Let me have it…

I did mention, either here in my blog or on Facebook, and I even shared some photographs there…

…of my Thai basil that it was growing rampantly. My friend, Peter, the boss of Payung, told me that I should trim away the flowers…

…so the plant would not know it is old and will not deteriorate and die soon.

I did that for a while but I started having more plants in my garden so I did not bother about those that have been around for a while with the intention of getting rid of some of the branches in the hope of propagating new growth. My friend, Mary, got wind of it and said that she would not mind taking them off my hands and asked me to let her have them for use in her Thai restaurant.

I cut half of one plant, a lot more where that came from, and sent the cuttings over to her restaurant that evening. I did not want to cut all at one go as I did not know how fast they would be able to use all the leaves and it would be such a waste to throw them away. I might as well cut bit by bit and send them over periodically.

That was when the ladies were out of town and I was alone so I decided to have dinner there. Of course I could not order anything from their regular menu as their servings are huge and I would not be able to finish everything. In the end, the true-blue authentic Thai chef, Jos, cooked me this…

…very nice tom yam fried rice with chicken wings…

…and lokan by the side. His own-made Thai chili sauce…

…was so good and went well with everything.

After I had finished, I asked one of the guys in their waiting staff how much it was but there was nothing in their computer system so I asked him to go and ask Mary who was chatting with some other diners there at the time, the perfect host that she is, making them feel comfortable and very much at home. She sent the reply that it was a special treat from Jos! Oh dear!!!

Thank you so much, Jos and of course, thank you to you too, Mary, for the very lovely dinner…

I will send more of my Thai basil leaves soon…and on a regular basis till I have trimmed away all my older plants.

FLAVOURS THAI KITCHEN is located on the ground floor of the ORCHID HOTEL, along Brooke Drive at its junction with Jalan Tunku Osman. You can use its main entrance at the back of the hotel building (facing Brooke Drive) or go through the lobby past the reception desk if you are using its hotel entrance.