like one from these parts, we were greeted on the steps by Mark, the Englishman who decided that this was the place to start a Thai restaurant with a twist. Instead of offering the usual pad thai, green curries and spring rolls, the Northern Food Restaurant specialises in cuisine from - you guessed it - the North of Thailand, such as Chiang Mai and the Isaan province. The restaurant was designed and built by mother and daughter team Namkhang and Phurichaya and despite Phurichaya’s age (14) she clearly has a strong work ethic for a youngster still at school and a great deal of talent. She is the one who decided where every table should go and even down to the photos on the walls. The restaurant currently has 8 tables and has been designed to allow cool air to filter through the restaurant naturally via the hand-made wrought-iron lattice work and the exterior is surrounded by lush greenery providing a natural relaxing environment. As we stepped inside, the first thing that struck us was the styling of the interior. The inside of the restaurant is unique in the Krabi area and is full of interesting items from around the world, including an old Honda motorcycle. Table legs are old Singer sewing machines and there is a wonderfully relaxing area where you can sit and have a cold beer or glass of wine while contemplating a menu you might never have seen before. The menu, it has to be said, is not an epic read. With a grand total of 6 items on it, it keeps things easy - which I like. I am notoriously awful at choosing from menus and the more items there are, the less friends I seem to make at the table. Not today. We were here for one particular item that is the speciality of the house here, “Khow Soi” - the most well known of all Chiang Mai dishes. Khow Soi is a soup that is made using fresh local coconut and a “secret chilli paste from the North”. (This is all the owners would tell us) This smooth, slightly sweetened soup is then poured over fine yellow noodles and a chicken leg whose meat simply falls
off the bone. The soup is then topped with fried yellow noodles and freshly chopped coriander, as well as a selection of fresh, raw veggies like green beans and cucumber, sliced shallots and pickle. When it arrived, we were - to be honest - a little surprised at what was placed before us. Not just some soup slopped into a plastic bowl (as can sometimes be the case in Thailand) but a beautifully presented meal in a fine white ceramic bowl, with a long serving platter of the mixed vegetables. “Proper” metal cutlery accompanied it. As beautiful as it looked, we demolished it with gusto and when we were asked if it was ok, we could only respond with slurps and grunts. A good sign, I suppose. After the soup, we were treated to some traditional spicy sausage that had uncountable ingredients within. Suffice to say that there were lots of herbs and spices, all of which were blended together with the fresh meat by hand and “sausaged” right there on the premises. Delicious. We washed all this down with a fresh fruit shake that was equally delicious and hit the spot beautifully. If the sun were over the yardarm at the time, I would have most likely been tempted by one of their cold beers that are only 50 Baht - yes, 50 Baht each, or even a glass of wine for just 90 Baht. But a 40 Baht fruit shake is a much better idea when it’s 11:45am, there’s writing to be done and your wife is sitting across the table from you. Trust me on that. After a good chat with Mark, we were invited in to see the kitchen, which was spotless. I mean spot-less. I was looking around for discarded take-away cartons as I found it difficult to comprehend that food had been prepared in there. They were good, I’ll give them that. So proud are they of this, they openly invite any and all guests to check out the kitchen to allay any concerns they may have over the preparation of the food. Nothing to worry about here, I can assure you. The kitchen itself is well hidden, giving the impression that you are in someone’s home and not a working restaurant. There are no clattering pots and pans, refrigerators
or coffee machines in sight, so when the smiling lady arrives with your food, its almost a surprise to see her standing there. This food is “traditional”. This means no cloying, creamy, curries that have had all their flavour removed to cater for the western palate. This is the real-deal Northern Thai stuff that has been passed down from generation to generation for centuries. While it can be spicy, it won’t blow your head off as you can have it the way you like it. Northern food also uses more herbs for flavour than the food you might find here in the South of Thailand, and don’t be afraid to ask for a little taste of anything before you decide what to eat. And the icing on the cake? Well, as if this weren’t enough, the most expensive item on the menu comes in at just 90 Baht. The other 5 items are only 70 Baht. So it’s without a second’s hesitation that Krabi Magazine awards the Food of the North Restaurant it’s “Secret Corner” of the month. Although I have a feeling that it won’t be quite as secret from now on….
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