Before the bill was even paid, I'd made plans to come back

THE promise of "authentic Thai food" has long been an especially elastic and problematic one; an ever-moving target shaped by time, context and whatever level of regional fidelity the cautious masses deem tolerable.

- Jimi Famurewa

Kolae

6 Park Street, SE1 9AB. Meal for two plus drinks about £120. Open Monday, 5-10pm; Tuesday to Thursday, noon-3pm and 5-10.30pm; Friday and Saturday noon10.30pm; and Sunday from noon-9pm; kolae.com

Fifteen years ago, I could shuffle my ill-informed, skinny-jeaned carcass to The Walpole Thai pub in Deptford, order a searingly hot pad krapow that would offend the gaze and spirit of any self-respecting south-east Asian, and still think, because I could feel last night's Jäger tobogganing from my pores, that I was partaking in the apogee of cultural faithfulness.

Now, of course, London's Thai restaurants interpret the cuisines of Isaan, Laan or Bangkok's micro-cultures with breathtaking focus and specificity. Now, the unapologetic home-style brilliance of Leytonstone's Singburi is so revered that you can't book a table until 2024.