Zucchini-squash fritters from Birds in a Row
I remember sitting around my dining room table with @DwightTurner a little over a year ago, lamenting the bizarre lack of farmer’s markets in a food-obsessed town of at least 10 million people. Fast forward to today … er, I mean Bangkok in December 2012, where a burgeoning food lovers’ community held not one, but two great farmer’s markets just yesterday. I now have the option of getting homemade bread, organic veggies, freshly-laid eggs and artisanal cheese delivered straight to my door, and the city seems to be awash in rival bread- and (somewhat surprisingly) bagel-makers. Organic counters in supermarkets are filled with vegetables and fruits from a plethora of different farms. Organicly-grown khao glong, or “brown rice”, once considered food for prison inmates, can be found on more Thai dinner plates. It’s a good time to be in Bangkok, if you like this kind of thing.
To give some kind of illustration to how the local food community has grown over the past few months, I point to Big Bite: this January, when we held our very first one, we had nine vendors. This past July, that number reached 13. When we hold Big Bite this next Sunday, we’ll have a whopping 20! Although it’s a shame we currently lack the space to accommodate everyone who wants to vend (including yours truly), who knows what the future might hold? We wanted Big Bite to show off, not only the talent of the great food professionals who make Bangkokian’s lives happier every day, but the amateurs who are brave enough to try out whatever it is they are spending their weekend afternoons slaving over, foisting on unsuspecting neighbors, and secretly obsessing about during boring work meetings. I’m glad that we are beginning to see that happen.
This time, I’ll finally get the chance to mill around and taste something that’s not the panicked result of a rushed midnight cooking session the night before (ie. my own stuff). The folks from Birds in a Row, BKK Bagel Bakery, Twist, Pigwit, Bo.lan and Urban Pantry are back, and we are excited to welcome newcomers like Beervana, Bagel Cafe and a joint venture between chefs Jarrett Wrisley and Paolo Vitaletti, who will be bringing us porchetta. And we’ll be getting help from Mekhong! If nothing else, this promises to be a very, shall we say, fun? affair.
So if you see a slightly inebriated middle-aged woman with porchetta stains on her face, don’t hesitate to say hi. I’ll be happy to stop and chat.
Big Bite December
When: Sunday, Dec. 9, 11am-2pm
Where: Maduzi Hotel parking lot (http://www.maduzihotel.com/location-en.html)
Cookies from Twist
Bangkok Glutton 
You actually make it seem so easy with your presentation but I find this matter to be actually something that I think I would never understand.
It seems too complicated and extremely broad for me.
I’m looking forward for your next post, I will try to get the hang of it!
Thanks for reading. I hope you find the posts occasionally useful!
From dinner table muse to Big Bite farmers market — It’s great to learn that you’re bringing the community together in this way. I’m sure this event will continue to grow and be a huge success. Well done BG!!
Thanks — although I’m pretty sure my personal impact has been negligible. Excited to see a community forming though!
Looking forward to it!
Me too! We won’t be slaving over a hot grill this time!
I’m currently living in India and will be here for the next four months. I miss Bangkok, for many reasons, the biggest is the food! We are so spoiled in comparison to what is going on here in India. This is an exciting time for healthy eating in the Big Mango!
That it is. India is so big, I think it will take some time for a food community to emerge, but it will happen.
It’s so awesome that an idea formed at your dining room table has morphed into an amazingly successful event that is now in its third round in less than a year! You’re an enabler!
Thanks Karen. Hopefully you will be back on town the next time we have it!
Sent from my iPhone
Dear BG.
Trust it is a success! produce market’s be it Paris , SF or BKK are one of the integral daily activities that
form part of the bring social fabric that bring the community together!
will again be in BKk Feb for work and again look forward to the diverse food on offer from one of the great food cities of the world.
Keep up the great work -it is appreciated.
cheers
Thanks very much Robin!
Dear Bangkok Glutton – hope it goes fantastically well…. we live in Melbourne Australia where we could almost become blase about Aussie farmer’s markets …. but what we LOVE in Thailand is Thai farmer’s markets – funny, huh! Guess it’s the novelty value for both of us.
Thanks for your good luck wishes (?) You are lucky to live in a place like Melbourne! Maybe someday we can be blasé about it too!