I've been to Pink quite a few times in the past few months but just haven't gotten around to writing a post. As a result of this laziness on my part, this post will be an amalgamation of several visits.
It's quite close to my office, so I've been frequenting it more for lunch rather than dinner. I did attend a media dinner there, and that's where I had this...their Siam Caesar - watch out kids, this one is spicy but yummy.
The appetizers are a-plenty so I will show you two of my favourites. The first one is their Spicy Butterfly Butter Jumbo Tiger Prawn. I'm guessing it's made with butter, but not oily, so that was okay. The prawn is gigantic with a light coating before being deep fried. Served with fresh peppercorns and swirled egg, this was a very pretty dish. The egg comes out almost noodle-like. Very interesting texture.
Another one of my favourite appy is their Ostrich Kabob. Two skewers per order, it's perfect for sharing! The skewers are loaded with cubes of ostrich and pineapple, and then grilled to a nice char. Topped with some spicy hot sauce, this dish is innovative and really fun way to try ostrich for the first time. And no, it doesn't taste like chicken...it tastes like beef. So for all you red meat avoiders out there, here is an option. I've read somewhere that it's even lower in fat than turkey or chicken.
No Thai restaurant review would be complete without a curry dish, so we tried the Keang Keaw Waanm Pink's green curry which is available with chicken or for my vegetarian readers, you can get it with their fish tofu. The curry is very mild and loaded with snap peas, peppers and basil. Order it with a side of rice and use that to soak up the abundant sauce.
There are lots of noodles on the menu and the one featured above is their Pad Kee Mao, one of their spicier noodle dishes. It's a blend of ground beef, Thai chili with basil all stir-fried with fresh rice noodles. The secret to this dish? Make sure you toss it all around first or else the noodle will become harder to manage. I asked for a wedge of lime to accompany this dish and squirted some juice all over to add a little more citrus flavour to the dish. I didn't find it overly spicy but I have a high tolerance, so ask for extra hot sauce if you like it hot, hot, hot!
They also have a section of noodle soups that you can customize, picking the noodles, the soup base as well as the meat/seafood accompaniment. I chose the Tom Yum Soup and fresh rice noodles with shrimp wontons. Other noodle choices are available, and a clear soup is also available for those who don't like spice. Mea/Seafood choices include pork hock/belly, housemade beef/fish/shrimp balls, as well as sukiyaki beef and chicken with cashews. All the noodle soups come with oyster mushroom and their homemade fish tofu. It's also topped with green onion and cilantro so if you're not a fan of either, let them know.
They have quite a few rice dishes too, and the one I tried was the Khoa Ooop Rummitr. It's a hot pot baked rice with tiger prawns (chopped up) and some coconut strips, and in the centre of it all, a giant scallop. It's a good option of you're looking for a seafood dish and not a fan traditional fried rice. There's no heat in this dish so it's a safe choice for those who want to avoid spice.
If you do like spice, then try the Kra Poa Kook - a fried rice made with ground beef and fresh chilies and basil. I still didn't find it overly spicy, but there is definitely heat involved. I really liked the deep fried basil, it's crispy!
Of course they have Pad Thai on the menu, but it's also with a twist. Instead of with the usual chicken and prawns, they give you the option of tiger prawns or deep fried soft-shelled crab. We got the crab version and as you can see, the topping is quite generous, as is the mound of noodles that the crab is hiding. If you like Pad Thai and you like soft-shelled crab, this is the perfect meal for you!
After trying my hand at making my own noodle soup, I decided to try one of their two custom soups. They have the Keaw Taew Moo with ground pork, prawns and bacon, but I went with their Yen Ta Foo, which is a fresh rice noodle soup with loads of seafood, prawns, fish tofu, fish and shrimp balls, fish fillet and even two tiger prawns. The deep fried wonton paper is a fun touch. Just take it out of the soup when it arrives so it holds the crunch! And yes, my soup is pretty red because I asked them to make it "extra hot". It's normally not that spicy, but I like how the staff will accommodate and even added chilies to heat things up. I've been coming to this restaurant since they first opened and I honestly have to say, the service and food have definitely improved in the past two months. The front of house team is definitely coming together and the kitchen is getting their groove on with each other, especially during the busy lunch hour rush.
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