Thai

Date Night Thai at Kanjana

Date Night Thai at Kanjana

It seems like we've had a million things going on the past two weeks, what with my school schedule, some big projects at Matt's work, and the many festivals that we've been trying to attend on the weekends. This past weekend wasn't any different between the Dinkelacker Festival and the Venetian Festival in Ludwigsburg. We managed to push the Venetian Festival visit back to Sunday in hopes that the weather would be nicer, and so we had out Satuday night free. The blogging side of me wanted to check out the Dinkelacker Festival. This is the third year that we've been here and that the brewery festival has taken place. However, the wife side of me just couldn't pass up a chance to enjoy a nice meal out with my husband, just the two of us. And so, date night won out. 

Our craving for that evening was somewhere in the realm of Asian, so we had a quick look at our "Restaurants to Try" list (yes, we really do keep one) and decided on Kanjana. We've had a couple of friends recommend this restaurant to us, and we've even passed by the restaurant a couple of times while out with friends...

Shopping for Asian Groceries in Stuttgart

Shopping for Asian Groceries in Stuttgart

Despite my love of dining out, I often cook at home. Not only do I enjoy cooking, sometimes it's the only way to get some authentic dishes from home (like American pork lo mien, Mexican  fajitas and tacos, New Orleans gumbo, and Texas chili) and some dishes that you can never find in a restaurant (like my mom's spaghetti). Lately I've been making an effort to try more Japanese dishes like the ones we ate on our trip to Japan. I've found a great Japanese-American blogger from the San Francisco bay area who writes on Just One Cookbook. So far, I've made tsukemen, soba noodles, and ochasuke, and I recently tried katsu curry (see some pictures at the end of this post). 

These recipes often require ingredients that can't be found in my neighborhood grocery store. The Edeka where I shop does have a small Asian aisle, but most products are from the standard Bamboo Garden brand (although Edeka recently started stocking panko breadcrumbs and miso paste -- I was impressed!). When I need more exotic ingredients, like real ramen noodles, soba noodles, chili bean paste, dried bonito flakes, mentsuyu (a soup base), and narutomaki (a kind of fish paste), then I head to the Asian market...

Girls' Night at Goldfish

Girls' Night at Goldfish

Yesterday we marked the achievement of our graduating grade 12 students with a ceremony and reception filled with stories, laughter, and champagne. As the party began to break up (when the champagne ran out), five of my friends and colleagues and I decided to head out into the city for some food to fill our stomachs. Our destination? Goldfish. 

Goldfish is listed in my Stuttgart Geht Aus book and was recommended yesterday by a dear friend of mine because they have good Thai food. The restaurant was also easily within walking distance of our location Downtwon. Goldfish is listed under the Thai section of my book, but they advertise as having "modern Asian cuisine". Upon walking into the restaurant, you can see why they've named themselves Goldfish: there's a giant goldfish pond just inside the entry. 

Lunch at Lilavadee (Thai it!)

Lunch at Lilavadee (Thai it!)

Today I got the rare opportunity to eat lunch out with two of my best friends at a local Thai restaurant. I've tried a few Thai places in Stuttgart (and they are somewhat few in number in the heart of Baden-Württemberg), but Lilavadee in the suburb of Degerloch is my favorite. I've been there for both lunch and dinner, but their lunch menu is particularly nice as it offers a set meal of soup and an entrée at a relatively low price.