In the heart of the bustling city of Bangkok is a small, humble restaurant known as Jay Fai’s. Although first impressions might not amaze, the woman responsible for the culinary magic that happens here certainly will.
She is, amongst other things, hardworking, passionate, resilient, innovative, and vibrant.
Her life’s journey, like her food, is remarkable. As a young woman, Jay Fai grew up with no privileges. With an opium addict for a father, she lived in a slum with her mother and seven siblings. Her mother sold rice porridge (Jook) and noodles (Rad Na) from a cart to make ends meet, often struggling to do so. The middle child, Jay Fai shared her mother’s responsibility and took up odd jobs to help out. As a result of this burden, she was never able to complete her education. When she was old enough, she began a tailoring business, but her success was cut short when a terrible fire burned all her hard work to the ground, leaving nothing behind.
With no other options, Jay Fai returned to helping her mother sell food on the streets. Jay Fai had never been fond of (or particularly good at) cooking. In fact, her signature chicken noodle dish was born out of a culinary disaster where she burnt oil and overheated the noodle pan. She could only afford to cook the one dish, but onlookers and customers were intrigued by the talent she displayed when manning the wok and skilfully adding aromatic flavors to the dish. She was extolled as the “Mozart of the Noodle pan” by late food critic Ung Aang Talay. Her noodles sold at an impressive rate, and Jay Fai began to realize that cooking was not only something in which she was talented, but something that brought her joy.
She began to see her path. She took the risk of borrowing money, which she used to purchase higher priced, higher quality ingredients such as fresh seafood. This heightened quality, coupled with her skillful pairing of ingredients and flavors, made her dishes an absolute success, illiciting rave reviews from customers. Soon, she had earned enough money to rent out an open space and set up a restaurant. She expanded her menu to include decadent dishes such as crab omelets, crispy prawn noodles, and hearty tom yum soup. She also included innovative foods like Dry Tom Yum – a dish that had never been known to Thai cuisine, but which honors the traditional flavors and aromas nonetheless.
Perhaps what is most astonishing about Jay Fai is the fact that she cooks every single dish customers order from the time they open (around three pm) until the time they close (three am). She does this because, in spite of her old age, she loves making food, and wants to make sure that customers are always happy with every bite they have at Jay Fai’s. That level of dedication to consistency and passion is something I greatly admire about her.
A woman who could have given in to bad influences, or remained cooking chicken noodles on the corner street, or even retired at her old age, Jay Fai has always been determined to always push through adversity and work hard to seek perfection and greatness in her culinary endeavors. When tasked simply with surviving, she chose to thrive instead.
In 2017, she was awarded the most prestigious culinary award, a Michelin star, for her incredible ability to transform quintessential local Thai dishes into masterpieces. She is one out of three street food vendors across the whole of Asia to achieve this award, and she is one of the very few Michelin star holders that do not have a ‘traditional’ establishment. Chefs and food bloggers around the world have come to indulge in Jai Fai’s mouth-watering dishes, and they are always met with nothing less than culinary perfection. Martha Stewart even called her the “best cook in Thailand.”
A woman who, despite the adversity into which she was born, was able to achieve great things by remaining resilient, working hard, and honoring her passion, Jay Fai is a true inspiration. For me, she epitomizes what it means be your own boss.