Sunday morning i found myself sleepily wondering around our sainsburys local, doing the thing that i always do in any form of supermarket or corner shop,i start pacing the stock filled corridors aimlessly while my list goes out the window and my brain goes into a non - functional mode. I don't know why this happens to me but its as if I'm dissecting my way through the contents of the entire shop, as you can imagine this strange habit incessantly annoys R to the point that on most occasions he now refuses to enter a supermarket with me unless he is hungry, In which case i refuse to accompany him as his sudden need to acquire anything that looks particularly deletable to him at the time can result in a trolley full of dried up poultry based snacks.
Before i was escorted out of the store for loitering in front of the chilled meat section for too long, i snapped out of my daze and made my way to till. I rummaged around in my pockets for my car keys on exit from the store, with the clouds looming darkly above me about to burst with rain, it wasn't until i glanced over to the bike racks to see one that was extremely similar to mine ( not very often do i see one with a old fashioned wicker basket) oh bugger, it is mine.
Rain starting to lightly spit on my face i started to remember the course of action that lead me to this early Sunday morning jaunt. The previous nights divulging and indulging had lead me to making a promise to myself that the next morning i would embark on fitness regime that would make me feel less guilty about the utterly heavenly meal that had just passed my lips.
Its taken me too long to write about Chilli Banana in Wilmslow, probably down to the fact that i was unwilling to share this Thai goldmine with anyone else in the hope that it would never become a heaving, bustling restaurant that takes months to get a table.
Not wanting to be selfish ( and also being a big believer in karma), the time has come for me to unveil the secret restaurant that has played a big part in our lives over the last 6 years.
When we first started attending this establishment Thai food to me was like going into some sort of unknown territory, growing up in an area that is slightly socially inept and probably about 20 years behind in restaurant cuisines i was lucky to of tasted a chicken korma ( this didn't happen till my very late teens but now sends shudders down my spine).
However thanks to my husbands gentle persuasiveness ( you WILL try it dear) i now know my Tempura Gungs to my Geang Keo Wans and would love one day to visit Thailand to totally immerse myself in their fascinating food culture.
I would love to tell you that in the many number of times we have been there i have made my way through the intriguing and mouth watering menu, but the truth is we both still have the same dish that we had upon our first visit, i know this sounds like were the kind of people who always goes to the same place on holiday or have a daily routine that we do not like to break, but i assure you this is simply not the case.
Right now I'm slightly dipping my head in shame and feeling slightly awkward for what I'm about to tell you - We always order three starters.
Please don't judge us or brandish us extremely greedy until you've heard my reasoning behind this gluttonous beginning to a meal - You see R first ordered Satay Gai, warmly marinated pieces of succulent chicken served with a moreish peanut sauce and a refreshing cucumber pickle ( a refreshing change to the normal bottled sweet chilli sauce ) whilst i was drawn in to Tempura Gung . Prawns the size of my hand and crisp slightly raw vegetables would be coated in a light batter then deep fried for the Tempura Gung, i know its a very indulgent dish and not one that is particularly looking after your arteries, but like anything that's bad for you, its sooooo good.
I'm not sure what it was that made R so jealous upon seeing my dish, i could of been that the batter which encased the just cooked vegetables was so airy and crispy, no oil was to be found on these little bundles of deep fried joy neither did any oil encase my mouth once i had bitten into them either. Or it could of been and most probably was the meaty plump prawns which nestled lightly in amongst the veg, i most of been so transfixed on eating that i wasn't very quick in noticing that R had quite quietly polished off his chicken and was now staring at me wide - eyed like a puppy with no where to go and nothing to eat. It was difficult to resist his charms and anyway i was interested in the peanut sauce he had left a scraping of at the side of his plate, for a single moment we were both enjoying each others dish's as much as we had enjoyed our own. So it was from that day on unable to decide which to choose and both not being big on sharing ( especially with each other) we made a pact that we would have 2 Tempura Gungs and 1 Satay Gai to share, this way there would be no accusations of not sharing , we would both be able to enjoy our starters at a steady pace instead of throwing int down our necks in fear of the other one trying to sneak food off the others plate.
Satay Gai
Tempura Gung
With a multitude of various Thai dishes to choose from, unless i had half a day to completely digress the entire the menu it was always going to be a difficult task for me to make my choice for my main. I think i have mentioned before my inability to choose a dish in the small amount of time normally given to you by the restaurant staff, as you can imagine this completely infuriates R , once the the menu has been placed in front of him it takes him usually no longer than 20 seconds to complete his confident choice, this time opting for Geang keo wan ( Thai green curry). Not wanting to spoil the moment and being given some evil glances from my starving dining partner wistfully pleading with me to hurry up I quickly made my choice of Stir Fried Fresh Vegetables with King Prawns, a dish that was not on the menu but was so pleasingly made up for me when the kind waiter could see i was struggling to make my choice.
Geang Keo Wan
Stir Fried Fresh Veg with King Prawns
Stir - Fried Rice Noodles with Beansprouts
Chunky cuts of chicken are submerged in a delicately creamy almost broth like sauce, spicy enough to please the chilli lovers but with the help of a kaffir lime leaf, a cooling after taste resides in your mouth pleasantly afterwards. My dish, although not as big with the mixture of spices as the Thai green curry was as equally as big in flavour terms. Fresh Vegetables still with a crunchy bite and butterflied succulent king prawns had been mixed with all of the stir fried juices to give a light Thai inspired flavoured thin sauce. Being typically English we ordered stir - fried noodles with beansprouts to help us soak up every possible last drop of the sauces that had finished off our dishes perfectly. The noodles and beansprouts alone would of made the most satisfying meal for me, soft and silky rice noodles contrasting perfectly with the firm beansprouts a high and worthy side dish in its own right.
Some may call us boring and some might find it tedious that we order the same dishes time and time again but to me we have eaten out too many times and so badly been disappointed with our food we would of rather stayed home and cooked. Eating out is one of my favourite past times but just lately more often than not we have been met with below average food, rude staff and over hiked prices. With Chilli banana i know that every time we visit ( and theres been a few visits !) the quality and standard of food, cooking and service never slips below amazing, ordering the same food only proves to me that even over such a long period of time of us going there the dishes remain the vision and taste of perfection they were the first time we'd ever ordered them.
The only thing that still baffles me is that all of the charming men and women of Thai origin working there are incredibly petite. Yet am i to discover the magic behind Thai cuisine that keeps all these people so slim and athletic looking , in the meantime though I'm sure they do a Sunday lunch buffet....
http://www.chillibanana.co.uk/
Before i was escorted out of the store for loitering in front of the chilled meat section for too long, i snapped out of my daze and made my way to till. I rummaged around in my pockets for my car keys on exit from the store, with the clouds looming darkly above me about to burst with rain, it wasn't until i glanced over to the bike racks to see one that was extremely similar to mine ( not very often do i see one with a old fashioned wicker basket) oh bugger, it is mine.
Rain starting to lightly spit on my face i started to remember the course of action that lead me to this early Sunday morning jaunt. The previous nights divulging and indulging had lead me to making a promise to myself that the next morning i would embark on fitness regime that would make me feel less guilty about the utterly heavenly meal that had just passed my lips.
Its taken me too long to write about Chilli Banana in Wilmslow, probably down to the fact that i was unwilling to share this Thai goldmine with anyone else in the hope that it would never become a heaving, bustling restaurant that takes months to get a table.
Not wanting to be selfish ( and also being a big believer in karma), the time has come for me to unveil the secret restaurant that has played a big part in our lives over the last 6 years.
When we first started attending this establishment Thai food to me was like going into some sort of unknown territory, growing up in an area that is slightly socially inept and probably about 20 years behind in restaurant cuisines i was lucky to of tasted a chicken korma ( this didn't happen till my very late teens but now sends shudders down my spine).
However thanks to my husbands gentle persuasiveness ( you WILL try it dear) i now know my Tempura Gungs to my Geang Keo Wans and would love one day to visit Thailand to totally immerse myself in their fascinating food culture.
I would love to tell you that in the many number of times we have been there i have made my way through the intriguing and mouth watering menu, but the truth is we both still have the same dish that we had upon our first visit, i know this sounds like were the kind of people who always goes to the same place on holiday or have a daily routine that we do not like to break, but i assure you this is simply not the case.
Right now I'm slightly dipping my head in shame and feeling slightly awkward for what I'm about to tell you - We always order three starters.
Please don't judge us or brandish us extremely greedy until you've heard my reasoning behind this gluttonous beginning to a meal - You see R first ordered Satay Gai, warmly marinated pieces of succulent chicken served with a moreish peanut sauce and a refreshing cucumber pickle ( a refreshing change to the normal bottled sweet chilli sauce ) whilst i was drawn in to Tempura Gung . Prawns the size of my hand and crisp slightly raw vegetables would be coated in a light batter then deep fried for the Tempura Gung, i know its a very indulgent dish and not one that is particularly looking after your arteries, but like anything that's bad for you, its sooooo good.
I'm not sure what it was that made R so jealous upon seeing my dish, i could of been that the batter which encased the just cooked vegetables was so airy and crispy, no oil was to be found on these little bundles of deep fried joy neither did any oil encase my mouth once i had bitten into them either. Or it could of been and most probably was the meaty plump prawns which nestled lightly in amongst the veg, i most of been so transfixed on eating that i wasn't very quick in noticing that R had quite quietly polished off his chicken and was now staring at me wide - eyed like a puppy with no where to go and nothing to eat. It was difficult to resist his charms and anyway i was interested in the peanut sauce he had left a scraping of at the side of his plate, for a single moment we were both enjoying each others dish's as much as we had enjoyed our own. So it was from that day on unable to decide which to choose and both not being big on sharing ( especially with each other) we made a pact that we would have 2 Tempura Gungs and 1 Satay Gai to share, this way there would be no accusations of not sharing , we would both be able to enjoy our starters at a steady pace instead of throwing int down our necks in fear of the other one trying to sneak food off the others plate.
Satay Gai
Tempura Gung
With a multitude of various Thai dishes to choose from, unless i had half a day to completely digress the entire the menu it was always going to be a difficult task for me to make my choice for my main. I think i have mentioned before my inability to choose a dish in the small amount of time normally given to you by the restaurant staff, as you can imagine this completely infuriates R , once the the menu has been placed in front of him it takes him usually no longer than 20 seconds to complete his confident choice, this time opting for Geang keo wan ( Thai green curry). Not wanting to spoil the moment and being given some evil glances from my starving dining partner wistfully pleading with me to hurry up I quickly made my choice of Stir Fried Fresh Vegetables with King Prawns, a dish that was not on the menu but was so pleasingly made up for me when the kind waiter could see i was struggling to make my choice.
Geang Keo Wan
Stir Fried Fresh Veg with King Prawns
Stir - Fried Rice Noodles with Beansprouts
Chunky cuts of chicken are submerged in a delicately creamy almost broth like sauce, spicy enough to please the chilli lovers but with the help of a kaffir lime leaf, a cooling after taste resides in your mouth pleasantly afterwards. My dish, although not as big with the mixture of spices as the Thai green curry was as equally as big in flavour terms. Fresh Vegetables still with a crunchy bite and butterflied succulent king prawns had been mixed with all of the stir fried juices to give a light Thai inspired flavoured thin sauce. Being typically English we ordered stir - fried noodles with beansprouts to help us soak up every possible last drop of the sauces that had finished off our dishes perfectly. The noodles and beansprouts alone would of made the most satisfying meal for me, soft and silky rice noodles contrasting perfectly with the firm beansprouts a high and worthy side dish in its own right.
Some may call us boring and some might find it tedious that we order the same dishes time and time again but to me we have eaten out too many times and so badly been disappointed with our food we would of rather stayed home and cooked. Eating out is one of my favourite past times but just lately more often than not we have been met with below average food, rude staff and over hiked prices. With Chilli banana i know that every time we visit ( and theres been a few visits !) the quality and standard of food, cooking and service never slips below amazing, ordering the same food only proves to me that even over such a long period of time of us going there the dishes remain the vision and taste of perfection they were the first time we'd ever ordered them.
The only thing that still baffles me is that all of the charming men and women of Thai origin working there are incredibly petite. Yet am i to discover the magic behind Thai cuisine that keeps all these people so slim and athletic looking , in the meantime though I'm sure they do a Sunday lunch buffet....
http://www.chillibanana.co.uk/
Sorry to be 'that grammar person' but you mean to write 'would have' instead of 'would of'. For example 'We would have rather stayed...'
ReplyDeleteAlso 'I' requires capitalisation.
Interesting post though. I too am guilty of often ordering the same dishes when at a particular restaurant. Knowing it will be good is too tempting!