Finding a culinary delight right here in food desert Phetchaburi

Dec 29

Time flies when we are having fun. We have settled into a destressing, comfortable routine…unplanned but we just kind of fell into it. Each morning we get up between 6:00 and 6:45 and quickly dress and take off for the park and our morning walk before the sun beats down on us. The days with light are about 12 hours long as we are close to the equator. Six to six are our daylight hours. By 8:00 it starts warming up and by 9:00 it is too hot to exercise.

After our walk, we come home to breakfast of granola, fresh fruit, and hot coffee. On the weekend Ron makes eggs and toast on Saturday and French toast on Sunday with real Canadian maple syrup…if we can find some decent bread. This is rice country so bread is mostly for farang and much of it is like Wonder bread…no substance but one market that carries farang kinds of items occasionally has some decent bread.

After breakfast, we shower and check email and work on the blog. Sometimes we run errands and later have lunch out or at home. Some days are nap-worthy and we rest or sleep in the bedroom with the AC on. Gone are those cool days that welcomed us when we first arrived.

Lately, we have been reading about Cuenca, Ecuador as a possible place to move to. I searched a great website for rentals I found from reading articles about Cuenca written by gringos. BTW, if any of you are travelers out there this website is like a clearinghouse for a number of websites that list rentals. www.tripping.com  Yes, we can find a place in the old town that is affordable. Like the entire planet, location is everything. The further you live from "Centro" the less expensive the cost of housing. Monday I hope to learn more about the multitude of visa options for foreigners in Ecuador.

Today is Sunday. Ron and I worked on our packing project. Ron brought two flat-screen TV boxes with us from the US to use for packing our paintings we plan to take home. He had to cut down both boxes and reconstruct them and he did a great job. I married a very handy guy. Today we packed the last painting. Then we started on the ceramics dishes we bought in SL. We have a cache of bubble wrap we have hoarded over the years for just such an occasion plus we had some leftover bubble wrap we had bought for the paintings. We will most likely pack the dishes in our large suitcase. Our plan is to have a large suitcase, a large duffle bag with all the clothes and soft items, two TV boxes of paintings, each of us will have a backpack and carryon laptop bag. It will be a haul but we think everything will work out because Ron is also a master packer. He understands spacial relationships. His favorite saying is ‘there’s always room for one more thing’.

For days I noticed a sign on the road that read RURIN BOUTIQUE AND BISTRO. Curiosity got the best of me and I got Ron to go down this side-street to explore what this was. OMG mecca, nirvana, an oasis in food desert!!!!!!!!!!!! I walked in and the first thing I noticed was the setting, lovely wooden tables and chairs, upscale with paintings on the wall. Then the dessert case filled with exquisite cakes with muffins and cookies on the counter. A woman came from the kitchen and she spoke perfect English. I asked if they served anything other than desserts and she said ‘yes we have an international and traditional Thai cuisine menu’. I asked if she served dinner. They are open from 10:00 a.m. until 9:00 p.m. I said we would be back for dinner. 

We arrived a little after 6:00 and the menu was incredible. I couldn’t make up my mind I was so excited. Many choices with something for everyone. I decided on a traditional Thai stir fry with garlic and pepper chicken. I also ordered a lemony shrimp green salad with orange-honey dressing. Ron opted for snapper with pesto and a salad. When my salad arrived, I wanted to sing a chorus of halleluiah. Large beautiful shrimp, grape tomatoes and mixed greens.   The dressing was excellent, the shrimp were sweet and divine, the tomatoes were sweet and the greens fresh. My stir fry was so flavorful. Ron’s snapper was cooked to perfection; moist with the tangy Thai basil pesto topping. I couldn’t contain my joy and excitement to have found such a place. This was fine dining. It is the only place we have found here. Our former favorite place was a Swiss-Italian restaurant/hotel that is now closed. 

I told Ron that the person who made out meal must love to cook. I asked Rurin, our chef and host, how she came to speak such perfect English and she said she had studied abroad in London, Sydney and Vancouver BC Canada. The boutique side is small with clothes made on-site and has Rurin’s label. Beautifully made dresses with lovely fabrics.

The owner asked about our meal and I gushed which pleased her to no end. I asked her if she had studied culinary arts in those places she mentioned. Not in London (no surprise there given the reputation of British cuisine) but she did study culinary arts in Sydney and Vancouver. 

We decided that we had to try one of her desserts; there was red-velvet cake, Black Forest cake, a coconut mousse, an orange cake, a caramel apple cake and more. We shared the caramel apple cake and it was fabulous. Everything she makes is so flavorful. We said we would return for espresso and try her muffins in the morning. After we paid, I asked if I could write a review on the Trip Advisor website. She was delighted that I suggested it. I didn’t want to ask before we paid because I thought it might look like quid pro quo…HAHA!  She gave me her card with the needed information regarding an address, etc.

I called her after we got home to ask about which phone number to use. I told her I would send her a copy of my review when I finished it.  We texted back and forth. Her last text said, "I had given her the best New Year gift with my review". She has been in business for five years and she wants more business but her restaurant hasn’t gotten a review yet. We are hopeful this will help. She also asked if we could stay in touch and offered her Facebook page. I told her I don’t use Facebook but we could stay in touch with email. I loved this part of travel; making new friends.