I was staying in the beach-resort town of Jaco, on the western Pacific coast of Costa Rica. Our hotel was not a fully all-inclusive one, and provided just breakfast. But Jaco was a touristy town, and had a number of restaurants, from Chinese to Pizzerias.
My usual jaunt was to a local restaurant that offered cheap Costa Rican food. But after a while, I heard about a Thai restaurant that had just opened up, and visited for dinner. I have never been to Thailand, but love Thai food, as it always conjures up images of fresh ingredients and spices, all mixed and cooked in street-side stands. Besides, I come from Asia and as much as I consider myself a lover of all good dishes, nothing comes closer than Asian cooking.
As soon as I entered the restaurant expecting some good Thai food a wave of disappointment hit me. Because there was not a Thai or a Chinese to be seen; instead the owner/cook was a Caucasian. A Canadian citizen.
So, a Canadian cooking Thai food in Costa Rica. Yeah right.
Well, we had already entered and sat, so I did not have the stomach to get up.
The restaurant had just opened up, and the kitchen was basically a long table behind the counter and I could see all the cooking being done.
And then I felt it; The aroma wafting through the sultry air. It was the aroma that I had conjured up in my dreams of good Thai food.
I don’t remember what I had, but it was one of the best Thai meals I had ever had: Very spicy with the owner growing some of the ingredients such as lemongrass at her home.
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