Snippets of Asia

In my first post, I mentioned that I have two great passions in life: design and travel. Maybe you can already tell, but I have a third passion just as near and dear to me: eating. But it’s not just about what’s on the table; what I truly have is a hunger for the communal feeling of new foods from new places with new friends. Sharing a meal can be one of the most intimate experiences between large groups of people or a small gathering. After all, a satisfied “mmmm” is a pretty universal saying.

I grew up in Bangkok, Thailand, where I spent my formative years immersed in ornate, glistening temples, blurred hues of tuk-tuks, and the incomparable colors of fresh tropical fruit and the spiciest chili peppers on the planet. It was here where I developed my love of design and also a connection to a culture that I would find myself working closely with later on in life.

Thailand, and Bangkok in particular, cannot be spoken about without mentioning food. From the famous street stalls filling the air with the scent of frying garlic, to riverside huts with built-in grills barbecuing a fresh catch, there is no denying that eating is an integral part of Thai life - not just for sustenance of the body, but for nourishment of the soul.

At all hours of the night, you’ll find tables lit by a single exposed light bulb, hosting groups of four or five laughing over a plate of noodles or calling out to order more. Turn a corner from a temple, and you might find yourself in line behind 35 tourists wanting to try an omelet that has been revered for three decades. When it’s too early (or late) to swing into a karaoke bar, I’ve seen chefs get serenaded by loyal customers holding a beat up acoustic guitar while deftly tossing pad Thai noodles using the handle of a cast iron wok.

To the locals, this is just life. This is their culture. This is normal. To me, this is magic. And if we can help just a spark of that feeling come into your home, then we’ve done our job.