Dining Out for Life at Thai Away Home

Last night was Dining Out For Life, an annual fundraiser taking place across North America where participating restaurants donate 25% of their profits from the evening to AIDS and HIV service organizations. I thought this would be the perfect guilt-free opportunity to enjoy a night out on my limited budget. Thai Away Home is one of my go-to local Thai restaurants because you get a good amount of food for your money.

I ordered the Pad Thai Combo, which came with tom yum soup, spring roll, and a salad for $10.69.  It’s a lot of food and I always have leftovers. The soup is good, a little oily but the flavour is okay. I love the house salad dressing, it’s sweet and acidic and they give you a heaping pile of lettuce. Also, I love their spring rolls dipped in the plum sauce. It’s the totally unhealthy for you fried spring roll, but whatever, once in a while you have to throw caution to the wind.

 Last night the pad thai was sweeter and saucier than usual. I couldn’t help thinking, is this made with ketchup? Generally, the Pad Thai here is not the most authentic tasting recipe in town, but it’s quick and they give you a lot of food. I’ve eaten here countless time, sometimes the food is spot on, other times it’s just okay.  The yellow curry is another favourite of mine. They have good lunch specials and if you’re in the area don’t hesitate to give them a try.

Slickity Jim’s Chat ‘n’ Chew

This was an impromptu lunch at Slickity Jim’s on Monday after an impromptu night of drinking on Sunday. It is a cute little joint with a quirky interior and unique menu titles. There was only one – but very friendly - waitress working and one cook. The food took as long to come out with only one person cooking it all.

Our waitress informed us that they had a very busy weekend, and were out of the pulled pork. THE HORROR and disappointment in Phil’s eyes was almost too much to handle on an empty stomach. He settled for his second choice, a grilled chicken and brie sandwich called Watching The Angels Fall, $10.50. It came with his choice of soup, roasted potatoes, salad, or coleslaw.

The chicken was extremely tender, despite how lack luster the sandwich looks. But overall I thought it was just okay, kind of missed the mark somewhere.

When I asked Emilie what she liked about her Artichoke Heart Brie Burger, $11.50, she said “What didn’t I like. It was brie.” Well said Emilie, well said.

But in all seriousness, she said eating this burger didn’t feel unhealthy. The bun was quite substantial, and the vegetables fresh. It was like a homemade burger, filling without being unfulfilled. She opted for a lean ground beef patty but you could also choose from turkey, chicken, or a house made veggie patty.

I had The Breakfast of Broken Dreams for $9.50. Two easy poached eggs over an English muffin with caramelized onions, spinach, and warm gorgonzola sauce. I found it very satisfactory and only somewhat broken, as the “warm” gorgonzola sauce was actually stone cold. Like, ugggghhh, really?

Caramelized onions harmonized in TRIUMPH with the gorgonzola sauce, which despite being luke-warm at best actually tasted good. I was surprised by the uncooked spinach; it was interesting, definitely not bad but I assumed based on the menu description that it would be steamed or something.

Phil also ordered a mocha milkshake which took for-ever to arrive (granted the ice cream had been frozen like a rock according to our server) but when it arrived it was good. And topped with whipped cream. So worth the wait. However, I didn’t think it was as good as my fresh fruit smoothie!

Will I go back? Yes. Why? Because I’m just too damn hungry not to, and the dishes were intriguing enough to warrant a second sitting. Also, Slickity Jim’s has really cute plates. Oh, and Phil wants to try the pulled pork. And I hear they have a good dinner menu with chicken pot pie. And a fried egg and cheddar burger, one of my Bucket List meals. Ugh, I’m so hungry.

I’m full of Bacon and Regret at Edible Canada

I finally think I overdid it with the breakfast bacon. But what can I say, my eyes are bigger than my stomach and my stomach was full of bacon and bacon related goodness. Edible Canada, touché.

As always, we ordered drinks to start, the $5 cocktail feature and a coffee which came with its own press! Very cute.

It was a well crafted caesar with horseradish for spice, a chilled slice of bacon and a bacon salt rim. I was intrigued by the combination of cheap liquor and bacon, but it was very rich and salty. That bacon salt was no joke.

Phil tried the Canadian Rockies Beef Burger for $13.00. It didn’t come with fries, so that was an extra $5.00. The burger came with double smoked bacon, smoked cheddar, caramelized onions, house-made pickle & house ketchup.

Great burger, we really liked it. The meat was juicy and not over seasoned, you could really taste the beef. The strong flavours from the smoked cheddar and caramelized onions complimented it well. Very filling, even Phil had to brace himself to finish it. The side of duck fat fries came with a bacon aioli which was okay, but didn’t live up to the urbanspoon rave reviews.

I ordered the Edible Canada Breakfast for $12.00: Scrambled free range eggs, Sloping Hills pork & apple sausage, double smoked bacon, smoked tomatoes, crispy duck fat fried hashbrowns, fresh herbs. It also came with the house “ketchup”. The meal was well presented, and the perfect serving size. It was richer and more filling that it appeared.

Two thick slices of perfectly cooked bacon, not charred to a crumbling crisp like most breakfast joints. I was very impressed. The Sloping Hills apple pork sausage was alright, the eggs were very dense, and I didn’t enjoy the smoked tomatoes – which had a smoked bacon flavour.

We disagreed about the house made “ketchup”. Phil liked it because it was real ketchup and not the sugary Heinz stuff; I hated it ( but kept eating it just incase the next bite was the one that changed my mind…) It really didn’t add anything to the meal except a lack of flavour. It was bland and unexciting.

My friend Dom tried the Gluten-free Fish and Chips, $15, made with rice flour tempura. This looked pretty amazing, and in hindsight I regretted not ordering it. Go read her blog for the review and  food photos! theglutenfreedom

OVERALL IMPRESSION:

I thought it was only okay. I’d like to go back and try some of their dinner items and enjoy the evening ambiance, sans whimpering children. The price of my breakfast was right, and I was stuffed …. but it was too salty and I felt bloated afterwards. This is partially the fault of the bacon salt caesar, however the rich creamy eggs and the duck fat hash browns were both heavily salted, the fries so much so that it was hard to finish them. But everyone else really enjoyed their less salty meals, so I give this place a 3 out of 5 stars.

Thai Style Ribs

It’s getting closer and closer to BBQing season, but for those of us unlucky enough not to have a backyard or patio grill, I found a crock pot recipe for fall-off-the-bone ribs that will make your mouth water. And they really do fall off the bone, and then melt in your mouth because they’re that tender. The Thai style marinade incorporates fresh ingredients like cilantro, garlic, and ginger to produce a sweet and tangy sauce. Garnishing the ribs with lime zest rounds out and accentuates the flavours for a finger-licking-good meal. 

Thai Style Ribs, A La Crock Pot

You Will Need:

A crock pot, duh. This recipe is for a 6-quart slow cooker.

2-3 Racks of Pork  back ribs, cut in half or thirds to fit into your crock pot
1 can thawed and undiluted Pinapple-Apple-Orange juice from concentrate (I used Tropicana but Welches is good too)
3/4 cup Light Soy Sauce
1/4 cup Peanut butter
1/4 cup Chopped fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons Fresh ginger, minced
1 Garlic clove, minced
1 Lime, quartered to squirt over the ribs before eating.
optional: 1-2 Thai red chilis if you like to get spicy

What You Do:

1) To make the marinade combine and whisk together the juice, soy sauce, peanut butter, cilantro, ginger, garlic, and Thai chilis if you’re using them. Pour the marinade over your ribs, seal ribs in an air tight container and let stand in the fridge for 8 hours. 8 HOURS?! Yes, 8 hours. I did mine over night. The longer you wait, the better they taste.

2) If you don’t have a crock pot, cook your ribs on the BBQ, or in the oven, or however you want. Whatever.

3) Place ribs into your crock pot and discard remaining marinade. I found that leaning some against the sides of the bowl gives it charred edges, like you cooked it on the BBQ. 

4) Cook on high for 1 hour, then on low for 5. Don’t open the lid, just enjoy the sweet aromas wafting through your house.

5) Garnish your ribs with a few squirts of lime. This really brings together the flavours, and can’t be left out. 

Who needs a BBQ when you have a magical crock pot? Seriously, Happy Eating.

365 Days of Heaven

365 Days of Dining is an amazing opportunity for one blogger to eat out in the city of Richmond B.C. for ONE YEAR. Did I mention it is paid? I think I’ve died and gone to heaven. Already sent in my application, keep your fingers crossed for me!

 

Eggs in a Bun

Is it breakfast time again and you’re tired of the regular menu items? Why not try this simple recipe for eggs baked in a bun. Novelty is the spice of life!

serves one-two people, depending on your appetite

You will need:

2 Dinner rolls
2 Eggs, beaten
Milk, just a bit for the eggs
Salt and pepper to taste
Smoked cheddar, grated ( or delicious cheese of your choice)

Scrambled eggs are pretty boring on their own so I always add chives or green onions to my eggs. I also added some prosciutto pieces and a light dusting of chili flakes.

Let’s Get Crackin’

Preheat your oven to 400.
1) Hollow out your dinner rolls. Be careful to leave the sides tall enough that the eggs don’t spill out over the top.

2) Crack and whisk your eggs with a little milk. Add salt/pepper/chives/prosciutto to the egg mixture. Place hollowed buns on a baking tray and carefully pour the egg mixture into the buns.

3) Grate some smoked cheddar and sprinkle it overtop of the egg mixture ( or add it to the eggs before it goes into the bun)

4) Place baking tray in the oven and bake for 10-15 minutes, or until eggs are cooked and no longer runny. I turned on the broiler for the last two minutes to crisp up the tops.

5) Remove from oven and let stand a few minutes before serving. Eat and enjoy.

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