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Baan Lao

Richmond

Royal Thai cuisine in British Columbia’s sublime fishing village

Food as medicine: A nurse who had a previous career as a cancer researcher, chef Nutcha Phanthoupheng is driven to create meals that are as healthy as they are artful. Having witnessed how poor eating leads to illness, she offers a refined dining experience that connects with her medical career. Her altruistic attitude towards the guests who enter the dining room at Baan Lao is complemented by her years working with the chefs from the Thai royal family.

Changing perceptions: When Phanthoupheng arrived in Canada in 2014, she was disappointed in the quality of most Thai restaurants, which served casual food without authenticity. Determined to showcase her nation's cuisine in its finest form, she developed a menu that involves painstaking detail and hours-long preparation for some dishes. The lobster pad Thai, for example, takes five hours, with Phanthoupheng hand-lacing the egg strings around the net of noodles and crustacean.

Femininity on display: The 18-course menu includes touches Phanthoupheng credits to her gender. Included is a chicken dumpling shaped to resemble a baby chick, dotted with blue eyes for added cuteness. Among the larger plates are vermicelli noodles topped with an ornate tuile wafer of squid ink that looks like a necklace. A velouté bath of green curry completes the dish.

Trumpeting the artwork: Among the eye-catching decor at Baan Lao is a series of paintings created by an elephant. Suda, the Thai elephant, learned to draw in a sanctuary and Baan Lao purchased a handful of her paintings for its walls.

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