Boba Thai Lounge

After a journey to Brooklyn Center's Brookdale Mall I arrived at Boba Thai Lounge, which looked more like a bar and grill, but was still delicious.

My dining companion and I decided to share a salad to start- Yummy Noodle Eggroll salad (Vermicelli noodles on a bed of chopped lettuce, carrots, cucumber and cilantro with eggrolls, topped with crushed peanuts). While this sounded super bizarre, the picture on the menu looked awfully appetizing and this was definitely the favorite. Although it wasn't spicy, it had great flavor with the cilantro, peanut and sweet and sour sauce. I could have had this as a main course.

For a main course, my dining companion ordered Masamun Curry (chicken stewed in a masamun curry with coconut cream, potatoes, onions, tomatoes and peanuts). She thought it was okay, but compared to other curries she has had (red, yellow and green), she did not enjoy it as much. As a lover of masamun curry, I tried it and have to say it was quite good and definitely tasted as it should.



When we first arrived, we asked the waitress for suggestions and her favorites. She told us her favorite was Spicy Lemongrass Beef (thin tender slices of beef cooked medium well, then tossed with lime, lemongrass, Thai chilies, roasted rice powder, kaffir lime leaves, bean sprouts, yellow onions and tomatoes, topped with chopped green onion and cilantro), but that we wouldn't like it because it is spicy and sour. Well after that remark, I obviously chose to order it. She couldn't have been more wrong- it had great flavor and hit the mark on my personal spice scale! She claimed it was tingly (we assumed she meant spice?) but it definitely didn't burn my lips (a sensation I do enjoy).

Overall, it was a good dining experience and I look forward to returning....hopefully they will have pop next time (they were out!) and maybe I can go when the mall is open!

Decor: forgettable- like a bar and grill

Prices: average ($10-15)
Spice level: good

More information:

Boba Thai Lounge

1268 Brookdale Shopping Center
Brookyln Center, MN 55430

www.boba-cafe.com

Thai Curry House

When I arrive at a new restaurant in a strip mall, I always think...this could be really good or really bad! Well, congrats Thai Curry House, you were really good! I met my dining companions for lunch in Burnsville (a touch past where I usually wander) and was immediately taken in by the decor- there were several different styled dining areas within the one restaurant, including a few tables where you could sit on the floor.

One of my dining companions ordered Yellow Curry with chicken- no spice, which arrived looking quite reddish. She loved it and my other dining companion and I both thought it had great flavor, despite the fact that there was absolutely no spice involved (she claimed to see small, red specks of spice...I beg to differ).




My other dining companion ordered Drunken Noodles with chicken- spice level 4. Why they don't have this dish at more restaurants is beyond me? It is so delicious. This was the real winner today. Even though it wasn't very spicy, it had a really rich and savory flavor. I was jealous!




I ordered Green Curry with pork- spice level 5 (that's for you, sis!), which was quite good, but definitely not spicy enough. (I have to admit that even though it was quite tasty....it wasn't jaw-dropping like the Green Curry at Bangkok Thai Deli). The pork was cooked well and tasted delicious. I also enjoyed that the bamboo shoots were sliced into fine pieces instead of larger chunks- it was quite conducive to having a bit of bamboo with every bite!


For dessert, we decided to get Mangoes and Sticky Rice (it's become a favorite of mine!) and a Fried Banana. They were both good, but we would have liked a higher sticky rice to mango ratio and the fried bananas came with vanilla ice cream with sprinkes....a touch bizarre!

Overall, it was worth the trek to Burnsville and I look forward to returning.

Decor: welcoming!

Prices: average ($10-15)
Spice level: they could go a lot hotter!

More information:

Thai Curry House
1916 Highway 13 East
Burnsville, MN 55337

Joy's Pattaya Thai Restaurant

To sum it up, I'd say that Joy's Pattaya Thai Restaurant wasn't especially memorable. Yes, the food was pretty good and the service was okay...but if I hadn't been able to share it with such an amazing dining companion, I probably would have forgotten I went there!

To start, we ordered Angel Wings (boneless chicken wing stuffed with minced water chestnuts, carrots, chicken and glass noodle) and Curry Puffs (puff pastry filled with avocado, chicken, potatoes, onion) because we were both starving!! The Angel Wings I recognized as I'd tried them at Bangkok Thai Deli. These were equally bizarre, but pretty tasty! We loved the sauce- it had a bit of a kick.


The Curry Puffs were definitely the best of the three places I've had them (King & I, Ruam Mit Thai and here). They were really light and flaky and anything with avocado is AMAZING (I haven't seen avocado at a Thai restaurant before....) We couldn't quite figure out what one of the sauces was...it might have had pickle in it? We stuck to the sweet and sour sauce instead.



He ordered Rama and chicken (a choice of meat with steamed spinach, sprouts and cauliflower topped with peanut sauce), which he loved. It really was quite an attractive dish and he said it had a fair amount of spice even though he hadn't indicated a preference. I was impressed he tried something new, but he admitted that peanut sauce is an easy choice.



I ordered Panang Curry with chicken (exotic panang curry paste with coconut milk, basil leaves and bell peppers. A choice of meat), which I hadn't had in ages (okay, weeks, but still!) It had a really rich and savory flavor, but it wasn't spicy enough for my taste...they had three options: mild, medium and hot, but hot was more of a medium- boo! It was still delicious and I really enjoyed their chicken.

All in all, everything was really good, but it just didn't stick out that much....and my dining companion agreed.

Decor: fine
Price: average ($10-15)
Spice: could have used a spice tray....

For More Information:
7545 Lyndale Avenue S
Richfield, MN 44523

www.joyspattayathai.com

Hong Thai

Oh the joys of shopping! As a break for some serious outlet mall shopping, my friend and I decided to try Hong Thai, a Thai restaurant in Albertville about 1 mile from the outlet malls. We were pleasantly surprised with our lunch.

To start we had Spring Rolls (Rice noodles, crispy lettuce, bean sprouts, sautéed beefsteak, wrapped in rice paper, served with our own sauce), which were good, but the peanut sauce was the real winner- too bad we didn't have quite enough. Our waitress was slightly MIA, so we made it work.




For lunch, my dining companion ordered Spicy Noodle with Basil and vegetables (Stir-fried egg noodle, bamboo shoot, bean sprout, onion, tomato and carrot with spicy garlic sauce and basil), which had a surprisingly rich flavor. We also loved that the carrots were cut in cute shapes! She didn't intend to have a large lunch, but it was delish and she kept eating.



I ordered Pad Thai with chicken (Stir-fried rice noodles, egg, bean sprout, green onion and topped with roasted peanut), which was very savory and quite traditional since it was on the drier side. I enjoyed it a lot, but resisted taking leftovers (I am only taking leftovers when I can't resist because I'm trying to eat healthier).

Overall, it was a good experience, but they didn't have tofu, which is quite unusual. I guess the cool wooden chairs made up for that?! They looked like they might have even been from Thailand...some of them features elephants.

Decor: loooved the chairs
Price:Average ($10-15)
Spice: just fine

For more information:

Hong Thai
5600 La Centre Ave
Albertville, MN 55301

www.hongthairestaurant.com

Jasmine Orchid

Today I sat in traffic on the U of M campus ALL day because I accidentally decided to drop my sister off at the exact time that the Gopher game ended....yuck! Traffic did give me time to notice Jasmine Orchid, a Vietnamese and Thai restaurant in Stadium Village. After lots of errands (shopping!), I returned to campus (Gopher-free) to get take-out.

For dinner, I decided to try Tom Kha with steamed tofu (an exotic and spicy coconut soup with choice of meat or seafood, lemongrass, galanga and dry chili). I read an article about the health benefits of yellow curry today, but tonight really felt like tonight was a soup night! I was truly impressed. This place is a little bit of a dive, but the Tom Kha was savory and delicious. I asked for extra vegetables and they obliged thoroughly.

As I waited for take-out, I watched tons of delicious curry and noodle dishes go by- I can't wait to try something else!

Decor: It's in a strip mall...
Price: average ($10-15)
Spice: Good!

For more information:

Jasmine Orchid
304 Oak Street
Minneapolis, MN

www.jasmineorchid.org

Pad Thai Restaurant

What a gem!

No website and I'd never heard of it until I saw it on Urbanspoon....but wow, Pad Thai Restaurant in St. Paul rocked! The place was extremely busy for a Wednesday night, which made us excited to go in! My dining companion and I started with Fresh Spring Rolls (The best spring roll. Stuffed with fresh variety vegetables vermicelli noodle, with shrimp and roast pork. Served with delicious sauce). They definitely tasted fresh and the peanut sauce was scrumptious.

Even though my dining companion is obsessed with Pad Thai and the restaurant was called Pad Thai Restaurant, she decided to stray and tried Panang Curry with chicken (sauteed with basil and keffir leave with panang cocount curry sauce served with sweet pepper/broccoli), which was great. It had a really rich flavor and the vegetables looked amazing. She was very happy with her choice!


I ordered the first thing I read on the specials menu, Khao Pad Khiao Wan- Green Curry Fried Rice (combination shrimp, pork, chicken fried rice with pea, green bean, onion, sweet pepper, basil and coconut green curry sauce), which was absolutely delightful! It had endless flavor with a good amount of heat (I ordered a 3 of 4) and the three types of meat were all very tasty with the green curry. I was also impressed that the green beans were cooked to perfection- often they are overcooked at Thai restaurants.

After Sunday's dessert fiasco, I wanted to try again! Mango is back in season (thank the heavens) and so we ordered Mangoes with Sticky Rice, which is such an amazing combination of different types of "sweet" between sticky rice, mangoes and coconut milk. I could eat their Mangoes and Sticky Rice dessert every day!!

I cannot wait to go back here....I can't believe that I had never heard of it. It's right off of 94....oh and the service was PERFECT!!

Decor: comfortable and chic

Prices: average ($10-15)
Spice level: great!

More information:

Pad Thai Restaurant

1681 Grand Ave
St Paul, MN 551035

Lao Thai Family Restaurant

I was enthusiastic about trying another St. Paul restaurant on University Ave, but Lao Thai Family Restaurant wasn't as good as the others I have tried recently. We started with two appetizers- Family Egg Rolls (stuffed with ground pork, vegetables, bean thread noodles and deep-fried) and Cream Cheese Wontons. The egg rolls were quite good, but after all of the egg rolls I've tried in the last few months, they weren't exactly memorable.

One of my dining companions ordered the Red Chicken Curry (Sliced chicken broiled with coconut milk, sweet peppers, bamboo, with red curry sauce), which was okay, but I've had better red curry most places. This curry was lacking a bit of flavor and extra salty. She was a bit disappointed because she is a green curry lover and the only curry they offered was red.



Two of our other dining companions had the Pad Thai (Stir fried noodles with bean sprouts, eggs, green onions and peanuts on the side)- one with chicken and the other with tofu. Although it was fairly traditional because it was pretty dry, there was almost no flavor to it. It definitely wasn't unedible like Kindee's Pad Thai, but both people ordered extra sauce to try and give it more flavor.



I ordered the Walleye Fillet (8-10 oz deep fried topped with family special curry sauce) to try and mix things up a bit. This featured the same red curry as the chicken dish mentioned above, which was only okay. The fish was delicious though and actually soaked up the curry flavor well. I was a little apprehensive about ordering a fish dish, but was pleasantly surprised.



Because the prices here were so low (the Pad Thai with tofu was $6.50), I decided to order the only dessert on the menu for our group, Tri-Color, which had no description. The waitress had a bit of a smile when we ordered- never a good sign! This "dessert" was so bizarre that we couldn't really eat it. It was a goblet with spoons that had greenish milk with ice and floating fruity things and hard pieces. That's about all of the detail I can share because we had no idea what we were "eating."

I'll go back...but it's on the bottom part of my list for now!

Decor: comfortable, but super unattractive

Prices: cheap! ($6-11)
Spice level: okay- we forgot to ask for spicier!

More information:

Lao Thai Family Restaurant

501 University Ave W
St Paul, MN 55103

Mango Thai

Tonight I had the opportunity to try Mango Thai in St. Paul, which is the sister restaurant of Chai's Thai in Minneapolis (which rocked!) My dining companions surprised me by letting me order for the group! We started with Crab Avocado Rolls, which were recommended by the staff at Chai's Thai. The sauce on the rolls was amazing and gave the rolls great taste overall, but we didn't feel that the crab was that flavorful. They were definitely a nice change from the standard egg roll and had great presentation.

We decided to share three dishes. First, the Pumpkin and Shrimp Red Curry served in a real pumpkin (included red and green peppers, peanuts, onion, pumpkin and shrimp). The presentation was awesome and the curry had a truly rich and savory flavor. We ordered all items on the spicier side, but they definitely didn't tingle my lips (boo!). This was probably our favorite of the three dishes.


Secondly, we decided to try Pad Kee Mow with chicken (wide rice noodles with chicken or beef stir fried with garlic chicken and basil). This dish had great flavor, but was super light on the spice. The noodles were cooked to perfection and so were the vegetables, but there wasn't a whole lot of chicken to comment on.




Lastly, we shared Spicy Basil Beef Fried Rice, which tasted quite similar to every other fried rice to me! I really enjoyed the beef, as that is something I rarely order, but fried rice never seems to be very flavorful....is there anywhere that I can order truly stand-out fried rice?!

Decor: Very comfortable

Prices: average ($10-15)
Spice level: a little on the low end

More information:

Mango Thai

610 Selby Ave
St Paul, MN 55102

www.mangothaimn.com

Taste of Thailand- Downtown Minneapolis

Last Thursday, in a surprise twist of plans, I was able to try Taste of Thailand in Downtown Minneapolis. It was a crazy busy night downtown, but Taste of Thailand was noticeably quiet...that made me and my dining companions a touch suspicious.

We started with Cream Cheese Wontons (risky, I know!), which were good, but pretty standard, which is fine with me.

Both of my dining companions preferred a little less on the spice side and ordered their meals with no chilies (I smiled and acted normal- don't worry). One dining companion ordered Chicken Pad Thai, a staple, which had great flavor. Although it wasn't very juicy, like I like, it was more traditional than most Pad Thai's I have had recently. My other dining companion ordered Pineapple Fried Rice with Chicken, which looked good and she enjoyed, but I couldn't add enough spice to make it worth eating to me.

I ordered a Peanut Curry with Chicken on a bed of spinach. I don't see this dish everywhere and was eager to try it. It had amazing flavor- rich and savory- I loved it!! They warned me that their medium spice level was like an extra hot level at other Thai restaurants in the area so I ordered medium. Well that waiter (who was also slow and awkward) was wrong! It was not spicy enough.

Overall, the dining experience was very mediocre and I have yet to try their other 5 locations!!

Decor: Fine

Prices: average ($10-15)
Spice level: okay- a normal scale

More information:

Taste of Thailand

11 S 7th St
Minneapolis, MN 55402


They have a website listed...but it is incorrect!