Pokpok-ing in Chiang Mai!
I worked for a season as a server at Pok Pok, a well known restaurant which started first in Portland, and then other branches opened in the US. It was created by restauranteur Andy Ricker and known for its authentic as in real-deal renditions of Northern Thai food as well as the caramelized fish sauce wings, a Vietnamese recipe. At any rate, if you know you know! Pok Pok was outstanding in so many ways, and it got me hooked on Northern Thai food before I had ever visited that area of Thailand. The dishes I ate at Pok Pok inspired my first trip to Chiang Mai, and when I arrived in Chiang Mai proper, the food scene was even more mind-blowing than I had ever dreamed it might be. I realized that Northern Thai food is my jam. Chili jam that is. . . ;P I go back to Chiang Mai once a year now, and every time, upon returning back in the States, miss Northern Thai food so much that I’ve tried to replicate some of the dishes at home. I’ve found inspiration in cookbooks found in seco...