A weekend in New York: Part I

A fairly ridiculous bout of consecutive trips abroad has resulted in this blog's sudden interlude, which has been frustrating as in my travels there has been so much to report on the food front that it is almost unfair on any readers that I might have been denied constant internet access. Anyway, I am now beginning the long story that is the food history of my summer, which began in New York (17/06). En route to my cousin's wedding upstate, I managed to pay a visit to S and Z in the city and sneak in a particularly good meal, which only left me wanting to spend longer scouring the five boroughs for all that it has to offer.

We got the subway to Queens, and walked through leafy Astoria. The destination was Sripraphai, a Thai restaurant that Z's dad had been to before and was now leading us to. It had a pretty garden at the back, which was perfect for the warm evening. There were about two hundred things on the menu, but this was nothing to be wary of, as it seemed that everything would be different, and most importantly, good. We started with a crispy catfish mango salad, which was fresh and limey, and surprisingly hot with chilli, which the raw vegetables had perhaps been marinated in. A had declared Sripraphai as able to really give you the spice, and this little salad was an indication of flavour to come. Henceforth we decided to stick with 'regular' on the chilli front, which in an average Thai joint would have been labelled much more tongue-numbing.

My favourite dish was raw shrimp, again with lots of lime and chilli. Seasoned with both mint and coriander, I had never really known Thai food to be so fresh and zesty. Next came a pile of fried soft shell crab, with chilli, garlic and topped with basil. Crispy out and juicy within, the crab meat was delicious, and although the base flavours of most of our dishes consisted of a lot of chilli, garlic, and lime juice, there were obviously secret ingredient combinations at work that made everything taste different from the last.

Drunken noodles were ordered for the less spice-tolerant of the party, and were a welcome addition to the spread. With (a smaller amount) of chilli, ground beef and basil, they were silkily gloopy, and teamed well with the red curry we had to provide the final burst of heat. After all of the meals I've had in the last month or so, I can still remember this one and writing this has now made me crave something extremely spicy, and hope I will be back in New York soon. Thanks to A for the wonderful dinner, and to S and Z for being such great hosts to this transient visitor.