OK, I missed a couple of places. These are two places that I ate at in the past week, and I remember promising to my devoted followers that I would write about every place I went! So, here we go:
Tasty Thai
I heard about this place from none other than The Sage, so we decided to grab lunch there earlier this week and sample the goods. I'm noticing a lot of places have gone to the "open kitchen" look, where you can literally see all of the cooking going on as you sit. It's like watching Iron Chef without the cheesy, overdramatic commentary! We ordered an off-menu special for an appetizer: shrimp, crab, and pork wrapped in a thin tofu wrapper and fried, served with plum sauce for dipping. Pretty tasty (yes, I will be making puns at the restaurant's expense...that's what they get for putting the word "Tasty" in the name of their establishment). Next, and this took a while because somehow there was only one server for the 20 or so patrons(!) we had the standard Pad Thai and Panang Curry. Standards for us becuase when you are comparing something against other places it is nice to go dish-by-dish and then branch out later if you decide you like it. The Panang was very good. Nice flavor, good kick, mighty tasty (that's 2 if you're counting). I would put it right behind Thai Orchid's, which is quite a compliment. 2-for-2 so far on the dishes. The only thing I did not like about the curry is that it did not have nearly enough sauce with the dish and we had to order a little more on the side. The Pad Thai on the other hand was, well, not so tasty. The flavor was good but the noodles were overcooked and chewy, and the chicken was dry and bland. I was assured by The Sage that it was inferior to the week before when he had tried the same dish. So, not a bad find. I would still go to Thai Orchid were I going out of my way to get Thai, but it is definitely worth dropping in if you are near the Liberty Park area. Just get something other than Pad Thai for you noodle fix.
Pho Green Papaya
This space by the E-Center has been about 20 different restaurants but I this one is actually sticking. It's nicer inside than its previous occupants. The Sage and I happened upon this place as a 4th option. We were going to go to La Izalquena (El Salvadorian food) for some pupusas but found it is no longer there. Undaunted, we ventured down to East Sea for some Dim Sum before being informed that they are now only open on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Third time was not the charm, as we found that Thai Paradise, an old hole in the wall secret place of mine, is also no longer there. So, Vietnamese it was! Lesson #1 in Vietnamese cuisine: Pho. This noodle - and usually meat - soup is THE staple. Ours was chicken though it is more common to have it with various incarnations of beef. The Pho was pretty dang good, nice complex flavors that are unique to this type of food. We had an appetizer of Fried Quail and found it to be OK. Good sauce, good spices, average meat. Again, just OK. We had small helpings of 4 dishes: Vermicelli noodles with chicken were good once we figured out which sauce was poured over them. Beef short ribs were tender and pretty flavorful but really small even for "short" ribs. Panang (we couldn't resist) curry is better left to Thai places. It was good, but nothing to get excited about. Thai basil stir fry with chicken was about the same. So, decent food, nothing to shout from the rooftops but nothing to complain about either. Just a pretty solid place, although if I do go back, which I might if I'm in the neighborhood again, I am ordering ALL Vietnamese. Lesson learned.
Texas coming soon, I promise! (Houston, DFW, San Antonio)
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