So we made it out to the famous ‘Goggle Lady’ in Bangkok, and we could not get in to eat her food. . .no problem, one of her most famous dishes is a giant omelet made with about a pound of crab inside it. I carefully watched her make a few…it was fun to watch though also a tad depressing–this woman has a restaurant full of people waiting to eat whatever she makes…people are here because she is the only person to receive a Michelin star for cooking on the street in Bangkok…everyone wants to eat this stuff now, and she insists on doing everything herself…no additional cooks, just a couple of assistants circling around her constantly keeping the fire going and handing her ingredients and finishing dishes when necessary, etc.. . .meanwhile customers are just sitting inside the restaurant, no music, no tv, water on some of the tables, a person here and there drinking a beer…i.e., no fun vibes here. . .made me sad. But the omelet does look good. . .
. . .soooooo, we went home, and I made one for us using what I could remember from her technique and procedure…my wife made some prik nam plah (delicious Thai dipping sauce). . .and we feasted as well as anyone sitting in the Goggle Lady’s restaurant…BOOM!
She is called the Goggle Lady because of the big goggles she wears while cooking from about 2 in the afternoon until midnight 5 or 6 days each week (this chick has endurance). . .she needs the goggles because of the endless smoke from her cooking fire and also because of the pepper juice that wafts into the air as she cooks…she adds a lot of POP to most of her dishes as she knocks them out one at a time, and then one of her assistants walks each plate out to someone one at a time. . .tedious and somewhat worth the wait, at least this is what we are told.
It looked and felt rather wearying to me. . .after following the email rules of trying to secure a reservation online and then popping out to her location to see if we could slide in late at night we were unable to get in. . .and after initial disappointment we settled into a vague resignation that it is not so bad that we could not get in because of the somewhat downer vibes of the place and the fact that we could knock out a close fascimile of her famous omelet at home. . .so, no problem, no problem at all. Nevertheless, it is an honor to see this woman in action and feel her determination to cook as well as she can for as many people as she can given her limited operation.
Supinya Junsuta is her actual name…her nickname is Jay Fai, aka, the Goggle Lady…and people are flocking here because of her Michelin star status–her food is good (we are told) and made with love…come on out and check her out some time…she may not be doing this much longer.
I send you culinary vibes from a street corner in the Samran Rat section of Bangkok…feel them…they will soothe your hungry belly.
It’s lovely out there.
GlobeHug 