Monday, December 29, 2014

Uncle Boons NYC -- Great Creative Thai Food

Uncle Boons 
My best choices for restaurants are former James Beard Semi Finalists, this is where I found Uncle Boons.  Uncle Boons is in NoLita off of Spring Street, down a set of stairs slightly below street level. It is like walking onto the set of South Pacific a little bar and a kitchen pass to the right and several tables to the left.  Lots of palm frons and Polynesian decor.  This is a restaurant that you should get reservations because it is small and very popular.  The menu is one page and full of share-able items so everyone can enjoy.
To start with you are brought out Mieng Kim a snack from Thailand that is a Betel Leaf topped with dried shrimp, chiles, toasted coconut and dipped into a Galangal sauce and popped into your mouth.
Mieng Kim
Chicken Banana Blossom Salad
Kabocha Squash
Thai Escargot Green Curry
The leaf is tender with a little bitter bite and the dried shrimp are crunchy and salty all this combined with dried coconut and a dip of the  Galangal sauce makes it a scrumptious way to start the evening.  I always have to remember that Thai food can be very spicy and although I like spice I listened very carefully to what our server said about ordering certain dishes. Knowing that we would get into some spice we ordered the Boon's Brew which had essence of lime, chiles and coriander which would help cut through the heat,
We started out the meal with Hoi Tak, Green Curry Snails topped with crispy Garlic.  Thai Escargot, the Green Curry really enhanced the flavor and the crispy garlic added some tasty texture to the dish, not too spicy just the right amount of heat.  Next was the Yum Gai Hua Pli which is a very meaty chicken salad with some real heat that is addictive. You would take one bite and go that is not bad , then it would grow and intensify but instead of saying it is too hot your mouth says I want more of this really satisfying dish.  Served with the Chicken are Banana Blossoms and crispy shallot so each bite had substance.  Kang Yang Muay Thai is a dish traditionally served at Thai boxing matches and it is a delightful dish served with Roti for you to make little tacos.  You take the chicken the salad and fold it with the Roti and dip it in the sauce for a great taste.  We ordered a side Haw Mok Phukk Tong which is a Kabocha Squash in a Red Curry Custard and toasted Pumpkin Seed to add some crunch. There were so many flavors going on with the previous dishes that this was a great heat cooler but got lost because of great tastes of the other dishes.  To wrap up the dinner we had their Milk Toast desert which is a Brioche saturated with Condensed Milk and sweet Thai spices, Delicious.
Overall this is one of these restaurants that has great food and an opportunity to enjoy over and over again