Restaurant Review: Nong’s

As I mentioned in my Tuesday post, I am going to tell you about Nong’s Thai.

picture off Nong’s website

My sister Katy texted me Sunday morning asking for a restaurant suggestion to get some paid thai, which she was craving. She wanted to go somewhere different. So, I suggested a bunch of places, with her landing on Nong’s. She invited Steve and I, and my other sister Krissy and her boyfriend to meet up for lunch. How could I turn down lunch a) out with my sisters (who I don’t get to see nearly enough) b) Thai food (my favorite) c) going out = not cooking lunch.

picture off Nong’s website

Nong’s is located in Golden Valley, off Highway 169 and Medicine Lake Road, in a little strip mall. Which don’t be fooled by the outer appearance.  There is a McDonald’s on the corner across from the strip mall and an amazing bakery, Valley Pastries right next door. I will most definitely have to do a post about the bakery!!

Steve and I have been to Nong’s many times and absolutely love the food. The portions are large enough that you can save half for lunch the next day and the prices are perfect so you aren’t breaking the bank.

Whenever Steve and I go there just the two of us, we get four or five off their appitzers and just share them. We seem to like the apps slightly more than the entrees. And, we both like to try a variety of items, this offers us the opportunity to do so. However, this time, we shared an order of spring rolls and each had our own entree.

I am telling you guys, these spring rolls and peanut sauce are the best ever! I have eaten a good amount of spring rolls and I can’t seem to beat these.

The peanut sauce is the perfect combination of slightly sweet with a slight saltiness. And the spring rolls, are just so fresh tasting. It’s the right ratio of veggies, noodles and protein.

Then for my entree I ordered the Bean Thread Vermicelli with Tofu, no heat. Noodles sounded really good, so that narrowed down my choices. And, whenever I eat Thai, I get tofu. I don’t cook tofu at home simply cause I don’t have the experience to make it right and Steve doesn’t like it. This dish was so good! The vegetables were fresh, crispy, but slightly tender; the noodles had a slight sweetness to them, and the tofu, was crispy on the outside and tender on the inside.

And, of course when eating with my family, it’s round robin with your entree. Loved Katy’s paid thai, but a little to spicy for me (she got HOT- I am a weakling), Krissy got a supper yummy soup, that was super savory and perfect for a cold Minnesota day, lastly, Steve’s was my favorite it was similar to my dish, but a little more savory flavor.

Every time I go to Nong’s I leave completely satisfied with the food, the prices, and restaurant atmosphere. My only complaint is the service. There never seems to be enough staff working both in the front of the house or back of the house. I understand its hard to know how busy a restaurant is going to be at any given time and having people standing around is not good business, but the restaurant has been around for a few years now and I would imagine that they have a good handle on their customer flow. A couple more servers working would make attentiveness to tables better and a couple more cooks in the kitchen might make getting food to the tables quicker and easier all together.

Picture off Nong’s website

Picture off Nong’s website

Have you guys been to Nong’s before? If so, what are your thoughts? Or do you have any other Thai Restaurant recommendations? Would love to hear from you all.

Sunshine and Warmth

Hello! Happy Tuesday!

I am happy to report that this weekend the sun finally showed it’s face and warmed Minneapolis creating a beautiful weekend!

Last, weekend, along with yesterday, Steve and I made sure to get outside and enjoy the beautiful weather, cause as normal it won’t be around for long and we will be back to the frigid cold this weekend.

When looking for our house, we wanted something close to Minneapolis, and surrounded by parks, walking paths and bike trails. We were fortunate enough to get just that. We live off Theodore Wirth Parkway and near Theorde Wirth Golf Course in Minneapolis.

So, after celebrating my favorite day, National Peanut Butter Day, on Saturday with a some peanut butter toast, a grapefruit, and yogurt, we set out for a long walk down the Parkway.

White grapefruit picked in California by my parents

Have you tried the limited batch Chobani Green Tea yogurt? We tried it on Saturday. One vote yes, for me. One vote no, for Steve.

 

To be honest, we didn’t get a whole lot of green tea flavor. I thought it tasted like plain yogurt, just less sour and bitter and slightly sweeter. I don’t love plain yogurt and I think if I ate the green tea on a regular basis, it would help me transition easier to plain yogurt. I would purchase it again.

Next, we laced up our walking shoes, put the sun glasses on and headed for the Parkway.

We have lived in our house for almost three years, walked the same paths many times together and have never known about the rock below until at Christmas when reminiscing with my parents and my dad enlightened us with a cool geography fact.

We live right near the “45th parallel of the latitude, which is midway between the equator and the north pole”. How cool is that! So, naturally, I had to stop and take a picture. This was the best I could do, since the sun was shining right at me, which I was not complaining about.

Then as we contiuned down the path we witnessed a cross country ski event at Theodore Wirth Golf Course. And, this beautiful view of Minneapolis.

Once, we got home, Steve cooked a simple yet delicious chicken lunch, while I picked up the house and got ready to go shopping with my friend Meg (at mymonochromaticlife).

When, I got home after shopping, I didn’t realize how late it was, so I had leftover lunch and topped it off with a home brewed beer. Steve has made many batches of beer, but this one has been my favorite!  It’s a beautiful golden brown color, light flavor, not extremely hoppy and not bitter. Just perfect!!

Sunday, we had errands and dinner with my family. Then Monday, back to work followed by another long walk with Steve on the Parkway and grape yogurt.

This is the other Limited Edition flavor by Chobani. This one got 2 votes yes from Steve and I. I have to say the product was surprisingly good. I wasn’t sure what to think when I first read grape yogurt, but as always my interest was peaked so I had to try it. The yogurt wasn’t to sweet and had a slight fake grape flavor. When I first ate it I thought of grape laffy taffy, which didn’t last long and had a clean after taste. I would definitely buy this flavor again.

I hope everyone had a nice and relaxing weekend! Did you get outside and enjoy the warm weather? If so, I would love to hear about it.

Stop by Thursday, to read about the other Chobani Yogurts that I have been loving for breakfast these last couple weeks!

V8 & Cookies

Cheeseburger and fries go together like cereal and milk, but what about V8 and cookies? Yeaaahhhhh… maybe not. Instead, I will tell you about two different, new products that I found while strolling through the grocery store.

Last year, I started drinking V8 Original Tomato Juice as a way to get more vegetables in my diet. It’s not something that I have often, just every now and then. About a month ago, when I was standing in the juice isle looking for some V8, I noticed V8’s new products. See pictures below.

Then, I was flipping through the Sunday paper ad’s, a couple weeks ago and noticed some coupons for more new V8 products. I couldn’t believe it! Whenever I think about V8 I always go straight to tomato juice (even though they have had the fruit fusions for a while now too).  The coupons peaked my interest and I wanted to try them.

However, I didn’t want the big bottles, just in case I didn’t like the products. While at the grocery store on Tuesday, I found small bottles of the new V8 juices, so I was excited and picked them up.

I started with Purple Power. I was excited about this one, but quickly was not a fan. The color was pleasant, for many would probably be a problem. And, when pouring it looked thin, almost watery like. When tasting it, there was no flavor, I thought I was drinking colored water, very thin, and nothing there at all.  I would not buy this product again.

Second, I tried the carrot mango. Again, the product looked thin when pouring and the color was very bright, but not off putting. This product had flavor, unlike the purple power. I tasted the sweetness of the mango followed by the carrot flavor. As, I continued drinking, the carrot aftertaste continued to build and started to get a little bitter, which I didn’t love, but it didn’t stop me from finishing the product. I would give carrot mango another try.

Third, I tried the healthy greens. To be honest, I was nervous about trying this one, but I ended up being ok with it. The product smelled “green” and I could taste the spinach, but it wasn’t offensive. Like, I said about the carrot mango, this flavor would take some getting use to.

And, lastly, golden goodness. This one I did not care for. The sweet potato flavor came through very strongly and the watery texture didn’t help . The product smelled and tasted like baby food.

Overall, I was very disappointed in these products and was hoping to like them a lot more. I feel that V8 could make the juices thicker and optimize the flavors more. I am glad that I found the small bottles, otherwise I would be getting creative on how to use the big bottle of juices.

If I had to choose, two to purchase again, it would be the carrot mango and healthy greens. Both of these would take a little getting use to, but for the health benefits, I think it would be worth it.

Now, on to the cookies. Have you heard of Brownie Brittle? It’s a must try! So good! I will do a blog post about it sometime in the future.

I bring this up because when I saw Cookie Chips, I instantly thought about Brownie Brittle and had to try it. I mean, cookies, chips, what could be wrong?

These cookies reminded me of a gingersnap, only slightly lighter and more tender. The package advertised that they eat like chips, which I wouldn’t completely agree with nor disagree with. They weren’t thick and chewy like a normal cookie. But, not thin and super crunchy like a chip. I was satisfied with the texture. The cookies also had a nice classic cinnamon sugar flavor, that you can’t go wrong with. I would definitely try one of the other 5 flavors that is offered.

Do you have any new products that you are loving right now? If so, leave me a comment, I would love to know.