LouLou's Lair

Here's a pleasant discovery from a recent trip to SM Mall of Asia. Back in the 80's, I remember how Thai restaurants mushroomed all over our metropolis. Nowadays though, I'm hard-pressed to name five really good Thai restos in Metro Manila. Up until yesterday, I could only think of Muang Thai in QC to recommend...but now I've found another satisfying resto in Jatujak. Named after the world's biggest weekend market, found outside Bangkok, this restaurant presents old Thai reliables in a modern setting. Prices are reasonable and servings are more than adequate. We started with the shrimp tom yum. Although we asked for spicy (mild and medium being the other choices), we found it not unbearably hot. What we liked about the soup was that it didn't heavily rely on the spicy tom yum paste to flavor it, so you could still taste the other aromatics like galanggal and coriander. This is probably the best tom yum around here, according to my hubby, the tom yum connoisseur. We also had their fried spring rolls filled with sotanghon noodles ("glass noodles"), wood ear mushrooms and meat; they were substantial and not too oily. The pad thai boasted of nicely cooked al dente noodles, topped with loads of peanuts, beansprouts, spring onions and a couple of prawns. I found it a little on the sweet side and used the accompanying lime wedge to balance out the sweetness with a tart flavor. Nevertheless, it's pretty darn good and doesn't use whatever makes other local versions look orange, which I hate. We ended our meal with one serving of tab tim grob - water chestnuts in milk and crushed ice. Let me tell you, one serving's good for two - with generous helpings of the water chestnuts. My hubby had the bottomless lemongrass and minted tea - very refreshing. I had the Thai iced tea which was in a surprisingly big glass and was not exceedingly sweet. We overhead the owners at the next table talking about their chef - a 45 year-old Thai woman who first came to Manila in the 80's for the establishment of the first Thai resto here and then moved to Davao for a while. Once she heard that the owner's brother was setting up shop at MOA, she expressed interest in the opening for a chef. Well, Davao's loss is our gain. I can't wait to return to sample their other dishes. Hope this one stays around for a long time.