J Young wrote: >It's a long shot, but I'll be going to Thailand next week and I wonder if >any chili heads have restaurant recommendations. I've been looking at the >usual travel guides, but they don't seem particularly geared towards food. >The guy that wrote the most about food spent altogether too much time >going over how to tell them to make it mild and complaining about how it >was hot anyway. I don't trust him at all. I'm more worried that they'll >look at my big white ass and make it too mild. >Anyway, I'll be in Bangkok, Surat Thani (yes, where the plane crashed) and >Ko Samui, so if anyone had a great (or bad, so I can avoid it) restaurant >experience there, please let me know. I spent some time in Phuket a couple of years ago and found that there are many small "mom and pop" type restaurants that are very good. I ate in several open air establishments with no regrets or problems. (It may have helped that we met several locals who ordered for us.) Every place I ate at had bowls of chiles the size of peas that were extremely hot on the tables. The seafood was fantastic and cheap. You could literally select you prawns, lobster, crab, fish, etc. from a vast selection and tell them how to prepare it. This was at Phuket Seafood, but I'm sure that there are similar restaurants, Especially on Ko Samui, just across the peninsula. One place I have heard about on Ko Samui, but cannot vouch for, is Samui Air. It supposedly has good curry. Anyway, Thailand is a lot of fun and I'm sure you'll have a great time. If you manage to get some seeds from the chiles I described above, I'd be interested in an exchange. John - Phoenix