The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) will be celebrating Songkran Festival marking the Thai New Year, with Thai Restaurant Week in Los Angeles and New York April 11-17, 2016. Songkran (April 13-15), the most famous festival in Thailand, is in keeping with the Buddhist/Hindu solar calendar and it signifies when the sun enters the sign of Aries the Ram.
In honor of Songkran nineteen restaurants in Los Angeles, including Ayara Thai Cuisine, Jitlada, Night+Market, and twenty restaurants in New York will be offering special dishes and/or pre-fix menus throughout the week, with TAT holding kick-off events in both markets. During the week-long celebration guests who visit Ayara Thai Cuisine can enjoy Khao Kluk Kapi, a special Songkran dish; a Fermented Shrimp Paste Fried Rice with sweet pork belly, egg omelet, crispy dried shrimp, and other assorted toppings; paired with a side of refreshing gourd soup for $15.00
Chef Nooror Somany Steppe from the Blue Elephant Cooking School in Phuket will be offering cooking classes in Los Angeles during the week at the New School of Cooking. In addition to sampling dishes from each restaurant, New York’s Thaithentic catering and their chef Evelyn Garcia will be demonstrating Thai cooking techniques and serving some of her favorite Thai food at the NYC kick-off event.
In Thailand many people go to their home town during the festival; they cook, eat and drink their favorite foods with their family and friends. People that cannot travel during Songkran will make dishes that remind them of home. In the spirit of sharing their favorite Thai dishes, TAT has asked Thai restaurants to create special dishes and menus to celebrate the New Year and give people the opportunity to taste food from the different regions of Thailand.
A famous aspect of Songkran celebrations is the throwing of water. The custom originates from the spring-cleaning aspect of Songkran. Part of the ritual was the cleaning of images of Buddha. Using the ‘blessed’ water that cleaned the images to soak other people is seen as a way of paying respect and bringing good fortune.
For a full lineup of participating restaurants visit the Thai Tourism website.
