Rediscovering age-old flavours

Phuket is a hotpot of fabulous food. Not only are there countless restaurants and roadside stalls serving Thailand's indigenous sweet, sour and spicy fare, but a clutch of international chefs have opened restaurants here. The late Keith Floyd launched Floyd's Brasserie at the Burasari Hotel in Patong. Belgians Corry Ringoet and Marc De Schrijver relocated their acclaimed classical French restaurant De Tafeljoncker from Antwerp to a rural village, renaming it Royale Nam Tok.

But Phuket's most exciting culinary discovery is Baba cuisine, a style of Hokkien cooking brought to Phuket during the island’s affluent tin-mining days. "Phuket's Baba food is just the same as Hokkien food but with Thai flavours," says Chanon Yuyen, the sous chef at the Westin Siray Bay Resort. Yuyen and I are eating lo bak at Siam Corner, an unassuming street-side diner with kitschy lino- covered tables and squat metal stools. "It's native only to Phuket. You can't find it anywhere else in the world,” he says.

Excerpt from the September issue of epicure.