Savory Thai and Vietnamese street food
LITTLE Saigon Big Bangkok (LSBB) has moved to a more established location, at Paseo Saturnino (road to Ma. Luisa Subdivision) in Banilad. Actually, where it is now is a small strip that houses several restaurants. I personally welcome LSBB’s move since we just live close by. Husband-and-wife owners Mark and Carmel Almadrones are building on the outdoor charm of their Bangkok street food style resto at the previous site in Guadalupe.
The open kitchen, moved behind the main dining area, is not very visible to diners. Then Mark is working on the expansion plan to situate the interactive kitchen beside the open dining area.
Also, an LSBB food cart opened in Banilad Town Center, offering some bestsellers like Banh Mi or Vietnamese baguette sandwich with Mark’s very own 12-hour smoked pulled pork filling and Pad Thai.
Both food enthusiasts, the couple works closely together in creating the menu. Mark, a Filipino-American from New York City, prides himself with extensive travels in the US, while Carmel honed her home cooking skills with a diploma in Professional Thai Cuisine from Le Cordon Bleu in Bangkok.
One humid Saturday, we chose to have lunch in the air-conditioned room of LSBB in their new location, to sample the latest creations of Mark and Carmel. We were welcomed by a non-alcoholic LSBB martini, a refreshing drink made of calamansi infused with Thai basil and a cold glass of herbal tea (mint, Thai basil, lemon grass and ginger). A traditional Thai leaf snack, Mien Kham, which is peddled in the streets of Bangkok, opened our palates, introducing the basic tastes of Thai cuisine—an interplay of salty, sour, sweet and spicy, as we chewed on ground peanuts, coconut, sweetened tamarind, flavored with calamansi and fish sauce (patis or nam pla) wrapped in sesame leaf or perilla. Thai Simi, another Thai leaf snack with tuna, flavored with tangy tamarind followed. The Green-Lipped Mussels with Thai Basil was succulent. Carmel prepared a plate of Thai Fried Chicken topped with Mango Salsa for my grandkids Silvian and Sabrina. Laotian Crispy Rice Salad with strips of 12-hour smoked pork, peanuts and finished off with kaffir lime leaves and chili served with Lola Rosa lettuce, was deliciously different. According to Carmel, it is prepared by deep frying very cold cooked rice and shredded by hand. Thai Beef Tenderloin Salad on a bed of shredded vegetables and served with Nam Pla/chili/lemon juice dressing was another interesting dish. Thai Tandoori Chicken or Gai Yang is a popular street food in Bangkok and considered by connoisseurs as the best grilled chicken. LSBB has added a tandoor (oven) in their kitchen. Mark reveals that the chicken is rubbed with lemon grass, turmeric, and cilantro stem that imparts a more subtle taste than the Indian version. My friend Selfa Trinidad, who joined us for lunch, enjoyed “critiquing” the dishes. She particularly liked one of the latest additions—Penang Spicy Noodles, a spicy dish of Ho Fun (flat rice noodles) stir-fried with shrimps, soy, and chili oil with a hint of sweetness.
