Friday Five
If you...
1. ...owned a restaurant, what kind of food would you serve?
Thai food. I'd learn how to make it, or hire a great Thai cook or set of cooks, just so I could eat it when I wanted, and watch the happy faces of my customers as they eat the greatest cuisine on Earth. I LOVE Thai food.
2. ...owned a small store, what kind of merchandise would you sell?
Duh. Rare books, of course.
3. ...wrote a book, what genre would it be?
Poetry or short stories. I can't write dialogue, so anything else is out.
4. ...ran a school, what would you teach?
Philosophy, law, or history.
5. ...recorded an album, what kind of music would be on it?
Acoustic blues. A man, a harmonica, and a guitar, and maybe an accompanying piano on some of the numbers.
Sorry posting has been infrequent this week. I'm busy, what can I say.
Any recommended Thai spots in town?
I rarely stray from Thai Pepper, because I like it AND can walk to it, but I'd like to hear your recommendations.
Posted by: kevin whited | March 19, 2004 at 02:00 PM
Sure. I've got tons of recommendations. #1 is Kanomwan, which you will not find unless you are looking for it. It's down on Telephone Road, right near UH. The restaurant looks ghastly from the outside, but the food is so indescribably good . . .
It's run by an actual Thai family, so only downside is that they close up and go to Thailand for like a month at a time, without warning.
They make the single greatest dish I have ever eaten (at a normal, non-fivestar restaurant). It's called H6, chicken with cashews and chili paste (not sauce, but paste, which makes all the difference), and it is so good, I actually get sad whenever I go there and finish it.
Mmmmm, H6.
Thai Pepper is alright, IMO. I like the butterfly rice and the soups, but find the ivory chicken overrated and the spicy sauces watery.
Thai Cottage is really outstanding, and there are two, one at Richmond and Weslayan, and one in Bellaire at So. Rice and Bissonett. They are each excellent, although the original in Bellaire is somewhat superior. I definitely think the original Thai Cottage has a serious claim for best overall Thai restaurant in Houston.
I'm a really big fan of Patu in the Village, right next to Texadelphia. It's a lovely little restaurant, and they have the best pad thai chicken in the city, no question. Unlike some Thai restaurants, they make it from scratch when you order it--they don't just have the noodles sitting in a warmer.
The food can take awhile, however, but it is certainly worth it.
Stay away from Nit Noi in the Village. The decor is beautiful but the food is atrocious, the McDonald's of Thai food, IMO. I'm also not a big fan of Thai Spice in the village (but some friends of mine love their buffet).
Thai Cottage, Kanomwan, Patu, all pretty close to you. Also close is Mai Thai, which Ms. TP loves but Mr. TP does not love quite as much. I find Mai Thai, on Kirby just south of Richmond, to be the very definition of hit-or-miss. But I have been there at times and found it quite good.
Maybe I'll post on this. Yes, I am an aspiring foodie. ;-)
Posted by: Milton | March 19, 2004 at 02:29 PM