vincentinparis

This all sounds good, although I am unsure of what is American fried rice.

ข้าวผัดอเมริกัน khao pad amerigan... It generally includes rice fried in ketchup, hot dogs in some form, and a fried egg. Look for it at a restaurant near you.

Spiral a strip of bacon around the hot dog, securing the ends with toothpicks if needed, then grill. For a nice take on pigs in a blanket, cut into bites, roll each bite in a won ton wrapper, string three or four onto a skewer and deep fry, then serve with sweet chili sauce. Make sausage rolls using frozen puff pastry and bake until golden. Make corn dogs by dipping skewered hot dogs into corn bread batter (homemade or mix) then deep fry. Serve hot dogs on toasted buns with kim chee, an increasingly common topping in the States. Roll a grilled hot dog into a warm tortilla with shredded lettuce, cheese and salsa, a favorite of ours when we were kids.

I don't think much of it, but I know a few people who like "American" fried rice, with sliced hot dogs and ketchup.

Thank you!

The place friends of mine (two ladies) tried in Siam Center produced very mixed results, a decent suit and some really awful dresses, blouses and other pieces. Also they were constantly trying to get us to order more, basically no different from the pushy tailors who produce mediocre work on Sukhumvit, Silom or in malls around town. Without a specific recommendation of a place that produces good work, I am not going to risk it.

Tim's sounds great, and is not far from home. Sadly, I didn't see this in time for my cousin to have something made, but I am definitely hanging on to the address.

Thanks again everyone (including those of you who sent me private messages and recommendations).

A tip we've had for making Khanom Krok is to use "Sper-rite" in the batter mix.

What's Sper-rite?

Thanks for this. I had a nice chat with Mr Ken. I think I may have a pair of trousers made, just to see how it goes before my cousin gets here. The only problem I can foresee is the lack of choice of dress material. I know I could take my cousin shopping for fabric too, but finding a good dressmaker who also stocks fabric would be ideal!

I get the ficelles from Saint-Etoile as they have the crisp crust I miss from Parisian baguettes. I also recently noticed that hey are selling individually wrapped sourdough rolls. The wrapping means that they have a chewy crust, but the bread does toast up nicely.

Also Urban Pantry makes some good bread and they will deliver to your door once weekly. Sign up for their weekly e-mail ([email protected]). They also make dips and things. A little pricey, but good bread.

Snapper in Sukhumvit 11/1 serves only sustainable fish from New Zealand (meaning that the green street cred of the fish takes a beating from its carbon footprint). They offer all their fish in two versions, battered or breaded. As tommytouch pointed out, it has received a number of write-ups lately, and the fish is really tasty. Chips are pretty good too. Avoid the other dishes though. We sampled several (the low point being a bland, pasty seafood cake, made with a lot of stale bread as filler and precious little seafood). They are also inexplicably proud of their homemade ketchup.

I recently bought a pan to make khanom krok, and unlike Goinghomesoon, I lke them with corn, scallions, or loads of other toppings.

I love khanom morkaeng too, and recycle the tins for making small brownies and carrot cakes.

Can anyone recommend an affordable, dependable seamstress in Bangkok? I know where to go for men's clothes but I have a cousin coming to town and she is looking to have a couple of simple dresses made.

Many thanks for your help!

I can recommend Piammitr. Classes are smaller than what you're looking for, often just three or four students, but that means you participate much more. I am there now and have worked my way up to reading and writing (just started, and feel like some toddler holding his book upsidedown, clutching a crayon in his fist, but I'll get there). The first three months of their curriculum concentrates on vocabulary building and basic grammar structures. I am definitely still struggling to hone my tones and fluency, but it's a world of difference from the random phonetic guessing games I'd play when I first arrived.

It's great watching the current level 1 class when they come out every day with new words for things, asking questions. It's exciting for them, and I can practically see a veil being lifted from their eyes. Thai is tough and after a month you won't be reciting great poetry (or even watching soap operas). But you'll have a better than basic grasp on every day vocabulary and structure.

As was said earlier, you can take morning or afternoon classes. If you have the time, you could even do both, say a class in the morning and private tuition in the afternoon. They are in Trendy in Sukhumvit 13, 2nd floor, up the escalators. Have a look at their website, and if it is something you want to check out, I'd stop by. E-mail can be quite slow. The next session starts the first week of February, but they will let you sit in a trial class beforehand if you want.

This is great news, thanks! I went looking for it a couple of weeks before Christmas and assumed it was gone forever.

Skimming through, I'd also add:

5. (khun) maa jak tiinai is also a possibility, "where are you from?". Maa jak is also good for asking where something comes form. Even more concisely than what the others have said, (khun) pben knon arai is also used with the "pratheet" part understood, but not said.

6. "Ther" is the pronoun she/her, but it is also used as a very familiar, but not rude "you" among younger (teenage or post-teen) friends, male or female. It's unlikely you'd hear anybody much older using it to address someone directly.

There is still a local brand of natural peanut butter other than Mission sold at Villa and Central I think, but I forget the name. It's sold in small jars. Not cheap but by weight certainly cheaper (and not as good) as the all natural imported American organic peanuts stuff.

The brand is Healthy Mate. B65 for a 200g jar at Gourmet Market, a bit more at Central. It comes sweetened or unsweetened, and they also do an almond butter, among other products.

Any major mall (Paragon, Central World, Emporium spring to mind); any bigger B2S; the little stationery shop on Thong Lo 13, the name of which escapes me right now; the Thai Craft fairs that are popping up around town in the coming weeks (google locations); the shopping extravaganza at the Queen Sirikit Center this weekend; Loft in Siam Discovery.

The Plaza-Athénée Thanksgiving buffet this year was really pretty good, a nice mix of traditional, Thai and other foods. They are doing Christmas as well. The Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit does a great buffet generally, and I would trust them to do Christmas right.

Funny, my dad and I had this conversation with a tuk-tuk driver a few months ago. When we asked about buying a tuk-tuk, he immediately offered us his for B400,000, his opening gambit. I'm assuming we could have bargained him down had we been serious about buying, but he made it clear that he would have taken the cash, handed us the keys and walked away.

They are available frozen in many supermarkets in Bangkok including Villa Market, Gourmet Market and Central Food Hall. If you're in town this weekend, you can get them at the Bonjour French Fair at the Queen Sirikit Center. Big C is promoting their French products and may carry the raw foie gras as well.

Frozen incidentally works just as well as fresh, whether you're making terrines or pan-searing slices of it.