Som Saa London: Thai Restaurant, Commercial Street

If you're after some spice this summer, you've got to visit Som Saa. After this authentic Thai restaurant attracted plaudits when it had a residency at Climpson’s Arch in London Fields last year, and social media's been going wild for it ever since. Now the team behind it, 2009 Masterchef finalist Andy Oliver and restaurateur Tom George, are opening their first restaurant in a permanent location on Commercial Street.
Oliver and George have made it their mission to bring Londoners the genuine taste of Thailand. Their intention is to serve Thai food with "no Pick 'n' Mix, multicolour curries, no prawn crackers and no sweet chilli sauce".
Instead the food takes its origin from the more rustic side of Thai cuisine, with the method of serving equally faithful to rural culture; expect sharing plates that can be enjoyed by groups. Some of the dishes that will be present include hot and sour salads, herbal soups and country style grilled meats, and George has informed his fans that ingredients will be sourced from tropical plant specialists in the Netherlands and here in the UK to make sure there will be "the most authentic and interesting ingredients outside of Thailand".
As well as his Masterchef experience, Oliver spent ten years accumulating experience in Thai cuisine at Nahm and at Bo Lan in Bangkok. Using charcoal grills and a wood fired oven, he will be rustling up such delights as crispy rice croquettes with fermented pork and salted palm sugar ice cream with sesame fried Asian Banana. It could not sound more delicious.

Som Saa, 43a Commercial Street, Spitalfields, London E1 6BD