On 2005-08-28, Keith > wrote:

> I ate at a Thai restaurant a couple of years ago and the vegetables/fruit
> decorating the plate were cut in such a way that they looked more like art
> than edible food. Resembling roses, etc.
>
> Is there a name for this type of artistic work?

As others have indicated, it is just called fruit and vegetable carving,
or "kae-sa-lak" in Thai. Temple of Thai has books and carving tools:

http://www.templeofthai.com/fruit_carving/

There are some awesome pictures he

http://www.modernthaifood.com/carving.html
http://www.thaifruitcarving.com/gallery.php

Thai Food Glossary:

http://www.panix.com/~clay/cookbook/bin/thai.cgi

--
Clay Irving >
I'm a genetic mutant.
- Dan Aykroyd