Monday, February 9, 2009

Kwong Eats Trang!: Kantang Restaurant

On our first night in Trang, May’s parents took us out for dinner in a restaurant that is located in an area called Kantang. Her dad handed me the car keys and graciously asked if I could drive them to the restaurant. A little nervous since it was the first time I ever drove in Thailand and not wanting to look stupid by wrecking May’s father’s car, I managed to drive us safely but very slowly to the restaurant. So slow May’s dad joked that if I were to hit a car, no one would be hurt and the cars would only be slightly scratched.

Anyways, twenty kilometres later we were at the restaurant which was situated in a small street off the highway. Overlooking the river and suspended on wooden stilts the restaurant’s simple decor and open-air ambiance reminded us of how far away we are from the hustle and bustle of Bangkok.


The entire menu was in Thai so we left it to May and her parents to order the food.


The first dish we had was black pepper soft-shell crab. The black pepper sauce was a little salty but went well with the crabs. What I liked most about this dish was the texture that came from the crushed peppercorns which made the crabs very crunchy.


Minutes later we had a really delicious snake fish steamboat. Killed right before we were served, the meat of the fish was firm and smooth. Flavour-wise it is comparable to grouper but had a much stronger taste.


The aromatic soup tasted like it had been boiled with a lot of fish bones and other ingredients such as galangal, lemongrass, sea weed and rock sugar. May and I liked it so much that we drank the entire pot after eating the fish.


Salt-Baked Fish came next. The red colour fish used here had a better texture and tasted fresher than the one we had at Central Hawker in Bangkok.


Crab meat fried rice was also on our menu. Despite being a Chinese Dish the Thai chefs cooked it very well. The rice was not clumpy, had heaps of crab meat and was very well seasoned.


Our only vegetable dish came in the form of boiled vegetables with Thai Sambal. The Thai Sambal tasted similar to Malaysia’s cincalok but had extra ingredients such as lime, chilli and shallots.


May also ordered Gaeng Som which was my least favourite dish because it was way too spicy. My mouth went on fire upon my first sip and Wayne who poured it over his rice sweated like a pig. Odd enough despite his mouth burning he couldn’t stop having it.


Wayne and I were eager to try the food in Trang after May’s constant promotion of her hometown’s good food and we were definitely not disappointed. The use of simple herbs and spices to draw out the natural flavours of their readily available seafood is what I believe makes their food so good! The price is also enticing as the entire meal only set us back THB 1200.

Additional Details:
Address: N/A
Phone: N/A
Payment: Cash only (THB)

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Kwong i love your pics and website however you need to write the name of the restaurants or where u ate especially for Trang.
Many thanks
Eddie
cliche61@hotmail.com