Friday 30 May 2014

Little Bangkok

Only recently did I start loving Thai cuisine,  my taste buds were first awakened when I had my first ever Tom Yum soup at the Roseleaf Cafe. The eye watering heat, the tantalising ginger, the lingering taste of lemongrass, I was hooked.  My mission every Tuesday was to make sure that I reached early to the cafe to get my weekly dose of Tom Yum. The cafe even had my number in case they made the soup on another day, I was that in love. Sadly my happiness was short lived since they stopped making the soup soon after. Luckily for me, there are Thai restaurants scattered all over Dubai and that is how my interest for Thai Cuisine grew from Tom Yum to all things Thai related.



Located in Media City, LittleBangkok's brown, orange and green color scheme looks so warm and inviting compared to the very neutral and lackluster lobby.  The space is divided into several dining areas, the booth area that is lit with spherical shaped pendants made of manipulated thin strips of wood, the general area that is lit with a semi transparent colorful fixture and the comfortable sofa area that is covered with umbrellas used as lighting pendants. Through the open kitchen I enjoyed watching the chefs  busily run around from station to station getting things prepared , the smell from their steaming pans made my stomach rumble.




We ordered a Som Tom Salad (papaya salad),  Goong Todd (crispy battered-fried prawns), Har Gow (steamed prawn dumplings) and Gaeng Ped (red curry). We had only been waiting for around ten minutes when all our plates arrived, it was a pleasant surprise since the place was more packed than usual and I was expecting a longer wait. We started with the papaya salad which was flavorsome and a nice beginning to our dinner. Next were the crispy prawns that were covered in a thin, smooth layer of batter with a soft prawn centre that went perfectly with the sweet chilli sauce. As of late I have had an incessant craving for dumplings, so this was the plate I was looking forward to most. The dumpling parcel was delicate but still sturdy, the prawn inside was smooth and soft and was seasoned nicely.  Finally there was the red curry, I had ordered the dish just for myself but it looked like it could feed a family of five. It was mildly spiced with coconut milk, tofu, carrots, bamboo shoots and Kaffir Lime. The tofu was a refreshing addition lowering the intensity of the heat , the carrots were cut in circles with a zigzag edge adding a nice texture to the plate. The combination of ingredients went well together reminding me why I love Thai food.






Needing something refreshing to ease the heat that was in my mouth we decided to order dessert. We got the Kao Neaw Mamuang and the Saku Cantaloupe.  My mouth does not usually water over desserts that do not include chocolate but I was surprised to notice that I was excited to try these out. The first dish was the mango sticky rice, the mangos tasted so good cleansing my palette from the spiciness of the curry. Although the mangos were delicious I did not particularly like the sticky rice , it did not have enough coconut milk and felt more like a savory dish than a sweet one.  I had ordered the second dish after reading that it had tapioca pearls that are found in the bubble tea drinks that have become a craze all over Dubai. I love tapioca pearls not because of their popularity but because they remind me of my summers spent in Australia with my cousins drinking our Easy Way while roaming the mall. The dessert came in a martini like glass with tiny transparent tapioca pearls anchored in a sea of coconut milk, shaved ice and cantaloupe balls. It is a very intriguing dish one that borders the line between edible and drinkable. The only thing that I would have changed is that I would have loved if they incorporated larger tapioca pearls ones that we could taste rather that tiny ones that got lost in the coconut milk.






The restaurant experience as a whole was enjoyable, the staff was very friendly and always smiling. Their food was quite good and exciting although not the best I have had.  An addition is that they have a small pantry of ingredients and products from Thailand, I bought some biscuits covered in chocolate that I have yet to try but if you are keen they have some interesting options. Moreover, on certain days they have an all you can eat offer for a bargain price but you have to finish everything on your plate otherwise you need to pay for the dishes you did not finish. Have a try, let me know how it goes.

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