London's Thai Cottage put the pow in nam prik pao on Wednesday when fumes from a huge pot of dry cooking bird's eye chilies sparked a terror alert that led police to break down the restaurant's door. Firefighters emerged from the eatery with a pot containing nine pounds of smoking peppers.Soho residents had complained of a chemical burning their throats and the London Fire Brigade quickly dispatched a chemical response team. When I was a kid my chilihead father had the brilliant idea of making his own hot oil in the house by frying peppers in oil. So I can attest to the fact that vapors from smoking chilies do indeed take one's breath away. Thank god dear old Dad didn't use anywhere near nine pounds.
I will say however that smoking peppers do not smell at all like a chemical. Chef Chalemchai Tangjariyapoon agrees, "I was making a spicy dip with extra-hot chillies that are deliberately burnt. To us, it smells like burnt chili and it is slightly unusual."
Several years ago I encountered a Thai snack food that utterly captivated me. I was perusing the shelves of goodies that lined the counter at Queens' 
Richard Vines, the London-based food critic for Bloomberg just posted a guide to dining in Bangkok that runs the gamut from cheap authentic Thai eats to more upscale Thai fare. 
Three Thai Restaurants from today's Telegraph. We have a rather popular Thai eatery in my home town and, despite my love of Thailand, I regret to say I have never eaten there. These three recommendations are in Cadiff, Oxford and London -
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