#morks

A cool breeze lifted delicious gusts of spice and spontaneous laughter, spilling across the lake beside ‘Morks’ the well known and loved Thai restaurant on the Kingston Foreshore in Canberra.  

I had heard great reviews of this young, energetic, artistic team of chefs who pour their love across the plate in delectable style.  

I could not wait for dinner.

My mouth salivated with the scent and my heart leapt with the sounds of celebrating diners as we strolled beside lamp lit channels and romantic arched bridges of the new foreshore, a modern world of glass and steel softened by twinkling lights, and the tinkle of toasting glasses. 

Morks was a buzz, diners spilling over onto the marina side seating, to enjoy the last of outside evenings here in Canberra. 

I was meeting my fellow ‘Sunflowers’ a wonderful group of Writers linked forever by Bryce Courtenay and his ‘Last Class.’  Bryce’s last writing class took place in late 2012 and we came together to celebrate with siamese dishes prepared by Mork and his team.  Bryce loved Thai food.

This amazing man, ‘The Master StoryTeller – Bryce Courtenay’ named us ‘The Sunflowers’ after his philosophy – “Sunflowers are the brightest, most happy of all flowers.”  Not a bad tag to have.

After the 'Last Class' like human Sunflower seeds, he cast us out into the world, watered with his inspiration and wisdom, to grow and pass on his  love of storytelling and writing.  He was generous of spirit, giving and inspirational and of course, is dearly missed by his class and readers. 

The spices of Siam evoke a spiritual response in me.  My nervous system sparked and fired off stimuli.  I couldn't sit still in my seat, my whole body was alive with delight. 

I am pleased to add to the raving reviews, that Ben and Mork create imaginative, artistically presented dishes, which made my eyes sparkle, my tongue dance and my heart sing.

Some of my favourite dishes were, 

Angel  Prawns.

Six sublime, sizzling king prawns coated in a kaffir lime leaf & coconut based sauce, served in an earthenware dish. 

Pork Belly

Braised pork belly with crackling, English spinach, boiled quail eggs served with five spice pork reduction, chilli and garlic relish and rice fried with basil and chilli 

And the Scallops.

Pan seared scallops and pig ear terrine with a delicately balanced relish of coriander root, garlic, chilli and lemon juice served with grilled spring onion.

Is your mouth watering?  It should be.

You can find Morks @ http://morks.com.au  Kingston Foreshore Canberra.

Thanks Mork and Ben at Morks, I'll be back...

Food: it’s an essential for life, and such a basic need that it seems odd to romanticise it, but—and I’m sure all foodies would agree—there’s something more to food than just nutrition. The smell, presentation, texture, and combination of flavours brought together in a great dish is enough to make anyone fall in love.

It’s hard for me to pinpoint exactly when my love affair started, but as anyone who knows me would attest, I am smitten. It probably began with my mum’s pies, casseroles, and lasagna that I devoured daily as a kid. This matured into a respect for different foods and their cultural origins when I began to travel. Whether it’s sushi in Japan or street food in Thailand or pub grub in London, I usually dedicate a significant amount of time (and money) while travelling to discover new and delicious foods.

Working in a kitchen like Morks has given me the opportunity to be around people who feel the same and are willing to share their experiences and knowledge with me so I can continue to nurture my love—grow into a shameless foodie!