'Charmed' by Thai Tea Ice Cream

Wow, just look at this beauty. Our ingenious (and piggy) idea of combining two desserts created this breathless moment.

My lovely pregnant sister LC and I met up at Charm Modern Thai in Yaletown for a quick lunch and wanted something sweet to finish up our meal. We decided to have their deep fried banana dipped in vanilla sauce with a side of their homemade Thai tea ice cream. LC is usually quite a 'phan' of Thai iced teas so this intrigued her. Unlike the common heavily battered deep fried whole bananas from other Thai restaurants, Charm's lighter version is a mixture of tiny pieces of half mashed bananas, wrapped in a thin skin and dipped in a creamy vanilla sauce. GREAT IDEA! And their Thai tea ice cream was so refreshing and delicious that we asked if they sold them by the pints but the server advised us that it was a homemade secret recipe by their in-house chef. Sweet and savory at its best people. This Phan fave is another must-try!

Sawasdee Means More Than Just Hello, To Me It Means Great Food!

Sawasdee on Main Street is my favorite Thai place. To be honest, I can't say that I am an expert on authentic Thai food and a lot of Thai places do taste similar to me, (my other two faves are Urban Thai and Chili House) but this place always has amazing service, timeliness of food, fresh ingredients and just feels homey to me. Plus I love giving this place business as it's owned by an old high school friend of mine so I can count on my experience being great every time. My friend AF mentioned that she always has to try the fish cake at Thai restos so we opted for that as an appetizer. The 'Tod Mun Pla' was served with cucumber sauce and was tasty indeed.

Secondly, we each had a bowl of their 'Tom Yum' soup which was spiced just enough - to get your nose running but not dying for a glass of milk.

And of course no Thai meal would be complete without a plate of Pad Thai. I used to hate this 'ketchupey' dish but now I couldn't imagine life without it. I wonder if I'll be brave enough to attempt this dish in my own kitchen? Stay tuned and you'll find out!

The next two dishes were recommended by our server Natachai, tiger prawns stir fried with broccoli in a black pepper sauce and fish in a three-spice sauce. Both were delicious but I must say that the fish was a winner for me this night. Fried perfectly with enough chilies to get the heat going (and yes, ask for that glass of milk now), but flavorful enough to keep wanting more.

Another staple of mine in Thai eating is a nice green creamy curry with chicken atop coconut rice. Comfort food is the best thing people, especially in this cold cold weather!

And you guessed it, another plate of deep fried bananas with mango and coconut ice cream. I love how these pieces are bite size and shareable for the entire table.

And I just had to add their stuffed deep fried chicken wings in here (which I had at a separate take out time at home). This is their specialty. Deboned and stuffed with mushroom, carrot and noodles, this is a must try when dining at Sawasdee!

Coconut and Lychee - A Must in Thai Desserts

One of my favorite perks of my new office is being steps away from Chili House! Which means if I'm still a bit hungry after eating my home cooked lunches, I can scoot on over for some savory dessert and fruit-i-licious drinks! Now I've tried plenty of deep fried banana and ice cream desserts but this particular coconut ice cream at Chili House is by far the creamiest and most flavorful of them all. I wonder if it's made in-house or store bought? I must ask them on my next visit.

And of course I opted for a virgin Royal Thai which is a freaking delicious drink made with blended lychee juice and coconut milk, topped off with a plump lychee! The alcoholic version is called 'Woman on Top'. Don't get me wrong, Chili House also has other amazing desserts and yummy foods too but today's focus is on my two favorite recent finds there. Also, please be aware that Chili House is now closed for lunch (until spring 2011) and open for all-you-can-eat dinners with 29 items for just $16!!! I will definitely blog about that once I hit up the buffet!

Thai Cafe, Unfortunately Did Not Blow Me Away ...

This was my first time trying Thai Cafe in Burnaby and I must say, it was nothing to shout about. We ordered take-out and to be fair, ate it about an hour after sitting out in room temperature. However, it was also my first time trying 'Yum Talay', a mixed seafood combination salad with a spicy lime sauce which was both refreshing and delicious! I would definitely recommend this dish!

Next of course we had to have the Pad Thai with prawns which to me, tastes pretty much the same at any Thai restaurant - a staple in Thai cuisine.

For the appetizers we each got to try a spring roll and chicken satay. The spring roll was pretty generic and the chicken satays were a bit thin and dry but you gotta love that side of peanut sauce! Smeared on top of your rice, mmMMmm! We also had a green curry chicken dish which was also quite nice. A rather mediocre meal but it filled us up and I would give this restaurant another whirl!

Pumpkins Aren't Just for Carving, They're for CURRY!!!

Man oh man, I go cuckoo for this curry! My friends MR and JG introduced me to this amazing pumpkin red curry from Take Thai Home on Commercial Drive. I am a regular fan of red curry but made with pumpkin? It's heaven I tell you. Moist, flavorful melt in your mouth consistency. Poured over some healthy quinoa, with a side of pad thai and tofu veggies, WOW. We were in a food coma that night.

The dinner host MR never, EVER, disappoints with her alcoholic beverages. That night we had coconut pineapple martinis. Dangerous because it tastes like juice but hits you hard.

MR also introduced quinoa into my life. A great substitute for rice, this seed is a healthy replacement and I hear it makes you quite regular. Not that I need help in that department anyway, haha. It's a staple at our weekly get-togethers. That and a special song we sing into the intercom as we buzz in. Thanks to KL, MR and JG, the '4 best friends' sure know how to do it up with our food adventures!!!