Epic Portions

Category: Ann Arbor

  • No Thai! – Ann Arbor, MI

    Before I start telling you about my first visit to No Thai, I should explain that I am completely head over heels in love with Thai food.  I love everything about it.  The (usual) freshness of ingredients, the mixture between heat and coconut milk, and especially the heat.  If you walk into a Thai restaurant and tell them to make it extra spicy, the chef takes it as a challenge to his manhood.  If you want it extra spicy, he’s not going to throw another drop of hot sauce on your food, he’s going to make it a fiery oblivion to make sure that you never challenge him ever again.

    Just for the record, my favorite Thai in the area is served at TupTim in Ypsilanti.  For the longest time, Blacked out Sarah had been raving about this place in Ann Arbor called No Thai!.  For some reason, I never made it out to give it a shot.  Looking back, I think it might have been the name.  Why would anyone open up a Thai restaurant and call it No Thai!?  It always confused me.  I wouldn’t open up an Italian restaurant and call it No Italian!.  It might confuse people and make them think I was serving authentic Mexican food but making an attempt to be humorous with the name.  For this, I took to their website for an explanation.  It goes as follows..

    This epic story begins on a cold winter day in February of 2005. On that fateful day, four close friends united to form a pact to bring a modern Thai restaurant to the University of Michigan campus. So the fellowship began, each person would bring to the table their own unique set of abilities. Ultimately, one partner, Noerung “No” Hang, rose above the rest to become the head chef, and so the restaurant came to be known as “No Thai!”. This name would come to bring amusement, confusion, and intrigue to the masses, but now you know No Thai!, or do you?

    So it started making sense in those not making sense at all kind of ways.  Regardless, I love Thai food and I decided to make a trip with Blacked out Sarah to experience this food she had been raving about for so long.

    No Thai(i’m sick of adding the exclamation mark) is kind of like the fast food of Thai restaurants, and in no way am I trying to badmouth the place by saying that.  If you’re an ethnic food snob, you’ll probably have a great time badmouthing the place to anyone who is willing to listen.  I, for one, am not.  It’s not incredibly authentic and the ingredients don’t taste terribly fresh, but they’re not advertising incredibly authentic food made with terribly fresh ingredients.  It’s a Thai restaurant that offers quick service and anywhere from above average to solid Thai food.  To me it’s a fun, light interpretation of Thai cuisine using basic Thai principles and dishes as it’s basing point.  As the website clearly states, it’s a modern approach on Thai food.

    In my opinion, No Thai is a great place to visit if you like Thai food and don’t require an incredibly authentic experience every time you dine out.  You might call me a hypocrite for saying this when I trash Tios Mexican Cafe every chance I get, but if you do I just have to say that you’re kind of dumb.  Tios is an incredibly Americanized version of Mexican food that completely destroys the very idea of Mexican cuisine, while No Thai gives you a basic idea of Thai cuisine, that in my opinion, leaves you with a very positive outlook on Thai food in general.  It’s like the farm system of Thai food that gets you prepared for the big leagues.

    I went with the Potato Curry with Chicken, which is described as Cubed potato, white onion, & bell pepper in our curry sauce. I got it at Yoga Flame spice level, which is the second hottest you can request.  I didn’t dare choose the Dim Mak, for reasons I explained earlier.  I paid $8.50 and got a very nice portion of what looked like a pretty tasty looking dish.  Not bad so far.

    The food was solid, not great, which I expected.  The meat was tender, the potatoes were delicious(by far the best part of the dish), the vegetables were somewhat fresh tasting, and the “curry sauce” added nice flavor.  I was disapointed with the heat of the dish, but I really didn’t expect to have my tongue burned off.  I actually ended up adding Sriracha to this which did the trick.

    All in all, not bad.  Exactly what I would expect from a plate of $8.50 Thai food.  If you’re into Thai food but don’t feel like paying $13-15 bucks per plate, check out No Thai.  Just don’t walk in there expecting to have a little Thai baby Jesus on your plate.  You might be a little disappointed.

    No Thai!
    1317 S. University
    Ann Arbor, MI 48104
    http://www.nothai.com/

  • Man v. Food is Dead to Me

    Man v. Food has been one of my favorite shows since it began a few years ago.  It’s like a good version of Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives with a likable host and an eating challenge at the end.  What is there not to love?  When I first saw it,  I felt like it was a natural fit that Epic Portions began covering it.  Travel Channel even sent me season one on DVD for free.

    I always hoped that Adam Richman would bring his show to Ann Arbor so I could hang out during production.  This week, the time finally came.  News started circling that the show was being filmed at Blimpy Burger on Wednesday, which was an obvious choice.  If someone was in town visiting and I needed one place to take them, Blimpy would more than likely be the winner.

    His next stop was the Maze and Blue Deli, which I found to be a little odd.  I could probably think of ten places I would have recommended over it.  I’m not saying the place isn’t good, but come on.  Just because it has “Maze and Blue” in the name doesn’t mean you have to stop there while in Ann Arbor.  I could open up a bike repair shop and call it “Maze and Blue Bike Shop”, but it wouldn’t mean you should take your bike to me to get fixed.  I don’t know shit about bikes. I would probably break your bike even more than it already was.

    I did everything I could to find out where the eating challenge would take place.  I scoured the internet, I talked to my insiders(HA!), and I kept my ear to the streets.  I was going to find Mr. Richman and I was going to be present for the challenge.  I had work  off, a full tank of gas, and a dream.  I finally found where out where it was all taking place, and what I read horrified me.

    They selected Tios’ Mexican Cafe as their final destination.

    Out of all places, they chose Tios.  Tios Mexican Cafe.  The WORST food in the area, perhaps the state. The place that has done everything in their power to DESTROY Mexican food.  The challenge turned out to be something I have written before… A hideous five pound pile of slop known as Mount Nacheesmo.

    More like Mount Pile of Garbage! Haha!

    Seriously, that is television worthy?  I could make that in my house and it would look/taste about 100 times better.  I was completely confused on this decision.  Ann Arbor has great local joints that really say something about the city, other than “Hey, we fucking hate Mexican food so we’re going to destroy it.  Here, have an enormous burrito filled with cat food and beans, and topped with yellow cheese and bland enchilada sauce.”  Why did Tios get the selection?  9/10 people that know food will tell you that Tios’ food sucks.  It’s common knowledge.  Couldn’t someone on the research team ask a local what they thought of the place and possibly recommend a good place to go?

    Some time ago, I read WouldIBuyitAgain.com’s, rant on the resturuant selection in the Indianapolis.   I now see what he means.  The selection process on Man v. Food has gotten awful.  I will no longer watch Man v. Food.  Let the boycott begin.

  • @burger – Ann Arbor, MI

    If I am ever in search of a quality burger in the Ann Arbor area, Blimpy Burger is the obvious choice. There is nothing better than a burger cooked on a grill that has been seasoned by decades of use.  I don’t care what condiments you add to it.  Quality beef is a worthy substitute to the properly seasoned grill, but I prefer the taste created by age.  Recently, the “gourmet” burger trend has been making its way from the West Coast and Ann Arbor has become a hot spot for these burger joints.  Bagger Dave’s popped up a few years ago, there are plans to add a Five Guys(which originated in D.C., but follows the west coast burger idea) on State St., and most recently a joint called @burger popped up on Liberty.

    I followed @burger’s development pretty closely because it was interesting to see a new burger joint pop up in the downtown Ann Arbor area.  When I was a kid, Ann Arbor was all about authenticity.  My Mom would drop us off and we would grab a Flafel sandwich from Jerusalem Garden, sometimes double up with a hot dog from Le Dog, stop in at Discount Records, and enjoy the uniqueness that was Ann Arbor. There were places we could go that you couldn’t find outside of the city.  As the years go by, more and more of these businesses have closed, allowing Starbucks, Potbelly, and Chipolte to move in.  Each time one of these chains moves in, it seems to lessen Ann Arbor’s authenticity.  I’m not saying Ann Arbor has lost the character that makes the city what it is, it’s just that every time a business like Cosi moves in, the more the experience is cheapened.

    The first thing that worried me about @burger was that it’s owned by Big Boy.  This is the first location and there are plans to turn it into a national chain.  I’ve had a burger at Big Boy.  Burger is not plural because I never any desire to ever try another one.  What positives could Big Boy possibly bring to the world of burgers?

    The more I read, however, the more I thought this might be a quality joint.  The meat is all ordered from Wolverine Packing Co., a Detroit based meat packer, and all of the buns are baked in house.  The “build your own burger” option would be there, with micro brews being available in the near future.  Maybe Big Boy was doing something right?  I was still a little hesitant to accept their modern burger joint concept into Ann Arbor, but I went to check it out anyways.  The things I do for my readers…

    The first thing I noticed was the interior.  It’s incredibly cheesy and the designer seemed to be having an identity crisis at the time of hire.  There are multiple plasma TVs on the wall, giving the feel of a sports bar surrounded by modern furniture and minimalist design giving it the feel of a hipster hang out.  As you walk in, the menu is displayed on an LCD screen, then on paper in front of the registers.  The design just gives off an incredibly unauthentic feel.  It just seems a little phony to me.

    The menu consists of burgers, one chicken sandwich, salads, and sides which include chips with toppings and fries. They also have Custard shakes.  An employee takes your order at the cash register and you are given a device which tells you that your food is ready.  We ordered the BBQ Velveeta burger, the Caprese Chicken Sandwich, Buffalo Chips, and two drinks.  Our total came to $22.00. Not breaking the bank expensive, but also not what I want to pay for two burgers and some chips.  There are many different condiments to choose from, along with multiple flavors of popcorn seasoning.  This confused me, because I didn’t see popcorn anywhere on the menu.

    Your buzzer goes off when your food is ready(it actually says “your food is ready”), but an employee brings your food to you.  Once again, I was confused.  If someone is bringing you your food, why spend money on electronic devices to notify you that your food is ready when someone is going to bring it to you ten seconds later?

    When my burger arrived, I was less than impressed.  The BBQ Velveeta Burger comes with bacon, BBQ sauce, Velveeta cheese, tomatoes, lettuce, and pickles. The burger as a whole just didn’t look very appetizing to me.  The burger patty was lacking in size and looked a little over cooked.  The cheese was minimal, and I had a hard time finding any BBQ sauce at all.  There was also shredded lettuce.  Seriously, shredded lettuce?  On a positive note, the bun looked impressive, and the bacon was plentiful and crispy.

    BBQ Velveeta Burger
    Upon my first bite, the first thing I noticed was the dryness of the bun.  It had the feel of a bun that had been sitting around for hours.  Typically that’s not how you want your buns to taste when you advertise that they are baked fresh in house.  Second, the burger was dry and overcooked.  The flavor was good, but there was no juiciness at all which was very disappointing.  Third, the bacon was very crispy and delicious.  I would definitely recommend bacon on any burger you get here.  Past that, the cheese and BBQ sauce were not very plentiful which did not help the dryness of the burger and bun.  I think they have a good concept with the beef and condiments on this burger, but just wasn’t prepared very well that day.

    The Buffalo Chips were chips served with Buffalo sauce and Bleu Cheese dressing on top. The chips were crispy and tasted fresh, and the Buffalo sauce was delicious.  I could have used a little bit more sauce on top of the chips, but all in all this is a great accompaniment to a burger.  They have several other types of chips you can order on the side and I would definitely recommend you give them a try.

    Buffalo Chips

    All in all, this place could be a lot worse.  The decor inside may be a little cheesy and it may be owned by Big Boy, but I think they’re on the right track.  My burger wasn’t very well prepared, but I think if I went back and tried the exact same burger I might get different results.  I still say if you’re looking for a burger you should head to Blimpy’s, but if you’re not a fan of the hole in the wall burger joints and are scared of getting cursed out for ordering wrong, @burger might be a option for you.