Road Trip to Bend!
Saturday afternoon we visited Deschutes Brewery Brewhouse. We sampled a few beers and we still had a hard time finding something we love because all the trendy beers are pretty hoppy loaded and we’re not much into that kind of taste. The place itself was so nice, everyone seemed to have a great time and the staff is super friendly. I’ll visit the brewery again because I’m sure sooner or later we will find a beer that we love!
In the night we went to Silver Moon Brewing for more local beer tasting and live acoustic music. The staff was very friendly and I really enjoyed my time. I ended up having a Pilsner in the end, but they owe me a brown ale, hopefully some time soon when hoppy beers are not the most trendy kind ha!
For dinner we headed to downtown and tried a new place called ‘Wild Rose Thai’. I believe this place has been open for less than a year according to their FB Page. Our waitress was pretty knowledgeable of the menu and very friendly. We appreciated all her suggestions for specials and vegetarian options for J.
J ordered a vegetarian Tofu stir fry with a side of Jasmine rice. The vegetables were perfectly cooked; the sauce was too sweet for our preference.  We shared an appetizer ‘Yum Khao Tod’ (crispy rice croquettes, shallots, chili, peanuts, lemongrass and other ingredients in a spicy tart lime dressing, over chopped lettuce).
At first I was skeptical at the Yum Khao Tod, mostly because I was looking for a Nam Khao replacement and I’ve never been a fan of iceberg lettuce. Once I tried the dish all my worries went away, everyone who tried on the table agrees with this. It was an explosion of flavors, salty, tart, crispy, I mean you mention it. There was so much going on in that dish, and in a great way. The crispy lettuce added a nice fresh contrast. We will order it again when we visit Bend.
I ordered a Five Spice Pork dish (off menu). It was subtle and savory, it had asparagus and tons of cilantro. It’s big enough for two people and more with the boiled eggs on the dish. It certainly reminded me of a Vietnamese Pork Belly dish a friend of mine made a few weeks ago. It was fantastic and I was told they also make it with pigs feet (I’ll have to order it when J isn’t watching!)
Taya ordered a Som Tum, I liked it, I was expecting a sourer version and after having a conversation on Facebook with the restaurant they mentioned to me that their Som Tum is more between north and Bangkok since they have more vegan and vegetarian customers. They put ground dry shrimp on top, but for vegetarians they leave it out.
She also ordered the Mussel Hot Pot and it was so fragrant I couldn’t stop dipping my rice on that sauce. The mussels were plump and cooked to perfection. If I ordered again I’d ask for extra lemongrass or ginger, but that’s a personal obsession!
Our other friend ordered the See Klong Moo Tod (deep fried pork spareribs topped with fried garlic and served with a sweet and spicy dipping sauce). I got to try it and I thought it was well seasoned and crispy and soft at the same time. I prefer my ribs a bit more chewy than ‘falling off the bone’ and these ribs had the perfect balance of those two options. I liked the sauce and I can see myself ordering these ribs with a few beers (I can’t believe I forgot to ask which beers they had!)
J & Taya having coffee ^___^
If you follow me on Twitter, Reddit or FB, you should know how much I miss the Laotian food from Bangkok Golden. After experiencing this Northern Thai dinner, I can’t imagine myself visiting Bend without having lunch or dinner at the Wild Rose Thai. This is only the beginning of our culinary adventures around Bend!
¡a comer!
PS.
I love this cat
