'Ono Kine Grindz

Pae Thai Restaurant

About ten years ago, I ate at a Thai restaurant that was in the same location that is now occupied by Pae Thai.  I can't recall if the restaurant was actually called Pae Thai then, but I do know that the food was decent and worth a return visit.  Since this place is right near my apartment, I frequently passed by the restaurant without actually stopping to eat there. But one evening, not too long ago, I decided to satisfy my curiosity and stopped in for dinner with a friend.

Upon entering the dimly lit restaurant, the first thing I noticed were the colorful paintings on the wall that were ringed with rope lights.  Below the painting on the left hand side of the photo is a small waterfall and pond!  The restaurant was spacious and clean and just barely occupied at about 9:00 pm (yes, it was late).

After looking over the menu, I decided to start with the combination appetizer plate (US$11.95). 

This appetizer sampler included 3 spring rolls, 3 fish cakes and mountain of mee krob in the middle.  The spring rolls, which were stuffed with chicken, vermicelli, mushrooms and other vegetables, were hot and crunchy when they arrived.  Served with a side of sweet/sour dipping sauce, I enjoyed these because they were well drained and mostly oil free.  The mee krob, which is a crispy fried rice noodle, was supposed to have been stir fried with garlic, green onions, tofu, chicken and bean sprouts.  Instead, it arrived doused in way too much of the overly sweet chilli sauce rendering the noodles a bit soggy and with just a few  bean sprouts to be found.  And finally, we arrive at the tod mun pla, or fish cakes.  Normally, these fish cakes are seasoned with kaffir lime leaves and are served with a cucumber relish.  The small, rubbery fish cakes were lacking any of the kaffir lime leaves' fragrance and the cucumber relish was nowhere to be found.

After the slight disappointment with the appetizers, I was hoping to fare a little better with the Pae Thai ong choi salad (US$10.95).

Described on the menu as a "signature selection", I was hoping that this dish would prove to be a worthy selection.  When it arrived at the table, I was a little surprised to see the dish "garnished" with four deep fried ong choi leaves.

Have a closer look. 

This dish was a combination of seafood (squid and shrimp) and chicken that had been stir fried with lemongrass, red onions, tamarind juice and cashew nuts.  There were some cut red chillies, some chopped green onions and some chopped cilantro here as well.  After taking the first bite, I found the dish similar in texture to a favorite of mine -- larb.  The combination of flavors was interesting and familiar, yet different and well balanced, making this the most enjoyable dish of the evening.

The last dish to arrive at the table is one that I usually order at any Thai restaurant that I visit -- green curry with beef (US$8.50).

When the dish of curry was placed on the table, I found it odd that I couldn't detect any of the usual fragrance that is so common with green curry.  The curry was thick, and full of beef and eggplant.  There was just the slightest hint of coconut milk here and there was a small scattering of basil leaves throughout the dish.  The curry lacked the depth normally found in most curries and it certainly lacked the subtle flavors that make this one of my favorites.

The food here at Pae Thai is good in some instances and average in others.  The service here was good, and the food arrived quickly at the table.  The prices are in line with what you'd pay at a similar restaurant and I probably would come here again, if only for the ong choi salad.  There were a few other items on the menu that I was curious to try, and the next time I'm here, I'm going to have to remember to choose my dishes wisely. 

Pae Thai Restaurant
1246 South King Street
Telephone:  808.596.8106

Bangkok Chef

Housed in what looks to be a converted garage, Bangkok Chef, is a spot that is unknown to many.  It's located on Nuuanu Avenue, in a row of shops right alongside a small strip mall.  Parking is a bit of a problem here, especially since you're parking in three tightly compacted spaces on the section of real estate that's known as a sidewalk. 

Tipped off by a co-worker about 6-months ago, I finally had the chance to visit Bangkok Chef for myself.  When I pulled up to the shop, it seemed to me like serving Thai food was not part of the original plan as evidenced by the sign announcing that this was the Nuuanu Open Market.

Once inside, on the left side of the shop, you'll find a few produce items, as well as a some spice mixes and canned goods, and a refrigerated case filled with beverages and dairy items.  At the far end of the shop, you'll notice the counter where the orders for the food are taken and payment is made.

When I stopped by on a recent weekend, there were a number of customers inside the cool airy space enjoying their mid-afternoon meals.  After looking over the menu, and learning that they were sold out of sticky rice, I decided to order the pad thai (US$4.75).

According to the menu, the pad thai noodles were stir fried with a house special sauce and contained egg, chicken and tofu.  Once the frying was done, the dish was topped with a handful of bean sprouts, some sections of green onion and a light dusting of crushed peanuts.  The noodles were quite mildly flavored, which made them refreshing to eat.  The texture of the noodles was different too, they were chewy rather than "tender" -- almost cooked al dente if you will.

For dessert, I had the tapioca pudding (US$1.25).

Served warm, tender tapioca pearls were swimming in lots of coconut milk that had been sweetened with palm sugar.  I found this dessert to be just a little too sweet for me, but it was perfectly portioned.  Maybe I should have enjoyed this with some coffee.

On a subsequent visit, I had intended to try the green curry, but unfortunately, they were again sold out of sticky rice.  Instead, I decided to try the basil chicken with jasmine rice (US$4.75).

Tender slices of chicken were stir fried with fresh basil, bamboo shoots and cut red chillies, then seasoned with oyster sauce.  Served in a styrofoam container with half a plateful of jasmine rice, made this one huge meal.  And while I found this dish to be thoughtfully prepared, I think they could either cut down on the fish sauce, or the oyster sauce -- it was much too salty for me.

Since I had the tapioca last time, I decided to try the one remaining dessert item on the menu, the gluay buad chee (US$1.50).

Served warm, this dessert consisted of apple-banana chunks simmered in coconut milk sweetened with palm sugar.  The bananas had remained firm and had just enough bite to them for me to enjoy this.  Unlike the tapioca dessert, the sweetened coconut milk helped to balance out the flavors of the tart bananas.

Bangkok Chef seems to be quite a popular weekend lunch spot.  On both occasions, when I visited at lunchtime, there seemed to be a steady stream of customers flowing in and out of the restaurant.  With great service, great prices and decent food, who wouldn't want to eat here.

Bangkok Chef
1626 Nuuanu Avenue
Telephone:  808.585.8839

Sweet Basil

A while back when I ate at Pho My Lan, I noticed a new Thai place next door.  Since I don't venture into Chinatown as much as I used to, I promptly forgot about this place until I went to buy some mooncakes this past weekend.  As I was walking to Legend for some dim sum, I walked right past this place and decided to come back the next day.

And here I am.  It was late when I arrived for lunch with a couple of friends.  In fact, it was almost 1:00 pm and four of the eight (or was it nine?) tables in the narrow space were occupied.  We chose the table furthest from the door so that we could see the expressions on people's faces as they ate -- almost everyone had a look of satisfaction on their face. 

Across from our table was the head of the buffet (weekdays, US$8.95; weekends, US12.95 includes seafood), so we decided to take a look before making up our minds (sorry, no shot of the buffet).

As we looked over the items on the lunch buffet, I remembered hearing good things about it from a couple of friends.  Since I don't normally like buffets, and since the individual menu selections seemed to be interesting, I convinced the others to order an appetizer, a salad, and two entrées to share.

We decide to start with a Thai classic, larb, listed here as 'Good Fortune' salad (US$7.50).

Ground pork (I'm checking on this because it tasted like pork, but I'm not sure) and toasted rice are stir fried then seasoned with fresh mint, scallions, cilantro, lime and chillies.  This was served with a garnish of sliced cucumber, a lettuce leaf and more fresh mint.  The flavor of this dish was muted and mellow, with not a hint of spiciness. 

Since this wasn't nearly spicy enough, we asked for some chillies.  Our waitress brought over this cool chilli (condiment) tray.

Colorful, as well as fiery, there were different types of chillies here for all the different types of dishes which we were about to eat.

Next to arrive was the eggplant & shiitake mushroom with chili-basil sauce (US$7.95).

This dish was one of our entrées so it was served with some tossed greens topped with a peanut sauce based dressing, and a bowl of sticky rice (white or brown also available).   Deep fried chunks of tofu were stir fried with whole shiitake mushrooms and pieces of eggplant in a chili-basil "sauce" (oil).  The eggplant was fork tender though it seemed to maintain most of its "bite".  The mushrooms' savoriness was balanced by just a hint of sweetness from the basil.  Again, as with the larb, this dish wasn't as spicy as I would have liked, and it was too much too salty and oily.  We all agreed that this was something that wouldn't be ordered again.

Then came our appetizer, the golden shrimp medallions (tod mun kung, US$7.95).

Three panko (?) crusted shrimp cakes were deep fried, and served with a sweet, spicy chilli sauce.  The plate was garnished with some sliced carrot and cucumber, and some tossed greens.  Despite being deep fried, these thick, crunchy shrimp cakes were well drained and I could see no sign of oil anywhere.  The cakes were sweet and meaty, and they reminded me a lot of Japanese-style croquettes.

Finally, our second entrée arrived, the soft shell crabs with panang sauce (puu tod lad panang, US$11.95).

This was the dish that I was looking forward to the most.  Deep fried, almond crusted soft shell crabs were served topped with panang sauce.  Fragrant, crunchy and flavorful, the soft shell crabs were the highlight of the afternoon.  The nuttiness of the almond crust went well with the peanut and kaffir lime leaf based panang sauce.  Again, there was not really enough heat here for my tastes, but overall, the sweetness of this dish proved to be most enjoyable.

To drink, we had the Thai iced vanilla tea (US$3.00).

Cool, sweet and utterly refreshing, Thai iced tea is the beverage I normally choose to compliment all the spicy food.  This one was not as sweet as the ones that I normally get and that made it all the better.

The food here at Sweet Basil is described as "Neo Thai", which in my opinion means fusion.  It combines classic Thai flavors and cooking techniques with new ingredients, especially those not normally seen in traditional Thai cooking -- an example of this is the almond crusted soft shell crab with panang sauce.  And even though the food preparation was a bit uneven, I would definitely come here again to try a few of the other menu items, and maybe even the buffet.  Cost may prohibit me from coming here often, but Sweet Basil could possibly be a sweet indulgence.

Sweet Basil
1152A Mauankea Street
Telephone:  808.545.5800

Typhoon! - Seattle, Washington

Even after all the food I ate throughout the day, I was still hungry when I arrived at Typhoon! for dinner.  I had heard a number of good things about the place and I was ready for a nice relaxing dinner.

When we arrived, the sun was still out and the restaurant was not crowded.  In a nice twist of fate, we got seated at a table right near the front window (great for taking pictures of the food).

After ordering our dinner, I proceeded to wash my hands in the restroom.  Along the way was this wall of tea -- Literally hundreds of glass jars filled with all types of different teas. 

As soon as I got back, the dishes started arriving, one by one.  Here is the beef salad (US$9.95).

Lean and tender slices of beef were combined with raw onion and tomato in a tangy lime and fish sauce based dressing.  The salad was ordered medium-hot and it didn't seem like there were any chillies in this at all.  While I enjoyed the tangy sourness of the dressing, this dish wasn't all that special.

Next to arrive was the miang kum (US$8.95).

The waiter recommened this dish and explained that this was the restaurant's signature appetizer.  It is described on the menu as follows:

"Rare Thai peasant dish.  Wrap a pinch of toasted coconut, shallot, ginger, lime, peanut, dried shrimp and Thai chili in a spinach leaf with Bo's signature sauce, then pop in your mouth to burst in a medley of flavors."

Following the instructions above, I put a little of each ingredient inside a spinach leaf, spooned on some of Bo's signature sauce, which coincidentally tasted a lot like mango chutney, then popped it into my mouth and waited for the burst of flavors.

Crunchy peanuts, spicy ginger, fiery chillies, salty shrimp, tangy lime, smokey coconut and sweet chutney, made for an extraordinary taste sensation.  I was initially worried that the flavors would be a bit unusual together, but they actually complimented each other quite well.  In only a few minutes, we had worked out way through the entire plate.

The next dish to find its way to our table was the chicken in green curry (veggie or chicken, US$10.95; beef or shrimp US$11.95).

This is something that I always order in any Thai restaurant that I visit.  In my opinion, it's quite hard to produce a green curry that has the right balance of all the essential flavors -- coconut milk, chillies, kaffir lime, lemongrass and galangal.  This one was no different than most of the curries that I've had before.  Not great, and not bad, but just OK.  With all the Asian produce markets out there, why don't these Thai restaurants use authentic ingredients in their curries?  By that I mean, makheua praow (Thai eggplants) and the much smaller, makheua phuang (pea eggplants, which are very bitter).

The last dish to arrive at the table was this, the pineapple fried rice (US$10.95).

Jasmine rice, pineapples, shrimp, chicken and cashew nuts were fried and seasoned with some curry powder, among other things, then garnished in this dish with some sliced cucumber.  I've never had Thai pineapple fried rice that was seasoned with curry powder before, and this was definitely interesting.  However, it was too interesting for me and I really didn't enjoy this.  What's also funny is that given the price one pays for a dish like this, one always hopes that it's going to be served in the traditional fashion -- which is the hollowed out half of a pineapple.  Sadly, I've never had it served this way at any Thai restaurant in the US.

After dinner, we looked over the dessert menu.  I decided to have an old favorite, the mango sticky rice (US$5.95).

For almost US$6.00, the portion here was really small.  The portion of sticky rice was similar in size to a deck of cards.  The mango, was equal to a third of a nice sized fruit.  That said, the sticky rice was prepared quite nicely although it needed just a little more coconut milk.

The food here at Typhoon! was OK at best.  The standout and best tasting dish of the evening, the miang kum, was probably the simplest to prepare.  Given the prices, and they hype surrounding this place, I expected food that was significantly better that what I was served.  Maybe that's why the place was half empty when we arrived.

Typhoon!
1400 Western Avenue
Seattle, Washington
Telephone:  206.262.9797
website

Bangkok Thai Restaurant

I'm still searching for a really nice, authentic Thai restaurant here in Honolulu.  There are a few places that do a dish or two quite well, but then once I start eating some of the other dishes, things start to fall apart.  I've heard quite a few good things about Bangkok Thai from some friends so I decided to pay the place a visit.

Bangkok Thai is on the corner of Kapahulu Avenue and Paliuli Street and when I arrived to meet a friend, I could not find parking anywhere.  Luckily there was a noticed taped to the wall right next to the restaurant letting me know about the free parking at the Bank of Hawaii about 2 blocks away.  Was it going to be worth all the trouble?

After parking my car, I walked over to the restaurant.  As I approached the restaurant, I noticed that it had a purple glow to it.  Upon entering, I noticed that it was purple inside as well. 

After looking over the menu, we decided to start with the fish patties (tod mun pla, US$6.95).

The fish patties were served on a bed of chopped cabbage with some sliced cucumbers and carrots as garnish.  In the middle of the plate there was some cucumber salad which is made by combining chopped cucumbers, shallots and chillies with vinegar and fish sauce, and topped with chopped peanuts.  The fish patties were thick and meaty, and just a little oily.  They were delicious and fragrant with just a hint of spiciness.  I could definitely smell, and taste, the kaffir lime leaves that were used to flavor this dish and the cucumber salad served to add an additional layer of flavor to an already tasty dish.

Next I decided to order the green curry with chicken (gaeng keow wan gai, US$7.50).

Green curry with either chicken or beef is a favorite of mine and is a dish that I almost always order when I eat at Thai restaurants.  The curry here was really too sweet and not spicy enough even though I asked for this to be prepared medium-hot.  In fact, I don't think I tasted chillies at all.  After a few bites, I decided that I couldn't eat any more of this.  What I found really odd, is that in this particular green curry, there were a few pieces of red and green bell peppers.  I don't think I've ever had bell peppers in a Thai curry before.

And last, instead of a vegetable dish, which I should have ordered, I decided to order the Thai basil beef (pad kapao nuea, US$7.50).

Tender pieces of lean beef were stir fried with some Thai basil, lots of bamboo shoots and a few long beans.  The dish was served with a "gravy" made from fish sauce and a little soy sauce, among other things.  This dish was also ordered medium-hot and came out a bit spicy, just the way I expected it to.  The combination of flavors packed just enough of a punch to make this one of the better dishes of the night.

To go along with it all was some sticky rice (khao neow, US$2.00 per order/person).

After all of that, I decided on some dessert -- the menu called this apple banana (US$3.00).

It was some Thai tapioca served warm with some cooked apple banana and coconut milk poured over the entire dessert.  The comination of smooth tapioca pearls, coconut milk and slightly tart bananas made this quite delicious.  I just wished that the bananas were a little softer and not as firm as they were.

In addition to the parking issue, I felt that the food at Bangkok Thai was a definite letdown, especially since it was given the thumbs up by quite a number of people.  The dishes here were a bit "hit and miss" tastewise, but the service was quite good and the prices are about what you'd pay at most other Thai restaurants.  I would not go out of my way to dine here, but if I were in the neighborhood, I might be convinced to stop in to try some of their other dishes.

Bangkok Thai Restaurant
829 Kapahulu Avenue
Telephone:  808.735.6338

Spices

Spices has taken over the former Montien Thai and is along a stretch the road that has seen a quite few restaurant openings lately -- among them Aki-no-no and Bistro Sun.  Dinner here was actually a much anticipated one after I had passed by a couple of weeks ago and found the place closed.  It was a good thing that a copy of the menu was available outside the restaurant, as it made my choices a little easier upon my arrival.

The interior of the restaurant, with enough space for about 10 tables, is brightly lit with a nice mix of yellow and orange on the walls.  Lots of photographs, both black and white and color, line the walls, and were taken by one of the owners on his many travels back to Southeast Asia.

Since I had reviewed the menu prior to my arrival, I only did a quick once over before selecting the following dishes.

First up was Ty's taro shoot salad (US$6.45).

A bed of lettuce was topped with some thinly sliced taro shoots, chopped mint and crispy fried shallots then tossed with some lime-mint dressing.  The taro shoots were light and crisp with a very subtle flavor.  If there were no dressing here, I doubt that I would have tasted much of anything.  The dressing with it's tangy and sweet flavors, proved to be an excellent match for the textures in this refreshing salad. 

A close-up of the thin and porous slices of the taro shoots.

(Sorry for the bad photo.  I will post another later.)

Next to arrive was the chicken satay (US$9.45).

Chicken was first marinated in a mixture containing coconut milk and curry powder, then skewered and grilled.  It was served with some peanut sauce (delicious) and some cucumber relish (OK).  What I found unusual was the way this dish was prepared.  The satay here was made using white meat chicken, which was good.  It was also not cut into cubes before being skewered, which was not so good.  The fact that the chicken was in one whole piece made it difficult to eat directly from the skewer.  And although the satay was tasty, it was a bit dry. 

And finally, the green curry with beef (US$10.45).

Green curry is my favorite type of curry and although I normally cook it at home using chicken, when I eat out, I will usually have it with beef.  There was lots of tender beef in this curry and it appeared to be pieces of flank steak.  There was also quite a bit of eggplant, red bell pepper and basil to add color and flavor to the curry, with the pieces of eggplant remaining firm throughout the meal.  The curry was by no means a disappointment, however, I found that it lacked a certain subtlety that separates an excellent curry from a good curry.

After dinner, it was time for some desserts.  Here is the sticky rice with coconut custard and mango (US$4.50).

Sticky rice is covered with coconut milk, then garnished with slices of fresh mango and several spoonfuls of coconut custard.  The mango was sweet and slightly firm, just bordering on overripe.  The coconut custard made a nice, and welcome, addition to this traditional Thai dessert.  The coconut custard was smooth, creamy and wonderfully fragrant.  As I took each bite of the custard, I recognized a familiar flavor which I really couldn't put my finger on.  I soon learned that the custard was steamed covered in pandan leaves. 

And finally, not one to let some delicious ice cream pass me by, I opted for the  homemade durian ice cream (US$3.50).

Durian, the king of fruits, has a complex flavor that is really difficult to describe.  It's sweetness is layered on top of an almost buttery, custard-like flavor that is at once unique, yet common.  This ice cream was really sinfully rich and delicious, so much so, that I found myself wanting to eat more.  The only suggestion that I gave to Pony, who makes all of his ice creams in house, was to leave a few chunks of fruit in the ice cream to make the flavor of the fruit much more pronounced.

The food here at Spices was OK, but the desserts here were the real stars.  I would definitely come back to try some of the other dishes on the menu, but more so, to try some of the other ice creams on the menu -- pandan, chili pepper and lemongrass, and green apple/curry just to name a few.  The service here is excellent, with the owners of the restaurant often making the rounds to greet customers making us all feel like old friends.

Spices
2671D South King Street
Telephone:  808.949.2679

Krung Thai Restaurant

Lately, I've been buying lunch more frequently than my "once a week" guideline that I set for myself about 6 months ago.  This is because I've been taking a lot more work home to finish and with my not wanting to deal with having to pack lunch daily.  Oh well, so much for saving money and eating healthier.

A friend who was also working on Martin Luther King Day, happened to call and ask what I was doing for lunch.  When I said nothing, he asked if I wanted to join him for lunch.  When I agreed, he said to meet him at Krung Thai.

Krung Thai is located close enough to the office so that I can walk there in about 5 minutes.  Inside Krung Thai, there are about 8 tables, a few of which are occupied when I arrive.

If the weather is nice, and you feel like eating outside, Krung Thai is one of the only downtown restaurants that I know of that offers outdoor dining.  It's quiet and peaceful, but since it's hot and humid today, I decided on eating inside.

Taking a look a the menu, I find that the prices are based upon the number of dishes chosen.  The food is pre-cooked and is sitting in warmers at the counter, kind of like a cafeteria.  The advantage to this is that you can see what you're getting, making a choice easier.  The disadvantage?  You don't know how long the food has been sitting in those warmers.

Since I wasn't too hungry, I opted for the one choice plate.  My choice was the chicken eggplant curry with white rice (US$4.71).

This was a green curry with lots of eggplant and chicken thigh pieces.  The curry was quite spicy, which was nice, but the eggplant was a bit "mushy" and way too soft.  I guess this had been sitting a while.  And although the flavor of the curry was nice, I couldn't taste all the flavors that I normally associate with a good green curry.  This was probably due to the lack of gravy that accompanied my serving of curry.  Next time, I'd ask for the curry to be served separately in a bowl rather than on the rice.

My friend on the other hand, was very hungry.  He had the two choice plate with the beef kapaw and pork longbean (US$5.72).  He had a combination of white rice and noodles at no extra charge.

The pork longbean actually looked quite good, while I wasn't so impressed with how the beef kapaw looked.  According to my friend, the pork longbean is one of the more popular dishes at Krung Thai.  He seemed to enjoy his lunch quite a bit.

If you're looking for "home-style" Thai food, then Krung Thai may just be for you.  Although the food is a little better than average, I have reservations about recommending this place.  The main reason for this, is that in my case, the food may have been sitting for too long in the warmers prior to being served.  I would prefer waiting while the food is being prepared, rather than having the food sit out for an indefinite amount of time prior to serving.  Since I visited on a holiday, this may have made a difference.  If I do come back at a later time, this post will be updated.

Krung Thai Restaurant
1028 Nuuanu Avenue
Telephone:  808.599.4803

Keo's Thai Cuisine

Back in the late 70s, Thai food was probably unknown to many people here in Hawaii.  One of the people that contibuted towards Thai cuisine's growing popularity in the state is Keo Sananikone.  He could also be considered one of Hawaii's first "celebrity" chefs.  Keo first started with Mekong in the late 70s, then came the first Keo's restaurant a few years after that.  Several years ago, Keo's moved to its current location.

I've been eating at Keo's restaurants since the late 80s, but I had never been to his flagship restaurant since it moved to this corner of Kuhio Avenue.   

When I arrived, I saw how huge the restaurant was and found out that it was packed.  It was 8:00 pm and without a reservation, I was told that it would be a 30-45 minute wait to be seated! The restaurant was dimly lit and there were lots floral arrangements and a few ornamental Thai statues around.

Here's another shot of the interior...

Since I was dining with a couple of friends, we decided to start with some appetizers. First, was the beef sa-teh (US$7.95).

Four sticks of beef sa-teh arrived covered in peanut sauce and topped with chopped cilantro (Chinese parsley).  For nearly US$2.00 a stick, we decided that there wasn't enough meat there, though what was there, was actually quite nice.  The peanut sauce was not as good though.  I could probably make better peanut sauce at home.  The cucumbers that were served with the sa-teh, were refreshing.

Next came the combination appetizer platter (appetizer combination A) with mee krob (vegetarian crispy noodles) and poh piah (spring rolls) (US$8.95).

Unlike the mee krob that I had previously eaten at Mekong I, this one had a bit too much dressing on it.  By the time we had eaten to the bottom, the crispy noodles were a bit soggy.  The dressing on this dish was also a lot sweeter than I was used to.  I was a bit disappointed. 

The poh piah on the other hand were nice, crunchy and flavorful.  Served with some lettuce and fresh mint for wrapping, and a slightly sweet dipping sauce, the poh piah were just a bit too small to do any thing better than tempt my tastebuds.  I wish I could have been served a few more of these.

We followed that with the Evil Jungle Prince.  It is prepared with seafood (US$14.95), with shrimp (US$13.95), with chicken (US$12.95) or with vegetables and tofu (US$10.95).  We chose to order this dish with vegetables and tofu.

According to the menu, this is "Keo's most famous dish combining fresh basil, coconut milk and red chili".  Ordered a 7 on a scale of 1 to 10, the spicing was just about right.  We probably could have ordered this a bit spicier.  There was a nice balance of flavor to this dish, with neither ingredient over powering the other.  I can see why this is Keo's most famous dish.

To finish out the meal, we ordered the gaeng keo wan gai (green curry with chicken, US$12.95).  This dish was also ordered spicy (a 7 out of 10).

The curry itself was quite mild, but had a wonderful aroma.  There was a bit too much coconut milk in this for my taste and not enough heat.  The fresh-cut red chillies, while adding a bit more spice to this dish, were not hot enough to make too much of a difference.  The chicken was tender and there was a lot of eggplant in this dish.  But I often wonder why I can never find Thai eggplants or makheau phuang in the green curries that I eat here in Hawaii.

While this was an enjoyable meal, it was a bit pricy considering the portion size.  While I throughly enjoyed both the Evil Jungle Prince and the poh piah, the rest of the dishes that I sampled were a bit average.  This is still one of the only restaurants where I can get decent mee krob, and I'll still come here and eat every now and then, but there are many other Thai restaurants that serve food of the same quality for a much more reasonable price.

Keo's Thai Cuisine
2028 Kuhio Avenue
Telephone:  808.951.9355

Mekong I

Last week, I was on a mission to eat some good Thai food.  My craving for Thai food grew after having the haw mok pla from Yum Yum Thai last week.  So I decided that I would have some Thai food for dinner as well.  After some careful consideration, I decided to have dinner at Mekong I and invited a friend.

Open since the late 70's, this is could possibly have been the first Thai restaurant in the state.  I haven't been here since the mid-80's and found this to be a "reintroduction" to some great Thai food.  Stepping into the restaurant, I remembered the crowds and they were still here even after all these years.  There were no glaring lights here, but a soft glow, kinda romantic in a cozy kinda way.

**NOTE**
These pictures were taken in very dim lighting and without a flash.  I didn't want to disturb the other diners in the restaurant.  My apologies.

Sitting down to review the menu, we decided to start with the mee krob (vegetarian crispy noodles, US$5.95).

The crispy fried noodles were tossed with some bean sprouts, julienned carrots and a few other goodies like cilantro (Chinese parsley) and green onions.  The "dressing" on this dish was slightly sweet and a bit tangy, with flavors of fish sauce and tamarind being quite apparent.  I liked this because there was just the slightest hint of dressing.  Because of this, the noodles remained crispy the entire time that we had it on the table.

The first dish that we ordered was the beef with fresh sweet basil (US$7.95).

Slices of lean beef were sautéed with lots of fresh sweet basil, young bamboo shoots, fresh cut chillies and other spices.  Not knowing what to expect, we ordered this dish "medium-hot".  When the dish arrived, you could smell the aroma of the basil and kaffir lime leaves.  The dish was spicy, but not mouth numbingly so.  In fact, I think I could have ordered this "hot" and survived.  The flavors in this dish were just wonderful.  A great choice!

For the last dish, I was about to order a curry dish, but at the last possible moment, I decided on having something different for a change.  I instead ordered the eggplant with tofu (US$7.95).

This dish was also ordered "medium-hot", but wasn't as spicy as the previous dish.  The eggplant were cooked just right, still firm, and with just a bit of bite.  The sauce was flavorful, but not overpowering.  My only wish was that there were more tofu in this dish.  That would have made a big difference for me.

We each had a serving of sticky rice (US$1.50 per serving) to complete the meal.  Unfortunately, it was not served in the traditional manner, steamed in a woven basket, but in a stainless steel bowl.

All in all, the food here was just as I had remembered it.  Tasty and well executed.  How close this is to authentic, I really don't know.  Will I come here again?  Definitely.  Will I wait another 20 years to do so?  Highly unlikely.

Mekong I
1295 South Beretania Street
Telephone:  808.591.8841

Yum Yum Thai

FYI:  For those of you who visit Yum Yum Thai, the store has expanded to the adjacent shop.  There are now a couple of tables so that you can eat in and the shop seems to have a better selection of food items.  In the old shop, they are now serving shaved ice.

Yesterday was Friday and that means I get to buy lunch.  It's been a while since I've had Thai food, and so I decided buy lunch at Yum Yum Thai.

Yum Yum Thai is only a block away from the office and is your average hole-in-the-wall take-out restaurant.  The food is laid out cafeteria-style, and is served in styrofoam containers.  There is no seating here, yet this place is super popular because of the huge portions, the tasty food, and the excellent value.

When I get here at about 2:00 pm, there were a couple of people being served. 

Since almost everything was sold out and since I was pressed for time, I decided to have the haw mok pla (steamed curry fish in banana cup, US$3.00).  I had never had this before, but was told that it was really delicious...and super spicy!

The fish was seasoned with red curry paste, coconut milk, thinly sliced kaffir lime leaves and other spices, placed over a bed of onions, then wrapped and steamed in a banana leaf "cup".  This was wonderfully spicy, but at the same time, the coconut milk added just a touch of sweetness.  The fish was flakey and perfectly cooked.  I had this with a side of brown rice and it was a simple, but delicious lunch.

I've been coming to Yum Yum Thai ever since I started working in downtown more than eight years ago and it's remained one of my steady favorites.  Stop in and try the food here, you'll be glad you did.

Yum Yum Thai
1106 Bishop Street
Telephone:  808.524.3790