Monthly Archives: September 2013

Sep4

Krispy Arepas: 8196 Tourist Center Dr Bradenton, FL

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Krispy arepas, plaintains, mushrooms and garlic:cilantro saucearepas with plaintains, beans, mushrooms, avocado, tomato, cheddar and pico de gallogarlic:cilantro sauce and avo:pico de gallo saucedulce de leche cookie. dulche de leche cookie side viewWOW. Great ethnic food 5 miles from my house!?!?! I’m SO frequently surprised about stuff like this, but really shouldn’t be anymore. So far, we have found amazing Indian, Thai, Vietnamese, Greek, Mexican and now Venezuelan (although apparently it was recently sold to a Peruvian owner so there will be some changes soon) food, all within 10-20 minutes from where we live in suburban, cookie-cutter, pristine, totally non-diverse, Lakewood Ranch, FL.

We were both feeling a little bored of our stand-by dinner spots, so after a hard workout, we decided to give Krispy Arepas a try. I’d read a ton of great reviews online, and it sounded like the ‘something different’ that I was craving. We walked into the neon-green painted, brightly lit, fast food restaurant. It’s got a little flair with cute, little, real and fake painted cactuses and alpaca dolls on high-up shelves.

There were a few other people in there waiting- as we were told that fresh Arepas were being made and it would be about 10 minutes until they were ready. We asked the friendly guy behind the counter to tell us a bit about what Arepas are and he explained that they are sort of like a corn flatbread that are stuffed with various ingredients commonly found in South American countries. As non-meat-eaters, we were happy to see that the choices for us were plentiful, with plantains, mushrooms, beans, cheeses, avocados and other various veggies and sauces. Seeing how hungry we were, he gave us a small plate of mushrooms, plantains and a couple of the sauces to sample while we waited for the Arepas to be ready. It was actually more than 20 minutes later that we got the signal that it was finally time. He had felt so badly about the long wait that he also gave everyone who was waiting there a cup for free drinks…very nice of him, and that along with the snack more than made up for the long wait.

We had him fill our freshly cut-opened arepas with pretty much everything non-meat that could fit in there, and realized that we’d basically made them impossible to pick up and eat. No problem, thats’s what little plastic forks and knives are for. We sat down and dug in to the little pockets of flavor and both loved them right away. Exactly what we wanted. A big step away from the norm, and an exciting blend of new flavors. The sweet, soft plantains, the creamy avocado slices, the cool pico de gallo and the AWESOME green, garlic, cilantro sauce combined with cheddar cheese, sauteed mushrooms, tomatillo sauce and black beans filled the crispy, chewy corn sandwiches with wonderful texture and flavor. These LOOK like they may be too small to fill a hungry belly but nope, not at all. We were full and happy by the time we cleared our plates.

But wait, what’s that?? A fresh powered sugar homemade cookie filled with dulce de leche? Okay. I guess we can fit one of those in too. It wouldn’t be fair to write a review without a taste. Yum. Crisp powdery cookies with a creamy, sweet, salty center? Nothing bad about that.

We will definitely pay another visit soon- most likely on a Wednesday when it’s 50% off. You really can’t beat dinner for $5 a piece ($2.50 a piece on Wednesdays!!!), especially when it tastes this amazing.

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Sep4

Thai Palace: 4756 W Cortez Rd Bradenton, FL

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thai palace saladthai palace pad thai with squid and shrimppanang curry with tofu rice heart

Gabriel and I were aiming for a Thai restaurant in Bradenton that had been recommended to us. Luckily for us, after getting lost trying to find it, we finally arrived to find that it was closed. We did a quick search and found Thai Palace was nearby and had great reviews. Okay, change of plans and off we went!

During lunch, entrees come with either soup or salad. We both opted for the salad and when it arrived, we worried that it would be an indication of the entree portions. The salad consisted of approximately 3 bites of iceburg lettuce, one tomato, a slice of cucumber and a few shreds of carrot. Not exactly enough to take the hunger edge off. The peanut dressing was good, the basic one that is typically found in Thai restaurants, but not exciting enough to make us very optimistic about what was coming next.

When the entrees arrived soon after we finished our minuscule salads, we were pleasantly surprised right away. The presentation was lovely with a beautiful orchid and a fish shaped dish, and the aroma from both dishes was awesome. The pad thai with squid was excellent. I can easily say it was the BEST Pad Thai I’ve had since moving from NYC to Florida, and that alone is worth the 30 minute drive it took to get there. The balance of the salty, sweet, peanut sauce and the fresh sauteed squid couldn’t be better. The creaminess of a light coating of the sauce didn’t overpower or smother the consistency of the noodles. Big yum.

We also shared a delicious Panang Curry with Tofu. The curry sauce was blended with coconut milk and peanuts. The various fresh vegetables included carrot, mushroom, snowwpea, baby corn, bell pepper, celery, and zucchini. This sauce had so much complexity to it and we both couldn’t get enough. We actually ordered a second helping of rice- something that we really never do, because we couldn’t possibly let all of the extra sauce go to waste.

I was VERY happy that the little, boring salads were not at all representative of the abilities of the chef here. Our meal, overall, was far and away the best Thai food we’ve had in a while- and we go out for Thai food frequently. Although the drive is a little far, there is no question that both of us want to go back asap. Bravo Thai Palace!