[Photo: Kathy YL Chan]

Mango and sticky rice cooked in coconut milk is a popular Thai dessert often found on the daily dessert board (they serve one type of dessert each day) at Pure Thai Shophouse. But here they make a signature mark on this dessert with a layer of tiny cooked tapioca pearls tucked in the warm bed of coconut sticky rice; it's served with half a ripe and always sweet mango. It's a subtle but small addition that makes it all the more memorable. I asked if they would eventually serve durian, the glorious stinky fruit that often replaces mango as a topping for this dessert. The waitress winked and said, "Not sure if everyone would like that!" So I ask of you, make the durian request at Pure Thai Shophouse and perhaps one day we'll see it listed on the dessert board.

Pure Thai Shophouse

764 9th Avenue, New York NY 10019 (map)
212-581-0999
purethaishophouse.com

About the author: Originally from Honolulu, Kathy YL Chan writes A Passion For Food, where she chronicles her eats and travels adventures between Hawai'i, New York and beyond. She firmly believes that there is always room for dessert.