Larb Ubol, Thai restaurant in Hell's Kitchen, NYC, New York

Please note that the meal was complimentary. However, the opinions expressed in my blog are 100% my own! 

There are so many Thai restaurants in New York, that I was a bit skeptical when I received an invitation from Kao Srisuphasiri, one of the owners of Larb Ubol, a Thai restaurant located in the bottom part of Hell's Kitchen. Even there, that restaurant is surrounded by other ones serving Thai food. I soon understood why Larb Ubol is original. 

Well, like many Thai places, you do not go there for the decor and they admit that they prefer putting the money on the food as this is the reason why customers come back. Entering in the restaurant, you immediately notice the big empty space at the entrance: at this point, they are not really sure what to put there, whether a plant, fountain or tables. For the moment, it is nice because it does not feel too crowded. 

The decor is very simplistic: banquettes and chair backs are covered with Thailand’s traditional checkered pha khao ma cloth used to fashion everything from sarongs to hammocks. On the ceiling and walls, some small umbrellas coming from Thailand:

So, it was clear that we were there for the food, and we made sure we tried several dishes prepared by Chef Ratchanee Sumpatboon, who worked for 20 years in New York City, in well known restaurants, such as Zabb Elee. Her menu is Isan cuisine, from the North East of Thailand, characterized by its heat, chili peppers being prominent, as well as sticky rice, used as we would bread.

Looking at the menu, I immediately noticed the absence of the massaman or penang curry I am used to seeing in Thai restaurants, the only well known dishes being Pad See ew or Pad Thai. I guess that is where Larb Ubol is different. So, it was time to check it out!

To start our feast, we ordered a Thai beer (Singha):

E-San Thai in Murray Hill, NYC, New York

We were recently invited to E-San Thai, a Thai restaurant located off the beaten path, in Murray Hill. This place opened in September 2012 by Chef Toi Kumdang who also owns a Thai restaurant in Brooklyn, Khao Sarn. From outside, the restaurant has nothing really distinctive, besides the bright yellow sign. At the entrance, first is the bar:

Then, on the right is the dining room, with its vaulted ceiling and warm colors.

There were not that many elements of the decor to remind you that you are in a Thai restaurant, except maybe the plastic lotus flower that was on every table:

Or the display on the right side of the bar:

We sat at one of the tables and

I started the lunch with a Thai Iced Tea, drink that I always order with Thai food.

I love the dark orange color with gradation of this drink. It was good and not too sweet.

Then the first appetizer was the vegetable spring rolls:

They were made of cabbage, carrots, celery and glass noodles, and served with a plum sauce. I found them delicious: they were crispy, not too greasy and there was the perfect amount of shell.

The second appetizer was the E-San sausage, that is a house specialty made with ground pork seasoned with Thai herbs.

It was good and tasty, the spices really coming through. I wish however that it was served with a kind of mustard or sauce to dip in.

The last appetizer was roti canai:

I love that dish that is kind of a fusion between Indian and Thai food. It is composed of a roti or paratha that was a bit thicker and less greasy than what I am used too. The bowl contained a dish made of a curry similar to a massaman, with potatoes, onions and chicken; it is the first time I got it with chicken as usually they propose it without meat. It was a delicious dish that I definitely recommend.

Then, we got Pad See Eew that are thick noodles, tofu, egg and broccoli, bathed in a black soy sauce.

Again another good dish: very tasty, I truly appreciated that it was not too salty.

The second entree was the Pineapple Na-Na, a crispy duck with a pineapple curry:

I was scared at first that this dish would be spicy, but it was perfect, having a little kick that  was well complemented by the sweetness of the sauce, as well as the pieces of pineapple. The duck was perfectly cooked and had a nice crunch.

It was served with white rice.


But what was the most spectacular was the sea bass that came after that:

It was a whole sea bass that was smothered with a sauce midly spicy and served with vegetables. The fish was perfectly cooked, moist and flaky, and the sauce was a bit sweet, with just the perfect kick. I never think about ordering fish, moreover a whole fish, in Thai restaurants, but this dish may have made me change my mind! If you go to E-San Thai, don't be freaked out by the mouth of the fish and enjoy it! I did!

Then, it was time to have dessert! The first one was the fried coconut ice cream that is one of their best sellers:

Fried ice cream is an interesting concept: the ice cream is first dipped in a batter and then fried. I can just tell you that I had to move fast with that one; not because the ice cream was melting, but because Jodi could not stop eating it!

That is true that it was delicious: the outside was a bit crunchy and the ice cream smooth, probably made with coconut milk. Another recommendation!

The second dessert was Thai donuts:

They were served with condensed milk and peanuts:

I liked them with or without the condensed milk...This is a very comforting dessert, a guilty pleasure that no one can resist, even after a full meal like the one we had!

With the desserts, I drank a Thai Iced Coffee that was a first for me:

It is like Thai Iced Tea except that the tea is replaced by coffee. I guess I will consider this drink the next time as I really liked it. It has a nice smokiness that I guess came from the coffee itself.

The lunch at E-San Thai was very good and made me want to discover more Thai cuisine. I often order "standard" dishes like Chicken curry Massaman, but there are so many other dishes to try. Of course my choices are also driven by the prix-fixe that restaurants propose, where unfortunately only these "standard" dishes are offered. I think it is a mistake, because there is so much to discover, and E-San Thai is the perfect spot for it.

Enjoy (I did)!


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And Remember: I Just Want To Eat!

Please note that the meal was complimentary. However, the opinions expressed in my blog are 100% my own!

Dinner at Glow Thai restaurant and lounge in Brooklyn, New York

Last Saturday, we were invited for dinner at Glow a Thai restaurant and lounge located in Bay Ridge. There, our host and owner, Anthony Loupos and his wife Chef Suwanna Amatmontri, who is from Thailand, proposed a tasting that went beyond regular Thai food. They pride on proposing street food and creative dishes, made with ingredients chosen and bought on a daily basis in local markets.

I was excited for sure because I love Thai cuisine and we were ready for a culinary experience! 

So, as I mentioned, this is a restaurant and lounge. When you arrive, you face the pink lighted bar with its white stools, that definitely gives a modern and lounge-y feel to the place.

Then, the main dining room, with its large painting of Buddha.

And the exposed bricks, that give a warm feel to the place. In the back, there is a fish tank with lotus flowers on top, symbol of fortune in Buddhism.

The last element of the decor that I liked was the rotating double fans on the ceiling, that added to the modern, but simple feel of the place.

As it is a lounge, it has a wide variety of cocktails, some of them being unique, like the Drunken Gummy Bear that I tried!

Don't be mistaken: gummy bear does not only apply to the two pieces of candy used for decoration: there are gummy bears in the drink! The way they make it is using liquid nitrogen!

Spice, Thai restaurant in NYC, New York

I have to admit that I did not know what to expect from Spice, a restaurant chain, that serves Thai food. We went to their located close to Union Square.

For sure, this is not like your typical Thai restaurant: the atmosphere is more the one of a club than a restaurant, with very dimmed lights, eclectic decor and loud music.

After ordering a Thai Ice Tea that was very good, we ordered our food. I have to say that the waitress was annoying as she was trying to push us to order the special of the day, instead of the dishes we chose!

We started off with appetizers. The vegetable Spring rolls:

They were tasty but very, very greasy!

Then, I ordered the duck bun(s):

Isaan Thai Food at Zabb City in NYC, New York

We really found this Thai place, Called Zabb City, by coincidence as it is located in a street, in the East Village, where the only attraction would be Momofuku Milk Bar! It does not look like your typical Thai restaurant: with such a decor, I would easily see a Wine Bar there (would a Thai Wine Bar make any sense? Could be a trend!). Their menu offers Isaan dishes. I know: me too, I have no idea what it means...Isaan is  is the northeastern region of Thailand.Well, their menu proposes the usual dishes you would find in Thai cuisine, but I was desperately looking for the Chef's specials to see if they served frog legs...Yes, I mainly find these delicacies in Thai restaurants! Unfortunately they did not have it!

Of course, I got my usual Thai Iced Tea:

I love that drink: so refreshing with its kind of indescribable taste. When you think that you pay $3 for it, that is the price you would pay for a regular tea in a restaurant! $3 for hot water: no (except if the tea is not a basic one); for a Thai Iced Tea: definitely!

We started of the meal with spring rolls:

They were served with duck sauce and red chili flakes (it was not really spicy). The rolls were good, although I would have preferred less dough.

Jodi got the glass noodles or Pad Woonsen:

Dinner at Ember Room in NYC, New York

When I want to try some food, I can be pretty persistent! Yes, this is third attempt to dine at Ember Room in Hell's Kitchen. The first time we went, the place was packed and the wait was 1 hour: Too bad, we were hungry and passed. The second time, we had a reservation for lunch but found the restaurant closed: I guess this time, they passed on us! So the third time, we had a reservation for dinner and, as we say, third is the charm!

Surprisingly, the restaurant was not as packed as before. They sat us in the room upstairs, that is more quiet in fact. I liked the decor with the dark wood, the weird ceiling decorations that looked like hearts, that made me think I was somewhere else!

The waiter greeted us and ask us if we ever came there. As we said no, he told us that the restaurant was owned by Chef Kittichai. Chef Kittichai! What you do not remember? He is the partner of Spot Dessert Bar, this fabulous dessert place on St Marks that serves spectacular desserts, mostly traditional with an Asian twist (check here my review of Spot Dessert Bar, but do not drool on your computer!).

One of the dishes I really wanted to try there was the Chocolate Ribs:

I know, it sounds weird and fewer attempts to try dishes where they mixed chocolate with meat were unsuccessful (for instance, the duck with chocolate sauce at China Grill). There, it was delicious: the chocolate was not overpowering and had a subtle, but definitely present taste. The ribs were fantastic: tender, they fell off the bones, so there was no need to eat with my hands (although I would have had a good excuse to lick my fingers...).

Jodi decided to go vegetarian and got the naked veggie burger:

Cheap Lunch at V{IV} A Thai restaurant in NYC, New York

Usually, for a cheap delicious lunch, I am thinking about eating Thai or Chinese as most of the restaurants serving these types of cuisines offer lunch specials or lunch menus that are usually good deals. Viv is no exception, although, entering in the restaurant, you would think that you are in a fancier version of most of the Thai restaurants in NYC or even in a lounge! The decor is splendid with black everywhere: from the walls to the ceiling, to the granite tables. It is a great choice to make the colors of the food stick out!

So I went for the lunch menu that offered an appetizer and an entree for less than $8. What was interesting is that they proposed choices for the appetizers; usually, you only get a spring roll. At Viv, you could get:

Spring rolls:

Edamame:

Lunch menu at T Thai in Hoboken, NJ

T Thai is one of my favorite Thai restaurant in Hoboken, with Sri Thai. Not to mention Casual Thai that should probably be less casual on the cooking...I tried T Thai few times and have never been disappointed! Especially with their marinated half chicken with chili sauce that I really enjoy (so does the cat)!

This time, we decided to try their lunch menu. Not surprisingly, they offer a menu for less than $8 that features a veggie roll, a salad and an entree. To go with it, I had my usual Thai Iced Tea that is delicious at T Thai.

Thai Basil restaurant in NYC, New York

It has probably been 5 years since I ate at Thai Basil and I was excited to go back to see if this little gem was still there and still serving some delicious Thai cuisine. And here it was, still standing on 9th Avenue between 55th and 56th!

It was different though! Still a tiny place, they have completely changed the decor, giving to the restaurant a more modern feel, yet with decoration still reminding Thailand.

In term of food, there is no surprised: they serve the usual type of food you would find in any Thai restaurant.

We started off with the vegetable spring rolls.

This is one of our favorite appetizers! It was served with plum sauce. I loved it: crispy, tasty and not greasy! But very hot!

Then, Jodi ordered the Pad See Ew.

These are wide noodles, fried tofu, eggs, broccoli and black soy sauce. This was very, very good! The fried tofu was slightly crispy and the noodles delicious. It was not salty like it can be in other restaurants, most of the time because of the soy sauce.

On my side, I ordered a chicken curry massaman.

It was served with rice.

This dish is one my favorites! The sauce is a peanut based curry and it is served with onions, potatoes and cashew nuts. It is to die for! There is a bit of heat building up, but you cannot stop eating this scrumptious sauce!

Although the decor has changed, Thai Basil is still serving some delicious Thai Food at a reasonable price! A great place to know!

Enjoy (I did)!