Why your food isn’t spicy enough when you travel and what to do about it.
The best bite of food I ate while traveling with my husband in Thailand a couple of months ago was at Samsarn, a Thai/Lao/Burmese restaurant at Anantara Golden Triangle in Northern Thailand. The dish, maenam kong tartine, featured thinly sliced A5 Miyazaki beef, draped over a piece of toasted brioche and topped with a sprinkling of garden herbs. Kaipen, phrik larb, and wild coriander were also part of the dish, and boy, did it make me sweat. The spice level was dialed way up, though in reality, it was probably not nearly as hot as it could have been, since my husband, Steve, and I had met briefly with the chef before ordering to relay our spice tolerance. “Medium,” we said, though, really, Steve is more of a mild-medium guy, and I’m medium-hot. Truthfully, he struggled with the tartine’s spice level, whereas I found it to be one of the rare dishes where I could really feel the heat.
Traveling throughout Thailand, from Bangkok to Koh Yao Yai to Chiang Rai in the north, I was excited for the bold, vibrant flavors of the cuisine. I wanted to feel the burn and cool it down with a sweet, tannic Thai iced tea, so I was disappointed when so many dishes, including traditional Thai dishes like khao sao or green curry, fell flat because of kitchens that proceeded with chili caution. After Steve asked our server to make sure his main course at Samsarn was mild, the kitchen followed suit with my Burmese noodle dish, leaving me with a side of chilies and a very tame bowl of noodles.
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Travelers who love spicy food know this frustration too well: you’re in a country where heat is part of the culinary identity… and your dish arrives suspiciously mild. You may be asked about your spice tolerance, but often even hard-core spice lovers can sometimes have a hard time convincing local kitchens that they can take the heat.
Merry White, an anthropologist at Boston University who has focused on Japanese and Chinese gastronomy, said a possible reason for this phenomenon is a “holdover from touristic experiences of the past when it might be assumed Westerners were all Anglo and inexperienced travelers.”
With more travelers on the hunt for the real deal, there are ways to avoid the fate of the inexperienced traveler, however.
Seek Out Street Food
Martina Li, who works as a travel advisor for Ink Voyages, an agency specializing in China trips, said in Chongqing, a city in southwestern China where Shanghai-based Li visits often, it may be a matter of protecting the visiting diners. It may also have something to do with protecting the restaurant, too. Li said waitstaff in Chongqing restaurants almost always ask foreign diners, “Can you eat spicy?” Li said restaurants serving foreign diners who may be unaccustomed to spicy Chinese cuisine are probably looking to avoid dealing with complaints and returned dishes.
On the other hand, Li said travelers would have a hard time avoiding spice when ordering food from street food vendors who will try to steer diners away from “no-spicy” orders, saying something along the lines of, if it’s “not spicy [it] just isn’t tasty!”
Street food snacking is one way to increase your chances of getting the real deal in places where spice reigns supreme in the cuisine, but how else can you find truly authentic local food overseas?
Do Your Own Discovery — and Talk to Locals
Well, for one thing: Never eat at a place that advertises as serving “authentic local food,” said White, who advocates for walking around as much as possible and popping into mom-and-pop places.
“Ask a taxi driver,” she said. This advice is similar to that of asking a local bartender (not the flashy hotel bar that will likely do the same as the concierge at a five-star hotel and lead you to a reputable, yet highly touristed, establishment).
Mumbai-based Sanjay Nair, founder of Safari Lab, said the secret to eating like the locals in India, a region known for eye-wateringly spicy cuisine, is to avoid the fancy white tablecloth restaurants with good lighting. “If the menu has pictures and is translated into three languages, you are at the wrong place.” Like Li, he recommends street food stalls for authentic, local flavors.
Be Honest with Yourself — and the Staff
It may be easier to find nose-pricking spice at a street food stand where the locals have stopped for lunch, but it’s not impossible to treat your palate to a country or region’s traditional spicy fare by dining in the restaurant at the hotel where you’re staying or at a Michelin-recommended spot in Bangkok or Shanghai with menus overtly displaying a graphic of one, two, or three chilies next to a dish’s description.
It’s important to be clear with your intentions and tolerance. Rocky Romruen, co-founder of the recently-opened upscale Thai restaurant Narkara in New York City, said the menu labels next to dishes—mild, medium, hot—help guide guests. The waitstaff will also make suggestions and encourage diners to order a mix of dishes with varying spice levels to ensure the best possible experience.
And at Anantara Golden Triangle, general manager Jean Marc said he and Chef Gai (Wiparat Pratumma) don’t listen only to the word “spicy.” They pay attention to how guests describe it. “I often ask follow-up questions, like whether they enjoy Thai food regularly, or if they eat fresh chilies at the table. Their confidence, their familiarity with Thai cuisine, and even how they talk about spice all guide me,” Marc explained.
“Sometimes guests think they can handle spice and later realize it’s stronger than expected,” said Narkara’s Romruen, who added that the restaurant’s spice level is authentic and not toned down. “Spice tolerance is very subjective,” noted Romruen.
I guess this helps explain why my husband can go wild with wasabi but wimp out with Thai bird’s eye chilies.