MOM Tri opened Oasis, adjacent to the Boathouse in Kata, this week, the first of two new restaurants. Regatta should open early next month, at the Royal Phuket Marina.

So it was no surprise to find newly-crowned Property Report Real Estate Personality of the Year, RPM chairman Gulu Lalvani, among the guests when a swinging party opened the Oasis on Thursday night.

About 80 guests enjoyed the cocktails and stayed for dinner at the Oasis. The restaurant is right on the beach front. It includes Oasis Spring, a reasonably priced tapas bar, and Oasis on the Sea, for a full a la carte menu.

Highlight of the evening was the ribbon cutting by author William Warren, a good friend of Mom Tri.

In an exclusive interview with Phuketwan, Mom Tri, whose full name is Mom Luang Tri Devakul, spoke with enthusiasm about Oasis and the coming Regatta.

But that will be it for Mom Tri on the island for now.

''Phuket has enough restaurants,'' he said. He has a 10-year project in Chiang Mai. The Prem Center includes a full-scale development zone, a mini-city with infrastructure such as schools, as well as housing.

It's a billion-baht scheme.

Phuket, he said, now had most of everything it needs. The environment also has to be considered, too.

Expats who buy villas on Phuket clearly enjoy the island, and broadening its economic base beyond tourism.

Even with the global financial crisis, the high-end restaurant business now had a following. Living in Phuket was good, Mom Tri added.

His feeling was that the national government should now make it easier for expats to buy land.

But the water supply for the island was a growing problem. The international airport also needed to be improved, Mom Tri said.

His Chiang Mai project, which he has kept fairly quiet over a decade-long involvement, is to be his next big passion.

Back at the party, people were enjoying the shorefront ambience.

Mom Tri's Oasis, more than a couple of restaurants, is open from 10am to 11.30pm. It also includes several shops, selling souvenirs, handicrafts and curios, objects d'art and jewellery.

Reservations and inquiries about Oasis: 076 333568.