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The first sight that meets you as you enter the cozy dining room at <a href="https://www.prurestaurant.com/?DestinAsian">Pru</a>, Phuket’s first and only Michelin-starred restaurant, is a selection of fish, meat, fruit, and vegetables dancing above an open fire like a mesmerizing moving artwork. Fanning the flames, a chef in the open kitchen ensures the produce is gently licked by the heat until it reaches peak perfection. But every gastronomic journey at <a href="https://www.prurestaurant.com/?DestinAsian">Pru</a> really begins in the lounge, where guests are cocooned in comfortable seats with a glass of champagne as the sun goes down. It’s like waiting in the foyer for a performance to begin. Appetites are piqued by canapés with names suited to aristocratic British twins: Turnip and Marigold; Sunchoke and Umeboshi; each as precocious and more delicately artistic than the last.
Upstairs at the main event, diners are encouraged to sit at the pass or to come into the kitchen when invited as each dish is created. The dining room seats just 30 and there’s no turning tables: once you have a reservation, you are here for a delicious journey into the night. Ingredients are locally sourced and many come from the <a href="https://destinasian.com/phuket-attractions-pru-jampa-farm-at-tri-vananda">Pru Jampa</a> organic farm, which is also part of Trisara. This commitment to sustainability has also earned <a href="https://www.prurestaurant.com/?DestinAsian" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Pru</a> a green Michelin star, both stars retained consecutively for eight years.
Although resident in Asia for nearly 20 years, I had never experienced some of the tastes and techniques I discovered at Pru: the herbal jolt of wild isodon and a memorable mousse of a wet-market favorite: durian, king of fruits, expertly created in a mould to mimic the spiky outer skin, resting on caviar, and topped by shiso leaf oil. The taste smokily fruity and reminiscent of a very fine foie gras pâté. “We cook the whole durian in a wood fire for five to six hours to get a caramelized, smoky flavor,” explained chef Jimmy Ophorst of his signature dish. The mousse is paired with caviar from Hua Hin, creating a welcome contrast between the saltiness of the caviar and sweetness of the durian. This rich dish is brightened with organic melon vinegar and marinated mulberries from the <a href="https://destinasian.com/phuket-attractions-pru-jampa-farm-at-tri-vananda" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Pru Jampa farm</a>.
Other standouts on the eclectic menu were the mackerel with makhwaen pepper, its fruity heat proving a perfect foil to the rich fish, and the aged duck with black bean: another pairing of strong components elevated to become greater than the sum of its parts. The memory still lingers of the stunning petit fours, which I wish I could have finished. From wild cinnamon palmiers to blue cheese fudge and Phuket chocolate with fermented mango, every morsel was imbued with creativity and passion. —Alison Marshall
<a href="https://www.prurestaurant.com/?DestinAsian" target="_blank" rel="noopener">prurestaurant.com</a> 
+66 (0)76-683-344 
<a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/XLDPTBMmjjPpVQGz9" target="_blank" rel="noopener">60/1 Moo 6, Srisoonthorn Road, Cherngtalay, Thalang, Phuket</a>

PRU: Flaming Creative

Phuket Dining