Mouth-watering Chok

Cooking porridge is not hard, but to cook it really well and tasty, it's not easy. After reading a raving review about this chok (โจ๊ก / porridge in Thai) stall from a farang blogger, i insisted that mr;p and i have to try this supposedly well-known porridge stall located near On Nut Station (by the roadside, on the same side as Tesco Lotus).

So one fine morning, mr;p and i traipsed to this porridge stall. Thank goodness we didn't arrive any later (8.30am or so), for if we reach any later, we would not taste the porridge as we were served one of the last bowls for the day! This stall must be enjoying a roaring business.

The stall signage proclaimed that no MSG was used, but that didn't matter as the chok is indeed aroi maak maak! Prior to this stall, mr;p and i had tried two other stalls in his Ram II neighbourhood, but they paled in comparison to this...

The porridge was piping hot when i was served and i had to blow on each mouthful before putting it into my mouth. Generous dopings of minced pork, pig intestines and livers, spring onion and ginger slices were heaped on top, while an egg sat at the bottom of the bowl. The rice was soft, mushy and flavourful and it just melted in my mouth. A very satisfying start to the day indeed, mr;p and i decided that we must head back to that stall again!

Naam Tau Hu

I am often fascinated by how a dish varies across the neigbouring countries, in this instance, the soya bean milk. I like to drink soya bean milk that is warm and thick. So i was most astonished in my earlier days when i realised that there is an option of adding fillings into soya bean milk in Thailand, unlike in Singapore which we often just drink it purely.

I chanced upon a *naam tau hu (น้ำเต้าหู้) stall at the market near mr;p's place. For an extra 2B, i.e. a total of 6B, i added a mixture of yellow beans, barley, pearl sagos into my morning drink. I still can't decided which version is better - with or without fillings. I need to drink more!

Also known as 豆浆 or 豆奶.

Agalico

I first knew about Agalico from Ye Xiao Zhong （叶孝忠), one of my favourite travel columnists. Subsequently, after reading many raving reviews about this chic cafe in Bangkok, I decided that I must give it a try. So during my latest escapade to Bangkok, mr;p and I went in search of this garden cafe.

From sources on the internet, Agalico is located at Sukhumvit Soi 51, so we happily alighted at the nearest BTS station at Thonglor. To our dismay, we couldn't locate Agalico at all on our first try! In fact, Agalico is located near the entrance of Soi 51 at Bunjirathorn Building, a white building. Just push open the wooden door at the entrance to the carpark, and voila, you are there!

There are several unique points about Agalico. Firstly, Agalico only opens on Fri, Sat and Sun because it will otherwise function as an interior design firm on workdays. Secondly, the owner is purpotedly related to the royal family. Thirdly, and its most attractive feature, is the garden-like setting with ample greenery in the cafe. My pictures can bear testimony to that.

Some people find it refreshing that such a tranquil place can still be found in the midst of the hustle and bustle of Bangkok. It is indeed , but it is certainly not the best I've been to in Thailand. With cake prices hovering at 95B, I wouldn't exactly call it cheap, and mr;p felt that we could get such similar settings at much cheaper prices upcountry (anywhere out of Bangkok is considered as upcountry).

Well, at least we spent a delightful and leisurely late afternoon at Agalico, where I went a bit trigger-happy and attempted a few close-up shots with my macro lens. If any friend is keen to check out this cafe with a lush tropical setting when you are in Bangkok, let me give you the directions.

Black Canyon Coffee

Thais seem to love their coffee very much, judging from the number of cafes, coffee houses, kiosks and joints that are dotted in shopping malls, petrol stations, train stations, etc across the country. Black Canyon Coffee is widely available, and even seem to enjoy greater popularity than Starbucks in the kingdom. When i first knew about Black Canyon, I thought it is a foreign brand, based on its seemingly internationalised design and style, but in fact, this is a homegrown coffee house franchise of Thailand.

I'm not an ardent fan of coffee, and don't really know how to appreciate the finer flavours of it. However, Black Canyon X'press at the National Stadium BTS Skytrain Station has been a good place for me to hang out after mr;p has gone to work, leaving me to enjoy the aromatic flavours while scribbling notes in preparation for my interviews.

Not too long ago, I found out that Black Canyon Coffee has established an outlet in Singapore at 19 East Coast Road (pretty near to Katong Shopping Centre). Should check it out one day!

Som Tam

Som Tam (ส้มตำ) or Papaya Salad (as it is often called in English) is a ubiquitous dish in Thailand. What was originally an Isaan (Northeast) speciality can now be found throughout the kingdom. It is actually made up of unripe papaya grated into long and thin slices, with tomatoes, long beans, chilli, lime, fish sauce or even crushed peanuts, etc added to give an assortment of flavours- sour, spicy, sweet. This particular version above is Som Tam Sai Puu, or Papaya Salad with Crabs. This dish will go down very well with khao niao (sticky rice)! ;)

Tips: Avoid biting into the chilli seeds if you can't take spicy food very well. You wouldn't want your mouth to be on fire and gasping for water, which happened to me so often in my early days of getting acquainted with Thai food. These little things can be vicious!

I'm hungry

Friends who know me know that I have a weakness for Thai food, places, culture and men, though not necessarily in that order. So I've decided to start a blog entitled "hiwhiw", which literally translates as "hungry hungry" in Thai, with the double emphasis to show how much i crave for Thai food and drinks or knick-knacks associated with Thailand.

The aims of this blog are to:
(i) introduce friends to Thai food (so you would order beyond fried rice and phat thai the next time you are in the kingdom)
(ii) record the types of food i've eaten so that i can find out more about the dish's origins and remember their Thai names better;
(iii) meal times are a favourite for mr;p and me, so which better way to record the memories other than a blog?

Hiw laewwwwwwww...