brooke's Profile
Zaytinya - Recommended Dishes?
We went there recently and enjoyed everything we ordered :)
https://plus.google.com/photos/103634407665957555867/albums/5636899196152203633
In search of truly authentic Thai restaurant....
UnaRondine, if you aren't against instant/package food, you can easily have kanom jeen at home :) I often do!
In search of truly authentic Thai restaurant....
Steve, I'm sorry you didn't have good experience at Thai Thai. Many of my American friends express the same sentiment for some places :( Unfortunately, sometimes you either have to be a frequent customers or go with a Thai person to get authentic flavoring.
-----
Thai Thai Restaurant
5123 Lee Hwy, Arlington, VA 22207
In search of truly authentic Thai restaurant....
I don't think I've seen Kanom Jeen listed on the menu anywhere. BUT, I saw the ready-made for to-go Kanom Jeen at Duangrat market. It doesn't hurt to give them a call to find out whether they will have it available during your trip or if you can place an order for a pick-up. For that matter, I would think you can call Thai Thai and ask them too if they could arrange that if you make appointment in advance :) Good luck!
Duangrat Oriental Food Mart
5888 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, Virginia
(703) 578-0622
-----
Thai Thai Restaurant
5123 Lee Hwy, Arlington, VA 22207
In search of truly authentic Thai restaurant....
I like;
- Yum Pla Dook Foo (deep-fried fluffy fish meat tossed with herbs and spicy sweet and sour dress (although here they serve the dressing on the side as a sauce))
- Hoy Jor (mixture of crab, pork, water chestnut wrapped in tofu skin, steamed, cut into medallions, then deep fried and serve with plum sauce)
- Stir-fry Chinese Broccoli (simple stir-fry vegetable, but done really well. you have a choice of stir-fry CB only, with salted fish, or with crispy pork). I like my stir-fry vegetable cooked, but not limpy and a bit of that smoky, high-heat-wok flavor :)
- Northeastern-style sausage (this is the version without rice, still tasty)
There are other dishes I haven't yet tried, but supposedly good in the Thai menu. Various rice soups (kao tom) and yum dishes come to mind.
In search of truly authentic Thai restaurant....
Is there a specific dish you're looking for? I go to certain places for certain dishes :) But the go-to place for me now is Thai Thai. They're great overall, especially noodle dishes and they're happy to please so you can actually put out a request for something you want to eat that's not on the menu. If they have ingredients and can make it, they will. Unfortunately, the northeastern cook has left so don't order northeastern-style dishes. It's still on the menu, but not as good anymore.
Another noteworthy is SakulThai (I prefer Rad Nah and boat noodle soup here) -- they have less variety than Thai Thai though.
-----
Sakulthai
408 S Van Dorn St, Alexandria, VA 22304
Thai Thai Restaurant
5123 Lee Hwy, Arlington, VA 22207
Recommendations at Hilton Mark Center (Alexandria, VA)
For Thai food, less than two miles away on Van Dorn st is Sakulthai. They are our favorite Thai restaurant in the area. Very authentic noodle dishes -- some aren't listed on the English menu, unfortunately. But you won't be disappointed with some listed there such as Rad nah and Keemao :)
Need Sushi Rec for Tonight (NOVA)
I prefer Momo to Yamazato; I feel the latter douses their rolls with sauces sometimes. Both can't compare to Tachibana in term of fish quality though.
Looking for authentic Thai food
Sakulthai and Thai Thai are my most favorite Thai restaurants at the moment. Certain dishes are better at one place or the other (e.g. Sakulthai has better Rad nah, but I *love* Yum Pla Dook Foo and Deep-fried pork (moo dad diew) at Thai Thai more), but over all their foods are awesome. I don't miss my favorite Rad Nah joint in BKK as much anymore ;)
IMO, Duangrat/Rabieng's food has become too sweet for my taste.
-----
Sakulthai
408 S Van Dorn St, Alexandria, VA 22304
Thai Thai Restaurant
5123 Lee Hwy, Arlington, VA 22207
Holy Basil Source -- NOVA
I got mine from Duangrat's, but they don't always have it so you might want to call before making the trip. Sometimes Super H Mart's cilantro comes with roots too.. but not so often.
who has best thai "drunken noodles" in nova or dc?
I have not tried drunken noodles from Sakulthai, but the other noodle dishes I've had so far were all superb. What I've had so far: Rad Nah (excellent - smoky flavor in the noodles, crispy Chinese Broccoli, and not sweet -- better than Rabieng's which I consider still a tad to the sweet side), Pad See Eew (same as Rad Nah, emphasis on not overly sweet), Boat Noodles (if you know what this one is, this is the best in the area and a must).
Kaffir Lime Leaf
If you don't mind frozen leaves -- which I use all the time in my Thai cooking -- can be found year round at Duangrat supermarket.
where to buy hijiki?
hi hill food, it looks like this;
before & after soaking - http://www.justhungry.com/images/hijiki-beforeafter.jpg and used in dishes like this http://justbento.com/files/bento/images/hijiki_nitsuke_450.jpg
hope this helps!
Great hole in the wall, non-touristy joints in Bangkok?
For Rad Nah noodles, try Jark Kee. From Victory Monument on to Phaya Thai Road, turn left at Soi Rang Narm.. and then somewhere on the left turn on soi Yothin Pattana. Keep walking and you'll see the restaurant on the right. Sorry that I can't be more specific, but it's very famous for its Rad Nah noodles that you can ask around for direction and someone would surely know. Oh, and be early 'cz their Rad Nah sold out really quickly (11am or 11:30am to 1:30-2:00pm). Jark Kee's Rad Nah is always on my list of must eat when I go back home :)
Fresh Turmeric Root
I've seen them around in Asian groceries... for sure recently at Grandmart (Little River Tpk one).
Coriander Root
Of all the Asian groceries around here, Duangrat's grocery consistently has the cilantro roots available with their cilantro.. though I haven't seen one recently. You might want to call and ask in advance when they will have one before making the trip. And when you find some, please do stock up! Chop off the roots and zipbag it in the freezer :) That's how I always have one on hand.
alkapa - I'd say different flavor; it's used a lot in Thai cuisine most commonly in combination with garlic and black pepper.
Thai Square: What's on the Thai Language Menu?
Hi Thainut ;) I enjoyed your explanation!
Someone once told me the tale of the origin of Keemao way back; the dish was named pad keemao because it was created on the fly to serve some drunkards with few staple ingredients the cook had left in the kitchen. I don't know if it's true or not, but I rather like the story :)
Thai Square: What's on the Thai Language Menu?
sweth: I will have to confirm with another friend who's a Thai food guru about this issue (keemao vs. kraprao) again when she's online -- I know there are more details in term of accompanying herbs (fresh peppercorn for one thing) and such; but the consensus among my other Thai friends who were present (on MSN) at the time was as discussed above.
Kra Chai and galangal are two different things though. I attached the pictures below for identification: kra chai is the one with the green background and the other is galangal. As to the availability of Pad cha, I know I've seen it somewhere but couldn't think of the place. You may be able to request for it from Thai restaurant that you frequent and pretty friendly with the staffs. Doesn't hurt to ask ;)
Thai Square: What's on the Thai Language Menu?
Oh! sorry Ziv. I didn't realize it was a link to a picture (thought it was an icon). It says - Pla Nil (Tilapia) Keemao. That definitely falls under Thainut's 'creative' category :)
Thai Square: What's on the Thai Language Menu?
I'm curious to see Ziv's scan, too. I'm Thai who grew up in Thailand (granted, that doesn't mean I know all about Thai cuisine) and I haven't seen such dish.
As for the Thai basil & chili noodles with minced meat, I'm going to guess it's Pad Keemao since it has Thai basil and noodles. If it's Holy basil, then it's Pad Kaprao, though I haven't seen Pad Kaprao with noodles. But, I guess anything is possible. It's hard to tell sometimes because they often use Thai basil instead of Holy basil here, reason being that the latter is a bit harder to find. And our problem doesn't end there; adding one more spice (Kra chai) to Keemao base and you'd get Pad Cha. There.. take your pick!
Best Vegan/Vegetarian Places around DC, and Baltimore?
I had high hope for Sticky Fingers, but was sorely disappointed by their cakes. The two I tried -- strawberry shortcake and the chocolate cake -- were VERY sweet. The shortcake in particular is sweetest cake I had from the stores in the area :( and the chocolate cake had a very weird, nasty taste that I don't associate with chocolate. Their sandwiches, on the other hand, were superb (for a vegan version). The lettuce and the tomato were fresh and crisp but not soggy and the 'bacon' tasted, surprisingly, somewhat bacon in a pleasant way.
Best restaurant bread
I like the one from Foxfire Grill. It comes with warm, crispy-on-the-outside-chewy-and-holey-on-the-inside rolls in plain, multi grain (I think), and lastly, cheddar jalapeño which is my favorite.
Cafe Pizzaiola and other happenings in Crystal City
Cafe Pizzaiolo is the best pizza in the area for us at the moment. They always cook the pie a bit longer than average and don't pile on topping -- thus no mushy center/bottom pie. It could be a bit hard to find seats if you come with a big party though.
Ranking Vietnamese
I agree. I love their spicy beef stew with French bread. It's my favorite Vietnamese dish that I always order at Vietnamese restaurants and few made it good. Huong Viet's is the best in the area (for me) :) I'm drooling as I'm typing. As a side note, Pho Hot as the second best.
Fro-Yo in NoVa/DC?
I think that's call bing soo. I was tempted to order it and try it many times in the past, but the size (BIG for one person) kinda scared me off :P
Fro-Yo in NoVa/DC?
Sorry to hear that, MikeR. That didn't sound like what I had though.. must be an off day or something because one thing I remember distinctly about its texture was that it was quite dense compared to DaY's. But I agree that the small isn't small at all!
Fro-Yo in NoVa/DC?
Shilla Bakery offers 3 portions (small, medium, large). I think the small that I got is almost half the size of the one offered at Dolce & You also with more topping choices (though not by much). Shilla's fro-yo's texture was also smoother... but maybe the day I had it at Dolce & You they're just having an off day that their fro-yo wasn't as smooth... it felt more like frozen yogurt slushie!
Loose Leaf Tea Dc/Nova
I like Old Town Coffee Tea & Spice in Old Town Alexandria.
-----
Old Town Coffiee Tea & Spice
215 S Union St, Alexandria, VA 22314
Fro-Yo in NoVa/DC?
I don't have the exact address, but it's on Little River Tpk.. basically between Shilla and Le Matin De Paris (and on the same side of the road with the former).
Thanks ellegets for sharing! I will have to drop by for a taste soon ;)
Looking for Korean Fried Chicken In the Area
Tried Bon Chon yesterday -- love it! Crispy on the outside, but still nice and juicy on the inside. I have no idea how they manage to sauce the chicken, but don't reduce the crispiness level of the skin.. not soggy at all. They have two flavors available; soy garlic and hot. I got the hot.. and it was really hot for me (my tolerance for heat is not high though). The chicken was served with pickled daikon and coleslaw (I like Cheogajip's version better though).
The downside is.. you can't go there when you're very hungry. They fry the chicken on order so it takes quite some time before you get to eat.
-----
Bon Chon
6653 Little River Turnpike, Annandale, VA 22003
