Posted by Krista on August 30, 2007
50 Exmouth Market
London, EC1R 4QE
Tel: 020 7833 3383
Date of Last Visit: Tuesday, July 31
The Victim: Me
The Damage: £10
The Background: I’ve just spent about 20 hours traveling. Let me go through the timings just to make sure I’m not lying. I hate it when people do that. A 7 (maybe 
hour flight from Chicago to London? That’s nothing. I think you can leave your pajamas at home, sweetheart.
Monday, 10 a.m. Cabo Time/5 p.m. London Time: Leave hotel to return rental car, go to airport
Monday, 2 p.m Cabo/9 p.m. London Time.: Leave Cabo for LAX
Monday, 6 p.m. LA time/Tuesday, 2 a.m. London Time: Leave LAX for London
Tuesday, after 2 p.m. London time, but before 3 p.m.: Arrive back at flat in London.
OK, so 21 hours traveling. Yeah, I’m beat. But I’m also not going to bed until midnight. I want to sleep the night through.
So I have this idea–I’ll go up to Nid Ting by Archway, the Thai place that the staff at Kobkun Thai recommends. Now there’s a field trip! That will soak up some time. (Kobkun Thai, btw, is the massage place on the Essex Road, north of Islington Green. It’s great, but I’m constantly worried it will go out of business. Please go there.)
But you know…I can’t make it to Nid Ting. I am SOOO tired. I leave my apartment and find that I can barely walk straight. But I still want some Thai food. So I slowly and carefully shuffle over to Pride of Siam in Exmouth Market. I’ve had stuff delivered from there, but have never actually been.
After dropping an unexpected amount at Bagman & Robin (for the cutest purse ever), I hop on over to Pride of Siam. (Shopping…I am suddently so energized!) The restaurant has just opened. I ask for a table for one, and the woman motions to me to take a seat. It’s a "come on in, take any seat" type of motion. So I take one with a view of the street. (Sort of–there’a big truck blocking most of the view.) The only problem? It’s a table for four.
And I am SO not allowed to sit there. The woman comes over and tells me to move.
Again, I do my internal math. It’s 6 p.m. on the dot. They’ve just opened. No one else is coming out to eat until 7 at least–and it’s a Wednesday, so it will be a sparse crowd at best. And it’s a Thai restaurant and not a particularly popular one and that. And I, as a single diner, will be done in 45 minutes.
But apparently, I can’t sit here because customers are going to be beating down their doors any second now and they will demand this very table.
Right.
So I am peeved. But I say nothing and retreat to a less scenic two-top in the corner.
Would they do this to Giles? Is it me?
The Food: I order some dumplings and the Pad Se Eu with Chicken. The dumplings are not very flavorful. In fact, they are quite bland. The pad se eu is acceptable, but I’ve had better. And Pride of Siam has made me so very cranky that the only way they can make me happy is to give me free food.
The Service: The older woman who wouldn’t let me sit down spends a lot of time leaving and re-entering the restaurant, like she’s on a mission. An overly self-important mission. My young server is very sweet.
The Verdict: Eh.
You might also enjoy...
Posted in EC1, London, Thai, United Kingdom | 1 Comment
Posted by Krista on May 20, 2006
Thai Thai East Central
110 Old Street
EC1V 9BD
Tel: 0871 4263053
Date of Last Visit: Saturday, May 13th, 2006
The Victim: Dear Old Dad
Dad and I had had a long day. We were hungry. I took him to Fish Central, but then a fight broke out in front of the restaurant (not good for the former NY city police officer) and all the waitstaff and patrons got distracted and no one would take our order. We were highly annoyed and walked out.
So the closest option from there was Thai Thai. I’ve only ever experienced Thai Thai as a take-away, so sitting down was a nice change.
Of course,my father being the man he is, noticed that the wait staff didn’t look very Thai. Turns out they were from Bangladesh. This made my father a bit perturbed, but I always say that you never know anyone’s story, so maybe they grew up in Thailand or something. Adopted children of wealthy Thai-restaurant-dynasty-families? Hey, it could happen.
Our server recommended the mussels and they were FANTASTIC. Chili and lime and all types of good stuff. They were huge too. Mussels must be in season?
After that, I went with the seabass because after eating two fish a day in Tunisia, I was missing my fix. It was perfectly cooked and deboned–always a nice touch. Dad got chicken and veggies, which didn’t look too exciting, but he seemed to like it. Yes, I managed to steer clear of the Pad Se Eu, only my most favorite Thai dish. It was hard, but I managed.
Decor is very Thai, and Buddha is everywhere.
The Verdict: A good local eat-in Thai place.
You might also enjoy...
Posted in EC1, London, Thai, United Kingdom | No Comments
Posted by Krista on May 4, 2006
97 Haverstock Hill
NW3 4RL
Tel: 020 7483 1261
Date of Last Visit: Sunday, April 30th
The Victim: Myself. And Julie.
The Damage: Julie paid!
It was my birthday. Yes. My day. Suffice it to say, I spent most of my day celebrating someone else’s day, which is so not so fun when it’s YOUR day and no one remembers that. So I was anxious. And in need of a little celebrating.
Julie suggested a couple of places in her neighborhood, so after jump-starting the world’s lowest mileage 3-year-old Audi convertible, we eventually met up at 8 on Haverstock Hill.
Our first choice, The Hill, was packed. So we headed to The Steele instead.
I have just two words: Mixed crowd.
Loved it. The young, the old, the dirty, the clean. They were all there. And so were we.
I have a new theory about bars with Thai restaurants. They’re associated with the Thai mafia. I betcha that there’s a guy out there selling Thai cooks all over London. The bar gets food, the dude gets 60% of the profit. A good deal.
I ordered my standard: Pad Se Eu. LOVED IT. It was honestly very delicious. My expectations were so, so low. But it was very, very oh so very good. Despite my ban on carbs, I ate it all. Every last bit.
I hate bars that tell me to be wary of my personal belongings. So that’s a big minus about The Steele. But we were tucked in a corner and no one stole anything, so we were fine.
The Verdict: Supposedly, Sadie Frost hangs out here. I wouldn’t bring my parents here, but given their lovely outdoor garden and delicious Thai cuisine, I can see some field trips in my future.
You might also enjoy...
Posted in Bar Food, London, NW3, Thai, United Kingdom | No Comments
Posted by Krista on April 23, 2006
103-105 Waterloo Road
SE1 8UL
Tel: 0207 633 9886
Date of Last Visit: Friday, April 21, 2006
The Victims: Al, Louise, and Al’s brother Dave
The Damage: 18 quid each with drinks.
Al & Louise invited me out to the National Theatre to see a play they couldn’t remember the name of, and they didn’t know whether it would be good or bad. But we did know that we were in the 1st row; I have this problem were I can only pay attention at plays when I’m in the first few rows, so this was a good thing. (I think I read one too many Richard Scary books as a child, and am thus obsessed with analyzing the details, which you can’t see from the balcony.)
Game for an adventure, I said yes to their kind invitation, and they suggested pre-theatre dinner at Thai Silk, right across from Waterloo station.
Thai Silk is so super-convenient to Waterloo that I almost didn’t see it. It’s seriously right across the street from the main Tube station exit.
The plan was to meet at 5:45; Thai Silk has a set menu for 7.95 per person from 5 to 7–minimum of two people. We went for that and got pretty much everything on the menu except for the pork.
Our starters were tasty because they were super deep-fried. As in fishcakes and spring rolls and undefined deep-fried substance. Heart attack. But delicious nonetheless.
The mains were copious…there was monk fish in curry sauce, chicken in curry sauce, beef in some sort of sauce, and another type of beef. We had some yummy noodles and then the obligatory jasmine rice.
We were stupid and ordered wine by the glass instead of the bottle, so if you figure we each had two glasses of wine each, well, we wasted some money. This added much to our bill which should have otherwise been reasonable.
The Verdict: A good pre-National Theatre option. Not a destination, but a convenient and good-value choice. Watch your cholesterol and stay away from the wines by the glass.
You might also enjoy...
Posted in London, SE1, Thai, United Kingdom | No Comments
Posted by Krista on November 3, 2005
209 Kensington High Street
W8 6BD
Tel: 020 7937 2260
Date of Last Visit: Friday, October 28th
The Victims: Al, Lou, Michael
The Damage: 40ish???
I hadn’t seen Al and Lou for a while, so it was time for a meetup. We called Michael and dragged him along too, meeting up at The Papaya Tree on High Street Ken.
Strike 1: Enter an empty restaurant and they ask if you have a booking.
Strike 2: Thai restaurant with all white tablecloths and decor. Uh…noodles??
Strike 3: Forgetting my water order–twice!
HUGE Strike 4: Me being fairly ill most of Saturday.
In its favor, the Papaya Tree did make me Pad Se Eu with half chicken and half seafood. I love it that way, and it wasn’t like that on the menu. Also, the wine was lovely, and service was very sweet. My food was good at the time, but something wasn’t right later the next day!!!
The Verdict: I’m nervous about every going back.
You might also enjoy...
Posted in London, Thai, United Kingdom, W8 | No Comments
Posted by Krista on May 21, 2005
12 Upper St. Martin’s Lane
WC2H 9DL
Tel: 020 7379 6893
Date of Last Visit: Friday May 21, 2005
The Victims: Julie, Meredith, Andrea
The Damage: A bit less than 20 GBP each
We saw Mary Poppins. The play, not the person. It was good. I was expecting something else because I’d heard that it was a different kind of Mary Poppins, darker and more mysterious. And that Disney had approved it, even though it was so "out there."
Well I don’t know. Maybe I know Mary Poppins too well. I thought it was just like the movie. There were a couple of cool scenes where Bert climbed the stage (that was very cool) and Mary flew out into the audience. But otherwise. Eh.
So afterwards, we were of course hungry and went on our normal search for sustenance. (Why am I always searching for sustenance???) We ixnayed Indian because Meredith and Andrea are in London visiting for the weekend and had plans for Indian later in the weekend. So there, glittering in the distance, in the shadow of Stringfellows, was Absolute Thai. It was after 10:30, and they still permitted our entry. Good sign.
We had some duck spring rolls, which were nice. And some prawn bags of some sort, which were just okay. And I ordered my normal Pad Se Eiw and it was DELICIOUS. But then again, I always seem to love Pad Se Eiw, no matter where I have it. So do not judge Absolute Thai by me. But seriously, everyone seemed pretty happy with their food. And their beer. It was a good night. But then they kicked us out at midnight.
The verdict: If I’m in the ‘hood around 10:30 again, I’d go here. No booking necessary, not so expensive. Good food. Good stuff.
You might also enjoy...
Posted in London, Thai, United Kingdom, WC2 | 1 Comment
Posted by Krista on June 28, 2004
Silks & Spice
11 Queen Victoria Street
EC4N 4UJ
020 7248 7878
Date of Last Visit: Late May, 2004
The Victims: Many over multiple visits.
Ilike Thai food. Almost as much as I like Chinese food. More than anything in the world, I miss Penny’s Noodles on Diversey & Sheffield in Chicago. For $5, I could have a great meal, and the little Thai man at the counter knew who I was.
So I like Silks & Spice, but it’s big and sprawling and the people at the counter will never know my name. But I’ve been here three times, and have always had good experiences, so maybe someday. The food is delicious and it comes FAST and the service is friendly but not overly so.
It’s not pretentious; it’s just good eating. Have I told you how much I love prawn crackers? Why don’t they have those in my country?
Be careful ordering larger beers because they are VERY LARGE. And try to sit in the front and not the back–the back has a banquet hall feel to it that I’m not all that cool with.
Try to go here on Friday nights because they have a decent happy hour special and it’s very un-crowded which I like. Reminds me of the old days at Uncle Phil’s International Bar.
The Verdict: Go for lunch. Probably not fancy enough for dinner. Decent food, decent prices, no complaints.
You might also enjoy...
Posted in EC4, London, Thai, United Kingdom | No Comments
Posted by Krista on June 27, 2004
Sri Thia
Bucklersbury House
3 Queen Victoria Street
EC4N 4PQ
Date of Last Visit: Early May, 2004
The Victims: David, Man, Chris
So normally, I go to a different Thai restaurant in The City. But everyone told me Sri Thai was nicer so I had to go there. And I did. And it smelled funny. Like mold or something. It was weird. And we were the only people there. (See, being American, I like to eat at 12. I’ve compromised on 12:30, but still, I seem to eat earlier than any British people I know.)
We had a good meal. But again, 14-million different people waited on us; dude, why can’t I just have one????
The food was good. I can’t say anything bad about it. It was tasty and we ate it all up. The dessert was yummy too, but very un-Thai (uh, Lemon Tart). And my green tea was fabulous.
But the place is just so big and sprawling, I’m sure if I came here every day, no one would ever know my name. And that’s my goal…to find a place where everybody knows my name. This place is not it.
The Verdict: Go if you want some Thai, but check out my other Business Thai reviews. There are other options, and they don’t smell funny!
You might also enjoy...
Posted in EC4, London, Thai, United Kingdom | 1 Comment
Recent Comments