Flashback: Rehoboth Beach... in Haiku (originally posted 7/17/10)

Ah, summer is coming to an end.  Why not celebrate it with a trip to the beach?  Too little room in OC? How about a side trip to Reho?  Plus the haiku is a format I haven't had on here in a while.  For those of you not familiar with Rehoboth Beach, please note: the subject of the final photo is still on display the last I checked.

- - - - -

Rehoboth Beach... in Haiku (originally posted July 17, 2010)


It's been a week since my visit to fabulously hot Rehoboth Beach - and a good long while since I posted anything in poetry format. So to help cope with the heat, a little silliness in haiku format.

My stay started at
The Rehoboth Guest House - a
Charming place to stay.

Dogfish Head Brew Pub

Dinner was Dogfish
Head Brewpub, one of my main
Reasons to go down.

So many beers, all
Mem'rable. But enough to
Cloud my brain a tad.

I must recommend
Their five dollar sampler of
Five beers with your meal.

With that I got the
Fried squid - crunchy, nice, although
Not too flavorful.

Alongside, their In-
dulgence burger (just nine bucks),
Piled with lots of stuff:

Cheddar, bacon, and
A fried onion ring - I asked
For it to be rare.

Flavorful, juicy,
A bit messy (duh) - quite good.
Get it if you can.

Walked to Double L,
One of the rare gay bars that
Has Guinness on tap.

What a cute couple,
Standing on the Boardwalk on
Drizzly Thursday morn.

The Bake Shoppe

Stopped by the Bake Shoppe
On Rehoboth Av for a
Croissant and a chat.

Crusty, happy guy
Who grew up in Baltimore
Told me about two

Women who baked pies
In his 'hood in South B'more
Back when he was young.

Baywatch: Delaware!

Lifeguards training in the sand.
Yum. I stared a bit.

And of course, I get
On the beach and it drizzles.
I still got sunburned :\

In contrast: what the
Trendy woman wore here a
Hundred years ago.

Also checked out an
Exhibit on Rehoboth's
Archaeology.

Leave it to me to
Go to the beach, and end up
In a museum.

Seafood ShackFor a post-beach lunch,
I stopped at the Seafood ShackOn Baltimore Av

With my Dos Equis,
Got a po'boy which was a
Three seafood sampler:

A mini-crabcake,
Three oysters, and two shrimps - for
all of thirteen bucks.

Po'boy did the job,
In a friendly setting not
Far from the Boardwalk.

Visit at night for
Music from lesbian and
Straight female singers!

Dogfish Head Brew Pub Part TwoOn back to Dogfish,
For their down-scale brew pub tour
Free at 4:30

On Tuesdays, Wednesdays,
and Thursdays. No free samples
Like in Milton though.

Showed me their vodkas,
Including an intriguing
Peanut Butter one.

I had to try this.
A shot for five bucks tastes JUST
like peanut butter.

Finbar's Pub and GrillHowever, dinner
Was at Finbar's - the locals'
Favorite for dinner.

The service, at first,
Was lacking. But I was helped
Eventually.

With a thick Guinness,
I got a big fish and chips
For seventeen bucks:

A humongous piece
Of Irish ale-battered cod
With a rémoulade.

The fish was tender,
And the batter not soggy.
Locals must love it!

While fries are often
A throwaway, these chips were
A nice complement.

Finbar's, by the way,
Is easy to find: Dogfish
Brew Pub is next door.

Blue MoonBookending dinner,
A visit to the Blue Moon,
So close to my room.

Dinner is pricey.
So I only went for their
Happy Hour at first.

After dinner, I
Returned to meet up with friends,
Watch karaoke.

Had yet more Dogfish:
Two (or three) Shelter Pale Ales,
But Happy Hour-priced.

And please check out the
Entertaining Pamala
Stanley at Blue Moon!

Late? Karaoke
With Mona Lotts (just don't sing
Off-key like some guys)

Finally found the
Fabled gay end of the beach
(and much eye candy...)

So nice to see gays
With their kids, even some straights,
Gay couples and groups.

If you're looking, it's
13 minute walk from there
To Rehoboth Av.

Hobo's Restaurant and Bar

For my send-off lunch,
Hobo's offered one very
Eye-popping option:

The place looks like they
Took Artscape and made it in-
to a restaurant.

My lunch: a combo
Quesadilla of blue crab
Mixed with melted brie.

For nine bucks, it is
Melted with arugula
And artichokes, too.

You would not think to
Mix crab and brie, but my God
What a great combo!

Topped with rémoulade
and red bell peppers, which made
The meal quite complete.

Of course, I had to
Stop at Dolle's for car'mel corn -
A six dollar tub.

And Candy Kitchen:
For a pound of fudge to take
Back for family.

Did I mention the
Eye-candy? I did. Just had
To revisit it.

No haiku verse here: this speaks for itself.

Oh What a Cake!

I stopped by Oh What a Cake today after work. This cake catering business in Columbia also has ready-to-buy cupcakes, which is what I was hoping for. The best part is the price: many of them are just a dollar, and the really fancy ones are $1.25 (like their red velvet cupcake). I got three of their dollar cupcakes - chocolate with vanilla buttercream, yellow (butter?) cake with lemon frosting, and "butter with buttercream frosting". This last one was my favorite and I ate it in the car on the way to my next destination. The others were also delicious, and all three are soft, sugary and simple. Very good cupcakes. I'll have to go back again soon.

Exits 4, 5 and 6A-B Revisited

I admit: I don't get to the I-97 section of the Beltway very often, and so I have explored it very little. But when I got around here the first time, I simply did not explore nearly enough. I've tried to rectify this second go round. I know I'm probably missing other noteworthy eateries. It's up to all y'all to point them out.

Exits 4, 5 and 6A-B -
Section of the Beltway - the Glen Burnie Section (S. Baltimore City, N. Anne Arundel County)
Towns & neighborhoods along the way - Ferndale, Nottingham, Linthicum, Linthicum Heights, Pumphrey, BWI Airport
Routes that branch off - I-97, MD-648, MD-170

Places that have shut down since I last visited

Many of the victims of the recent recession in this part of town were of the Chinese carry-out variety. Gone is the massive Beijing Buffet (website no longer works) in the Burwood Village Plaza on B&A Blvd - in its place is, well, nothing.

Yep, empty.

Hong Kong Chinese Restaurant off of I-97 still seems to be around, surprisingly so, but then again the incredibly cheap food may have improved since the last time I was there, and almost got sick off it.

Restaurants I didn't get around to the first time

Despite the empty hull of what was Beijing Buffet, most of the locations in Burwood have not shut down: for example, there's still the Buffalo Wings & Beer (map) and Italia's Corner Café (same map). Italia's is a nice place. It's not a suit and tie place, but it is a satisfying evening out with Mee-Maw and the kids. Or your rambunctious little league football team, which one guy brought with him. That wasn't really a problem for me since I was doing take-out. But you may want to sit yourself down (if that little league football team isn't around, that is): Italia's is inviting, bright and comfortable, with both indoor and (for the warmer weather) outdoor seating. And somebody there must be quick of foot since there are a few prominent soccer trophies mounted above the counter. I could only hope to earn even one in my lifetime.

Italia's offers much more than the typical pizza and subs fare: they've got soup and pasta, antipasti and tiramisù, plus a wine selection. And of course, they do have pizza and subs. I went for the stromboli ($7.50), featuring various types of meat (sausage, ham, pepperoni) wrapped in mozzarella.

The stromboli, outside...

...and inside

It was filling, but I just about finished the whole thing in one sitting. Rarely these days do I find Italian take-out that I actually enjoy eating. I enjoyed this: the dough wasn't hard and dry like so many stromboli doughs can be. The mozzarella and meat together were just soft and sinful. I feel almost like I'm channeling my napoletano ancestors here! Though in truth, I have no idea if they ate stromboli in their little mountain village outside of Salerno 110 years ago (Yes I know Stromboli the town is in Sicily. I have ancestors from Sicily, too. And I am certain none of them was orange). If you want this stromboli you can most easily reach Italia's off of Exit 5.

As for Exit 6: when I took it the last time I went about half a mile in each direction, lulling myself into that false sense of being sure that all I would continue to see were houses. I should have bothered to keep going, as I learned to do with future exits. I would have found a Ferndale-area institution in the Shipley Linthicum Shopping Center on South Camp Meade Road, just on the other side of BWI. Keller's Bakery (map), now in its 70th year, was taking orders for Thanksgiving pies when I stopped by (yes, I'm only now getting around to writing this). It's a small operation, but they take many orders and always run out. The woman behind the counter when I showed up showed me some of their popular flavors - well, those they had left at least: apple, French apple, blueberry, just to name a handful. Hopefully you've gotten your order in for Christmas, too. Commenters on the Baltimore City Search site for Keller's also rave about their turnovers and donuts. I had no cash on me at all, so I was out of luck altogether, seeing as how they do not take cards.

Restaurants that have since opened

A few doors down in the Shipley Shopping Center, one place that I don't think was around at all the first time I stopped by was Matsu Japanese (map), which has two locations, in Linthicum and Annapolis. Matsu is a smallish, few frills sushi and Japanese restaurant that satisfies your sushi need quickly and cheaply. I was impressed at how fast I got served - granted, there were, maybe, five people there for the lunch rush. Their lunch specials are good for the price: a $10 bento box was what caught my eye before anything else, and unlike most times when I dawdle over the menu I knew I had to get this. A relatively quick ten minutes later, if that, I had my lunch.


Matsu's lunch bento box is smaller than most you will have had. With just four modest compartments, you get a few slices of California roll, a couple shumai dumplings and your choice of one other item, with soup and rice on the side. In my case, I got the 5 piece sashimi. The items in the bento box were about as modest as the restaurant itself: smaller amounts of things, which I guess justifies the $10 price. The flavor could also best be described as modest. While the food was good, it was not great - once again, $10 bento box. Nevertheless, it got the job done. Matsu is at least worth a visit.

I just wish that the entire staff - and I mean the entire staff - had not sat down to lunch right as I had finished eating and was anticipating my check. No, I did not need my check right away. But I figured that, since my waitress had sat down to eat like everybody else, it might be a good long while before anyone even noticed I was done. Fortunately, my waitress happened to look behind her and see that I was done. She quickly stopped her lunch, got my check, and proceeded to toss it in front of me. Well, more half-toss, half-drop it in front of me. Way to make your customer feel like he's not a burden! I never leave anything less than a 15% tip, and rarely leave less than 20%. I left 10% this time.

A few other restaurants have popped up around BWI. One I have yet to try is the Acqua Restaurant (map) - offering, as it says right on its splash page, "bay fresh cuisine in an elegant setting" near the BWI Hilton. Another is the snazzy Los Portales Restaurant (map), to meet your craving for Mexican food as soon as you get out of the airport. And if you head back to Burwood you can at least try the Bamboo House (same map as Italia's), which is the only Chinese food you will find in lieu of the Beijing Buffet.

So, what did I miss?

Again I need your help and suggestions. Tell me what I missed. I know I missed something. Or what about the places I didn't visit this time: ringing endorsements of Acqua or Los Portales, or something in the airport that I need to check out the next time I'm taking a flight?

Places I got back to

Italia's Corner Café (Italian/pizza and subs) - 7089 Baltimore-Annapolis Blvd. (Burwood Village Plaza), Suite F, Glen Burnie, MD 21061; Phone: (410) 684-3817

• Would I eat there again? Yes
• Would I go out of my way to eat there again? Sure

Matsu Japanese Restaurant (Japanese/sushi) - 517 South Camp Meade Road (Shipley Linthicum Shopping Center), Linthicum, MD 21090 ; Phone: (410) 850-0009 or (410) 850-0012

• Would I eat there again? If I was in the area
  
• Would I go out of my way to eat there again? Likely not

A few places to look up later

Acqua Restaurant (Chesapeake/seafood) - 1739 West Nursery Rd., Linthicum, MD 21090; Phone: (410) 694-0808 ext. 5176

Bamboo House (Chinese/sushi) - 7089 Baltimore-Annapolis Blvd (Burwood Village Plaza), Glen Burnie, MD 21061

Buffalo Wings & Beer (pub fare; wings) - 7089 Baltimore-Annapolis Blvd (Burwood Village Plaza), Suites C & D, Glen Burnie MD 21061; Phone: (410) 760-2337

Keller's Bakery (bakery) - 509 South Camp Meade Rd. (Shipley Linthicum Shopping Center), Linthicum Heights, MD 21090; Phone: (410) 859-8228

Los Portales Restaurant (Mexican) - 6938 Aviation Boulevard, Suites D & E, Glen Burnie, MD 21061; Phone: (410) 766-9800

Recent Eats - Dog Days 2010 Edition

Just a few notes on a few places I've eaten at lately...

1. Lumbini

I had planned to stop at Sláinte Pub to see the big Manchester City-AC Milan game on July 31, but an emergency kept me from doing that. So I headed out to look for a TV that had the game. With no luck there, I gave up completely and went for Nepalese. Instead of Kumari, which usually impresses me, I decided to try out Lumbini on Charles Street. I was willing to try out something different than the norm. For me that was the sukuti lamb with bhatmas sandeko (fried soybeans) and puffed flattened rice. The waitress warned me ahead of time that the sukuti lamb is a love it or hate it sort of dish. I was still willing to try it. The verdict? Well, as she said it would be, it was very chewy and dry, and probably not something I would order again. But I'm not sure I'd go back to Lumbini anyway. Despite the fairly empty dining space, the service was quite slow - I admit that this is possibly due to what I ordered, so I can give them a pass on that. But the items that were not all that unusual were also more or less average. Particularly unsatisfying was their garlic naan, which didn't have much of a garlic flavor for me. I don't know. You may like it, but I'm sticking with Kumari.

2. Thai Landing

It's been a while since I've been to Thai Landing. I should head back more often. I'm glad I did before the summer ended, since soft shells are featured on their summer menu. You can have your soft shell crab prepared in any of four different ways. Mine, the pu nim chu chee, was a mixture of coconut milk and Thai chili paste with carrots and snow peas and a nice crispy soft shell crab in the middle (I had just one for $16; two will run you $26). It didn't look as filling as it turned out to be.

3. Stoneleigh Bakery Café

This place is literally a five minute drive from my apartment and I haven't set foot into it before this week. I've already been back a second time. They have sandwiches, salads and bagels, plus their own cream cheeses, but it's their cookies I have come for. Try their Linzer Cookies, a jam-filled sandwich cookie that feels so good in the mouth when it gets warm and soft. My favorite is their Chickpea Delight. It feels dry but just dissolves in your mouth in seconds.
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Rehoboth Beach... in Haiku

It's been a week since my visit to fabulously hot Rehoboth Beach - and a good long while since I posted anything in poetry format. So to help cope with the heat, a little silliness in haiku format.

My stay started at
The Rehoboth Guest House - a
Charming place to stay.

Dogfish Head Brew Pub

Dinner was Dogfish
Head Brewpub, one of my main
Reasons to go down.

So many beers, all
Mem'rable. But enough to
Cloud my brain a tad.

I must recommend
Their five dollar sampler of
Five beers with your meal.

With that I got the
Fried squid - crunchy, nice, although
Not too flavorful.

Alongside, their In-
dulgence burger (just nine bucks),
Piled with lots of stuff:

Cheddar, bacon, and
A fried onion ring - I asked
For it to be rare.

Flavorful, juicy,
A bit messy (duh) - quite good.
Get it if you can.

Walked to Double L,
One of the rare gay bars that
Has Guinness on tap.

What a cute couple,
Standing on the Boardwalk on
Drizzly Thursday morn.

The Bake Shoppe

Stopped by the Bake Shoppe
On Rehoboth Av for a
Croissant and a chat.

Crusty, happy guy
Who grew up in Baltimore
Told me about two

Women who baked pies
In his 'hood in South B'more
Back when he was young.

Baywatch: Delaware!

Lifeguards training in the sand.
Yum. I stared a bit.

And of course, I get
On the beach and it drizzles.
I still got sunburned :\

In contrast: what the
Trendy woman wore here a
Hundred years ago.

Also checked out an
Exhibit on Rehoboth's
Archaeology.

Leave it to me to
Go to the beach, and end up
In a museum.

Seafood Shack

For a post-beach lunch,
I stopped at the Seafood Shack
On Baltimore Av

With my Dos Equis,
Got a po'boy which was a
Three seafood sampler:

A mini-crabcake,
Three oysters, and two shrimps - for
all of thirteen bucks.

Po'boy did the job,
In a friendly setting not
Far from the Boardwalk.

Visit at night for
Music from lesbian and
Straight female singers!

Dogfish Head Brew Pub Part Two

On back to Dogfish,
For their down-scale brew pub tour
Free at 4:30

On Tuesdays, Wednesdays,
and Thursdays. No free samples
Like in Milton though.

Showed me their vodkas,
Including an intriguing
Peanut Butter one.

I had to try this.
A shot for five bucks tastes JUST
like peanut butter.

Finbar's Pub and Grill

However, dinner
Was at Finbar's - the locals'
Favorite for dinner.

The service, at first,
Was lacking. But I was helped
Eventually.

With a thick Guinness,
I got a big fish and chips
For seventeen bucks:

A humongous piece
Of Irish ale-battered cod
With a rémoulade.

The fish was tender,
And the batter not soggy.
Locals must love it!

While fries are often
A throwaway, these chips were
A nice complement.

Finbar's, by the way,
Is easy to find: Dogfish
Brew Pub is next door.

Blue Moon

Bookending dinner,
A visit to the Blue Moon,
So close to my room.

Dinner is pricey.
So I only went for their
Happy Hour at first.

After dinner, I
Returned to meet up with friends,
Watch karaoke.

Had yet more Dogfish:
Two (or three) Shelter Pale Ales,
But Happy Hour-priced.

And please check out the
Entertaining Pamala
Stanley at Blue Moon!

Late? Karaoke
With Mona Lotts (just don't sing
Off-key like some guys)

Finally found the
Fabled gay end of the beach
(and much eye candy...)

So nice to see gays
With their kids, even some straights,
Gay couples and groups.

If you're looking, it's
13 minute walk from there
To Rehoboth Av.

Hobo's Restaurant and Bar

For my send-off lunch,
Hobo's offered one very
Eye-popping option:

The place looks like they
Took Artscape and made it in-
to a restaurant.

My lunch: a combo
Quesadilla of blue crab
Mixed with melted brie.

For nine bucks, it is
Melted with arugula
And artichokes, too.

You would not think to
Mix crab and brie, but my God
What a great combo!

Topped with rémoulade
and red bell peppers, which made
The meal quite complete.

Of course, I had to
Stop at Dolle's for car'mel corn -
A six dollar tub.

And Candy Kitchen:
For a pound of fudge to take
Back for family.

Did I mention the
Eye-candy? I did. Just had
To revisit it.

No haiku verse here: this speaks for itself.

Lunch at Yia Yia's of Essex

I did not realize tht Yia Yia's Bakery on Philadelphia Road had a sandwich special. I usually just go over to the cookie counter. But for $5 you can get a sandwich of the day. Today was Hot Italian, with several Boar's Head meats and some cheeses, warm, on ciabatta bread made at the bakery. Instead of eating in the bright dining room, with the special eating area sectioned off and backed with a mural of Greek pillars, I went ahead and got it as take-out. Along with this came some chocolate meringues (25 cents each). The sandwich was filling, with juicy cold (er, hot) cuts and slightly melted cheeses. All this came with a tangy spread on top and a pickle to finish it off. I just wish they had removed the hard string of skin from one of the cold cuts, but apart from that it was a cheap sandwich I would get again.

Sweets, Sausages and Old Bay along Frederick Road

I had to run a few errands last week, and found myself passing through Catonsville and Ellicott City more than a handful of times while doing it. So when my errands were done, Frederick Road seemed like a good place to stop for something to eat.

Along the way to Ellicott City, I stopped in the small community of Oella. I got wind of an out-of-the-way deli from this year-old post from the How Chow blog. The no-nonsense JW Treuth has good fresh meats and fishes, including the too-intriguing Chesapeake Bay Sausage, with Old Bay in place of the Italian seasoning ($3.49 per lb). I am fixing it up right now with onions and peppers. This is a wonderful sausage for the hard core Old Bay fan, with a subtle but unmistakable Old Bay flavor.

I really need a new camera.

Once across the county line and into Ellicott City, I made a beeline to Sweet - a Bakery and Café, where I experienced a little bit of their bakery and a little bit of their café, all the while watching a bride-to-be swear that she just could not fit raspberry filled wedding cake samples into her stomach right now, but that it sounded so good. I was not there for the wedding cake, of course. Instead I ordered some chocolate top cookies and a red velvet cupcake. The cookies were soft - both the cookie part and the chocolate part - and were okay. The cupcake was one of the moistest and delicious red velvet cupcakes I have had in ages. Perhaps I was swung by the vanilla buttercream frosting on top - not soft, but slightly hard on the outside, like a good buttercream ought to be. Cream cheese frosting may be the normal way to go with red velvet cake, but I am a sucker for vanilla buttercream and will take that over cream cheese any day. The cupcake was about $1.50. I can't recall the price of the cookies.

Ain't it Sweet?

For the café part, I went for crepe. My goal was to get a breakfast crepe (served all day), but for $1 more (total $7) I got the cheese lunch crepe, which came with a side order of cantaloupe. What can I say? It was a simple buckwheat crepe filled with satisfying Swiss cheese. It was a pleasant and delicious lunch. That and I got an iced tea. Total spent at Sweet: $12, most of which was for the crepe.

I thought I was done, but was wrong, as the Sweet Cascades candy shop showed promise in my never-ending quest to find dessert applications for Old Bay. Theirs was a very simple crab-shaped candy - dark or milk chocolate - with Old Bay in it. That's it. $1.50 each. And they taste about how you would imagine, but don't shirk them because what you're imagining will actually taste quite nice - all sweet, salty and spicy at once.

UPDATE: Apparently my proofreading skills have gone far, faaar away.

Calfiornia 2009: Notes from the Road, Part 2

It dawned on me today that it has been a full five years since I moved back to Baltimore from the Inland Empire. This made my travels today a bit more melancholy than I had expected. But as we say on the East Coast, I had an overall good day yesterday.

• My tour of my favorite fast food joints kicked off in San Bernardino, outside of the local Cal State campus, with Del Taco, which is much much better than Taco Hell Bell (I'm not alone in that opinion). I got a very simple, not as cheap as I remembered Del Carbón taco for $1.49. It is just about the least fast-foodie thing I have ever gotten at a fast food restaurant (yes, including the crap that McDonald's passes off as "healthy").

Mmmm. Taco.

• After my aforementioned experience with Fresh and Easy, I had a filling lunch and then headed towards Riverside. After visiting some professors at UCR I headed over to one of my earliest haunts, the lush Canyon Crest Town Center. I was surprised to see many of the same businesses there that had been there when I left in '04. Most were then when I moved out in '97, including old faves like Papi's Tacos al Carbón and Miyako, which gave me some of of my first tastes of Japanese food. Ooh, and Miyako is back to its 2004 prices, apparently.

See?

• Jammin' Bread, located in Canyon Crest Town Center, holds a special significance for me. At one point, I went after a Ph.D. at UCR (yes, more grad school). It was here, after much hemming, hawing and soul searching, that I decided I needed to stop with my MA. Beyond that, Jammin' Bread makes a mean loaf of bread, and they make their own bread, cookies, brownies, cakes, croissants, even English muffins. I ordered the softest, spongiest walnut brownie (I usually hate walnuts in brownies but I hardly tasted it in this one) for $2.50. I also got a cup of iced tea. They asked if I wanted it regular or in several other varieties. I said "regular," and then asked if it was sweetened. She said no - it was regular. D'oh!

Picturesque, innit?

• I remember when they zhuzh'd up the Ralph's (California's version of Giant). Basically, they Whole Foods-ified it and sold slightly fancier things. One less fancy thing was a bag of Beer Chips. These chips are a little sweet and actually taste a little like beer. I am intrigued.
  

Beer and Chips...

• I got a chance to go back to UCR and watch their Javanese gamelan orchestra practice for their big concert on the 5th of June (of course, after I leave). Before that, I drove around to see what haunts were still around. I saw Indian and Mexican markets, Arabic, Italian and Vietnamese restaurants, and several Starbucks that were there when I last left. Another familiar place was the sort-of UCR-affiliated Getaway Café, where many grads, undergrads and even the occasional prof or two go for some wings or beer. I got a (somewhat overpriced) $4.25 pint of Inland Empire Brewing Company's somewhat hoppy, somewhat peppery India Pale Ale. It was pretty tasty, but not for $4.25.
• After passing by the "East Coast Bagel" restaurant, I realized something that I had forgotten after leaving SoCal: to many in California, everything on the Atlantic Coast is just "The East." There is no elusive "New England" or exotic "South," no "Upstate," "Mid-Atlantic" or "Low Country." Nope. It's all just one big lump of East Coast-iness. Funny. Too funny.
  
• Did I mention the delicious dinner I had at Thai Place with my hosts? Best tom kha kai I've had in ages.