Good eat: A taste for Thai food @ Rain Thai Bistro

   My previous article was on Thailand and since "Thailand's on my mind" and I since love to eat international food, I figured that a trip to a local Thai restaurant was a pretty timely way to satisfy my desire of anything Thai...

When I am hungry for Thai food, I normally go to a small restaurant downtown Chattanooga, called “Thai Smiles”. This  past Sunday my hubby suggested we tried a restaurant closer to the house right next to our gym. So we tried RAIN a Thai Bistro, located in the Hamilton Place Mall area in East Brainerd Chattanooga TN.

Rain Thai Bistro Chattanooga TN

Rain Thai Bistro Chattanooga TN.

                                                            

 Before we even got seated, a young lady who recognized us from a different restaurant she used to work at, came to us and teased us that we were following her. After the little chit chat I asked her my favorite question "What do you recommend"? She mentionned that her favorite is the Fried rice.

Menu @ Rain Thai Bistro Chattanooga TN.

Not knowing what to expect, I selected the Spicy Basil and requested that it be mild to play it safe, because the server had told us that 'Hot' and 'Thai' were truly spicy.
I should have been more adventurous and go for at least 'hot' because ' mild' truly lacked… “dimension”.. It was not spicy at all, the food was good but spicy food takes your taste buds to a different dimension, don't you think? Plus it's actually good for you, for your metabolism... Well...I just think that spicy food is tasty unless you have acid reflux issues or ulcer.

Even though the food was not as spicy as I wanted it was truly good, I had to order an extra side of white rice this was just not enough...

Spicy Basil @ Rain Thai Bistro

Our server Joshua recommended that I try the same dish with noodles instead of rice at my next visit. So I will keep you up to date on that one.

The hubby and the children kept it simple and went for Fried Rice. I had to convince my youngest two that they would love it as they had never had Thai fried rice before.

One of the reasons why I enjoy eating out so much is because I believe that  eating food is an experience to take beyond satisfying our palate. I love being in a nice setting and when I am not eating out I like to create an environment at home that truly brings me a lot of pleasures from what I serve my food in, to my table setting. The Rain  Thain Bistro offered so many little gifts. More that I could capture at my first visit there so stay tuned for more.
I asked the children to tell me about 'Thailand' from what they observed from the decor....
Elephants, tropical flowers, bamboo trees, buddhist art, water fountains, the Buddha, etc...the beautiful environment certainly reflected Thailand' on a tiny scale.

Whispering : It's soothing to have such nice decor in the restroom but ever better when the restrooms are very clean and they were very clean yeaah!!!



I just like the sink...

Outdoor fountain at Rain Thai Bistro

Well that's it for our delightful time at Rain Thai Bistro I am heading through that back door to the Asian Market where I get my Green Tea from...

But before I leave you, I wanted to invite you to check my friend's Lala's video. She's a new vegetarian and interesting enough her first cooking video is about a Thai dish...Aren't you curious to know what her 'Taste for Thai food' was a few weeks ago?

So what have you had a taste for lately? Thai food by any chance? If so what would you recommend? The 'Bangkok chicken" at "Thai Smiles" downtown Chattanooga is truly my favorite local 'Thai dish'.

N'na

Ideas for summer vacation: Thailand's on my mind!

Alright, summer is officially here and with that the need for a vacation and much respite. I say respite because traveling is indeed good for our health, both mentally and physically. It's my opinion that there's nothing that recharges our batteries and revives us mentally, as powerfully as a vacation does. I don't know about you but all that I have been thinking lately is how much I need a vacation....

What about you? Are you taking a vacation this summer? What are your plans? Some of you would be fortunate to travel abroad, expand your horizons. Maybe you just plan on going across the country and visit in a different state or you might have to find satisfaction in a vacation in your own state and its surroundings by visiting a nearby city.  If you can't go on a vacation at all, please consider a pleasant staycation if anything. There are probably a few things in your city that are worth discovering.

Anyway, whatever the case, I think that in most western countries the word vacation tends to present pictures of beach vacations as many of you are probably planning some beach vacations this summer. At least that's what most of us dream of after a long winter and as the most appropriate way to enjoy the warm and long summer days.

For me the word vacation quickly offers images of exotic and distant places. Yes I dream of seascapes too, but even more, of rich flavors (you should know by now how much I love to eat), of surroundings with beautiful and lush landscapes, and of strong cultural experiences.

There are quite a few travelers in my family starting with my parents, but my curiosity for certain places is credited to two of my older brothers especially the one that precedes me. From him I developped at an early age a passion for learning, discovering and researching places, memorizing facts and admiring pictures of places that I hope to one day make my vacation's destinations. The skills have served me well in planning some nice trips in the past or guiding others in their planning but I have yet to fulfill my dreams for making it to the destinations that top my list. One of them is Bangkok Thailand. 


 (Image of Suvarnabhumi airport).

( Image of Bangkok's skytrain that Dave mentions in his article below).


My friend Dave of Dave's Travel Corner is an experienced traveler and travel writer. Aware of my passion for Asia and my intense desire to visit Bangkok he has graced me with an article especially written for this blog and has kindly shared a few of his own pictures to use as illustrations. I placed the pictures where I saw fit but here's about Bangkok, in Dave's own words!

Bangkok Thailand

Bangkok is a city of energy, hustle and bustle, and sizzling temperatures most of the year to match the sizzle of the spicy Thai food.
Suvarnabhumi is the fairly new International airport and serves hundreds of flights a day - it is modern, convient and connected to the main part of Bangkok by a Skytrain. Without traffic a taxi ride will take about 25 minutes. Allow up to an hour if traffic is bad.

Bangkok tuk-tuk

There is no central Bangkok but the Chao Praya River is the center or 'lifeblood' of the city. Glistening golden temples line its river banks as well as some of the top rated hotels in the world including the historic Oriental Hotel and the more modern Peninsular. Nothing is more exotic than
taking a river cruise down this wide brown river, soaking in the sights, smells and sounds of this busy waterway.

The city has both a metro and a skytrain, both of which serve much of Bangkok's core districts. Top attractions include a number of temples, 

Golden- Mount- Praying.

the Grand Palace, markets and a plethora of shopping in world-class malls. Thai food has engrained itself in countries around the world, but nowhere do you find the quality of flavor and food than in Thailand and Bangkok is the hub of the culinary scene in the country.

Talin-Chan-Floating market.

Street food is almost everywhere, in some parts of the city street food is available 24 hours a day.

Smiles go a long way in the "land of the smiles". People are friendly and often willing to help out tourists.
For more information about Bangkok refer to Dave's Bangkok guide here: http://www.davestravelcorner.com/articles/bangkok/index.htm



So...what are your plans for this summer? Have you been to Bangkok? If yes, how do you like it compared to other places you've visited?What was your best vacation's destination?


N'na