Mango Thai...

It wasn't exactly good, but if this is true, I'll still be sad to see it go.

Honestly though, despite the multitude of Thai places in the area, they're all quite deficient in one way or another. I'd trade every single one of them in for one Sripathai!!!

Subject: Really?

Are you sure? I walked by on my way home today and they were open.

8thandPrez wrote: who is this "kristina" person? can we ban her from the board?

o don't say that, even in jest!
kristina tried Pepperoncino, was unimpressed and specific about it.
she's a new reliable source of information for me, at least tastebud-wise!

I want garlic seitan too . . . never dove that deeply into their menu . . . rarely order sietan since the original vegetarian paradise in chinatown went away . . .

The good news: I ordered from Mango last night and the food arrived, so I guess they're still in business.

The bad news: The garlic seitan sucked, big time. Plus, they charged an extra $1 for brown rice, which makes me incredibly angry.

Take away: No more Mango for me.

Seitan is basically wheat gluten. It's high protein, low fat, and essentially flavorless. It has a fantasic, almost meat-like texture and takes on the flavor of whatever it's cooked/seasoned with. Any time you see mock-duck, mock-pork, mock-beef, etc in a Chinese/Vietnamese restaurant, it's seitan.

And yes, charging for brown rice pisses me off. I came >this< close to canceling my order and calling Red Hot, but I wanted that seitan so bad. Anyway, my Mango menu is in the recycling bin.

i actually like Red Hot. The Vegetable Tso's "chicken" (again, wheat gluten) is deeeeelish, if 5000 calories.

regarding your "newbie" status, things seemed to be reset recently. i used to be a Grand Master or something equally important, but was downgraded to a "regular"

Subject: New Thai

Speaking of Thai restaurants, there is a new one that is quite excellent
on 7th ave. I believe it is between 13-14th or 14th-15th. So, if you are
up for walking to the south slope you may want to give it a try. I
wish I could remember the name but at the moment, I can't think
of it.

Subject: Thai

It's called "Watana". I like the way it looks, but haven't tried it (not into Thai food - at least I don't think so).

Subject: Thai

so, Beet is really not suck?

Subject: Re: Thai

Flexichick wrote: so, Beet is really not suck?

Beet is not suck. Except that none of their food contains beets.

8thandPrez wrote: Seitan is basically wheat gluten. It's high protein, low fat, and essentially flavorless. It has a fantasic, almost meat-like texture and takes on the flavor of whatever it's cooked/seasoned with. Any time you see mock-duck, mock-pork, mock-beef, etc in a Chinese/Vietnamese restaurant, it's seitan.

And yes, charging for brown rice pisses me off. I came >this< close to canceling my order and calling Red Hot, but I wanted that seitan so bad. Anyway, my Mango menu is in the recycling bin.

fact checker here . . .

mock duck is tofu skin, and mock something else could be yam depending on the restaurant
but yeah, love the wheat gluten (and hate the need to call it fake meat!)
and hate paying extra for brown rice. They don't do that on Fifth Ave at the little Chinese joints.

Rose, is Song the place you're talking about at 5th Avenue around 5th Street..or 3rd St? It's loud loud, and some of the food is okay. I like takeaway there. I haven't tried any vegetarian options...do they even serve satan? :twisted:
The pork or beef salad is good, some of the curries are otay. Not great, but better than getting bad chinoise . . .

Right, back "to writing" my Zagats "entries" . . .

8thandPrez wrote: [quote=pitu]
fact checker here . . .

mock duck is tofu skin, and mock something else could be yam depending on the restaurant
.

DOH! Mock duck is tofu skin? Well, the thought of real duck turns my stomach, so I've never been in the market for mock duck. At any rate, to redeem myself in the sphere of bean curd, may I remind you that 'tofu skin' is more appropriately referred to as yuba?

I done never hear of no yuba, but I'll take your word for it.
I personally love the stuff.
When Lemongrass was good, they made something called Hun Hu Tor (I'm taking liberties will the spelling...) that was shitakes and other bits wrapped in tofu skin on a bed of flamed water spinach. (cue the mountain flutes)
That children, was 100 years ago when the Good Chef was in Park Slope and there were no other Lemongrasses in the chain . . . also cheap rent and The Staple Singers in Prospect Park every summer . . . KosherDave remembers . . .

Subject: Thai

I think Rose means Thai Sky

Subject: Mango and Beet

Beet is actually owned by the same people as Mango, though in my experience it's not nearly as good.

My friend tried the pad thai from that new Thai restaurant on 7th and said it's the best he's had in the slope which is saying a lot since there are probably 70,000 Thai places here.

I personally think Rice has excellent and spicey curries.

A historical perspective on the sustainability of Thai restaurants:

I kept tabs on the mile-long equivalent of 7th avenue in a neighborhood in another city with many parallels to the Slope. In the early 90s there was 1. By the height of Thaimania in 2000 there were 27 -- so many that they were having trouble finding distinct names for them all (Thai Tanic; Thai Foon; Thai Coon; Thai Riffic; Thai Pan; Thai Dai; Thai Mee Upp; SayThaiEatThai, Saij'n'Thai'm etc.). Speculation brought the number of Thai restaurants above market fundamentals such as the number of Thai-born residents in the area, let alone chefs. Then in a splash of coconut milk the bubble burst, the Thai went underground, Vietnamese became the new Thai, and Cambodian became the new Vietnamese. I survived on Malaysian and Korean in the lean years, with occasional guided forays to heavily concealed family-run Thai-only eat-easies. Today that neighborhood is a stable home to about 15 assorted Thai restaurants, cafes, bistros and buffets, which seems to be sustainable as long as the cuisine is standardized sweetened Thai western fusion, such as King Prik and Gang Yang with Cream of Sum Yung Gai, palatable to tourists from the burbs looking for that authentic inner-city Saturday Night Thai Grunge experience.

NB: Past performance is no guarantee of future returns. Those who do not remember past menus are condemned to reeat them.