Greg exploring Indonesia during the journey that inspired the Thailand Travel Cookbook

My Journey

Hey! I'm Greg.

I've always loved travelling, cooking, and discovering new places. I'm not a chef, just a curious guy who enjoys seeing the world and believes one of the best ways to understand a place is through its food.

The first country that really changed the way I looked at travel was Thailand. It was one of those moments where I realised just how much there was left to discover. The culture, the people, the pace of life, and especially the food left a lasting impression on me. It felt like every meal had a story behind it.

Since then, I've been lucky enough to travel through countries across Asia, South America, North Africa, and Europe. Wherever I go, I always find myself looking for the small local restaurants, the busy street food stalls, and the places filled with locals. Those are the meals I remember most.

Some of my favourite travel memories aren't famous landmarks. They're sitting on a plastic stool, pointing at a menu I couldn't read, and hoping for the best.

Travelling solo meant eating a lot of meals alone. As much as I enjoyed those moments, I often wished I could share those flavours with the people back home.

That's where Trails Kitchen began.

collage of pictures including chinese noodles, xiao long bao, ramen, kobe beef and korean wonton
collage of travel pictures with Mount Bromo, and the Chinese countryside in Hangzhou

In August 2025, while travelling through Indonesia, I decided to turn that idea into something real. Instead of keeping those experiences to myself, I wanted to create something that would let other people bring a small part of those journeys into their own homes.

When I started working on the first cookbook, I went back through restaurant names I'd saved, meals I'd photographed, notes I'd written, and spent countless hours researching. Then I cooked every recipe myself.

Sometimes that meant trying to recreate Thai dishes in countries where I couldn't even find half the ingredients. It wasn't always pretty, but it taught me what worked, what didn't, and what substitutions actually made sense. Those experiments became part of the books too, because I wanted these recipes to work in real kitchens, not just on paper.

One simple thing I kept asking myself throughout the process was :

"Would I be happy keeping this book on my own shelf and coming back to it?"

If the answer was no, it wasn't finished.

I've always loved cooking. Not because I wanted to become a chef, but because it's one of the few moments where everything else disappears. It's a chance to slow down, switch off, and enjoy creating something with your own hands.

If one of these recipes reminds you of a trip you've taken, or inspires one you've yet to make, then I've done what I set out to do.

Thanks for being here and for being part of the journey.

Highlights from Greg's travels across Thailand, Peru and Barcelona that inspired the Thailand Travel Cookbook