Tastes of Laos

There is a strong French influence in the architecture and the cuisine due to colonization by France years back. All restaurants, although considered "inside", have wide open doors and scarce actual walls. Large ceiling fans turn lazily in the warm sultry night air. It feels as if we're in Indochina in a different era.

We are served riverweed as an appetizer. It is similar to nori or the dried seaweed that we eat in Japanese restaurants but it's from the Mekong River. I wonder briefly about the wisdom of this given the colour of the river but fears are quickly forgotten with the salty, slightly sea taste of this delicious appetizer served with a spicy chili jam.