So lucky to catch the final round of Le Voyageur by Le Lapin with the Na Wa community, Nakhon Phanom. Chef Kaew and Chef Phueng brought back ingredients and experience from the region, along with mothers and sisters from the Na Wa community itself — a genuinely great, upscale Isaan dining experience. A secret-recipe 'magic water' welcome drink changed color from red to golden yellow, fragrant with coconut water smoked with candle-scented butterfly pea and Fang flower.
A 3-bite amuse-bouche: whipped fish tart, jaew bong with pumpkin and grilled prawn, and larb with charred cucumber. APPETIZER: 'matcha thong phrai' with sand goby fish and prawn in mushroom sauce, and a bamboo shoot soup we really loved. MAIN: rice wrapped in lotus leaf with a grain-fed beef steak in fermented fish sauce, flambéed tableside as a gimmick. DESSERT: 'inthanin see cha' by Chef Phueng (ranked 1st, Le Cordon Bleu), inspired by 4 traditional Thai sweets — kai kop, nok pon, mali loi, and ai tue.
