Mekong Restaurant, Greenville SC

8/19/2011 I am going to start with a simple lead in: any restaurant that is growing herbs in the parking lot deserves a look.  That's right, as we drove in, we noticed that they were growing herbs right there in pots around the back of the building.

Below is some glutinous rice with grilled meat and cashews.  This was a great dish to get things going.

Glutinous Rice with Grilled Meat (click to enlarge)

The Crispy Calamari, below, was expertly prepared.  Usually, the alphageek does not like the chewiness of calamari, but this dish was not at all chewy and had a meaty taste.

Crisply Calamari (Click to enlarge)

The Steamed Pork Bun is pictured below.  It is a little unpretentious presentation of a steamed meal in a bun.  The first surprise is there is an entire egg within, steamed right inside.  The package contains an entire meal in there.  The native name is Banh Bao Hea.  While one might think this is a St. Patrick's Day dish, but this is how Mekong Restaurant serves this one up.

Steamed Pork Bun (click to enlarge)

Below is Banh Mi Dac Biet.  We will just say it is a sandwich.  It has lots of fresh herbs, as well as grilled pork and sort of a liver pate on it.  The french bread helped set the dish in the extraordinary category.  One has to wonder where they get their bread, and can we get some there?

Banh Mi Dac Biet (click to enlarge)

The final dish is rice fettuccine with veggies and meat.  This dish is a balance of fish sauce and soy sauce to lightly season and bring together all of the ingredients.  The dish is a generously large serving for one person, so either bring a friend, or get a to go box to enjoy the leftovers later.

Rice Fettuccine with veggies and meat (click to enlarge)

So, you are now asking, what about those herbs you mentioned?  Well, we walked outside after the meal   and took a look.  There were pots with many assorted Asian herbs such at Thai Basil and lemongrass.  They incorporate a system of rotation that was illustrated by the varying ages of the plants.  I have to recommend any restaurant that grows their own herbs for use in the restaurant.  Don't ask me what all of the herbs were, because they push the knowledge of even the alphageek.  You can take a look below, and see if you can pick out anything you recognize.

Fresh Herbs (click to enlarge)

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Thai House, Gastonia NC

8/18/2011 Thai House is located in Gastonia, NC and is a little out of the usual territory for the alphageek.   Thai food is something we are always willing to try, so Thai House was showing a lot of promise.  We left more than satisfied with our discovery.

Mrs. Alphageek started us off with some garden rolls.  They are cleverly named Knock Out Rolls and they knocked us out with flavor.  These particular rolls were made with tofu as the protein, instead of the more traditional shrimp. The rolls were a great start to the meal, and Mrs. Alphageek was nice enough to share, even though this was technically part of her meal.

Knock Out Rolls (click to enlarge)

Mrs. Alphageek also ordered some Tom Kha Soup.  While I don't usually put many soup pictures on the site, this soup picture shows off the soup that was some great taste.  The soup below was a treat to the last little bit that was left in the bowl.

Tom Kha Soup (click to enlarge)

I ordered the King and I, which is pictured below.  As I ordered, the server asked how spicy I would like the dish.  I said really spicy was fine.  The server told me this dish was not traditionally served exceptionally spicy, but they could spice it up for me.  When the dish arrived, I was glad they went the extra step for me.  The combination of the sweet tomato sauce with the spiciness made this a great find, and one of the best Thai dishes I have had in a while.  The shrimp were perfectly prepared, and the onions and peppers rounded it out nicely.

The King and I (click to enlarge)

The Thai House was a great find, and worth a stop if you are travelling by, or just looking for a great meal.

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