Polo Fried Chicken ไก่ทอดเจ๊กี(โปโล), Lumphini, Bangkok

We've read about this fried chicken shop (137/1-2 Soi Sanam Khli) that was supposed to be pretty popular with the folks here so we made our way down to see what it was about.

We ordered some som tam to whet the appetite and also as a palate balancer. If you catch my drift

I couldn't say that I disliked the fried chicken but it wasn't as spectacular as I was hoping for. Not even close. Certainly not "to die for" as claimed by certain sources. The breast meat was dry and a little tough. While it wasn't so much the case for the dark meat, those were also dryer than I had expecting. 

On the bright side, the flavours of the bird as a whole were quite nice. I liked the skin and those fried garlic bits were deliciously flavoursome. 

There were a couple of sauces provided on every table. One of them which looked spicer tasted like it was made with smoked chilli. I thought this made a really good dip for the dry breast meat.

The sticky rice was something that was recommended. I didn't think much of it and I'm not sure why it's the thing to have with the fried chicken. It was too dry to be enjoyable and not particularly aromatic. I had to eat this with their smoky chilli.

Nhong Rim Klong (ร้าน หน่องริมคลอง), Ekkamai, Bangkok

We arrived at Nhong Rim Klong (Ekkamai Soi 21, Khlong Tan Nuea, Kate Wathana, Bangkok, tel : +66 86 044 9478) ten past eleven in the morning and waited a good forty minutes or so across the road before we managed to get our seats.

While we were waiting, we were given the menu so that they could take our orders ahead.

Once we were seated, it was cha yen with a view while waiting for our orders to be served.

Or also a cha dam yen with a view. In retrospect, the cha dam yen was a better drink here.

Oh yes the view. Strangely tranquil in the pattering rain which brought a reprieve from both the heat and the smell wafting from the canal.

We had stir fried crab with Thai chilli. This was pretty good with steamed rice. The portions were generous and the flavour was also much less spicy than I had imagined. I had thought this to be lip burning but it didn't quite get that far with the heat.

To crab ourselves out further, more crab meat stir fried with egg and cabbage in fish sauce. Not bad too. It came in much larger portions than we had anticipated.

Then came the shrimp stir fried with garlic. Deveined shrimps. Simple and delicious.

Of course, all that food had to go with steamed rice.

Donuts and espresso at Dunkin' Donuts

I thought this was worth a post because of the amusingly cute little cup that Dunkin' Donuts (this was the branch at MBK if anyone was wondering) served their espresso in. It was a pretty thick bitter brew but I suppose was just the thing after those sugary donuts. I haven't had these things in a while and I actually enjoyed it. Both the coconut coated chocolate glazed and the regular sugar donut. :p

Revisiting Paste at Gaysorn

We were here at Paste last year just shortly before the Michelin Guide announced their results for Bangkok and awarded them a star. Nothing much seemed to have changed but we were informed that it would be difficult to get a table by the window without reservations these days.

Same welcome drink of bael juice. 

This was a tasty cocktail called Smokin' Heat. Clove smoked bourbon with apple juice, lime, elderflower liqueur and chilli. There was something in the flavour that reminded me of nutmeg but with so many ingredients, I couldn't be sure. It was good though.

Amuse bouche was smoked mackerel in cashew nut leaf topped with jamon and caviar.

We liked the watermelon and ground salmon salad from the last time that we ordered it again.

grilled river prawn wrapped with mulberry leaf, northern pepper-berry & topped with seasonal ants eggs - This was awesome. Quite a mix of delicious flavours going on so it's a little difficult to describe. Those ants eggs tasted like Rice Krispies.

Japanese black cod poached in duck lard with white turmeric, roasted sesame, Chinese wine and superior stock - Cod was buttery, tender and delicious with what tasted like a tangy dashi based broth that we drained. We certainly couldn't tell that it had been poached in duck lard.

green curry of wild mushroom, palm heart, pea eggplant & white turmeric - Pretty good green curry that left me spooning mouth after mouth of it like a soup. We could also taste that it was a lighter rendition than the usual green curry that we have had since it didn't have meat.

Massaman lamb curry with young Mhon Thong durian, Thai cardamom and dried coconut apple - Another kickass nutty/sweet/spicy that perfectly paired with steamed rice. The delicious lamb would have been fall of the bone tender if there was any bone in there to fall off.

Some coffee - again unsuccessfully deployed to ward off the post lunch coma.

Some petit fours of Valrhona chocolate with Thai rum. I preferred the truffles from the previous time over these.

Chicken rice from Amarin Plaza foodcourt

I like the food court at Amarin Plaza (496-502 Ploenchit Road). There are quiet moments where one can enjoy a meal and the variety there is a match with many a street food locale around the city. There's a decent khao kha moo stall which I like and yes, this chicken rice which came with extra serving of blood curds came at a princely sum of 50 baht. 

Same price as the popular ones at Pratunam which everyone else is talking about and I suppose I appreciate the fact that we could eat with less discomfort here instead. I couldn't compare since I haven't actually tried those stalls at Pratunam (I'll get to them someday) but this plate was a pretty decent eat we couldn't complain about. I seem to be also getting a hang of their chilli-ed/vinegar-ed dark soy sauce.

Daniel Thaiger, Sukhumvit, Bangkok

Daniel Thaiger was the first and probably is still the only burger joint on a food truck in Bangkok. They update their location via social media but I believe that they're usually at a spot at Sukhumvit Soi 30/1 Alley. We scouted out the location because we happened to be in the vicinity and were curious after seeing its mention pretty often.

Their burgers were pretty good and uncomplicated. Between the buttery brioche buns were the usual suspects of lettuce, tomatoes, grilled onions and the meat/cheese/bacon of choice. From what I've read, they use fresh beef that's ground and pressed into the patties daily. The quality of the meat showed in the flavour. The only thing I would have changed about how those burgers were done was the Thaiger sauce - which like all other special sauces, aren't special. I would have left those out.