Bangkok - Lao Lao Shanghai

June 15, 2018

Dear Fork,

What a great day to reunite as a team and devour some amazing feast. Lao-Lao Shanghai, a Chinese restaurant located on the first floor of the Jas Ramintra (community mall). This place is spacious and have a VIP room with a Lazy Susan table perfectly for family dining.

The restaurant is decorated more towards a modern Chinese style with a touch of traditional Chinese art, visibly on the pots. Their beautiful pots with cloisonne enamel (Jing Tai Lan) are pure beauty. They use them as the decor as a part of the restaurant. We were really hype to try the hot pot using this Jing Tai Lan pot. It never hurts to eat from a fancy pot, don't you think so?!

The restaurant is newly opened and they are famous for their hot pot, but after trying out so many entrée dishes today, they were just as splendid. We started off with a few appetizer plates. Deep-fried Minced Tofu Lao Lao Style (THB 180), wow, to have begin the meal with this dish, I did expect a lot for other coming up dishes, because this was delicious! Who knew, 'just a fried tofu' dish could make me satisfy that much for a person who's not a fan for tofu like me. It's definitely not your typical deep fried tofu. It's flavorful with the crispiness on the skin. Served with lotus root chips, sweet soy sauce and plum sauce. Highly recommended.

What's Chinese lunch without some dim sum right? This is Lao Lao Dim Sum 14 pcs. (THB 390) It comes with 8 different types on dimsum
- Prawn shumai
- Scallop shumai
- Shiitake stuffed with prawn
- Seaweed prawn
- Teochew dumpling
- Shrimp Dumpling (Ha Gow)
- BBQ Pork Bun
- Salted egg yolk custard bun

My favorites were the seaweed shrimp dim sum and salted egg yolk custard. Useful note: you can also order them individually and they serve two pieces per order.

Look at that #saltedeggyolkporn !!! Salted Egg Yolk Custard Bun

The next dish we had was the Slow-cooked Kurobuta Belly (THB 380). This pork belly just melted in my mouth, so tender. Food with gold flake gets me all the time. LOL

A few more dishes arrived and the highlights were Sichuan Stir-fried Tofu (THB 180), Deep-fried Sea Bass with Spicy Salt and Sichuan Pepper (which we also got the shrimp version of it). They were great with rice.

AND...comes the most exciting part. HOT POT TIME!!! This is the part where we anticipated for. We opted for Premium Beef Stew Hot Pot (THB 650), which comes with Paleron beef (on left), a set of mixed vegetables. The broth itself has super tender braised beef and beef shank. The soup is very aromatic and flavorful. The dipping sauces are sweet sauce and spicy sauce.

The marbling of the beef was just perfect. We also ordered the regular thinly sliced beef to try and it was great as well. The dishes you can order on the side are something like beef tendon, stewed pork and strip loin etc. SO GOOD!

NEXT: Desserts time! My favorites were the Mini Custard Mooncake (THB 70/pc.), house-made salted egg yolk custard tasted heavenly. Black Sesame in Ginger Syrup (THB 50) is one of my favorite desserts and Lao-Lao house-made version is really good.

Black Sesame Dumpling in Ginger Syrup (THB 50)

To sum it all up, this place was such a great find, I'm glad I stumbled upon it. The flavors were all wonderful and every plates were beautifully executed. I'd recommend to go with 2 or more people so you get to try all these yummy dishes. It's always good to have a little bit of everything, right?

Love,

Spoon

Lao Lao Shanghai
Address: The Jas Ramintra - Ladplakao Rd. Bangkok, Thailand 10220
Tel: 02-116-8910
Business Hours: MON - SUN 11AM - 10PM
Parking - YES
Price - ฿฿฿

Bangkok - Menya Itto

March 16, 2018

Dear Fork,

Rank #1 Tokyo's Best Ramen restaurant on Tabelog, Menya Itto is now served in Bangkok! Located in Erawan Bangkok in Urban Kitchen area. I went there after 6pm, lucky for us, there was no line out the door. Lunch is the time to avoid, as the area gets busy. The restaurant is decorated simply with wooden floor and furnitures. Open kitchen gives you the aromatic scent of delicious broth, to keep your stomach growling.

Started off with these delicious looking Gyoza (90฿). It was amazing and perfect as a starter. The meat is flavorful and tender, and the sauce was a great compliment. Must-try!

Menya Itto is famous for their Tsukemen, a ramen dish that the noodle is to be dipped in on a bowl of soup or broth before eating. I've had many Tsukemen before and there's something special about Menya Itto's style.

I opted for the signature Itto Noko Gyokai Tsukemen (350฿). Cold thick daily house-made ramen noodle topped with 3 sous vide meat, Tori Chashu (chicken), Rosu Chashu (pork shoulder) and Bara Chashu (pork belly), along with a bowl of flavorful hot chicken broth with Tori Dango (chicken meatballs). The meat was so tender! The soup was delightful. Some people may find it too salty, so they offer Wadashi soup on the table to dilute the soup and also for you to drink up the soup after your meal. The Karami (ebi chili flake) added some spice to the soup wonderfully.

Truffle Mazemen with cheese (590฿), a seasonal menu is another dish to try. Dry ramen dish topped with onsen egg, negi, onion, thinly sliced rosu chashu and truffle. Mix everything well together and what you get is Viola! Serves only 15 dishes per day.

Everything was very fulfilling. This will definitely be my go-to spot for Tsukemen from now on. To end the night, I would recommend you to order their Hokkaido Milk Creme Brûlée (120฿), made of Hokkaido milk and strawberry is hidden underneath, giving this creme brûlée a unique taste.

I wish you were here,

Spoon.

Menya Itto
www.menya-itto.com
Address: Menya Itto, LG/F, Erawan Bangkok, 494 Phloen Chit Rd., Bangkok, Thailand
Tel: 02-250-7669
Business Hours: Mon - Sun 11.30AM - 3.30PM and 6.00PM - 9.00PM
Parking: Erawan Bangkok
Price: ฿฿฿

Bangkok - La Dotta Pasta Bar & Store

December 29, 2017

Dear Fork,

Glad to see you on such a festive season. It was a late Christmas dinner, but just perfect for some delicious pasta! La Dotta - a traditional Italian restaurant located in the heart of Thong Lo. It offers fresh daily made pasta with hearty sauce. It hosts a mini-sized display of their appetizing fresh pasta by the entrance, from bucatini, linguine, garganelli to tortelloni etc.

Walking in to this small cozy restaurant, decorated with blue and yellowish beige (just like the color of the pasta :D), marble counter top with an open kitchen for us to take in the art of making delicious dishes. There is a shelf holding La Dotta owned products of their pasta sauce and what not. Upstairs, located a more family styled sitting tables and a bar, giving its loud and fun vibe.

Speaking of the bar, I got to try these (not-so)basic cocktails and they were both great! La Dotta Martini - Bombay Sapphire Gin, Carpano Bianco, Strawberry, Cherry Tomato (340฿). Easy to drink. I only wish the glass was bigger. LOL

G & T & TEA...what! Yes, Gin & Tonic with premium selection of tea you can choose from, Rooisbos Cream Orange/Soft Peach/Morgentau Green Tea, Wild Cherries. I opted for the soft peach (320฿). Very refreshing.

Started off with Truffle, sage & ricotta cheese deep fried balls (190฿). They took cheese balls to a whole nother level! These were wonderful, crispy on the outside, fully stuffed with warm truffle, sage and ricotta cheese. Went perfectly well with the aioli.

Here comes my favorite dish of the night, Tortelloni 4 Formaggi or 4 cheese (360฿). Same shape as tortellini but filled with artisanal Italian 24-months aged cheeses, Parmigiano-Reggiano fondue. The dish looked so simple but the taste was pure heaven, filled with warm melt-in-my-mouth cheese. Not too creamy. The kind of dish that gives you that "umm" sound effect after the first bite.

Another dish that's highly recommended, Tagliatelle Bolognese (590฿) - 24-hour slow cooked Wagyu beef shoulder with Parmigiano-Reggiano. Flavorful dish with tender meat. Love the texture of their fresh pasta. One thing I really enjoyed about their menu, in the back, they have this glossary of their pasta in the back, using a basic 2D illustration.

There is no complete meal without desserts, right? I went for the Sicilian Ice Cream (220฿). You get to choose 2scoops of lemon, pistachio or vanilla, served in a waffle cup. I went for lemon and pistachio and they were both delightful. First time having Sicilian ice cream, and I fell in love! Must try!

Hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. Happy Holidays!

Love,
Spoon.

La Dotta
Address: 161/6 Soi Thonglor 9 Sukhumvit 55 North Klongtan, Wattana, Bangkok, Thailand
Tel: 02-392-8688
Business Hours: Mon - Sun 11.00AM - 11.00PM
Parking: Lunch - off-street parking or at Eight Thonglor. Dinner - Valet parking.
Price: ฿฿฿฿

Bangkok - Tuang by Chef Yip

August 30, 2017

Dear Fork,

I missed you again. I stumbled upon a small hole in the wall again. The perk of going to Charoenkrung street is that there are so many hidden gems of street food along the whole street. This particular street connects China town through a few parts of the city, displaying the the old town Chinese vibe in Bangkok remarkably. The busy street has its flaw. There is no parking area provided! Luckily, I went there on the weekend and street parking was not as challenging.

Tuang - by Chef Yip, has set its standard as one of the best affordable dim sum in Bangkok. The casual setting is the place where you see people coming in and out, lining up ordering food home throughout the day. Famous for its Lava Bun that has so many variety for such a tiny restaurant. On the inside, the wall is filled with certificates and awards of the restaurant itself and the infamous Chef Yip Yun Keong, a Hong Kong-born, the person behind the success of Chinese restaurant in the 5-Star, Shangri La hotel.

Shrimp RIce Flour Roll, Pork Spare RIbs, Steamed Shrimp Dumpling (Hakao)

Let's talk about the food. Everything was so darn cheap! I got Shang Hai Xiao Long Bao (฿40/tray), Pork Spare Ribs (฿40/tray), Hakao (฿50/tray), Shrimp Rice Roll (฿50/plate) and Custard Lava Bun (฿17/pc). o_O... WOW!!! I know right!? Only a few bucks for such good meal, why not? The BBQ Pork Rice Roll and Hakao is highly recommended here. The BBQ Pork Rice Roll is so soft, melt in you mouth along with the warm flavorful sauce, just heavenly.

And...here's my favorite TADA! Egg Yolk Lava Bun or they called it Custard Lava Bun here. This was incredible, with the perfect amount of the custard. The taste was so good I had to order more for take-out. #sorrynotsorry (It was still great after a few hours and a few secs of heating-up). I wish you could join me next time! 3.5/5 it is. This place is actually better than some hotel dim sum places, not to be named, it's so closed to this restaurant. ><"

Tuang - by Chef Yip
Address: 2029/9 Charoen Krung Rd, Wat Phraya Krai, Bang Kho Laem, Bangkok 10120
Tel: 086-603-0908
Business Hours: Everyday 7.00AM - 5.30PM
Parking: Off-street.
Price: ฿฿฿

Bangkok - Le Boeuf The Steak & Fries Bistro

August 29, 2017

Dear Fork,

How have you been lately? I swear I told myself I would be on diet...but, I fail every time. LOL I was craving for steak and hmm... Le Boeuf it is!

Le Boeuf The Steak & Fries Bistro is a French restaurant located in Marriott Mayfair Executive Apartment, Lung Suan area. The restaurant is set in a glasshouse, right off the building, facing the street of Lang Suan, which makes the fine-dining ambient real romantic during dinner.

Started off with some appetizers, I got a Assiette de Chachuterie board, which comes with baguettes, parma, salami with Terrine de Foie Gras and Terrine de Campagne, topped with pickles and walnut. Plenty to share with 4-6people. Make sure to save lots of space for the meat!!

Known for the very amazing L'Entrecote Steak with their infamous 'Green' sauce. This secret green sauce was developed from the legendary, Cafe de Paris in Geneva. This concept remains which were mainly focused on serving the green sauce with one cut of meat. The sauce is so good, very flavorful, goes well with all kind of meat. It's thick but compliments the steak wonderfully. The other best part is every Entrecote order, comes with walnut salad and UNLIMITED FRENCH FRIES. Oh Em Gee, the fries came out hot and fresh. Dip them fries in that green sauce and enjoy!!!

Let's talk about their steak. We went for both the Entrecote Steak and Grilled Lamb Chops, they both were cooked to perfection as requested (medium rare). Served on a hot sizzling plate, so your steak never gets cold. They were super juicy and tender. If you fancy for a more flavorful option, the grilled lamb chops is the way to go. SO DELISH! Highly recommended - 5/5 Hope you loved it too.

Love,
Spoon

Le Boeuf Steak & Fries Bistro - Marriott Mayfair, Bangkok
Address: 60 Langsuan, Lumphini, Pathum Wan, Bangkok 10330
Tel. +662-672-1230 (Langsuann), +6697-235-7935 (Thonglor)
Business Hours: 11.00AM - 11.00PM
Parking: YES
PRICE: ฿฿฿฿

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