Weekend in Philly

We spent the night in Philadelphia this past weekend and had such amazing food I wanted to do a post just to show off the deliciousness. I'm going to start at the end of our trip since I'm still drooling over our meal at Shake Shack. I've been making a knock-off version of these burgers for awhile now but trying the real thing was a revelation. So, so, so amazingly good. I can't wait to go back. We'll definitely be trying a milkshake next time.

We each got a double ShackBurger - cheeseburger topped with lettuce, tomato and ShackSauce. Double was the way to go. It was the perfect bread to meat ratio. The toppings were fresh and delicious but my favorite part was the crispy crust. Words really cannot describe how good this was.

We'd been told to get the cheese fries - crispy fries coated in a sauce made with American and cheddar cheeses.

One thing to note - for as long as anyone can remember (my mom will vouch for this) I've been disappointed by the real deal vs. the food-styled versions of food. Apparently I'd pitch a fit in fast food restaurants when I was a kid because the food I was served looked nothing like the pictures I'd seen on TV or even the menu in the store. But Shake Shack doesn't suffer from this problem. Our burgers, our whole order actually, looked exactly like every single photo I've ever seen of Shake Shack food. This is a very big deal to me and I was thrilled that I was given exactly what I was expecting.

I apologize for these photos not being better - the lighting in the restaurant was low and romantic, which wasn't good for taking pictures. Saturday night we went to the Oyster House for dinner. It had come highly recommended and we weren't disappointed. SP started with a gin and tonic made with royal dock gin and fever tree tonic, while I had the French fox - champagne, gin, campari, and lemon. I really enjoyed this but my favorite of my two cocktails (which I didn't get a picture of) was a concoction the bartender had just come up with - cantaloupe puree, alcohol and cucumber were involved. It was light and refreshing and dangerously addictive.

I started with a half-dozen oysters. I like them nice and briny and our waitress (she was incredibly attentive and helpful with oyster and cocktail recommendations) thought I'd enjoy the Naked Cowboy and East Beach Blondes. She also gave me a free oyster to try - a Wellfleet. They were all fantastic; I couldn't decide which were my favorite.

As soon as I saw whole belly Ipswich clams on the menu I knew we had to order them. They were perfectly fried and delicious.

I ordered the lobster roll, served with fresh hand-cut fries. Per our waitress's recommendation I opted for the chilled New England version - a little mayo and celery - to let the lobster meat shine. This was, hands down, the best lobster roll I've ever had. I've been searching for years for a good version that's mostly lobster meat and I finally found it. Simple perfection. Just look at those huge chunks of meat.

SP got the scallops, which were served with bulgar, sliced peaches, pistachios, tomatoes and an herb-yogurt sauce. I was a bit wary of how everything would come together but this was positively divine. The herb-yogurt sauce really made it for me. SP was gracious enough to give me a whole scallop and I made sure each bite had a little bit of everything on it.

We walked around a bit after dinner, went back to our hotel to watch an episode of Sherlock (have you seen this show? If not, find the time to watch it) and then we ventured back out for gelato at Capogiro. I love that you can sample any flavor you want before ordering. I ended up with the Thai coconut milk and peanut butter, SP got the mocha and Thai coconut milk. We were in heaven.

Restaurant Review: Bhan Thai, Mt. Laurel, NJ

I've mentioned before that I'm taking a weekly circuit training class on Tuesday nights. The instructor runs the session on a 6-week cycle with a week off between sessions. This past Tuesday was our off week, which was perfect because we'd just gotten back from a long weekend in Chicago to celebrate my grandpa's 90th birthday and hadn't been to the grocery store. SP and I decided to meet up near his office for a quick dinner before heading to the store. There are hundreds of restaurants near his office, but it's been awhile since we had Thai food, so we decided to check out Bhan Thai, located in the Cambridge Crossing Plaza in Mt. Laurel, NJ. The Yelp reviews were very positive, so I was excited to try it out.

Since it was a Tuesday the place wasn't crowded, although we weren't alone either. We were seated immediately and given menus. Being me, I'd already looked at the menu online as soon as SP suggested it for dinner and knew what I wanted. We both started with the Tom Kha Soup, mine with chicken ($4.95) and SP's with shrimp ($5.95). As you can see, the portion was huge:


Tom Kha Soup - chicken or shrimps and mushrooms in light coconut broth with a hint of fresh kaffir lime leaf and galangal

The chicken was a little tough, but the broth was incredibly flavorful and chock full of two different kinds of mushrooms in addition to the chicken. We always order Tom Kha Soup when we try a new Thai restaurant (or even when it's an old favorite) and this was, hands down, the best version either of us has ever had. Delicious.

For our entrees, SP decided to get one of the specials, Chu Chee Duck ($18.95), which was in a coconut curry sauce over baby bok choy. He loves duck and usually asks them to make him a masaman curry with duck, but he thought he'd try the special instead:


Chu Chee Duck with curry paste and coconut milk over baby bok choy

It was a gorgeous platter of food and he liked it but wasn't overly excited. I didn't try any of the duck but it looked moist and flavorful. I think he was just jealous of my curry. I got the Chicken Masaman ($12.95) and was thrilled. It was also chock full of chicken and veggies:


Masaman Curry with coconut milk, potatoes, butternut squash, tomatoes, onions, peanuts and avocado

The portions were huge, although for the amount of curry I wished for more rice. We had to ask for another portion of rice with our leftovers and were charged $1 for each. We both enjoyed our meals. Everything was flavorful, cooked well and beautifully presented. And having enough for lunch the next day was a bonus. That never seems to happen when we get Thai food. Other restaurants we visit have much smaller portions, which means no leftovers. Being able to enjoy the curry again the next day was a big plus in my book.

Service was also good. Even though we stuck with ice water our glasses were refilled frequently. Many times I feel like restaurants don't like when customers drink tap water and "forget" to refill glasses unless asked. I had one small complaint and that was with the timing of the food delivery. I try to eat slowly, both so I don't overeat and so I can enjoy the food. As I was slurping up the last of the soup the waitress was putting my entree down on the table. The soup had taken a little longer than expected to arrive and I wished there had been some lag time between the soup and entree.

I have to admit, I'm jealous that SP can visit Bhan Thai for lunch during the week. He works about an hour away from where we live so it's not convenient for us to eat there together often. Maybe someday he'll bring home takeout. If you're local or find yourself in the area I highly recommend this gem.

Bhan Thai
4330 Dearborn Circle
Cambridge Crossing
Mt. Laurel, NJ 08054
Phone 856-234-4202
Fax 856-234-4203
info@bhanthaicuisine.com

Hours:
Monday-Thursday: 11:00AM – 9:30PM
Friday and Saturday: 11:30AM – 10:30PM
Sunday: 12:00PM – 9:00PM
Closed everyday from 3:00PM - 5:00PM