Phuket Town Could Become A Driver For Island-Wide Dining

[Lite Beer]

Sunday Opinion: Phuket Town could become a driver for island-wide dining

Entries such as this one at the Saphan Hin 'Local Food Fair' help to enhance Phuket's image as an interesting place to visit.

PHUKET: Phuket Town's plan to apply for listing as a UNESCO “City of Gastronomy”, if carried out, would be one of the more rational overtures put to the United Nations (UN) by Thailand in recent years. But it is premature to think that we'll soon be seeing a wave of 'gastro-tourists' coming to Phuket to sample the local cuisine.

[see story, page 10 of the current issue of the Phuket Gazette, on newsstands today throughout the island. Digital subscribers click Here to download the full newspaper.]

While Phuket Town does indeed have some interesting culinary offerings, especially when cost is taken into account, we're not sure that the plastic table and pink paper napkin category is ready to relinquish its dominance on the local dining scene. More comfortable venues with international (rather than just regional) fare – and without the cacophony of Kenny G and motorbikes – continue thin on the ground once we leave Phuket's hinterland and enter the city limits.

Hygiene is another area that bears watching, despite the cheerful little plastic signs announcing "Clean Food Good Taste" in so many Phuket Town restaurants. Why is it necessary to present such assurances?

A look at the UNESCO website specifies eight criteria for listing in the 'Creative Cities Network'. Phuket Town would pass some of the requirements with flying colors. For example: “A tradition of hosting gastronomic festivals, awards, contests and other broadly-targeted means of recognition.” For this, think of annual events such as the Vegetarian Festival, the Saphan Hin Local Food Fair and other mass-market gastro-frenzies.

But if the UNESCO judging panel were to scuttle Phuket City's application, it would most likely cite requirement Number Seven: “Respect for the environment and promotion of sustainable local products.”

A handful of cheap OTOP items would not likely obscure the facts that Phuket generates over 250 tonnes of solid waste a day and continues to suffer from land encroachment, hillside deforestation and an appalling lack of adequate sewage-treatment facilities.

But one never knows. The UN likes Thailand, that’s for sure. Its massive facility in the heart of Bangkok is home to some 25 different UN agencies, many of which are regional in their responsibilities.

With so many UN staffers in the capital, Phuket is the perfect getaway for scores of international bureaucrats. One can only speculate that it was this fact, not the actual situation on the ground in Patong, that led a UN committee to name that town a “role-model city” for disaster-management planning, in October last year.

Cynicism aside, we think UNESCO listing of Phuket Town as a "City of Gastronomy" would be a very positive development for the whole of Phuket, one that would resonate well with our current dining infrastructure.

Consider the array of mid- to upscale options already available throughout the island – not only the lavish wine dinners, bountiful brunches and other epicurean opportunities in the four- and five-star hotels, but also the abundance of fine independent restaurants offering international and ethnic specialties from all over the world.

So if we accept the benefits of cluster marketing as a reality, then UNESCO recognition of our main town's kitchens would almost surely enhance Phuket's growing image as a great place to eat.

-- Phuket Gazette 2022-05-22

[krangeek]

With so many UN staffers in the capital, Phuket is the perfect getaway for scores of international bureaucrats.

Oh God NO!

The reason why no farang goes to 'dine' (other than the odd excursion to that overpriced Italian place on T Rassada next door to the equally overpriced 'sister' of some restaurant in Bangkok selling equally awful 'food', and the godawful Karma Sutra, is because, if you're not into Karoaoke or worse, Thai folk music, there's sod all places to go before/after 'dining'. Usually after as Phuket Town is supremely Thai and they all eat at 7 pm (but not at the aforementioned) and then on to their particular brand of 'entertainment' if at all.

Face it. Phuket Town is for hicks. I love wandering around day time (given up on night time) and visiting my favourite Thai restaurants wherein I am the only farang. An influx of farang would turn these restaurants into all the other crap overpriced food establishments having existed for at least the 15 years I've been here. And it will never change. Keep the oiks and memsahibs in the tourist areas. Plenty of absolutely awful 'eateries' their catering to 'farang tastes'.

Edited May 22, 2011 by krangeek

[Old Croc]

When I saw that headline I thought someone was doing something about the transport problems on the island.

[KarenBravo]

With so many UN staffers in the capital, Phuket is the perfect getaway for scores of international bureaucrats.

Oh God NO!

The reason why no farang goes to 'dine' (other than the odd excursion to that overpriced Italian place on T Rassada next door to the equally overpriced 'sister' of some restaurant in Bangkok selling equally awful 'food', and the godawful Karma Sutra, is because, if you're not into Karoaoke or worse, Thai folk music, there's sod all places to go before/after 'dining'. Usually after as Phuket Town is supremely Thai and they all eat at 7 pm (but not at the aforementioned) and then on to their particular brand of 'entertainment' if at all.

Face it. Phuket Town is for hicks. I love wandering around day time (given up on night time) and visiting my favourite Thai restaurants wherein I am the only farang. An influx of farang would turn these restaurants into all the other crap overpriced food establishments having existed for at least the 15 years I've been here. And it will never change. Keep the oiks and memsahibs in the tourist areas. Plenty of absolutely awful 'eateries' their catering to 'farang tastes'.

Everyone wants to be the last farang on the island, then wants to slam the gate.

PS. Only 15 years?

[grumpyoldman]

....... and the godawful Karma Sutra,

Ha, ha, someone needs to show this to Billy Chima (owner)