linecook4life

I've had a Thai version of chicken with mango curry. Yellow curry (gaeng liung?) is most often the curry of choice. The mangos are added right before serving- this way they provide a cool contrast to the spicey curry.... YUM!

hot dill pickle

BLAH- "noodlin' "- PLEEEZE! Concept?- even the name is bad!! Lets see? Take the most inexpensive item there is- in terms of food cost- and have it in every item on the menu. I say nay to noodlin'. The only strictly noodle joints that should exist are asian in nature (pho- MMMMM). Dr. Atkins is rolling over in his grave!

Skyline Chili is nothing like chili-mac. It is meat sauce and noodles, but the unique flavor hints of cinnamon, vinegar, worcestershire, and other "secret" ingredients (one of which is rumored to be chocolate or cocoa of some sort). Skyline Chili is usually served over spaghetti noodles with a HUGE mound of shredded cheddar cheese on top (called a 3-way). The addition of diced onions or kidney beans makes it a 4-way. Onions AND beans makes it a 5-way. The chili also shows up in cheese coneys, and more recently in burritos, and over fries and baked potatos. Here in Cincinnati there are many Skyline Chili "parlours" (never liked the parlour part- makes a chili joint sound like a house of ill repute) scattered throughout the city. Downtown alone, there are 4 Skylines within a 5-minute walk of each other. When the original Skyline location, opened in 1949, was closed to tear down the building in which it was housed, it was a MAJOR news story- complete "live-reports" on the nightly news (roll your eyes, but its true!). Skyline has a major competitor in another chili chain called Goldstar Chili- and Cincinnati chili lovers are often sharply divided as to which is better (this often involves blind taste-testing outside the gates at Reds and Bengals games- dont get me started on that though). Either one makes great late-night grub, esp. after a few cold ones. One last note- it seems transplants to this city usually do not take a liking to Cincinnati chili- Skyline, Goldstar, or what have you. It is nothing like Texas style chili or chili-mac. Usually those who have grown up with it, miss it when they move or go on extended hiatus- saw this just today

This is a very interesting topic which definately has roots in socio-economic situations. I have worked in numerous asian restaurants where people of latin-american descent have been employed. Besides having a reputation for being dependable workers, latin-americans also supply a demand for inexpensive labor that start-up, mom-and-pop restaurants often need. Hence, the blending of latin-american and asian cultures here in the US was a marriage need and convenience. Subsequently, the intermingling of food ideas (we are in a restaurant, right?) was bound to happen. Obviously, there are certain "fusion" foods that work and some that don't. Some of my favorites from restaurants where i have worked (and these were not served on the menu- they were eaten by employees only)- mexican fried rice w/ chorizo, chicken and potato curry burritos (almost like a samosa), and a strange beef-tom-yum type stew eaten with tortillas. One last note- if anyone has ever been to a sushi joint where latin-americans work- did you notice a "mexican roll" on the menu?

Having worked for a thai family for ~10 years, I have had more than my lion's share of larb-gai and larb-moo. I have never had larb with lemongrass or kaffir lime leaves in it, although mint is often added. An interesting note on the larb "balls"- I have eaten fried balls (actually more elongate) that consisted of cooked rice, red curry paste, and sometimes ground pork. These "faux" sausages are what I have heard referred to as nam tod. These balls can be eaten whole, accompanied with ginger slivers, thai chili, and roasted peanuts or cashews, or they are broken into pieces and prepared in a salad called nam sod (shallot, peanut, lime juice, fish sauce, etc..). I believe that larb and nam sod style salads originated in the northeastern region of Thailand and are considered to be "country-style" dishes. Another fabulous northern country-style Thai dish to be considered is nam prik ong- spicey pork and tomato dip. It is definitley worth trying.