It’s like unwrapping a present
To many Thai people, a pinto is a taste of home. It’s not fancy, but it’s full of heart.
Traditionally, a pinto is a packed lunch. Think of it as a Thai take on Tupperware but so much better. It’s a tower of neatly-stacked enamel tins, each one containing a different home-cooked treat – rice, curries, stir-fried vegetables – it certainly beats a few cheese sandwiches and a Penguin.
In design and also in the quality and nature of its contents, a pinto is actually much closer to an Indian tiffin. Workers and schoolchildren would set off for their day with their pinto, carrying a tin full of food and affection with them.
Nowadays, this lovely tradition is starting to die out in favour of more convenient options but you can still savour the ritualistic unpacking of each tin at Thaikhun.
The pintos at Thaikhun are to share between two (or more) diners so choose your favourite curry, your favourite stir fry and your favourite noodle all for just £15.50 per person.
A typical pinto might go: top layer – Thai green chicken curry, second layer - stir fried tofu and cashew nuts, third layer - noodles with beef, bottom layer – jasmine rice, perfect for soaking up the sauces of your other dishes.
But you do you and pick your own pinto. It’s like being a kid in a sweetshop again.
The portions at Thaikhun are generous. After all a pinto is the sort of homely feel-good food that needs to fill you up, body and soul. And it does.
