Miss Asia

I must confess that I was expecting to have a rather more informative entry up before this one and a lot sooner at that, but due to the lack of inspiration and my never-ending busy schedule proceeding towards the end of my academic quarter in school, this did not happen. For that, I have no other justifiable excuse.

But, in order to redeem myself, I have somewhat a fun post today. Upon embarking on a journey to satisfy my craving for Thai food, I was introduced to this place by a friend whom I declare, is also a food enthusiast. And so on a wintry Sunday night, we decided to venture to this charming little restaurant at Diversey Parkway-in close proximity to Lincoln Park.

The menu was simpleton, with home-style dishes you would commonly find at a casual Thai restaurant. Decor was decent; with an elaborate use of buddhas scattered across the dining area. While it might be over-the-top, I myself enjoy basking in the sensuous ambiance as I dig into my extremely spicy curry.

But before we get into the curry, here's the appetizer we decided to order in last minute. Despite them devils being bite-size, beware, cause they're quite filling.
Crab Rangoon (8 pieces); $5.25
These typical fried wantons are nothing out of the ordinary, but they do taste good. Cheese is a tad bit filling for my personal liking.

Now on to the good stuff. As a die-hard Malaysian, my eyes lit up in the presence of rich, creamy curry.
Front: Panang Curry (with chicken) + rice; $9.50
Back: Pad Ped Catfish + rice; $12
While I enjoyed my panang curry, I must give deserving credit to the catfish. The fillet pieces are deep fried and tossed in what seems like a spicy curry gravy. It is simply wonderful-a definite must-try!

All in all, I enjoyed the food and will definitely go back and go through the menu again. Oh, and they seem to be in great demand for takeaway.

xx
Carmen

More Restaurant Info?

Restaurant Theme & Feel: Mainly Thai cuisine, also serves Chinese and Vietnamese dishes; casual

Website: missasiarestaurant.com

Directions:

Cafe Ba-Ba-Reeba!

Please tell me I'm not the only one getting all jumpy and hyped up about the name of the restaurant. Now whenever I'm having one of those down days all I have to do is recite "Ba-Ba-Reeba!!!" and it's all rainbows and unicorns, just like that. But then again, I confess: I'm easily amused.

Upon taking up a job on campus, part of my assignment is to help host monthly luncheons for international students at various Chicagoan restaurants. And since I've been blessed with the opportunity to wet my mouth with all these delicious food, I'd thought it's only fair to share some visuals on my lil' cyber space because I mean, why not? So these will fall under a segment I like to call "Chi City Cuisine" on the blog.

This time around, we were hosted by a lovely Spanish restaurant on Halsted Street. The menu of the day greeted us with a selection of cold and hot tapas, creating a savory combination of small Spanish dishes that make up a wonderful lunch on a Friday afternoon.

Here's a snap of our menu. Cafe Ba-Ba-Reeba! showed extraordinary hospitality by printing  a special menu for our event. Now that's what I call top-notch service!

Cold Tapas Dish #1 --
Sarreno ham, salchichon, chorizo and manchego cheese; $9
In layman terms: It's spicy pork sauce on bite-size pieces of bread that can be eaten on it's own or topped with slices of cheese, ham or spanish sausage.

Cold Tapas Dish #2 --
Brussel sprout salad with marcona almonds and manchego cheese (vegetarian) ; $6
The texture of the almond crumbles mixed with the tangy taste of the cheese is simply heavenly.

Hot Tapas Dish #1 --
Mushrooms stuffed with spinach and manchego cheese (vegetarian); $7

Unfortunately, I do not have photos of the beef skewer with horseradish cream and red onion relish or the warm tortilla with garlic alioli because I was highly distracted (I apologize) but the beef dish was $9 and the price of the latter was not listed.

In conclusion, the entire meal totaled up to $31, excluding the beef skewers. I wouldn't dine here every weekend mostly because it's not as budget-friendly as I would like it to be but I will come back and bring friends. And hey, kudos to the restaurant for offering a selection of vegetarian options.

xx
Carmen

More Restaurant Info? 

Restaurant Theme & Feel: Spanish cuisine; semi-casual with a nice bar 

Website: CafeBaBaReeba(dot)com

Directions: