Amelia L.
Yelp
There aren't many places to get Thai style Hainanese chicken in Astoria so it's nice to see this type of restaurant open on 35th Street and Broadway. The restaurant is small with about 4 or 5 tables. I love the aesthetics inside with the exposed brick wall and the hand painted mural; very cute. The menu is small with only 6 chicken dishes to choose from. In fact, there are more beverage options that food.
After chatting a bit with the staff, I went with their recommendation and got "The Combo" Khao Man Gai 2 Way. You get to choose two kinds of chicken from poached, fried, or roasted. I ended getting "The Original" Khao Man Gai (slow poached chicken) and "The Roasted" (marinated chicken thighs).
Both the poached and the roasted chicken were tender and delicious. The chicken was both lean and fatty, as in the meat was juicy but without the fatty pieces. I was given three types of dipping sauce: a chili tamarind and garlic ginger soybean and ginger scallion sauce. With Hainanese chicken, I think that the sauce makes the dish, and the ones here really highlighted the chicken well. The chili tamarind wasn't spicy at first, but it does have a slight kick after a while. The accompanying ginger rice tasted very lightly of ginger and was garnished with sliced cucumbers. They serve the meal with a light daikon soup and salad. Overall, the dish is a nice healthy option and a change of pace for the usual fried chicken dish.
Also, they offer one dessert, Mango Sticky Rice, which is not listed on the menu. When I asked about this, I was told it's because it's a seasonal dish and they will not be offering this year-round. Next time I'm here, I'll have to remember to try that.