Neighborhood Eats: Ba Noi

When you're at home, there are some nights when you don't want to eat in - the cooking and the clean up takes a certain mood. And there are also those nights when you want to eat out, but you don't want to go too far. The solution: neighborhood eats.

Ba Noi is one of those neighborhood restaurants that's cozy and serves up comforting Vietnamese cuisine. I love that Vietnamese cuisine, like Thai cuisine, has sweet, salty, sour, and spicy flavors in most of their dishes. These flavors really add complexity to any dish that makes you want to eat more and more. There's something about Thai and Vietnamese cuisine that satisfies you and doesn't make you feel grossly full.


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Early Morning Breakfast

One thing I can expect after every cross-Pacific flight...jetlag. This time around my jetlag had me in bed before 10pm and up by 5 or 6am (which may seem normal for some people, but I prefer sleeping a bit later and waking up an hour or two later as well). And each time I woke up, I was so ready for breakfast.

After an early 7am mass (which was the first time I was so awake and alert for a mass that early), my parents and I enjoyed a Sunday morning breakfast. Usually, our Sunday routine is brunch past 1pm. Going out to breakfast this early was actually quite enjoyable. There's no traffic, the crowds aren't hitting the malls yet, and the early morning breeze is still refreshing.

We had our first meal of the day at the only place that seemed to be open before 9am at Greenbelt mall, Museum Cafe. We opted for the a la carte menu and not their Sunday buffet selections. It was pretty enjoyable, although the service was a bit lacking.

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The slide show here runs on Flash. If you can't see it, check out my Flickr album.

Caseus - Cheesy Goodness in New Haven

I love local spots when I'm any city around the world. Meaning to say, I try to avoid global and national chains (e.g., Starbucks). I want to see and taste what the locals are doing.

In New Haven, one of these local spots is Caseus, a local cheese shop and bistro. It's local popularity has expanded to the trendy food truck, as well. Caseus is a cool, chill place to eat outdoors when the weather is warm and sunny, or indoors in a tavern-like atmosphere. If you're in the mood for some cheesy goodness, this is the place to go.

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The slide show here runs on Flash. If you can't see it, check out my Flickr album.

Moon Hill Cafe

After the Gaotian market and our walk through Longtan village, we decided to grab a bite before trekking up Moon Hill. So we ate at Moon Hill Cafe - a tourist restaurant right next to the entrance of Moon Hill. The food wasn't spectacular, but all the ingredients were so fresh tasting! It was really straight from the farm to the table.

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Eating at Shangri-La's Boracay Resort & Spa

As soon as we arrived at the resort, we did not want to leave. And we didn't leave until our last night. So for one night and two days, we completely enjoyed the resort and all it had to offer.

On our first day, we enjoyed three different restaurants and bars around the resort. Each had a nice, relaxing resort comfort, while providing fresh and healthy tasting foods. It was a great welcome to the resort, to Boracay, and to our vacation.
(In the mornings, we would enjoyed the breakfast buffet, which I forgot to take pictures of...I guess I have to go back for that...)


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Breakfast Buffet

I'm not much of a buffet fan. It's just too much food. And in many cases, too much mediocre food. However, I have visited my fair share of hotel buffets around the world. The Mandarin Oriental in Bangkok is the place to beat so far. They have such an amazing spread of Thai food. All authentic, fresh, and delicious. The Wynn brunch buffet also has some great mini Belgian waffles.

Breakfast at the Kitchen in the W Hotel in Kowloon. Since I had flown straight from San Francisco in Hong Kong, I would wake up by 6am because of jetlag. Our first meal was usually an early lunch just before noon. So by the second day, I knew that I should have a decent breakfast. Wow, it was more than decent - it was a feast! I think I was full for two days because of this buffet. The food was pretty good, but the display and variety made it taste even better. I think if I went back, I would drink more of the juices.

(Note: It was 7am, and I'm not a morning person. So I left my camera up in the hotel room, but at least I had my iPhone on me.)

The View of the Harbor

Fresh Juice Station
This was the best part of the buffet! Freshly squeeze juices and bottled for this beautiful display. I think I had about three bottles - kiwi, guava, and orange juices.

Cold Cuts and Yogurt Stations

Smoothie, Fruit, and Cereal Station

Chinese Station
With Dim Sum, Noodles, Fried Rice, and Congee (Rice Porridge) with its toppings.

Western Station
Sausage, Bacon, Waffles, Pancakes.

Egg Station
Freshly made eggs any way you'd like it to be cooked.

Bread & Pastry Station

A Closer Look at the Petite Pastries

The Cute Salt & Pepper Shakers
At our table.

Little Bite
A spoon of tofu, tomato, and chive in soy sauce. A nice little spoonful which they were passing around.

Plate #1
Chinese Breakfast. Congee, Rice Noodles, Dim Sum Dumplings.

Plate #2
Western Breakfast. Waffle, Pancake, Sausage, Bacon, Jamon, Smoked Salmon, Eel, and a Fishcake Slider.

Plate #3
Pastries. Corn Bread (bread with savory cream corn in the middle), Almond Cookie, Chocolate Chip Cookie, Raspberry Madeleine, Blueberry Puff, Sugar Donut, Chocolate-Cream Filled Donut, and a French Toast. Fun little pastries, but a bit on the dry side because they've been sitting out all morning.

Plate #4
Fruit Plate...well, and meat and cookies plate, too...Papaya, Jamon, Almond Cookie, and a Banana Mint Yogurt Smoothie.
I can't believe I got past Plate #2, but I had this urge to keep going.

Mekong Delta Tour: Day Two - The Food!

We woke up the next day eager for the continuation of our tour and for more great eats.

Floating Restaurant
This lady was heading towards the floating houses around lunchtime.

Chau Doc Market
From the previous day, our guide learned that we enjoyed visiting local markets. We stopped by the Chau Doc Market before leaving the town. They had a huge variety of goods and they filled the streets.

This is one of my favorite pictures from the trip. We searched the place to take a picture of local French bread. When we found this location, we took pictures of her and her bread, much to her delight.

Lunch Stop
On the drive down to Can Tho, we stopped by a town halfway along the drive for a traditional Vietnamese hot pot lunch. It was a kind of place that Anthony Bourdain would go to.

Lemon Soda
A nice, cold refreshing glass of lemon juice with soda to contrast the heat of the hot pot.

Vietnamese Hot Pot
The broth is made from fish paste. It was an all seafood pot with white fish, shrimps, and squid. The fresh vegetables provided more flavors, freshness, and crisp textures. We were also given rice noodles instead of rice. I really enjoyed this dish!

Lemongrass and Turmeric Chicken
Aside from our generous serving of hot pot, we were also given this dish. It was nicely seasoned and flavored. A great dish to eat with a bowl of rice.

Coconut Juice Jello
A refreshing and light end to the meal.

Coffee Break
Across the street from our hotel was a restaurant and coffee house, Hop Pho. Since we arrived in the early afternoon, we took an iced coffee break before thinking about dinner. Another successful glass of Vietnamese Iced Coffee.

Nam Bo
This was our last night in Vietnam, so the decision of where to eat for dinner was important to us. We decided on this place because of the atmosphere and the menu. Next door was a restaurant with a similar and cheaper menu, but the atmosphere wasn't as welcoming. Nam Bo is a two story restaurant with a French colonial villa interior. We were fortunate to grab a seat on the outside balcony to enjoy the night time river view. Overall, the meal was so enjoyable and a great last dinner in Vietnam.

The Beer Pairing
Dai Viet Via Den. Vietnamese Black Beer. It's decent. It was a nice change from the lighter beers, but the flavor was still mild. The crispness was refreshing and paired well with the foods.

Sweet and Sour Fish Soup with Tamarind
A delicious warm start to the meal. Sweet and sour soup is another Vietnamese specialty. I loved the okra and the fresh white fish.

Fried Rolls, Can Tho Style
The wrapper made this dish different from the standard rice paper used for fried rolls. Nicely fried and crispy!

Fried Frogs Legs
This was fried like fish and chips. Another fun plate!

Pork in Claypot with Coconut Juice
This was a comfort-dish served with steamed rice.

Vanilla Ice Cream with Baileys

Bananas Flambee
Great presentation! The server poured the liquor into the ladle, then lit it at our table. Fun!

Bangkok: Cooking Class, Day 2

After our first day, we even more excited for the next cooking class. On our second day, we took the cooking class at our hotel, The Peninsula Hotel. Here is a slideshow of pictures from the hotel:


The format of this class included a trip to the local market. This was such a clean local market! The produce, the meats, the seafoods, and all the sweet and salty treats were so well organized and displayed. This was as good as visiting a museum. You can learn so much about a culture from their local foods. When I travel from now on, I definitely want to visit each city's local market. Here is a slideshow of pictures I took at the market:


After the market trip, we went back to the hotel to start the class. The lesson felt so exclusive because it was just my parents and me. The format was different from the previous day in that we enjoyed our creations after we made each dish, as opposed to at the very end. The cooking was a bit more hands on than the previous day because we each had our turns to make our own dishes. Although, we only made two out of the four dishes. The other two we watched Chef demonstrate them. Chef Chamnan is the Chef di Cuisine at Thiptara, the hotel's Thai restaurant. Like Chef Nahrain from the previous day, Chef Chamnan was also very friendly and open to sharing recipes and his knowledge. I can't tell you to choose one cooking class over the other. If you have two mornings/lunches open, take both classes at The Peninsula Hotel and at The Mandarin Oriental.

The Classroom
Located above Thiptara's kitchen. It's a nice covered, open air upstairs room that overlooks the hotel's pool.

With Chef Chamnan

Mango Smoothie
We were treated to a couple of fresh local drinks. This Mango Smoothie was one of the best I've had because it wasn't overly sweet nor thick. It tasted like a combination of ripe and green mangoes mixed with yogurt and honey.

Lemongrass Iced Tea
I fell in love with lemongrass during this trip. This lemongrass tea was delicate and refreshing. It was so good that we've been brewing lemongrass teas at home so we can still enjoy it.

Yam Som-O
Pomelo Salad with Grilled Tiger Prawns.
I enjoyed this lesson because we were taught that it is very possible to adjust the level of spiciness. After watching and tasting Chef's demonstration, we each had our turn to make the dish and have Chef taste it for his approval. The pomelo salad filled with shredded pomelo and a touch of tamarind juice for an additional tart-sweet flavor.










Tom Yum Goong
Spicy and Sour Soup with River Prawns
This soup has such a kick from the spicy and sour components! The soup is so light because of the broth and its fresh ingredients.





Tom Kha Gai
Chicken Soup with Coconut Milk
Chef was so generous to include another recipe for us to learn. Tom Kha Gai is a slight variation from Tom Yum Goong, in that it include coconut milk and has chicken instead of prawns. It's another delicious bowl of soup because the coconut milk adds a mellowing complex.



Pla Sam Ros
Deep-Fried Fish with Sweet and Sour Sauce
We watched Chef put this dish together. The fish was coated with tapioca flour. It was soo delicious! The Snow Fish was light and the coating of the batter wasn't oily or overwhelming at all. And, the sweet and sour sauce brought the entire dish to life.



Khao Nhiew Ma-Muang
Fresh Mango with Coconut Infused Sticky Rice
From the start of the class, Chef started steaming the sticky rice and infusing it with coconut milk. For the last dish, he assembled it all together. This was tasty because the rice wasn't overly sweet, and it was wasn't over-cooked to the point where you could still bite each grain.





Certificate of Completion
Following our lesson, we received another Certificate of Completion from Chef Chamnan.