Baan Ying @ Terminal 21 (Asok) in Bangkok [Thailand]

A long time ago, when I wasn't that that much of a frequent traveler to Bangkok; I asked a friend, who travels to the capital city of Thailand, at least a few times a year, his favorite food haunt. 

His answer was Baan Ying at Amarin Plaza. That branch had since closed down and I managed to  chance upon another outlet at Terminal 21 (Asok) in my last visit. Since we were still deciding on a lunch venue then, why not give this a try?

Simple interior design but all eyes were on this large, strange looking wooden art piece hanging from the ceiling. My lack of any artistic talent means it either represents a cloud or some alien spaceship, as deciphered by my simple mind.

 

Loving the provision of this; 5 must eats at Baan Ying. This made my job so much easier and we gamely chose 3 out of the five. I would have ordered more but with Alex as my sole companion, a bit of rationality shall prevail.

Bael Tea and Mocha - I shall not comment about the mocha although Alex enjoyed it. Bael tea always piqued my interest ever since I had it at Healthland Ekkamai; it had a citrusy flavor that was somewhat lightly sweetened with a floral fragrance. 

Omelette Rice - said to be the best seller since year 2000, I didn't quite understand the fuss. Yes, there were two, runny, organic free range eyes but the taste was nothing out of the blue! 

Stir Fried Malinjo - after that amazing revelation at TOOKPAK Thai Restaurant, I deemed it necessary to have it again when I saw it on the menu. In this case, it was a letdown as the vegetables appeared undercooked. 

Signature Garlic Shrimp Stir Fried - peppery, strong garlicky flavor, plus a tinge of spiciness. Prawns were crunchy and sweet although I found the pricing to be exorbitant since they were diced, and not whole prawns. 

Crab Meat in Thai Style Yellow Curry - I wanted to give the crab omelette a chance but the disappointment we faced at TOOKPAK Thai Restaurant was too recent. Hence, an alternative was chosen. 

Like a dry version of curry, you definitely would need plain rice to balance out the flavorfulness of the curry and supplement the generous serving of plump and fresh tasting crab meat! This, I recommend. 

Mango Sticky Rice -  I forgot to take a standalone photo of this dessert and you would have to make do with the above photograph, which would give you an idea on the plating. 

While the mango was sweet, the rice lacked the appetizing aroma from the coconut milk and a tad too wet for my liking. And at 195 baht, this was more expensive and not as tasty as the King Power one I got from the airport! 

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Honestly more misses than hits and I did wonder if I would ever return. Maybe I would just order the Crab Meat in Thai Style Yellow Curry with just plain rice next time? 

Address

88 ซอย สุขุมวิท 19, Sukhumvit 19 Alley, 

Khlong Toei Nuea, Terminal 21 Shopping Mall,

Thawi Watthana, Bangkok 10110, Thailand

Map

As above. 

Website

http://www.baanyingfamily.com/

Pricing

Bael Tea - 60 Baht

Mocha - 135 Baht

Omelette Rice - 65 Baht

Stir Fried Malinjo - 195 Baht

Signature Garlic Shrimp Stir Fried - 295 Baht

Crab Meat in Thai Style Yellow Curry - 620 Baht

Mango Sticky Rice - 195 Baht

(Subject to Service Charge)

Shabu Shabu Dinner @ 稻之屋鍋物 in Taoyuan [Taiwan]

Generally, many people would always assume that food was secondary when they signed up for a tour package and I had the same thought with my recent tour to Taiwan via Chan Brothers.

While I love to eat, I was prepared to just "eat to live", rather than my usual "live to eat" outlook in life. Hence, imagine my surprise when I ran a Google review check on this eatery, 稻之屋鍋物, we were brought to our on our first meal after landing.

Commanding a pretty good score of 4.1 from over 1,000 reviewers, this shabu shabu restaurant was strangely pretty empty when we stepped in at the dinner peak of 7.00 pm, with just about two occupied tables.

Nevertheless, our tour guide, KK, had arranged called the restaurant beforehand, and upon our arrival, the tables had been prepared, with just the main stars still waiting to be sliced and delivered to our tables. 

The sauces counter; I am picky when it comes to the sauces and condiments for steamboat. Where possible, I would always go for peanut / sesame sauce with tons of seeds, spring onions, coriander and a teaspoon of sugar! Right here, the choices were so limited! 

One plus point of this place; free flow drinks which would include milk tea, and even an ice cream dispenser. Despite the cold weather, an ice cream always seems exceptional welcoming after a hot meal. 

Ours was a set, which we were not given the option to choose except for the kind of meat we preferred; either beef or pork. Included within this basic set was lettuce, cabbage, tofu, baby corn, pumpkin, tomato, enoki mushrooms, some balls and a raw egg.

Let's get it to boil! Since there's no Thai chilli sauce and no peanut / sesame sauce, I shall make do with this shacha sauce that tasted briny with just a tinge of sweetness. 

The beef and pork. Technically, it's one set of beef for myself and another set of pork for my dad. This shall enable us to share and have the best of both worlds!

Soup wise, it seemed like their basic kombu soup but honestly, I am happy to just have something hot to warm the stomach given the cold weather. I don't understand why Singaporeans love steamboat so much as our weather can be so insanely hot! Given me BBQ, over steamboat, anytime! 

My cooked ingredients; I love the freshness of the vegetables and I must tell you that the sotong ball was the best ever! Flushed with the delicious squid flavor, it even had pieces of meat and tentacles! 

A shiok meal it sure was! For a meat eater, I would have loved for more meat but what were given were sufficient to make me 70-80% full. And of course, we had to conclude it by breaking the raw egg into the flavor-infused soup! 

Ending the meal with the vanilla flavored ice cream; biscuit cone was nice but the ice cream was more icy, lacking the creaminess that would have made this meal perfect.

For my dad, a person who eats to live, this would be a nice topping on the cake. 

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Address 

No. 716, Zhongzheng Rd, 

Taoyuan District, Taoyuan City, 

Taiwan 

Map

As above.

Menu (in Chinese)

As above.

Pricing

Included within our tour package to Taiwan.

Click HERE for the Summarized Itinerary for Our 8 Days 7 Nights See Iconic Taiwan Anew Tour Package via Chan Brothers

Daifukumochis from Popup Stall by King's Handmade Treasure (大王千金) @ Taoyuan in Taiwan

Seeing that it was still early after checking in to the hotel at Taoyuan, we explored the surroundings and chanced upon this popup stall by King's Handmade Treasure (大王千金). Guess what caught my attention? It's those pictures with a cross section of a strawberry daifukumochi!

There were twelve flavors and given the late timing (shops had already started closing); many were already sold out, including their signature red bean strawberry mochi. But the lady very nice; she kindly made one, on the spot, just for me! 

Given her utmost kindness, I felt obligated to order two daifukumochis from her! It was easy to choose the first one, obviously red bean strawberry mochi. Second one was recommended; rose cheese strawberry mochi.

Red Bean Strawberry Mochi - the one in front, with a smoother skin, would be the red bean strawberry mochi. I don't know why but I have been craving for daifukumochis for the past few months. In fact, I had tried the ones from Don Don Donki twice! 

This was satisfying! Covered with a thin layer of mochi stick that doesn't stick to the teeth, I was most in loved with the juiciness from the sour-sweet strawberry that complemented the earthy sweetness from the red bean paste. This was so on point! 

Rose Cheese Strawberry Mochi - rougher looking one with a layer of cooked starch. Anticipating the burst of different unique flavors containing rose, cheese, and strawberry.

I thought the flavors were great matches; granted my taste buds can discern the cheesiness, I was more focused on having the strawberry hidden within, and even consider abandoning all non-fruit parts. 

Needless to say; I am a traditionalist. 

Red bean strawberry mochi for the win! 

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Location of Popup Store

Outside Tonlin Plaza, No. 61, 

Zhongzheng Rd, Taoyuan District, 

Taoyuan City, Taiwan 330

Pricing

Red Bean Strawberry Mochi - 58 Taiwan Dollars

Rose Cheese Strawberry Mochi - 58 Taiwan Dollars

Click HERE for the Summarized Itinerary for Our 8 Days 7 Nights See Iconic Taiwan Anew Tour Package via Chan Brothers

TOOKPAK Thai Restaurant - Google Review of 4.9 from Almost 1,900 Reviewers @ Bangkok in Thailand

Would you believe 100% the review score on Google or from any website / person? For me, it's merely a reference and I have had my fair share of personal reviews that didn't correspond to the online rating. 

Today, I am going to share about this Thai restaurant, TOOPAK, that we patronized at Bangkok in October 2023. Given the amazing Google score of 4.9 from over 1,500 reviewers (then), I asked a Thai friend to join us for dinner! 

A casual setting; I was wondering why it was so empty at almost 6.00 pm. This would be quite strange, especially on a Sunday night. The worry was unfounded as customers slowly streamed in after that. Without further ado, let's proceed with the food review.

Stir Fried Malindjo Leaves with Eggs - do you have certain vegetables that you would order when you are overseas? In Taiwan, it's guomao vegetable and here in Thailand, I fell in love with Malindjo leaves! Leafy and thin, soft and tasted so good with eggs; I almost wanted to order a second serving! 

Garlic Fried Pork Neck - this wowed us with its solid texture that was firm, juicy, not chewy and tasted even better with the sweet and tangy sauce that accompanied the dish. 

Generous amount of fried garlic topping provided bite with their crunchy texture and further intensifying the appetizing garlic flavor. Yummy! 

Crab in Coconut Curry - this brought back great memory of the crab meat curry and coconut milk from Raya restaurant in Phuket, where I had the best meal ever in Phuket! 

Took a sip of the curry first; a tad spicy and while it was milky and delicious; the experience wasn't as mind-blowing as Raya restaurant. Honestly worth an order, especially if it's your first time having crab curry.

Crab Omelette - this was said to be one of their more popular dishes and since I am too lazy to queue for the Michelin Jay Fai, I guess I would make do with this one for the moment. 

It did seem promising and I can't wait to take a bite! I knew I had to keep my expectations at bay. The thing about being older is that certain memory remains etched in your brain and I vividly recalled my disappointment with Nhong Rim Klong. 

Filled with chunks of crab meat, this had to be the most underwhelming crab omelette I had, without any flavor amalgamation. The crabs and eggs were so detached in taste; it's better for the chef to just serve them separately. 

Burp! p.s. leftovers for the omelette. 

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Despite my disappointment with the crab omelette, I did enjoy the rest of the dishes, especially the Stir Fried Malindjo Leaves with Eggs. There were five signature dishes which I didn't try; so maybe another trip to TOOKPAK next round. And I must remember, absolutely no crab omelette.

Address

811, 813 Rama I Rd, Wang Mai, 

Pathum Wan, Bangkok 10330, Thailand

Map

As above.

Menu

https://online.anyflip.com/esixt/zdop/mobile/index.html

Pricing

Stir Fried Malindjo Leaves with Eggs - 150 Baht

Garlic Fried Pork Neck - 220 Baht

Crab in Coconut Curry - 380 Baht

Crab Omelette - 280 Baht

(Inclusive of Tax)