A section of the market sells fresh products like vegetables, meat, chicken, household items and a smaller section is a cooked food hawker center.
I first found out about this place during my previous trip.
Now that I'm staying nearer, I come to this place for my breakfast almost every day.
Thailand is famous for its local iced tea (Cha Yen) and iced coffee (Kafei Yen) which you can get anywhere, be it street side, cafe, high-class restaurants and even hotel. It is also one of my favorite drink.
There is a stall that sells these drinks and more at the hawker center.
It is manned by a couple and their son.
I remember when I first patronized her stall, I didn't know that I can have the drink at the hawker center or have it take away. Most of the times when I buy from the street stalls, there is only take away and so I just assumed it's the same case here.
The lady owner couldn't understand what I meant when I said "Take away" till I gestured to her.
She went on to teach me how to say it in Thai. A very friendly and chatty person who always has a smile on her face.
So every day when I buy from her, I would practice the Thai word she taught me and she would correct my tone.
As time goes by, I don't even have to tell her my order.
There was once I bought a dozen of Dunkin' Donut and gave one to her.
Sometimes, her husband would tend the stall together with her.
He doesn't smile like his wife and looked really serious and fierce with his thick mustache.
The first time I order from her husband, he would just repeat my order, went on to make the drink without striking a conversation. But when he passed you the drink, he would smile and it totally changed my first impression of him.
There was a period when the lady owner did not come to the stall for almost two weeks. Her husband and son were tending the stall.
I wonder if she was sick or went back to her hometown.
When she was back, I could visibly see that her health wasn't that good.
It turned out that she went for an operation.
On New Year's Day, me and my cousin went to have my breakfast at the market again after counting down the New Year at Centralworld.
The lady came over and spoke to us in Thai. She pointed to a stall selling fried yam and said "Aroy mak mak."
Having lived there for a while, I kind of able to make out what she was trying to say.
She actually wanted to buy the snack for us.
We declined because we couldn't eat anymore after finishing a plate of rice each.
She kept insisting but we kept saying "Mai Pen Rai." (It's ok).
Finally she gave up.
We thought that was the end of the story until she came by with two cups of Cha Yen for us.
We wanted to pay her for them but she insisted to give us a treat.
After that, we always buy the drinks from her before ordering other food just in case she decides to give us a treat again.
In fact, I found that I will buy from her every day, regardless if I feel like drinking Cha Yen, especially when it's too sweet to have it every day. And if I'm going somewhere, I would make a trip to the market to buy from her instead of buying it from the street hawker along the way or at my destination.
One day, I was having lunch alone and was thinking if I want to drink Cha Yen, the lady came buy with a cup of the iced tea for me.
I'm buying a different kind of tea for her the next time I see her.