Being grumpy old farts we often neglect the popular restaurants in favour of the obscure. But tonight we finally discover why everybody has been raving about Chat Thai for the last twenty years.
We've never been to Chat Thai before because, well, it's popular. You see folks, we come from a strange and distant land called the 1980's. In the 1980's everything was either popular, eg Rick Astley, or it was good, eg not Rick Astley. With Chat Thai being so popular we always thought is was a Rick Astley kind of restaurant.
But tonight we discover that Chat Thai is the kind of restaurant that's never going to give you up or let you down. Unlike Rick Astley, Chat Thai rocks.
We arrive around 11pm and squeal in delight when we see the amazing supper menu. We prepare for the famous wait, but we're seated within a couple of minutes. Joy.
Red tea - with and without milk. We're obsessed with Thai ice tea, particularly the milk tea with it's strong, sweet woody flavours. Spank yourself if you've never tried it.
Sticky rice - $3 each. So purdy.
GAENG SOM CHA-OM GOONG $14.90 - 'Sour and spicy curry of tamarind base with a prawn and chicken stock, ground ling fish and prawns, accompanied with an omelette of acacia leaves immersed in the curry'. Hoochiemama.
KAI DTUN - $7 - 'Savoury steamed egg custard, a home recipe laden with ground chicken, slivers of salted duck egg yolk, coriander and spring onions.'
We have an obsession with steamed egg dishes, this one's a winner. Shawn much prefers it over the egg custard he recently had for breakfast in Thailand that made him gag.
SUEP NOHR MAI - $8 - 'A warm salad of young bamboo shoots tossed in toasted sesame seeds, lime
juice, pounded roasted rice, ground dried chilli and onions. This dish has a strong bamboo flavour and is best eaten with sticky rice.'
We're coming back soon just for ice tea and dessert. The fried chinese bread sticks with pandan dipping sauce had my name it on it, not Rick Astley's.
If you are nice Alison might add her story about what happened on our way home in the ladies room in the Irish pub around the corner...
20 Campbell Street, open till 2am! Phone 9211 1808.
View Larger Map
So that's what time you have to go in order to not wait an hour.... :) Great menu choices
ReplyDeleteHey Tina - we stumbled in around 11pm - the later the better I guess :-)
ReplyDeleteLove your Asia posts!!!!
Need to try this restaurant and Home as well!
ReplyDeleteRight on Lil - I think I actually preferred my dinner at home - http://www.streetfood.com.au/2011/02/home-thai-restaurant-sussex-st-sydney.html - but it was simply a matter of what we chose on the night. The queue is much shorter at Home too :-)
ReplyDeleteThis is almost an Irish cliche but it really happened. Walking into the ladies a young Irish girl yells out for help - she's trapped in the toilet and has been stuck for nearly 25 minutes. I think she's had a Guinness or two.
ReplyDeleteShe was pushing the door forward to get out, which was stuck.I asked her to step back, then pushed the door inward, and she was free!
The poor girl was nearly in hysterics, and was very relieved I had shown her how to open the toilet door. She said she was thinking about what her family and friends would think if she was found dead in there.
I laughed all the way home...
So kids, the lesson for you all is toilet doors pull back, not forward. Repeat.
No queue at Chat Thai? You did very well! And lol at the toilet story!
ReplyDeletelol I have had a few of those toilet stories in my time... haven't yet been to chat thai because I hate to queue. Looks like a great menu though, especially the crispy pork belly!
ReplyDeleteI hate queues however I really need to check this out.
ReplyDeleteBy the way the Marrickville Food Court is still a morgue, but a sushi food place is opening at Alex Trevallion Plaza. Very excited about that.