New Thai Fave in Etobicoke

What: Coconut Chicken Soup & Pineapple Fried Rice
Where: Mangosteens Thai Cuisine (Etobicoke)
Cuisine: Thai
Affordability: $7 – $12 per dish

Pointers:

– Tucked away on a corner in what appears to be a seedy plaza on the corner of Kipling (one block east) and The Queensway, Mangosteens offer a cozy, yet trendy atmosphere with a small but very tasty menu and very attentive servers.

– I had the Coconut Chicken Soup and it was awesome. It’s like chicken soup but not salty. It has a hint of sweetness from the coconut juice, which made for an enjoyable dish. There were also chunks of chicken and mushrooms were a plenty.

– For the entrée, I decided on just the pineapple fried rice. It had chunks of pineapple, large shrimps, chicken, green onions, and roasted cashews stir fried in Jasmine rice and eggs. That did not need any other main. That was a meal on its own. And what a dish! It had an explosion of flavour that complimented each other. There was a good balance of spices that complimented the citrus of the pineapples. A definite “must-have” again.

– Will I go back to Mangosteens? You bet! It’s so rare to find a good restaurant in Etobicoke. It’s good to find these gems and keep them in mind when trying to figure out what to have for lunch or dinner.

Khao San Road

What: Street Style Pad Thai
Where: Khao San Road
Cuisine: Thai
Affordability: $10-15

Pointers:

– This small restaurant was so packed by 6:00pm sharp on a Thursday evening, that we had to wait close to 40 minutes. So unless you like waiting out in the sweltering Toronto summer heat, your best bet would be to show up at 5pm when doors open for dinner! Unfortunately they don’t do reservations, but they can do take out!

– I found the menu very very similar to Sukhothai, and prices were around $13-$15 for curry, pad thai, or other rice dishes. The pad thai (with beef) that I ordered was really tasty. There’s just something amazing about mixing all the sweet, savoury, spicy and tangy flavors into the rice noodles. The beef slices were tenderly stir-fried, and there was some crunchy raw cabbage that could be incorporated…the entire combination was quite delicious!

– Give me a plate of Pad Thai (Street style) and a bottle of Singha Thai beer, and I’ll be a back at Khao San Road in a heartbeat!

To add…a vegetarian option:

What: Gra Bong (Squash Fritters) & Tofu Gaeng Massaman (below)

Pointers:

– Since I went on not only a different day, but a different time of day, I can confirm that Khao San Road gets pretty busy even for late dining (my group got there past 10pm).

– We had the Gra Bong to start which are deep fried squash fritters in ginger, Lemmon grass and red curry. It comes with a dip but I didn’t even try it with that. It was good just the way it was. My friends who had just returned from Thailand confirms that it is very comparable to Thailand street food, which Khao San Road is famous for – Thai street food!

– For the main, I had the Gaeng Massaman since I was on a vegetarian kick. It’s tofu cooked in the only Thai curry with tamarind, with peanuts, onions, bay leaves and potatoes topped with crispy shallots. All I can say is yum over my white rice. I didn’t even need the tofu part. I would have been happy with the sauce. It not only had an amazing fragrant as they placed it on the table but what an explosion of amazing flavour! Enjoyed this one a lot.

– Will I go back to Khao San Road? Yes, I share that want with AliceWei1127!

Surrendering to SukhoThai

What: SukhoThai Pad Thai & Nua Gra Teaum
Where: SukhoThai (on Wellington & Church)
Cuisine: Thai
Affordability: $10 – $15 per dish

Pointers:

– Finally got the chance to try SukhoThai after being refused delivery twice! We got there early for the dinner service (at 5) and by the time we left around 6:30, the place was pretty busy. I’d recommend a reservation if you are planning to arrive early. That’s of course if they’ll take it; they refuse delivery because they are busy.

– I had the Nua Gra Teaum (ginger beef on Jasmine rice with a fried egg) & my partner in crime (alicewei1127) had the SukhoThai Pad Thai. But of course we shared both. Our verdict: both good. The pad Thai was tangy, or slightly citrus-y, that made it taste really yummy. I sensed a bit of tamarind, perhaps, and the chicken was tender. The ginger beef was also very tasty but not over powering. It was also very tender and perfectly cooked, which went really well with the plain Rice and fried egg. I ordered mine medium but didn’t get much heat, however, proper hot sauce was available just in case you wish to add more heat to yours. Mine was perfect for me.

– I had the Thai iced tea. It was good, but I’ve had better.

– For appetizer we had the garlic tofu. Again, not overpowering garlic flavour. The sauce it came with had a nice kick to it that complimented the crispy batter over the firm tofu. We marked that if had a texture of chicken nuggets instead of the silky tofu version. No complaints on this one. Definite must try!

– Will I go back to SukhoThai? Probably. I want to try the curries. But maybe I’ll try the delivery again. Maybe I’ll have better luck.