I was intent on eating Northern Thai cuisine, as I wanted to fully understand how it was different from what I’d had before. One of my favorite meals was dinner at Dalaabaa. The guidebooks all made it out to be a trendy bar, but the food turned out to be homestyle and delicious! The spicy minced pork salad couldn’t have been more flavorful, and the stir-fried chayote leaves in oyster sauce was a local vegetable that I had never tasted before but instantly fell in love with. You can never go wrong with chicken curry with fresh chili and roti. And we saved the best for last: steamed red tilapia in lime juice. The fish was topped with a stir-fry of vegetables and pork, which seemed unusual, but the flavors enhanced the fish and gave it structure.