Rung Rueang Pork Noodle (รุ่งเรือง) - Michelin Bib Gourmand Eatery @ Bangkok [Thailand]

The Greatest Kon is well-known for his deep passion in food and when he said Rung Rueang Pork Noodle is one of the eateries he revisits every time he is in Bangkok; I knew I had to check it out, especially when our hotel was just 20 meters away! 

Thanking our lucky stars as there wasn't a queue, which was said to be the norm. Do note that there were three branches, and all were located within 20 meters! Beats me why the owner didn't bother consolidating all three.

p.s. this is a michelin bib gourmand eatery, and from the above photograph, it seemed like they have maintained a consistent record since 2018! Whatever the case, secure your table, prepare your order and then get the attention of a service staff to order.

Four steps to ordering the signature Rung Rueang Pork Noodle, where you first choose the soup base, followed by the type of noodle, the kind of ingredients and finally, the size. 

Black Tea - I assumed this would be similar to the black tea from Tee Yok and it turned out to be more like the grass jelly drink I would get in Singapore, albeit a lot sweeter! 

My order - clear soup, with egg noodle, no pork entrails and serving size would be small as there were plenty of things I would want to eat in Bangkok! 

Did you notice something?

The small was ridiculously miniscule for 60 baht! I am putting up my fist for comparison. Now, I am not angry as this would mean more stomach space for other food but I can just imagine the expression of my mom if she was with me. 

Trust me, all the noodles given was literally one mouthful for me! While the noodles were soft, they were surprisingly pretty salty. Maybe the chef wasn't accustomed to serving small portions. 

Fish balls were alright tasting; the slices of fish cake were delicious and for the minced pork, I had mixed feelings although still on the positive end. It had that subtle sweetness that was nice, not overly fatty but there's a light tinge of entrail taste. 

Accompanying soup - flavourful, a tad peppery and reminded me of bak chor mee in Singapore, yet without the strong taste of liver that's quite common amongst reputable bak chor mee stalls.

I actually returned to the stall as it was so convenient for us! This time, I got smarter and opted for only soup with no pork entrails, no mee and small. And with the bowl filled up to the brim, I didn't get that "this was ridiculously small" feeling. 

Still the same, nice pork soup taste! Oh, I forgot to mention another pork ingredient; the sliced pork. Tough texture with the porky flavour that I dislike! 

=====

Address

Soi Sukhumvit 26, Khwaeng Khlong Tan, 

Khet Khlong Toei, Krung Thep Maha Nakhon 10110, 

Thailand

Map

As above

Menu

As above.

Pricing

Small Pork Noodle - 60 baht

(Cash Only)

Minh Châu Food - Pizza and Banh Mi @ Sapa in Vietnam

Cold weather can make you hungry and that explained why I felt that I was only 50% full after an early dinner at Sapa town! So, a search on the web brought me to Minh Châu Food, which had a review score of 4.9 on Google Maps from over 200 reviewers! 

Not exactly a good sight to find an empty restaurant although we can always argue it's only 5pm. Nevertheless, I was there for the banh mi, which should be relatively safe right since a "bad" banh mi in my opinion, would essentially be just a subway sandwich.

Interestingly, the eatery served more than just banh mi! There were also pastas, pizzas, local food, and even dumplings, latter of which were essentially buns, and not the dumpling I was more accustomed to knowing. 

Mahgarita Pizza - I was craving for pizzas for a few months and with eight to choose from, we opted for the cheapest, which would have only cost us an impossible S$4! 

Freshly made and not frozen as we noticed the staff working on the dough! It was warm comfort in the cold; with melty cheese and a pizza base that wasn't overly thick! Shioks! 

Pork Banh Mi - exact words on the menu was pork, cucumber, coriander, salad; an unconventional name for banh mi and while the toasted mini baguette tasted fresh and nice, the pork was cold, and similar to the lean cut char siew that I personally dislike.

 

Chicken Banh Mi - this was way better! A generous amount of grilled chicken that was lightly marinated and most importantly, hot from the griddle! However, I still would classify this as a subway sandwich, rather than a banh mi. p.s. it cost only S$1.50. 

My family did enjoy the banh mi as there wasn't much sauce, and ingredients like the sliced cucumbers and carrots were fresh. For me, a banh mi has to have more of the signature sauce, and the cucumbers and carrots must be pickled to contrast the different layers of flavor. One thing I did like from the banh mi here; shallots were added and that's a crunchy, aromatic omph for me! 

=====

Address

011 Đ. Đông Lợi, TT. Sa Pa, 

Sa Pa, Lào Cai 330000, Vietnam

Map

As above. 

Menu

As above.

Pricing

Mahgarita Pizza - 80,000 dong

Pork Banh Mi - 30,000 dong

Chicken Banh Mi - 30,000 dong

Click here for my 

summarized itinerary 

of my 3 Days trip to Sapa!

Satay Jae Aeng - New Location nearer to Hua Lamphong MRT Station @ Bangkok

Having been to Bangkok countless times, I have had my fair share of eateries I die die must go every single time and one of them would be Satay Jae Aeng at Chinatown!

This time round, however, we were surprised to learn that it's no longer a street stall outside a clan association! It has moved to an air-conditioned area and while that's cool relief for a Singaporean who dislikes the heat and humidity; it did take away the joy of street eating.

And another concern associated with the move would be whether there will be a marginal increase in pricing. From what I gathered, the satay was listed as 9 baht a stick (from 8 baht previously); still pretty reasonable at about S$0.36. 

Cleaner environment without the fumes from motor vehicles along the street, good respite from the heat outside, and I didn't have to protect my belongings as intensely as before.

Grilling the satays would still be outdoors though! 

Pork Satay - our platter of 10 sticks and something looked different! Referring back to my original post on Satay Jae Aeng, I realized a bigger serving of satay gravy and pickled vegetables was given!

Even the meat appeared to be larger; guess customers get more with the 1 baht increase! Anyway, satay in Thailand tended to be relatively fat free although marination wise, still quite similar to the Singapore's version. I would prefer a bit more charred for that smokier aftertaste though.

Grilled Shrimps - this would be Alex's must order but I have to warn you that the price now is 25 baht, versus 20 baht when we visited a year ago; that's a 25% increase! 

However, S$1 a grilled shrimp would still be quite okay in the Singapore's context, and for Alex, it's worth it given that the shrimps were almost deshelled, except for their heads and tails.

As expected, so amazingly good to have the shrimp dipped in the seafood sauce! Meaty with crunchy meat, it's orgasmic with every bite! Ten grilled shrimps between Alex and I; would you think that's sufficient?!

Of course, another ten grilled shrimps for the win! 

p.s. the seafood sauce would need to be requested. 

=====

Would be back soon! 

Address

105 107 Rama IV Rd, Pom Prap, 

Pom Prap Sattru Phai, Bangkok 10100, 

Thailand

Map

As above.

Pricing

Pork Satay - 9 Baht a Stick

Grilled Shrimp - 25 Baht a Stick

Qraft Cafe (Ari Soi 1) @ Bangkok in Thailand

To be frank, we were already too full from an earlier dinner but curiosity drew us to the above cafe; Qraft, which looks like craft and 手, a Chinese character that means hand. 

The sight greeting us when we entered could only be described as refreshing. A long stretch of serving counter, dark hues with dim lights, and a lengthy bench with no table. Simplistic, clean yet sophisticated.

More seating available on level two. Since we pretty much had the space to ourselves and online reviews were pretty favorable (Google Maps rated it 4.5), I guess we could maybe have some drinks, and chill.

A dessert is a must, as always.

There's always a separate stomach for desserts. 

Iced Clear Forest Honey - what would you have expected from a honeyed drink? I ordered simply because I assumed it would be calmer for my stuffed tummy. And for someone who is almost finishing his tub of 5-liter honey, this didn't seem to differ from what I had at home. But this drink cost me almost S$6. 

Hot Pastel Dark Chocolate - I cannot imagine Alex can still stomach hot chocolate! A sip was taken without permission and it was too bitter and rich for me. Maybe the full stomach had affected my judgment. 

Yuzu Croissant - Not a huge fan of croissant but with its full display on the ground floor, offering options like pecan, jujube, miso, dark chocolate etc, we figured this would be worth a try! Perfect texture with flaky shell and fluffy insides, my taste buds were overpowered by the strong, sourish yuzu liquified cream filling! One thing though; I didn't find it sufficiently buttery. 

=====

Address

5, 7 Soi Ari 1, Phaya Thai, 

Bangkok 10400, Thailand

Map

As above.

Menu

As above.

Pricing

Iced Clear Forest Honey - 145 baht

Hot Pastel Dark Chocolate - 165 baht

Yuzu Croissant - 165 baht

(Inclusive of Tax)