A blind date huh?
Truth be told I have about as much of a chance to be on a blind date as I have giving up beer for lent. I have been married so long that nether have much chance of happening. If I did though, I would choose a Thai food restaurant like The Thai Chef http://www.thaichefcuisine.com/ for the following reasons:
- I am exotic - I would not come right out and profess my status as international rock star, world-renowned beer blogger, and all of the other things that make me.....me. Otherwise, it would all be about me and that is no way to impress a date. I would pick exotic cuisine I loved and just roll with it.
- Hopefully she is worldly - If she is already adventurous enough to be a fan of foreign cuisine, that is a step in the right direction. Otherwise, I can be seen as worldly and help her discover some new and exciting food.
- Worst case scenario - Blind dates have the distinct possibility of going sideways. If this happens, I can at least have enjoyed a meal I love so the night would not be a total loss. Besides that, there are plenty of Thai food lovers on STEEM and Tasteem so half the meal would be paid for in steem when you put together a review! Win/Win.
Can I start you with a drink?
You know me too well! Of course you can. What have you got on tap.
"We are all out of draft beer."
Well that is somewhat of a shame. I searched the menu for another one I might like and the best seemed to be a beer I had not had in years and years. I ordered an Upper Canada Dark https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Upper_Canada_Brewing_Company for a change. Out of that too. Upper Canada Lager? Sorry sold out.
I settled upon a Tiger beer as that brings back memories of travel and interesting beer. Without a word, I was instead delivered a TsingTao. Alrighty then.
If this was a blind date, it was not starting out great on the beer front.
The Menu
The menu turns out to be presented in the form of a large sheet with the Specialty dishes, and a second 2-sided one with the regular menu. A little confusing and redundant but I guess you really have to make it easy for typical honkies to order something they won't be scared by.
The specialty dishes are probably all the menu you would need with its selection of vegetarian, seafood, duck, and shrimp prepared so many ways. Perhaps this is simply the last page of a 3-page menu as it has a couple desserts on it?
When it comes to starters, I am a little pedestrian because I am generally eating with the family...and the family loves their spring rolls. One good thing about Thai Chef is there are quite a few variations on the typical spring roll including salad, chicken and shrimp.
Tom Yum soup is also a nice standard though not your only choice of soups and the salads are quite varied if you are into that. Good for a blind date.
This page is the PAYLOAD for me as there are so many different noodle, rice, lamb, bbq chicken and beef selections.......though I love me a Thai curry so much. As I pour over the menu, I remember that I knew what I was going to eat from the moment someone mentioned we go to this place.
As we await our food and sip on the Chinese beer, I am wondering why the place is so empty. Maybe because they have a tough time with the beer? Then it occurs to me that it is only 5:00 pm or so and many people in this city eat dinner much later when going to a restaurant.
The wait for food seems so much shorter when you order an appetizer doesn't it? Would make for a better blind date this way so there is not an awkward delay between sitting down and making too much conversation between ordering and eating.
We opted for the Spring Rolls as usual as well as some fried Calamari! The sauce was the perfect mix of sweet and spicy and the breading surprisingly light and fluffy. Calamari in these parts can be like onion rings with thick greasy batter but this was actually a pretty nice surprise.
Now for my Favourite!
Before kids, we used to come to this place often. It was because I loved the Crispy Tamarind Beef. For me, it is the perfect combination of texture, sweetness and spiciness. I love to get coconut rice to mix it with and eat with chopsticks as it somehow makes each bit perfect.
Patented Zeke Extreme Close-up!
This had to be the subject of my standard extreme close up shot. It seems to be the most popular part of my Tasteem reviews as the reader imagines me forcing my phone right into my plate, the people around me looking sideways at the hipster taking pictures of his food, and really immerses you in the dish. Can you not taste this from wherever you are in the world?
It was as good as I remember.
So, it is not likely that Zeke will ever be on a blind date. It is VERY likely, however that I would be approached for advice based upon my worldly wisdom that is beyond my years. If that advice was where I would start a blind date, it might be at a Thai food restaurant. If that person was in the west end of Toronto, I would suggest Thai Chef. Just be prepared for some authentic Asian beer in case they are out of Craft beer on tap. And order the Crispy Tamarind Beef!
Bon appetit.
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Restaurant Information
Thai Chef Cuisine
233 Roncesvalles Ave, Toronto, ON M6R 2L6, Canada
The Thai Chef - A Zeke Tasteem Review!
This post participated in the Tasteem contest Where to eat for my blind date?
