Food Nostalgia: Crépes & Co.

Around five years ago, I was living the last of my days in a hot, sticky country known as Thailand, renting a small efficiency apartment in the Royal King Garden Inn for a month until I moved on back to Orlando.  During that month, I packed in as much enjoyment as I could in visiting my favourite eateries and bars, often in the company of my two very good friends, Gary and Alli.

While living it up, I was blessed with the opportunity to go to Crépes & Co.  It’s a fabulous place off Sukhumvit that Tanya, a friend of a friend, had shown me.  Although I had only the opportunity to have gone there once, I’m still gladdened by its web presence, as it is giving me hope that the place will still be there whenever I get around to going back to Bangkok… which will happen!  :::shakes fist!:::

I can’t remember exactly what I had gotten, but I loved both the entrée crépe and my dessert crépe.  If you happen to be in the area, I suggest you give the place a go, as it’s a fantastic concept for a light lunch or dinner.  Although I’m sure I was well-satiated after my meal at Crépes & Co, should you be hungry, the streets of Bangkok used to house the best street vendors in the world.  It’s true.

Now I have heard of a crépe place here in Orlando that I haven’t yet been to.  La Creperia Cafe has been visited by my friends Fran and Joe, and they told me it was pretty good.  Curiously, the location they went to, which is the only one in Orlando, is in the Orlando Fashion Square Mall.  It’s not a place I find myself often–I’m at the mall once a month at best, and normally at the Mall of Millenia–but I’ve been tempted to brave the crowds of shoppers for a taste of tasty crépes.

Then again, with the way the economy is tanking in the US at the moment, the crowds of shoppers are probably not really “crowds,” but perhaps more like “small contingents.”

Take-out Diary #2: O’Naturals

Working in downtown Orlando, one would think that my options for lunch would be plentiful. Well, in a way, they are, but in a way, they aren’t. My lunch break at work is limited to thirty minutes, which doesn’t really give one time to lounge at a restaurant, waiting for your food or the bill. Instead, the food is planned ahead of time, either ordered in for delivery, or one musters the gumption to walk out into the concrete wilderness to stake out a territory marked out in so many blocks, foraging for a quick meal.

With all this pressure of finding the right meal in the right amount of time, often I resort to bringing my lunch, and enjoying the pre-lunch time with no questions of what to eat, no deliberating of where to go. I am at peace with my homemade food, or the left-overs of yesterday’s dinner out.

Today was not one of those days.

Although I had made two recent trips to grocery stores, I made nothing to show for it as my lunch this St Patrick’s Day, so I went through the stash of menus we have in my department, and made a selection. This was my second go with the O’Naturals location housed on Central Boulevard, as I found myself in a similar situation on Friday, getting their Mediterranean flatbread sandwich, consisting of organic hummus, lettuce, red onion, roasted red peppers and Swiss cheese, although I didn’t realise there was red onion in it, because their printed menu in the store didn’t list it but in a separate place, so I had to toss it out later. The sandwich was okay… but not great. The hummus seemed a little runny, and the bread had tasted bland to me.

However, today I opted for their Goat Cheese flatbread sandwich, which boasted the roasted red peppers, carrots, cucumbers, sprouts and the aforementioned goat cheese. I also asked for lettuce and tomatoes, but emphatically stated “no onion!” to the poor man who made my sandwich.

I picked up the sandwich on my fifteen-minute break, and then sat down to eat it about 45 minutes later, and it was excellent. I was much happier with the Goat Cheese sandwich in comparison to the Mediterranean I had tried previously, as it seemed much more flavourful, with the familiar tang of goat cheese mingled in with some salted herbs and the coolness of the tomatoes and cucumbers. The sprouts and the red peppers gave it quite a bit of heft, and it was packaged well in a bag-type sleeve that allowed you to eat the sandwich without getting the cucumbers and other fillings to fall into your lap. All in all, it was an ace pick, and with the place’s employees being so nice and all, I don’t think I have to fret too much the next time I can’t make my lunch ahead of time.

That is, of course, unless I don’t have any money.

One word of caution: the number listed on O’Natural’s website, and all their printed matter, isn’t working as of this post.  I had given it a dial in an attempt to expedite the service, and there was a recording stating the number was “temporarily out of service.”  Turns out I didn’t really need to call in, as my food was made right away, but still, it would be handy should I ever want to order some selections from their noodle menu to pick up.  Sandwiches can sit around for an hour or so, but the noodles would get cold.

Bikes, Beans & Bordeaux

Earlier this evening, I went to Stardust with the intention to have dinner there, but with the parking lot full and the chairs loaded with people, I opted instead to check out a new place I had my eye on as it was opening.

The sign for Bikes, Beans & Bordeaux had intrigued me when I passed by the little strip mall the restaurant was nestled in, or rather, going to be nestled in. At the time I had noticed it, the cafe was still in the process of “coming soon!”, so I was sort of waiting until I had seen it was open for business. Sometimes, the time it takes for a restaurant to open can be lengthy, but it didn’t seem so with Bikes, Beans & Bordeaux. I believe it was sometime earlier this week or last week that I had seen its little “Open” sign alight above some curtains.

Since Stardust was crowded, and I wanted to try out the place anyway, I scooted on over to Bikes, Beans & Bordeaux. Now, when I think of people who ride bikes in Orlando, I’m more inclined to think of the group of youngish folks behind Orlando Critical Mass: the bike punks who work it with their cut-off jean shorts, longish hair, tattoos and a disdain for automobiles. I had fully expected for Bikes, Beans & Bordeaux to be a bike punk haven, but when I entered the small cafe and was met with light wood veneers, little tea candles and low lighting, “bike punk chic” was not what I had gotten.

The proprietors, a husband and wife, greeted me eagerly behind a couple and baby seated at a little bar area. The husband, who later introduced himself as Darrell, kindly directed me to the menus in a couple containers mounted on the wall near the entrance. “The Beer & Wine menu is two pages!” he informed me as I looked at the fixtures. I grabbed them, although I went with getting some organic English Breakfast tea in the end, but it should interest you to know that their house beers, served in bottles, include beer from Orlando Brewing, and there’s a bunch of wines I’m woefully unfamiliar with, because I’m not a wine person, but I’ll list some for you winey folks: Chateau Paradis Casseuil Blanc, Bordeaux, France; Moon Mountain, Cabernet Sauvignon, Sonoma Valley, California; Echelon, Pinot Grigio, Clarksburg, California; Chateau La Nerthe, Chateauneuf-du-Pape, Rhone, France.

Although I was not interested in getting any beer or wine, I was very keen on getting some food, and was torn between the Tour Mediterraneen and the Caprese Panini. After a fevered deliberation at the cash register, I decided to go with my first instinct and ordered the Tour Mediterraneen: Smothered with hummus, this tasty creation is served up with lettuce, tomato, red onion, sprouts, olives, cucumber, feta cheese and drizzled with Greek dressing on Italian bread. Upon ordering the sandwich sans onions, I was told that they were out of the bread, but offered multigrain or honey wheat in its stead, of which I chose the latter.

When I got the sandwich, it came with a bag of Sun Chips (although you could also opt for carrot sticks), a pickle and, interestingly, a tiny bag of Jelly Belly jelly beans, which I later tucked away to eat in whenever I got in a candy mood, or to give away to someone, as I’m not particularly big on jelly beans. My sandwich was delicious. The only thing I would have liked to have made it perfect was to have had a fork to scoop up the stray tomatoes, olives and feta that would slip out from between the bread. I loved the flavor of the Greek dressing, and the cucumbers tasted so wonderfully fresh and crisp.

Ah, Sandwich Nirvana.

I had texted a few of my friends while I waited for my sandwich, because as I studied the menu, I could definitely see many of my friends liking the place. The food is both vegetarian and non, and in addition to beer and wine, they have a nice selection of different coffee drinks and organic teas, as well as smoothies. Plus, they’re open at 7 am every day for breakfast, except for Monday–they’re closed.

As I ate my sandwich, drank my tea and read a book I had brought along with me, the place began to fill up, and what struck me was how warmly the owners greeted these customers by name. There was a group of men who came in and grabbed some beers after handshakes and chit-chat with Darrell, and sat in the facing leather couches under a flat-screen television showing, from what I could tell from a few glances at the screen, the Cycling Network. Is there such a thing? There were a couple of guys who came in on their own, one of whom was visibly taking advantage of the free Wi-Fi in the cafe.

If you’d like to check out the menu to see if you’d like to make a visit to “B3,” you can visit their website: www.B3Cafe.com.

Take-out Diary #1: Ethos

I’ve been wanting to try out Ethos, the sorta-new vegan place on Orange Ave near Antique Row and Lake Ivanhoe, since it was recommended to me by my friends Fran and Joe, as well as a random vegan guy who was at Redlight Redlight when I went there last (see Beer and Cupcakes entry). If vegetarian restaurants get me excited, vegan restaurants fascinate me, as I’m interested in seeing what one can make sans diary and eggs. I mean, I know it can be done, and can be done often, but I want to know if it can be done well.

So, en route to taking Hao to work today, we called up Ethos for take-out. We managed to park on the street with no problem, just as two young women were about to speed away on mopeds, and popped inside.

The interior of Ethos looks incredibly homey, with plenty of wood accents. The design could have just as well been suitable for a neighbourhood pub or even a solid, reliable apothecary. Vegan cookies and other pastries were in a glass case, looking mighty tempting as we waited for the woman doubling as a server and cashier to bring our food out from the back and ring us up. We first saw her carrying a large tray loaded with good-looking food as she headed out to an outside patio area I didn’t investigate while we were there. The wait to be rung up wasn’t long, as the food was ready and wrapped in eco-friendly take-away.

After dropping Hao off, I took my dish, the “Healthy Trio,” to my parents’ place in Oviedo for a late lunch. The description for my trio on Ethos’ online menu is “Black and green olive tapenade, homemade hummus, and tomato-mango salsa served with toasted bread, tortilla chips, and fresh seasonal veggies.” On the whole, I was very satisfied with what I had ordered. The tomato-mango salsa tasted more of cilantro than anything else, which isn’t bad considering I love cilantro, but I had expected more of a mango flavour. This very slight disappointment was more than made up for by the bread; it appeared to have been homemade, and I couldn’t figure out if it had olive bits or perhaps some other flavouring, but it was gorgeous with the olive tapenade. Carrots and celery were provided for dipping, although I’m not very fond of the latter, along with blue corn chips, which were great with the tapenade and the salsa.

Later on in the evening, I spoke with Hao, and asked him how he liked his Peanut Pasta Salad: “Rotini pasta, broccoli, red and green peppers, onions, and Thai basil, tossed in a mild peanut sauce and garnished with cucumber.” He wasn’t as fond of it as I was with my meal; “It was too dry.” Perhaps if there was more peanut sauce to spread around, it would have hit the spot, but sadly, the Peanut Pasta Salad missed its mark with Hao.

Next time, I hope to be able to eat in the restaurant, as opposed to taking food out, but if the need strikes, I know at least one item on the menu that’ll satisfy, which gives me reasonable expectations for the rest of the menu.

It’s always time for breakfast food

I love breakfast food any time of the day, and I’m not the only one.

On Sunday, Hao and I went to the local sandwicheria Pom-Pom’s for, well, sandwiches. But instead of the planned Danny G, I wound up getting a Za Madame crepe from their breakfast menu. Now, I had heard the place served up breakfast on weekends, but I had never actually been around to experience it, and after my sweet banana, chocolate and peanut butter crepe, I would like to experience it again. I liked my crepe, although the peanut butter was actually a bit much for me (I’m not one of those jar-eaters), so I could have used more chocolate syrup to balance it out. However, it was still tasty, and the offerings of their little breakfast menu sounded so tasty, I really want to go back and try another crepe–a savoury one, this time–and maybe some grits, too.

The crepe was my breakfast/lunch, as it was around twelve when we swung by. Later on, I went to my parents’ place in Oviedo, and as I was driving back on University Boulevard, there was a glow–a marvelous glow–shining brightly and boldly in the inky surroundings of the mid-evening.

That glow was the Krispy Kreme Hot Light.

Yes, the fabled Hot Light. Sure, you can pass it up, but if I’m in the car and driving either to my parents’ place or to my boyfriend’s apartment, you can bet I’m pulling over. When I lived in Thailand, the humble Krispy Kreme doughnut was at the top of my list of things I missed about the USA. This fried Southern-born treat has become a phenomenon, and with good reason: Krispy Kreme doughnuts are the best mass-produced doughnuts ever. My friend Debbie and I have elevated the doughnut to a bonding experience; she and I were in a Krispy Kreme the night before I left for Thailand, and when she comes to visit her family in Orlando, we would often go for a Krispy Kreme run. I even have a picture or two from one such outing.

Back to Sunday night, I brought home a dozen hot and fresh Krispy Kreme doughnuts, and had two for dinner that Sunday night. Hao had a few, too, as did our friends Marie and Mike, who were over, because sharing Krispy Kreme doughnuts is a good thing to do. Somehow my tale of my Krispy Kreme dinner inspired one of my coworkers to bring doughnuts from Krispy Kreme in this morning, which was magnificent, and she was thanked emphatically.

Sometimes, one of my favourite snacks or light meals in the evening is a bowl of cereal or dry muesli with milk. IKEA stocks up the muesli I like that has bananas, oranges and raisins, which is great with the vanilla almond milk I use, since I’m lactose-intolerant.

Last night, I called up Marie to see if Mike had spilt any more of that honey I had given them (he had an accident while over at Hao’s with the honey jar–very messy), and, to solidify the title of this entry, the two of them were making chocolate chip pancakes at around 9 o’clock at night. How awesome is that?

My Thai vs Your Thai

Last night I went to a local Thai restaurant with my parents for dinner. During the meal, I had gotten a phone call from my boyfriend, and I told him we were having Thai food.

“Where at?” he asked.

“Thai Villa, that place over on Aloma near Goldenrod.”

“Oh.” There’s a quick pause. “You should’ve gone to Thai Basil.”

Thai Basil is a restaurant in Winter Springs that I personally haven’t been to, but apparently is a favourite for Hao. When I shared his opinion with my father sitting across from me, my pa gives a shrug and shakes his head.

“Yeah, I’ve eaten there a couple of times, but I dunno… this place just seems to serve more traditional food.”

Which brings me to the observation of how, like favourite pizzerias, people can be really staunch supporters–or rabid demagogues–when it comes to their favourite Thai restaurant. I remember grumbling about my ex-boyfriend’s choice of Thai food at Thai Place over on 17-92 and Lee Road at the K-Mart shopping center. The service was nice, but I didn’t like the food that much. To me, Napasorn was the best in serving the Bangkok-style Thai cuisine I was so used to, with Thai House on Colonial near Bumby a close, respectable second.

Thai Villa, which doesn’t have a website but does have a fun roof covered with lights, is an acceptable choice, with massive proportions and excellent Thai tea, but their noodle dishes don’t do it for me. The red curry I got last night was wonderful, though, and made an excellent lunch at my work today. Normally, the phad thai is the make-it-or-break-it dish for me. If they do the pad thai the way I like it, which apparently is “Bangkok-style,” though I can’t really confirm this with anyone else aside from the proprietress of Napasorn, then it’s a contender for my favourites. Don’t ask me what it is that comprises “Bangkok-style,” but the woman at Napasorn told me she procures special spices to get the taste just right, and I believe her because she seems nice enough and she told me she liked a hat I wore once. Also because I would eat phad thai damn near weekly for a spate of time back when I wasn’t bringing lunch to work, which was an expensive habit.

If I don’t care for the noodles at a Thai establishment, but I like the curry, then it’s on the list of “okay” Thai places. In addition to Thai Villa, I would add Tasty Thai (yes, that place over by the Dairy Queen on Curry Ford) and Royal Thai as places where I can get some okay curry, although I actually haven’t been to Royal Thai in quite a while. I don’t care to go to Thai Place or to nearby Siam Garden ever again, as there are other great and good Thai restaurants to go to, so why bugger with the others?

Admittedly, I haven’t been able to scratch much of the surface of Thai places in Orlando and its surrounding areas. The Orlando Weekly lists 23 Thai restaurants, although I don’t think Emeril’s Tchoup Chop or Jade Bistro should count–or Viet Garden, for that matter. I didn’t like Viet Garden’s selections from their Thai menu, but their Vietnamese food is good enough.

By the way, if anyone is reading this and thinks, hey, I want to open up a Thai restaurant somewhere, Oviedo is an open market for the moment as far as I know. My father would appreciate it, provided it’s as good as Thai Villa.

Mom’s Siam, Richmond, VA.
(No, I don’t have any photos of Thai places around Orlando yet!)