Battle of the Noodles
Remember when you were in university and the height of your cooking skills was making a bowl of noodles? The biggest dilemma was which noodle: the classic Canadian pantry item, KD, or the sophisticated Mr. Noodles? It's a tough call--one is savoury, rich, comfort food and the other can be cooked or eaten raw! And both offer about 80% salt content (mmm, salt content).
But you're a grown-up now. You eat better, you care about ingredients, and unless the salt is kosher and carefully measured out by the teeniest of spoons, you're not eating it. As a grown-up, you head out for Thai food with your friends at Mai's Café and Bistro in Wortley Village. Yet, the dilemma reasserts itself with a coy--if not a bit wizened--smile: which noodle? So it's time to have a battle of the noddles! (That's what she said! Wait, that doesn't make sense. And scratch that part where I said we were grown-ups.)
But before we can get to the noodle battle, we need to warm up: fresh rolls, spring rolls, and coconut shrimp is the perfect work-out. Our crew decided to share everything so that we could try a variety of dishes from the extensive menu. A good idea unless your "friend" draws attention to the fact that he not only dipped once, but twice. One Reviewer remarked that the fresh and spring rolls were good, but the coconut shrimp is "fair food!" (BTW, this is the highest compliment of One Reviewer). The shrimp are battered in coconut, deep-fried to perfection, and served hot. As part of the main course we had the cashew chicken stir-fry--a nice sweet and savoury dish--and the green curry. A quick lesson in curry: Thai curry is not like Indian curry. Indian curry is actually a blend of spices (turmeric, coriander, cumin) which gives you different curry flavours (e.g. korma, masala, etc.). Thai curry, however, focuses on the chilies or chili paste as well as blending with the different spices. And the colours are important! Yellow curry is made with coconut milk and is mild and sweet. Red curry is a medium heat (by Western standards), and while green normally means "go" in our world, in curry-world green means "stop, I'm the spiciest." The green curry offers a front-end spice but is also sweet at the back of the palette with the coconut milk. In my view, this is better than fair food! A good suggestion with this dish is to order the mango salad so that you have something to cut the heat--the acidic mango and lime act the way sour cream does on a bowl of chili.
And now to the main event: the battle of the noodles. In one corner, coming in at sweet and spicy and being represented by Double Dipper is Pad Thai. And in the other corner, dripping with fish sauce and basil and represented by Kiki (me) is Drunken Noodles. Famous for its stick and move action, Pad Thai comes out swinging with a bold, in-your-face flavour of chili paste. Drunken Noodles counter with a classic bob and weave: a little sweetness on one side but then the savoury basil on the other--back and forth. Pad Thai counters with a good one-two: a thicker, weightier texture to the noodle and a definite comfort food mentality. But using a little rope-a-dope action, Drunken Noodles wears down Pad Thai with a rich fish sauce that wins the match. Despite Double Dipper's protests, Drunken Noodles is declared the winner because of its much more complex fighting style...and flavour.
Overall, Mai's offers the best (as far as I've had) Thai food in the city. The prices are excellent, the service is great, and the food--even the losing noodles--is fantastic. Apparently Mai's serves breakfast and "Canadian Food" (a complete menu including poutine, fettuccine, and garlic bread) but just ignore that and get the Thai food. And besides, you're a grown-up now. Grown-ups try new foods and don't get into arguments over noodles.
Location: Mai's Café and Bistro (142 Wortley Rd., London, ON)
Entree Cost: $10-14 Number of Reviewers: 4
Value: $ $ $ $
Overall: * * * 1/2
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| Kraft Dinner vs. Mr. Noodles |
But you're a grown-up now. You eat better, you care about ingredients, and unless the salt is kosher and carefully measured out by the teeniest of spoons, you're not eating it. As a grown-up, you head out for Thai food with your friends at Mai's Café and Bistro in Wortley Village. Yet, the dilemma reasserts itself with a coy--if not a bit wizened--smile: which noodle? So it's time to have a battle of the noddles! (That's what she said! Wait, that doesn't make sense. And scratch that part where I said we were grown-ups.)
But before we can get to the noodle battle, we need to warm up: fresh rolls, spring rolls, and coconut shrimp is the perfect work-out. Our crew decided to share everything so that we could try a variety of dishes from the extensive menu. A good idea unless your "friend" draws attention to the fact that he not only dipped once, but twice. One Reviewer remarked that the fresh and spring rolls were good, but the coconut shrimp is "fair food!" (BTW, this is the highest compliment of One Reviewer). The shrimp are battered in coconut, deep-fried to perfection, and served hot. As part of the main course we had the cashew chicken stir-fry--a nice sweet and savoury dish--and the green curry. A quick lesson in curry: Thai curry is not like Indian curry. Indian curry is actually a blend of spices (turmeric, coriander, cumin) which gives you different curry flavours (e.g. korma, masala, etc.). Thai curry, however, focuses on the chilies or chili paste as well as blending with the different spices. And the colours are important! Yellow curry is made with coconut milk and is mild and sweet. Red curry is a medium heat (by Western standards), and while green normally means "go" in our world, in curry-world green means "stop, I'm the spiciest." The green curry offers a front-end spice but is also sweet at the back of the palette with the coconut milk. In my view, this is better than fair food! A good suggestion with this dish is to order the mango salad so that you have something to cut the heat--the acidic mango and lime act the way sour cream does on a bowl of chili.
And now to the main event: the battle of the noodles. In one corner, coming in at sweet and spicy and being represented by Double Dipper is Pad Thai. And in the other corner, dripping with fish sauce and basil and represented by Kiki (me) is Drunken Noodles. Famous for its stick and move action, Pad Thai comes out swinging with a bold, in-your-face flavour of chili paste. Drunken Noodles counter with a classic bob and weave: a little sweetness on one side but then the savoury basil on the other--back and forth. Pad Thai counters with a good one-two: a thicker, weightier texture to the noodle and a definite comfort food mentality. But using a little rope-a-dope action, Drunken Noodles wears down Pad Thai with a rich fish sauce that wins the match. Despite Double Dipper's protests, Drunken Noodles is declared the winner because of its much more complex fighting style...and flavour.
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| Mai's Pad Thai (the loser noodle) |
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| Mai's Drunken Noodles (the winner noodle) |
Entree Cost: $10-14 Number of Reviewers: 4
Value: $ $ $ $
Overall: * * * 1/2
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