Tag: thai food

Bangkok Dining: Krua Mae Yui @ Arisumpun 1

~ Swisa A ~ Leave a comment

Happy Songkran everyone! It’s the Thai New Years now and how wonderful it is to have a peaceful one filled with sounds of laughter, happiness and splashes of water. It’s a great way to cool down during the hot summer weather where the sun burns in the mid thirties (Celsius). I won’t dwell on Songkran today but want to take you to this cosy traditional Thai restaurant that I have just had the opportunity to go eat even though it has been opened for years: Krua Mae Yui. The name literally translates to Mother Yui’s kitchen.

It’s a restaurant that is tucked away in a corner of garden belonging to a large compound at Soi Areesumpun 1 not far from true Ministry of Finance. I suppose it must have started as a simple project but its good food and garden view and atmosphere in the middle of the city makes you feel at home and instantly relaxed. There’s something about seeing green that calms my nerves.

It’s a garden atmosphere so there are no air-conditoned rooms for those who prefer cooler air, however, I didn’t feel hot at all under the green green trees.

What food do they serve? Interestingly a mix of Thai food and western food ranging from noodles, fried rice, kao chae, to spaghettis, grilled rack of lamb, apple crumble and even panacotta. Its a restaurant for families or groups who want to eat all kinds of food together.

I opted for the special of the month, which is most often eaten during summer in Bangkok, called “Kao Chae.” It means soaked rice. If you’ve never seen it you must wonder what is this soaked rice? It is basically cooked Thai jasmine rice soaked in iced water incensed with jasmine. This is accompanied by fried small balls of shrimp paste, fried stuff pepper, sweetened pork floss, fried onions and some other ingredients. You eat all this with the rice in iced water. It sounds strange but it is indeed delicious. The smell of jasmine calms you while the coolness of the rice makes the summer weather more enjoyable. The accompaniments all go together well with the rice. The dish was good here, but not the best I’ve had in town but it’s atmosphere certainly make up for it.

Writing the makes me want some, but I have been eating way too much this weekend.

Other dishes we ordered included pork satay, fried noodles and simple Thai pork noodles. All were good as well but not the best in terms of taste. However, it’s atmosphere was cosy and in tune with nature. You also get a chance to have local Thai food in a somewhat nicer atmosphere (rather than in a hot shophouse).

Pricewise? Noodles were 50-95 thb, 10skewers of pork satay 140thb. The Kao Chae was 200thb. Western dishes range higher starting at 150-520thb.

Would I go back again ? Yes I will. I might even take some non-Thai friends there for a change of air from all the air conditioned restaurants and shopping malls.

There is a little parking lot further into the soi but it’s a residential area so don’t expect convenient parking. 🙂

http://www.maeyui.com tel: 02-619-9952

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Bangkok Dining: Taling Ping

~ Swisa A ~ Leave a comment
Since my good friends are out eating at Taling Ping today (which I have to skip due to a bad stomach)  I thought I’d write about this restaurant that is a great place to take guests from out of town or a place to have little reunions over authentic Thai food.  The great thing about this restaurant is that it has expanded from it’s original location on Silom’s Pun Road to the convenience of Siam Paragon and Central World Shopping Malls.  All within BTS access.  Wonderful if you are meeting friends who are coming from different parts of Bangkok.

Taling Ping is somewhere I always take my guests from out-of-town for a relaxing dinner combined with some shopping.  It serves traditional Thai cuisine with a good ambiance and good service.  Make sure you get there early for the seats fill up quite quickly.  Their food is reliable and the taste is consistent no matter where or when you go.

There are a few favorites of mine at the restaurant.  I especially like
the basic chicken wrapped in pandan leaves.  It’s something I’ve had since I was little, it’s not spicy and it’s delicious.  Their curries are equally tasty. They of course have the Tom Yum, Kaeng Som as well as red curry with mushrooms.  To have a balance meal, they also have an assortment of stir fried vegetables which all taste good.  Hmm..thinking of it makes my mouth water.

Their menu comes with pictures so if you are not familiar with the names of Thai dishes, the pictures are a great help. 😛 The prices are also quite reasonable ranging from 150-250 per dish.  Service is good and seats comfortable (which enables you to have a good long dinner.)

The original restaurant is on Soi Pun, Silom Road but there are also two other locations which are in Siam Paragon and Central World Shopping.
At Paragon it is on the Ground floor towards the North Side and at Central World it is on the third floor.

Okay my stomach is growling now so I’d better go.  Remember, if you have out of town guests, Taling Ping is one option for Thai food which is especially useful when you find yourself taking them shopping 🙂  Enjoy!

Nakorn Chaisi Half-Day Trip

~ Swisa A ~ Leave a comment

 

There are a few favorite spots of mine outside of Bangkok and the one I like most at the moment is a the little market at Nakorn Chaisi district which is in Nakorn Pathom province.  It’s not that far out from Bangkok and is only roughly a half hour drive if you are coming from the Pinklao area.  I’ve been there several times already and most recently last week.  It offers a combination of good food, good ambiance and is overall a pleasant place to take a stroll.

 

I like it because the wooden shop houses date back roughly a hundred years and bank the Nakorn Chaisi river which is so beautifully peaceful.  It’s a small little area and its a lovely place to just take a short walk, buy a few good snacks and food to take home, and have your lunch.  You are not going to get lost here unless you decide to cross the main road or bridge and keep on going.    If you can stand the heat, you can even buy fish food and feed the fish along its banks.  I always enjoy feeding the fish and even if I’m in my thirties now, I still enjoy it as if I were a six year old child.

They just renovated the market area so now you can easily walk through.  What do they have? Anything you could think of, but here they are famous for steamed five spice duck and fried snake-head fish in fish sauce, and pomelo.  Yes, Nakorn Pathom is famous for its sweet Pomelos.

Right next to the market is a shop that specialises in pomelos and I have to tell you they don’t disappoint.  Last week we bought some for the first time (usually we buy it roadside) and I have to admit they are really sweeter than the ones I’ve had before.  They are a little more expensive than the ones elsewhere, but I suppose you get what you pay for.  You can also tell them if you want pomelos for eating right away or for eating next week and the lady will choose them for you. 

For antique lovers, next door is an antique shop selling odd objects and even old children’s toys.  I like to just look at it.  On one trip I spotted an old railway bench that used to sit at old railroad stations in Thailand and I decided one day I will try and find one.  The wood curves so beautifully around enabling you to sit at all sides.  I love it. 

 

For lunch, I recommend “Tik Pochana.”  It’s a corner restaurant that has now taken over several shop houses.  It gets incredibly busy and people queue up for tables.  If you don’t like crowds then you can come earlier.  I usually go there for brunch at around 10.30am and it’s just wonderfully quiet.  I like their fried fish in fish sauce, which is so fresh and crispy.   They also have good “hor mok” which is a little mixture of fish and coconut served in banana leaves. They have stir-fried mixed vegetables and also tom yums.  Even the fried omelet with minced pork is good.  It’s no wonder they got the “shell shuan shim” logo which is a sign of delicious food.  So far I’ve liked every dish I’ve tried there.

If you want dessert, across from Tik Pochana is a shop selling thai cupcakes with different toppings, and across the road is a store famous for it’s sticky rice that you eat with mangoes.  They also sell a variety of other desserts to tempt you.  We had the coconut ice cream with sticky rice toppings and peanuts.  It was good.  Not too heavy.

So now I’ve revealed one of my favorite getaways from Bangkok.  🙂  I hope you like it as much as I do!

The Anna Restaurant & Art Gallery

~ Swisa A ~ Leave a comment

The festive season has begun and with it comes the time for gatherings and reunions. Although we don’t have the whole Christmas feel in Bangkok just yet it is coming. I start to hear Christmas songs and the shops are all changing their displays. Now all we need is abit of snow in Bangkok. So with all these festivities going on, it is of course the time to go out and meet friends. Friends you haven’t met in a long time, friends who are back on a visit and friends who just want to hang out and have a good time. Last weekend I went to meet some good old friends whom I’ve known ever since I can remember. We went to this new restaurant called “The Anna Restaurant and Art Gallery.”

It’s a cute restaurant and one that is simple in its furnishings yet pleasing to the eye. It’s housed in a relatively large compound of an old styled Thai wooden house whose interiros have been fully renovated. The ambiance is white, clean and homey. I could easily be eating at home but with the added benefit of a full menu and wonderfully friendly staff. They have many rooms, but the one we sat in was especially refreshing with big windows. The corner I sat in was close to some trees so we felt like we were sitting in a little conservatory. I like being able to look out and see the blue sky and some trees.

There is also a lot of space which is something I love. Your seat is comfortably set apart from the other table so you don’t feel like you are imposing on them or happen to just hear their conversation. At Anna restaurant, you have your privacy and the table is large enough for all your food. Large enough but not too large to make conversation difficult. Perfect. It’s always these little details that matter.

For those who seek quiet restaurants, this one should is quite good. Despite being a restaurant where people seem to like having birthday gatherings, (there were at least three large tables with birthdays that day) the noise level remained at a reasonable level. There wasn’t the constant ring of noises going through your ears. My ears felt comfortably quite.

Now for the most important part: the food. The food was good and the menu serves Thai food as well as some western dishes. The Thai food all tasted good and were seasoned to fit everyone’s taste. Not too spicy, not too bland. They had dishes ranging from all the yums (thai salads), curries, vegetables and noodles to smoked salmon salad, spinach gratin, and even lamb. Being the confused Bangkokians we are these days, my table had both Thai and western dishes and we ate them all together. They were all delicious but not out of this world or a five star Michelin. It’s a wonderful restaurant to go hang-out and have reliably good food. Home cooking at its best.

I liked a certain Thai noodle dish made of shanghai glass noodles (that’s what we call them in Thai). The baked spinach gratin was also very good as well as the Casablanca lamb served with Roti. They were also presented beautifully which is always a feast for the eyes. Dessert was also good. They had a long list of cakes to choose from and all looked extremely tempting. There was the Banoffee (which seems to be a Thai favorite), Lemon Tart, Apple Crumble….etc…

What about service? Service was friendly and attentive. I didn’t have to wave my hand around to get attention, I was spotted whenever I needed someone. Oh, and if it’s your birthday all the waiters will temporarily stop and come sing you a big birthday song!!! The owner also came walking around to see how everyone was and if the food was okay. You can tell that he is clearly paying close attention to all that’s happening. Thank you!

In conclusion, this is a great place to go for all those reunions, birthday parties, or just a big family gathering. The food is great, the ambiance wonderful, and there is ample parking. If you go on the weekend, being located on Soi Pipat off from Sathorn Road (the business district) there is hardly any traffic. I took the BTS (skytrain) to Chong Nonsri and it was only a five minute walk. Price was extremely reasonable too. Having ordered ALOT of food, the bill ended up being roughly around 500-600thb ($16-20) per person. They also have a website: http://www.theannarestaurant.com/

And if you wondering, NO I am not getting paid to review this place. 🙂 Although I wouldn’t mind being paid to go try out restaurants….. hmm…

If there is a particular restaurant you love and would like to share it with us, please let us know! I would be more than happy to hear from you. Have a happy festive season! 🙂