You don’t remember where you ate 11 years ago? Probably not the Pizza Express in Woking I suppose (couldn’t resist-sorry).

I suspect rice is a good suggestion. For many years before going to Thailand the first time I enjoyed the Thai soup, tom yum goong. The first time in Thailand, I was eating at a restaurant in Phuket with a group and ordered it. When it arrived I picked up a spoonful and was about to put it in my mouth when a Thai friend sitting nearby stopped me and said “don’t eat it like that it’s so spicy it will kill you”. I explained that I eat it all the time. He said, “not here you don’t”. He instructed me to put it over rice a little bit at a time. It was wonderful that way but still hot. Later in the visit I ordered it in a restaurant in Bangkok without any adult supervision and tried a small amount straight. He was right.