By far, the best food we ate on Phuket Island was at Kan Eang 2, set on a lovely beach on the southeast coast in Ao Chalong. The restaurant is at the end of a tiny road off bustling highway 4021. The main building was being set up for some lucky couple’s wedding reception, but there were plenty of tables beneath the shady trees leading to the bay.
Our table was right next to the sandy beach. While waiting for our food, we watched a man play fetch with his dog, each toss taking the dog on a further swim to find the all-important stick.
We came for the haw mok phuket (steamed fish custard wrapped in banana leaf, similar to Cambodian amok, but quite a bit spicier in the Phuket style):
and stayed for the nam prik kung seab (smoked shrimp with chili, local style):
This was one of those times when you just have to throw caution to the wind and hope that those wonderfully spicy fermented fishy bits and completely raw vegetables strewn with ice chips will not land you in Dante’s eighth circle of hell (aka, gastrointestinal distress.)
The green mango salad was one of the best we had in Thailand:
I was surprised to find that cashews were used in a number of dishes in Thailand, often in combination with peanuts.