hibacheap

Hibachi is a great option for food and entertainment all in one place. However, I find that many chain hibachi restaurants are over priced, and well, over played. The places are so crowded and the cooks always seem like they’re in la la land because they’ve done the same thing 60 times in just one night.

A friend and I wanted to have hibachi that was affordable and easy but that wouldn’t compromise any of the flavor. Enter: Sushi House in Bridgewater, NJ. This restaurant is located close to Bridgewater Commons but far enough away from all the fuss. Half of the space is saved for sushi and regular entrees and the other half are the hibachi grills.

The very best part about this place is the price for everything that you get! I was able to get salad with ginger dressing, mushroom soup, shrimp, chicken, noodles, fried rice, vegetables AND ice cream. All of the whopping price of $20.

The soup and the salad seem to be standard. I ate most of the salad and took a few sips of the soup. It’s easy to start eating right away and not save room for all the of the food that is about to be placed on your plate.

Then, we were given fried rice, noodles, and the shrimp appetizer.The fried rice is probably my favorite part. It’s sticky, salty, and absorbs all of the flavors that surround it. Please tell me how many times you’ve paid extra for the delicious hibachi fried rice. Nope, not me! Not here! Not now. The noodles are super delicious too! Just plain fried noodles you can’t beat. Now how often have you gotten noodles AND fried rice?? And then shrimp too! Three perfectly cooked pieces of shrimp that are just as tasty when eaten alone or dipped in the mustard and ginger sauce. I still can’t decide which one in my favorite-but I guess I really don’t have to.

go on, be shellfish

Some people may think that being selfish is a negative personality trait. I mean when I googled the word selfish, Kim Kardashian’s name popped up and she isn’t exactly who I think people should strive to be.  But who am I to judge? Anyway, something tells me that you’re not Kim Kardashian and because of that I am giving you permission to be a little bit selfish. I think it’s okay to make sure that you take care of yourself first from time to time. 

curry up, i’m so hungry

I’m one of those people you don’t want to mess with when hungry. I have a bad attitude, I don’t find anything funny, I’m snippy, and extremely impatient. Other people just have to understand this and make sure they hang around me when I’m eating or have just eaten.

For some, I will make an exception. For some, I will wait to be seated and wait for my food to be delivered to me all while feeling joyous, hopeful, and patient. Who gets to be so lucky, you ask? Thai Kitchen I in Bridgewater, NJ.  

I don’t know why I was surprised when walking into Thai Kitchen on a Saturday night that every single table was packed and people were waiting out the door to be seated. I had read reviews and even had this as take out once before and knew it was favored by many.

Well in my favor, since their staff is so efficient and meals are cooked in what seems like almost an instant- I was seated in less than twenty minutes since entering the door. While walking toward my table, I did the whole “look at everyone’s food to see what looks good and what I want to order” bit. EVERYTHING looked SO good. EVERYONE looked SO happy. I couldn’t help but think it was directly correlated with the food they were eating. So I knew the decisions would be tough…

First…

A Thai Iced Tea. A strongly brewed tea topped with evaporated milk and served over ice. The best part is getting to stir the milk that floats on top of the tea and watching it all swirl to perfection. Each sip is refreshing, cold, a light tea flavor, sweet, and a little bit thick. It’s hard not to guzzle it all down at once. But you must not do this because Thai dishes are typically spicy so this will be the perfect beverage to cool the flames in your mouth later on. (you’re welcome)

Then…

A table full of appetizers is my kind of table. Farther away are steam shrimp dumplings. Closer to you are curry puffs.

The shrimp is delicately embraced in a thin dumpling wrapper that when steamed, tastes like a very light pasta that holds small pieces of fresh shrimp in a perfect little pouch. You could pop these in your mouth or (depending on who you are eating with) you can dip part of the dumpling into the garlic soy sauce (left) and the other part into the ginger, peanut sauce (right). The dumpling soaks up all the flavor from the sauces creating an explosion of flavor and texture in your mouth-chewy, delicate, hearty, smooth, salty, garlic-y, peanut-y, slightly crunchy.

After finishing the dumplings, I headed right into the curry puffs. Now, I have to say, I have had curry puffs from other places and I have not enjoyed them so for me I was really feeling this one out with caution. These puffs are filled with chicken, potatoes, onions, carrots, and celery. In these puffs, the curry flavor is not overwhelming at all. It’s very subtle. These reminded me of empanadas with a slightly different take- and I LOVE empanadas. To counter the flavor of the curry and flakiness of the puff pastry, it was served with a cool cucumber relish. Perfect combination. I fear the curry puff no more.

Finally…

The main event. Pa Nang Curry dish with chicken. No this is not soup. The dish comes in a bowl because chicken, onions, carrots, and bell peppers are flooded with panang curry paste, coconut milk, and lime leaves. On the side is a dish of jasmine rice. All of which are extremely aromatic and enticing.

In order to eat this dish properly, first you must lay down the steamed, jasmine rice. Then, using a spoon, you dish all of the ingredients on top of the rice. Finally, put as MANY spoonfuls of the sauce as possible so that all of the rice can soak up that flavor. The chicken was so tender. I’ve never had more tender chicken in my life- seriously. The carrots and onions are cut julienne which I think adds to presentation and to the flavor when you take a bite. It’s not like “HEY there’s a carrot and onion in your mouth!!” which can be extremely overwhelming for some. The peppers are a little bit bigger but that’s okay because they keep their freshness and crunch this way. The best part is the sauce. It has so much depth and flavor you could get lost in it. It’s thick, nutty, spicy, (take a sip of your iced tea) a little bit grainy, and sweet too. It’s just so amazing, I could have this every day of my life.

I must say that when finishing, the owner came over to the table and informed me that the dish gets even better over night because it gives the flavors even more time to blend together. She also said that sometimes instead of rice she will eat it over pasta. VERY interesting an intriguing! I always appreciate workers who pay attention to their customers. It yields towards a very comfortable atmosphere.

Heck yes I was hungry- not hangry though. Because honey, some things are just worth the wait.

For more information visit: Thai Kitchen I

mexicasian fusion

August 28, 2015

I knew it. I just knew when I woke up that it was going to be the perfect day. Unfortunately it was a “work day” for most (soon I’ll be back to the grind, don’t worry) so I decided to seize the opportunity and take my first trip to the beach by myself.

I really wanted to get away from my house because if I would have stayed home, I would have wound up doing all sorts of odd and end jobs around the house. Honestly, I just needed to get away and read “The Girl on the Train” before I had to give it back to the library. I mean I waited almost a month for the book to be available and there was no way I was going to give it back without reading it. (By the way, it’s a pretty good read if you like suspense type stuff. Similar to “Gone Girl”).

Aside from the fact that the weather could not be more perfect today, (perfect temperature, slight breeze, a few big fluffy white clouds), and the fact that I got to read 3/4 of my library book, I also got to try “Mogo” a Korean taco pop up stand on the Asbury Park boardwalk.