Piesang Story.

The men behind Piesang are Bordeaux Martin and Alexander Santillanes. The two met in Cape Town in 2006, while both were studying (Bordeaux: fashion design, Alexander: Anthropology). When Alexander’s student visa ran out, the two made a plan to stay together: they’d go to Southeast Asia.

For the next year and a half, they traveled through the region, spending time among the skyscrapers of Bangkok, the cosmopolitan avenues of Phnom Penh, and following the river Mekong from sleepy Lao villages to vibrant Saigon. They relaxed on secluded Lao Liang Island, and shopped among the alleys of colorful Colonial Penang. Along the way, they developed a strong taste and curiosity for the foods of the region.

Before, they had always experienced the food served in Thai and Vietnamese restaurants as a slightly spicier extension of Chinese food: noodles or rice stir-fried in a wok, with a little syrupy soy sauce and a chili or two. But in Southeast Asia, they found the food to be so much more than that. The food they encountered was complexly textured, flavored with nuance, and always made as fresh as possible.

They worked various jobs during their time in Asia: teaching English in Bangkok, photographing in Phuket, tutoring in Taiwan, travel-writing in Central Vietnam, seeking out strange and delicious dishes along the way. They sampled avocado shakes at a seaside market in Hualien, river fish spring rolls in the Mekong Delta, chicken curry steamed in a banana leaf in the mountains of Northern Thailand. They also developed a distinct fondness for the hip cafes of Bangkok and Siem Reap, where delicious Asian food was served alongside decadent desserts in stylish surrounds. But it was in the coffeehouses of Hanoi, over glasses of rich Vietnamese drip coffee, that they made their decision: they were going to bring this food with them when they left.

With Piesang, Bordeaux and Alexander hope to introduce a wider range of tropical Asian flavors to Cape Town: one that extends far beyond the safe borders of phat thai and deep fried spring rolls; one committed to authentic ingredients, like fish sauce and dried shrimp; that includes unusual textures, like steamed curries and all meat larb salads; one that is as unusual, unexpected, and delicious as the food of Southeast Asia.