Kha Moo Chiang Dao 'original shop' (ขาหมูเชียงดาว เจ้าเก่า)

A trip to Chiang Dao (a town about 1 hour north of Chiang Mai) would not be complete without a visit to a "Kha Moo" place. "Kha Moo", literally, "pork leg", refers to a dish of pork leg/hog that has been stewed in herbs, spices and soy sauce for a very long time, resulting in a rich and fragrant melt in your mouth pork.

Chiang Dao, as you may have gathered, is famous for its' kha moos. There are many kha moo shops in Chiang Dao, but the most famous are Kha Moo Chaing Dao 'original shop' and Kha Moo Pornphen (ร้านขาหมู พรเพ็ญ).

The lovely 74 year old owner of Kha Moo Chiang Dao 'Original shop'

Kha Moo Chaing Dao 'original shop' was the first kha moo shop that opened in Chiang Dao over 60 years ago. They still use the same recipe from 'grandpa'. I had a chat with the current owner, 'grandpa''s daughter in law. At 74, she has worked in the eatery 50 years. The shop still retains a lot of its original features, and has a rather charmingly antique feel, with its large round wooden tables and wooden chairs.

The owner used to ride the bike (on the cabinet) to work. 

The kha moo of course, is the shop's specialty. The meat is very tender, and the sauce rich - perfect for drizzling on your rice. A part of the kha moo that I really enjoy is the trotter ('kaki' in Thai), which has mostly skin and tendons. Kaki is very tender, and the skin soft yet a little chewy, and (I hope!) not too much fat underneath!

As there were 5 of us, we ordered 1 leg and rice, separately, but you can also order the kha moo on rice as well for 1 person. A small range of other dishes eg. curry chicken are also available.

The main difference in taste between the 'original' shop and Kha Moo Pornphen is that the Kha Moo Pornphen makes Thai style kha moo, which is on the sweet side, where is the 'original' shop makes Chinese style kha moo, and not sweet at all. So, I can't really say which is the best - it depends on your personal preference, really.

Kha Moo Chiang Dao 'original shop' (ขาหมูเชียงดาว เจ้าเก่า)

Tel: 053455093

Please see map (below) for exact location!

View Kha Moo Chiang Dao in a larger map

Chiang Dao Nest 1, Chiang Dao

Hello everyone! Recently I went on a little weekend away to Doi Angkhang, a mountain about 3 hours north of Chiang Mai to escape the searing Chaing Mai summer heat. Well, that's another story, but today, I'd like to introduce you to Chiang Dao Nest, where we had lunch on the way to Doi Angkhang. Chiang Dao Nest is a cosy mini-resort half way between Chiang Mai and Doi Angkhang. Obviously, Chiang Dao Nest is situated in...Chiang Dao (translated "City of Stars"), and astroundingly, in this little country town in Northern Thailand, you'll be able to find some remarkable European food.

We've actually been there before for dinner a year or so ago and we loved it! I still remember my rather interesting choice - Grilled Chicken Stuffed with Blue Vein Cheese on Creamy Pasta. (above photo). Well, normally blue vein cheese isn't really my thing, and being Asian, creamy pasta doesn't normally agree with me, but the dish turned out to be delicious!

This time, we were back for lunch on a very hot day. Something light was in order.

Ceasar Salad with garlic croutons, anchovies and a very tasty creamy dressing. Yum! It was so nice we ordered a second serving. Just one little thing though - their parmesan was great, but rather hard on the edges, like it wasn't stored properly in the fridge. I suppose better to give us the parmesan than throwing it out, but it doesn't leave a good impression, especially for such a good restaurant. 125 baht.

Spaghetti with Prawns, Garlic & Zucchini. This was quite nice and light pasta dish, but just needed a bit more salt and it would have been great! We were expecting larger prawns though, because the menu said "king prawns", as far as I can remember. We were a bit disappointed to get puny ones. Ok, it wasn't THAT bad, just smaller than expected! 155 baht.

Spaghetti with Tuna. This was really very nice and very tasty. This pasta comprises of large chunks of tuna, dry chilli pepper, olive, parmesan, and also home-pickled jalapeno peppers. The jalapeno peppers were spicy, sweet and sour at the same time, and they made the dish. 155 baht.

By this time, we were quite full, but there was something else we wanted to try - Belgian Chips. These took a while to come out, and turned out to be french fries, fried the normal way. Cheddar cheese was then placed on top, and the whole thing baked. It was delicious, of course, but I must say, not too good for the waistline! 65 baht.

So our "light meal" became not so light after all! We were quite satisfied and happy, even if the meals came out quite slowly (they were quite busy at the time). We were also quite hot as the restaurant doesn't have air-conditioning. However, April IS one of the hottest months here in Thailand. It's probably quite comfortable there in the evenings and in the cooler months.

Overall, I'd say it's worth trying, and I would go back if I'm back that way!

Chiang Dao Nest also has a Thai restaurant down the road at their other mini-resort, Chiang Dao Nest 2.

By the way, this is the view from Chiang Dao Nest 1. Not bad, isn't it?

Chiang Dao Nest 1

144/4 M 5

Chiang Dao, Chaing Mai 50170

Tel: 053 456242

Website: Click here.