dubliner in thailander

how could i not post about our favorite pub in all of this great city? the dubliner is irish-owned, with a real pub feel (translate: very masculine); i know not one person who doesn't love this place. 3 floors of dark, blocky wood tables chairs, irish decor and pool tables up at the top story. sometimes they even have an occasional irish band come play.

drinkies: wide range of imported beers - stella, paulaner, kilkenny, erdinger, corona, hefeweizen, guinness...you get it. standard thai beers, too - singha, leo, etc. handful of red and white wines by glass or bottle, too.

eats: burgers are (i'm guessing) more irish-style, meaning that they're not just beef, there's some other carby filling in the patty. they are large and in charge, just not traditional american style. other irish/western food offered, too, in the form of fish & chips, salads, sandwiches, steaks, etc. also a handful of thai dishes for those wanting an imported beer with their curry.

sweets: sticky toffee pudding is amazing, served hot with ice cream and oozing molten caramel. good enough to get even when you're full up to the throat. the apple thing is really delish, too (though i can't remember what it's called).

oh, we are indeed enjoying it.

dubliner. on sukhumvit, between soi 22 and 24.
drinks 100-300B, entrees 200-400B, desserts 200ish.
web-ers delight: www.dublinerbangkok.com

tamarind cafe: all things to all (vegetarian) people - CLOSED

tamarind cafe

UPDATE: WENT BY LAST WEEKEND (8/3/08) AND THE PLACE IS CLOSED AND GUTTED. where did you go?

mixy mixy.
is tamarind a restaurant or gallery? is it casual or hip? is it eastern or western? the answer is yes; all of the above.

tamarind cafe has a definite western aesthetic (california hip) with a hint of eastern flare (i.e. only in the west do we fashion our food into vertical structures - they even have a dish called "tower of babel"). the vegetarian menu is good and definitely a good eat, though on the blander side of vegetarian cuisine. though, perhaps i'm getting too accustomed to the flavor-packed thai palate. the only thing that discourages me from coming more often is that the prices are about as oversized as the seating (again, re: thailand).

here's the skinny:
@ drinkies- mojitos lacked the punch of lime, mint, and rum. the two that ordered the mojitos ordered other drinks after. velvet underground was a mango smoothie with a hint of mint and a tiny beety bitter bite. i loved it (anything that has beets in it definitely gets a try).
@ appetizer: crispy mushroom with spicy sauce. crispy mushrooms lived up to its name. spicy sauce did not. but, still enjoyable. malaysian quesadilla, which is actually more like a stuffed roti was very nice. peanutty, robust, and comforting; flavored just right to lull you to sleep and give you dreams of home (your malaysian home, that is).
@ mains: green falafel sandwich pita was pretty much like any other falafel pita you could get, though a little lighter, though still one of the heartier items on the menu.
@ after-sweets: lemon cheesecake, which was actually lime, was a tiny, tart portion with a thick, crumbly crust but very good. it didn't last long. chocolate cake with ice cream was nice, but nothing spectacular or memorable (did it have ice cream?). tamarind cafe & gallery f-stop, 27 sukhumvit soi 20, closest BTS @ asoke.
appetizers ~ 150B+, entrees ~ 200B+, desserts ~200B, drinks ~100B+
webby: http://www.tamarind-cafe.com/

bittersweet

bitter brown

there's something intrinsically inviting about bitter brown. tucked a little into asoke court with dark teaks, earthy greens and browns, contemporary art lining the walls, international easy listening playing in the background, you can't help but feel like a piece of eclectic, woodsy california is pulling you in, "the earth is calling you to return to it..." (that sounded a lot creepier than i intended).

most of their cuisine is euro-american - spaghettis, briskets, confit, etc. not extensive, but diverse enough to be interesting. their drink menu is similar - lattes, italian soda, teas, etc. it fits the general mood of the place: "simple".

though small, bitter brown is parsed in two halves - one half restaurant, one half coffee shop. restaurant-side is dark wood, craftsman-style blocky tables and chairs. coffee shop-side is a mix of eccentric comfy couches and chairs, with even a couple mats with triangle pillows for those who prefer to resume a supine position. across the driveway is a small outdoor courtyard with chairs and benches around a koi pond and pool lined by tropical shade trees. have your drink out there if you can manage the heat.
one place with three incarnations. makes any of us who are easily distracted feel a little more cared for.

bitter brown. @ asoke ct on asoke rd (sukhumvit soi 21), before the millennium grand hotel. exit MRT subway at the sukhumvit station. drinks around 30-100B, entrees 100-300B.

wrong side of the river

damnoen saduak floating market

hearkening back to the thai days of old when daily life centered around canals and rivers and boating was a major form of transportation, damnoen saduak floating market has preserved a microcosm of thai traditional life along the river...plus a few hundred foreigners.more than anything, damnoen saduak is a good photo spot, catching vendors selling from hand-paddled longboats. there are also some decent eats from boat vendors. but, i'd recommend heading to other places to get a more authentic taste of thailand.i was surprised at how small the floating market is: take a stroll down both sides of the canal and you'll be back to your starting point in half-an-hour. in general, i was underwhelmed by the place; it felt a little contrived and hokey, like people dressed as wenches and peasants for a renaissance fair. you could buy your typical tzatchkis here, though you'll get a better price for the same things at any other market in bangkok. and after 10am the canal was a boat-to-boat jam of all the longboats of foreigners in the canal. i'm not sure how true this is, but a curious anecdote about damnoen saduak i learned from my thai studies is that it's a bit like the shepherdsons and grangerfords of huck finn. apparently, the two banks of the canal have feuded for years, creating a competitive and self-serving culture. after visiting amphawa floating market, just 13km away, i realized what a floating market could be. go there instead.

thai francophiles rejoice!

savoury gastrocafe

any place that has "gastrocafe" in it's name has to be worthy of a check out. (also, any place with really plush seating is worthy of a check out).

savoury gastrocafe is the meeting of many contradictory things: s.e. asia meets france. utilitarian meets frivolity, clean, definite lines meets velvety sofas. and i LIKE it.
it ended up being a nice find since we weren't expecting much in the food court of siam paragon, but this little philippe starck-esque cafe was a perfect place to relax for a few hours while sipping iced drinks . all the food other patrons were eating was a little hard to not stare at. most of their food is less fusion and more separate-but-equal thai and french-esque.
i'm definitely going again. high marks on everything:
- environment - one of the only restaurants i've found that prefers silence over background music, options for seating, mid-bright lighting, waiters are attentive but let you do your thing.
- eats - delish. by biggest beef with fusion food is that it can often just mean blander, but all of the entrees and desserts were rich and delicious. pan-fried baby sea bass with herbed butter was well-seasoned (yeah, i sopped up all the butter. sue me.). duck confit was a fantastic combination of crispy duck served with grilled eggplant, squash and such.
- desserts. oh, the desserts. you could go for just desserts. the almond dacquois was fantastic - very nutty, moist, perfect ratio of pastry-to-cream-to-fresh-fruit. flourless chocolate cake was decadent. crunchy almond meringue with candied almonds layered with a smooth, light custard was divine, though you can't eat it without completely destroying it. the strawberry millefeuille 3 flaky layers of pastry, berries, and cream were light topping a generous lake of strawberry melba sauce.
sweet pea flower lemonade was light and pure and blue until you add the lime juice.
almond dacquois, with fresh fruit and fresh strawberry puree. sweet pea lemonade (which is actually limeade) behind.

savoury gastrocafe: lowest level of siam paragon in siam square. drinks around 100-200B, entrees around 250+B, desserts 100-200B.

crepes & co. with company

johnny depp. musical theater (or theatre if you feel so inclined). one guy. sorry, dave. unfortunately, the conversation wasn't guy-friendly, but thankfully, the food made up for it.

crepes & co. was a little on the pricier side for crepes, but you gotta get the namesake of the restaurant. it was nice that we had a large enough group to have a little taste of a variety of sundries. there's a little more of a mediterranean-euro flare to their dishes, which makes the french crepe a little more interesting. favorites were
unfortunately, i didn't have the foresight to jot down which crepes we ate, but all the sweet, savory and dessert crepes we got were fantastic. i really liked one that had a camembert, fruit, and walnuts with honey (drool). and the sangria was irresistible.

crepes & co. has great indoor and outdoor seating, with a contemporary, dark wood/canvas style of decor. candlelit, spacious, natural, tropical bungalow feel.

crepes (sweet and savory) range from 150-300B. drinks 50-200B (depending on alcohol)
located at 18/1 sukhumvit soi 12 (closest BTS @ asoke)
webby: www.crepes.co.th

i did it myself at greyhound cafe

thai culture seems an antithesis to the DIY (do-it-yourself) culture of the west. why do something when there's always somebody to do the job for you?
greyhound cafe epitomizes the DIY trend and manhattan cool (well, as much as a restaurant in bangkok can be) - which makes great ambience, but not always the most convenient experience. the furniture we were seated at, for example, was a table that was coffee table height while the chairs were taller and loungy so that our knees came up to table level and you're in half-reclining position. not exactly the most convenient arrangement for eating, but i felt cooler.
both entrees we ordered required assembly: dave's "DIY nachos" and my "complicated noodles" (yes, that's really what they're called). the grilled chicken with the nachos was surprisingly tender and generous for the amount of tortilla chips, which makes it feel more like a meal. making DIY nachos inevitably becomes the construction of each individual nacho, which is nice if you're anal or a "perfect bite" kind of person. my "complicated noodles" did live up to their name and actually required a little bit of brain power. how do you combine square sheets of noodle, ground seasoned pork, cilanto/mint sauce, and lettuce? first attempt at rolling all the ingredients in the noodle turned into an acrobatic juicy mess. second attempt at eating components individually didn't make it fun or as tasty. the final engineering solution was placing the flat noodle on my spoon, then piling the rest of the ingredients on top and then shoveling it all in my mouth. i'm still not sure that was right, but it made it taste good and i wasn't covered in juices. i do highly recommend the dish, though. the flavors mix and complement each other really well and the diversity of textures (crunchy, crispy lettuce, spicy ground pork, soft tender noodle) make a great dish.

ooh, drink highlight was the chinese plum sprite float which sounded too interesting not to order. chinese plum frozen into ice cubes thawing in sprite made a refreshing, robust, tart, unique drink. nicely done. and of course, it had to have a little DIY in it, too. the sprite comes in a separate glass pitcher so you can add it yourself.
left-right: complicated noodles, DIY nachos, chinese plum sprite float

international/fusion cuisine. about 200+B/entree (cheaper for the asian dishes), about 100B/drink
located at thonglor soi 15 "j avenue" (additional locations at emporium, chit lom central, siam center, la villa)
and for you web-savvy: http://www.greyhound.co.th/