Patchawaran's - Thai Food Trip in Pampanga

I am taking a break from writing my Bangkok Adventure posts (there are two more coming up!) but I am here to give you another one . . . and it is about Thai food! (Thai pa rin talaga! Haha)

Since we didn't get enough Thai food in Bangkok, we got our fill and ate to our heart's' content back home in  . . . Pampanga! 

My sister heard about this Thai restaurant in Angeles City from her friends and told me about it. According to the waitress who took care of us, the restaurant has been operating for six years now.  It was previously known as Chiangmai Restaurant.  I am just not sure if the change in name meant change in ownership.  One thing is for sure though, they serve good, authentic Thai food because it is owned by a Thai lady who personally cooks all the dishes being served.   

The restaurant (a bungalow house) is located in a residential area.  The place doesn't have a parking area (it is street parking) so this can be a problem especially when it is peak time.  I am glad we went for a late lunch.  You know the place has made quite an impression when you see someone bring a group of Korean tourists there after a game of golf.  

So through this post, I want to bring you too to . . .  Patcharawan's Thai Restaurant!

Facade of the restaurant

This is the dining area when you enter the red gate, it is the al fresco part of the restaurant.

We were seated in the air conditioned area.

The restaurant's menu has more than enough good choices.  You get to choose what meat you want for the Thai dishes.  The menu even has International dishes (Singaporean, Malaysian and Mexican!  I know, I wasn't expecting the Mexican part, haha).

We came with a good appetite and ordered the following:

1) Shrimp and Squid Salad - it was refreshing, loved the dressing and the succulent shrimps!  And big too I must say.  I wish the squid were more tender though.

2) Fried Rice with Chicken - when we go out, we have to order Fried rice for the kids.  I also wanted to order Bagoong Rice but it wasn't available that day.

3) Grilled Chicken Satay - LOVE it!  The chicken was tender and the satay sauce was good!

4) Phad See Lew (pronounced as Pad See You) - I wish we ordered Phad Thai instead, haha!  This is actually me and hubby's favorite Thai Noodle dish so I am already expecting this particular taste which (sadly) we didn't get in this dish.  I found it dry too.

5) Chicken Stir Fry with Basil - another winner!  

And of course, we had to try one of their curries so we ordered. . . 

6) Chiangmai Curry - This curry dish tastes like peanut-ty and has a hint of sweetness, similar to the satay sauce. 

And you know what the BEST part about this meal?!!!  The price!  Our total bill (food plus plain rice and drinks) came out to Php1,300 only (around US$26)!   

For the quality and quantity of food you get and the price you pay, this place is a winner!

If there is one thing I would suggest is for them to have more wait staff ( or probably we came in after lunch time so the others are on break?)  But I have to say that the staff were nice and they were trying their best to manage all the tables.

So if ever you are in Angeles City and are craving for some Thai food, this is a good place to go to!

Happy Food Tripping!

(Oh my gosh, writing this post made me hungry, seriously. I want some Thai food now, haha! )

Patcharawan's Thai Restaurant

26B Malabanias Road

Angeles City

Mobile No. (63) 9205310378

FB Page (not sure if this is their official page)

Bangkok Adventure: Food Diary

As a follow up to my last post, I am going to share with you some of our food adventures.  Honestly we were not able to do much "culinary exploration" in Bangkok (fancy name lang for food tripping, haha) as much as we would like to because there are some days when we are just too tired to go out, haha!

Here are snapshots from our food diary:

We only saw a limited number of street food during our stay in the city as we did not have enough time to go on a Street Food adventure.

(I googled and am saving this blog post about Street Food in Bangkok from migrationology.com for future reference!)

When we went to the Night Market across our hotel, we tried this BBQ pork sausage which hubby liked because it tasted like our the Pinoy Vigan longganisa.

We also tried fresh fruits.  The watermelon and pineapple (I love that its core was crunchy) were just okay.  All the fruits were refreshing but the melon was our favorite because it was sweet! 

Fresh fruits come with a dip that consists of sugar, salt and chilies.

There was one evening where we just bought food in the different food stalls that we found near our hotel and just ate at our room. (Picnic!!!) 

The Chicken satay was good!

Across the Platinum Mall, we saw this place that sells Chicken Rice (similar to Singapore's Hainanese Chicken) that is a favorite among the locals.  Personally I am not fond of any kind of Hainanese Chicken but if I have to choose between Singapore and Bangkok's version, I would pick Singapore. 😁

But it is always a good idea to try local favorites right?! 😄

Lining up for Take-Out (or Take Away as the locals say)

Details:

Go-Ang Kaomunkai Pratunam

Hainanese Chicken Rice

Address: 

966 Phetchaburi Rd, Khwaeng Makkasan, 

Khet Ratchathewi, Krung Thep Maha Nakhon 

10400, Thailand

(across Platinum Mall)

*just look out for the pink logo and the staff wearing pink 😁

Beside the Chicken place is a stall that sells Mango Sticky Rice (a must eat when in Bangkok!)

We also ordered Oyster Omelette, Thai Basil Chicken and a Noodle dish from this man. 

One morning, I saw these fresh fruits and just had to buy Lanzones and Mangosteen (both were sweeettt!) because I miss having them!  These are some of the fruits I miss eating since moving to LA.  I wanted to buy the Atis (custard apple) but I wasn't willing to pay the price for it, haha! 😆  Besides, the seller said they were not in season (so they might not be sweet then.  Thank you to her for being honest!)

We have also tried several food courts and my most favorite is the Paragon Food Hall located at Siam Paragon Mall because it's big and it has a wide range of food choices.

Tip: Some food courts do not accept cash.  You have to avail of a prepaid card from a counter and load it up.  I suggest you go around first to see what you like and how much it would cost so you have an idea on the amount you need.    If you have a remaining balance on your card, you can just ask for a monetary refund from the cashier after.

Just like Mango Sticky Rice, Pad Thai is synonymous with Bangkok.

I can never get enough of this Thai iced dessert!  I think I ate it three times during our stay!  It is a mix of different sweet treats like jack fruit, sweet potato, taro, corn, water chestnuts (my fave!) , tapioca, gelatin, etc. and then bathed in coconut milk.

And because we couldn't get enough of Mango Sticky Rice (haha!), we just had to try Dairy Queen's interpretation of this Thai food speciatly in Blizzard form! 

I know, it sounds weird and you could not imagine having sticky in your ice cream but you know what, this rocks!  You have to try it. 

It makes me (and my tummy! Haha) sad that we weren't able to try more culinary delights that Bangkok has to offer.  It is truly a food haven that is rich both in sweet and savory treats!

This can only mean one thing. . . . I see another trip to Bangkok in the future! Haha!

And if you go to Bangkok, I wish you a food trip that would make  your tummies happy!  Enjoy!

LA Eats: Where we get Thai Food in LA

I know two girls who are going to Bangkok this week (you know who you are because you read my blog! Haha!) and they have been busy planning their itinerary which includes shopping (of course!), Temple of the Reclining Buddha, Elephants, Floating Market, Ayutthaya AND I told them the most important thing is to go. . . .on a FOOD TRIP!  

I wish I can go with them because I miss Thai food!  

Before going to the Philippines last March, Hubby and I are in a "Thai food frenzy".  I think we've been eating Thai food every weekend! Haha!  We've tried different Thai restaurants (both near and far from home) and would like to share with you where we get our fix for our Thai food cravings in LA.

To two of my best girls. . . have a safe trip, enjoy Thailand and have an amazing and memorable vacation!  

*********************************************************************************

Warning: This post is loaded with food photos and may trigger food cravings for Thai food after =)

Panvimarn Thai Cuisine

4101 N Bellflower Blvd,
Long Beach, CA 90808
Their website

This is the first Thai restaurant we ever tried in LA (around five years ago).  Love the place, the ambiance (it has modern decors/interiors), good service and good food!  All the things we've tried are always a hit!

Clockwise (from L to R): Sticky Rice and Coconut Ice Cream,
Softshell Crab Curry, Thai Style Baby Ribs 

Here are our favorite items in the menu:

Thai BBQ Pork - always tender! 

It's a little bit on the sweet side so I'm sure Filipinos will love this because it is reminiscent of our own BBQ.

Pad See Ew - my favorite!

I used to like Pad Thai noodles but after trying this dish, it's one thing I always order in all the Thai restaurants we've tried, haha!

Heavenly Como Fried Rice---it's really heavenly!  

My picky eater approves (it's her favorite thing here)! Our only complain?  It needs more rice!  Haha!
They sure don't scrimp on the ingredients.

After countless visits to Panvimarn, we thought of exploring other Thai restaurants.  Thanks to Yelp's help, we found some gems!

This led us to this place which is 25 miles away from our place!  Hubby said he couldn't believe he is driving 25 miles just to get Thai food!  Haha!  Actually, we were meeting a friend for lunch so we picked a place that is convenient for her.  

Sanamluang Cafe

5176 Hollywood Blvd

Los Angeles, CA 90027

Two words. . . Parking and Cash!  Parking is a problem and bring cash, the place doesn't accept credit cards.  The restaurant shares the lot with other tenants so there is limited parking.  There is street parking available though.  We had a laaate lunch so the parking concern was manageable.

Clockwise from (L to R): Pad See Ew (Again! Haha), Shrimp Cakes, 
Pad Prik (Shrimp with Fried Chili, Bell Pepper and Onion)

Our favorite:

Fried Garlic and Pepper - we had to order a second plate! Haha!

Renu Nakorn Restaurant
13019 Rosecrans AVe
Ste 105, Norwalk, CA
90650
Their FB page

Clockwise (L to R): Pad Thai Noodles,
Tod Mun Plar (Fried Fish Cakes), Thai BBQ

Hubby and I loved the Pad Thai Noodles, didn't care much for the Fish Cakes and he prefers their BBQ (better than Panvimarn's) because it wasn't sweet.

This next restaurant was special because this was where we had lunch after I took (and I passed!) my Driver's License written exam at DMV (Woohoo!).  I have yet to take my driving exam though.  I know I should have worked on this as soon as we moved to LA but I was just too afraid to fail, hahaha!    

Thai Nakorn Restaurant

11951 Beach Blvd

Stanton, CA 90680

Their Website

Left: Beef Penang                                 Right: Thai BBQ Chicken

The Beef Penang tastes so much better than it looks, haha!  Promise!  How do I describe it?   Filipinos would say . . ."sauce pa lang, ulam na!"  And I have no idea how to translate that to English, hahaha!  It basically just means that the sauce (sooo tasty and sooo good!) can be a meal in itself.  As for the Chicken on the right side, I found it dry.  Will have my Thai BBQ somewhere else.

Pad See Ew (again!) - This noodle just always hits the spot!
Btw, in our book, this noodle goes best with Beef

After looking through my photos again as I'm writing this blog post, all I can say is . . . I'm hungrrryyy and Thai Food is simply one of the best!

Wherever you are, whatever food you are having, Happy Eating!