Mint Cafe

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Lately it seems the power has been going out here in Shaker Heights every time the wind blows. Last night was another one of those instances. Striking right before dinner we had decided to vacate the premises and head to Mint Café for a little dinner, in hopes that the delicate power grid in our fair city would be up and operating by the time we got back.

It’s funny, Mint Café is one of those places that we’ve been meaning to get to, but for one reason or another never seem to go. Located in Coventry, the space actually takes up two units. On the side of the entrance there’s a waiting area and a row of tables, the other side is simply dining, with the kitchen in the back.

Specializing in Thai cuisine, Mint Café has a fairly extensive list of curries, noodles, rice, vegetarian, and what they call signature dishes. Depending on which Thai place you go to, some seem to be heavier on the heat than others. If I had to pick one, I’d say this menu is a little on the milder side (which I think most people probably prefer).

Regina ordered the SHRIMP FAIRY TALE Dinner ($11.95) which consisted of sautéed shrimp, onion, red pepper, mushroom, snow pea, scallion, pineapple chuck, cashew nut in honey lemon sauce. They didn’t skimp on the shrimp (Hey, nice rhyme) or the cashews. That being said, it wasn’t like they brought out monster Cheesecake Factory portioned plates either. For some, big portions are welcomed, but we’re partial to the more comfortably digestible sizes.

Typically when I try a Thai place for the first time I like to dip my toe in the spiciness pool so I don’t get burnt (literally and figuratively), for the price of the whole meal. I went with the CHILI DUCK ($13.95) Crispy half boneless roasted duck sliced and glazed with chef’s spicy sauce, with sautéed assorted fresh vegetables on the side. The dish was fantastic. The duck was deep fried, with a chili glaze that was not gooey or overpowering. I find that some of these glazes tend to be on the overly sweet side. This, however, had a very good balance of sweetness and spice.

Although we didn’t order any appetizers or dessert we left feeling completely satiated. Mint Café is right up there with Ty Fun (pronounced like Typhoon), Thai Charm, and Mekong River, in my opinion. Their service ran like a well oiled machine, and was very friendly and personable. There was quite a crowd waiting to get in as we left, but people seemed to get seated fairly quickly with the rapid turnover. This place has reasonable portions, at reasonable prices, with excellent flavor. We loved it, and will definitely be back.

Mint Café
1791 Coventry Rd
Cleveland Heights, OH 44118
(216) 320-9915
www.mintcafecoventry.com

Thai Charm

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Seven Hills or the area near it actually has some viable dining options. I don't know if D'Agnese is technically in Seven Hills, but Pizzeria Cerino and Charm Thai have emerged as some inexpensive options serving up good food.

Regina had actually been to Charm Thai before and gave it the thumbs up. We just happened to be in the neighborhood, so we decided to stop in.

First off, I really like the interior of the space. With a good variety of tables and booths, Charm Thai is split into dining on one side and a nice bar area on the other. Much like Thai Fun (pronounced like Typhoon) in Tremont, Charm Thai is not decorated in a typical hokey red walls with gold trinkets.

I decided I didn't really want to order a ton of food, so I went with the Pad Thai and Tofu. The tofu was actually pan fried (the way I like it). I think I would have liked the actual noodles to be a little more tasty. I don't think the peanut flavor was as powerful as I usually like it.

Regina ordered the Shrimp Himaparn. She thought the salty and sweet of the dish tasted perfect. The dish comes with a generous amount of shrimp and vegetables. She really, really, likes this dish.

If you happen to be in this neck of this neck of the woods it's certainly worth a try. Thai Charm puts out a good product at a good price.

Charm Thai
7426 Broadview Rd
Parma, OH 44134
(215) 642-0360
www.charmthaiohio.com

Mekong River

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Mekong River is another one of those places we've been meaning to try, but never quite made it. Last week we swung in for carryout.

The first impression is that it's your typical Asian restaurant. Nothing fancy, just a modestly furnished and decorated casual restaurant.

When you look at the menu, the first thing that jumps out at you is the variety of Cambodian and Thai dishes available. Filled with a combination of meat, shrimp, and vegetarian dishes, Mekong offers a little bit of something for everyone.

We ordered the Nam Chao (2 per order): Fresh wrapped rice paper rolls, stuffed with cucumber, cilantro, lettuce, noodles, carrots, and shrimp. Served with sweet and sour peanut sauce. The peanut sauce, while good, was not the thicker peanut sauce we are used to. The sauce wasn't that spicy, which my wife appreciated.

For dinner we shared the Mango Curry which consisted of fresh mangos, yellow squash, bell peppers, and pineapple, and shrimp. The mangos made the dish. We loved it. We also ordered a side of the Pineapple Fried Rice: Shrimp, chicken, eggs, snow peas, green peas and pineapple. Next time we're going to order separately since I have an affinity for all that is spicy and my wife does not (these were not spicy).

Specializing in Cambodian and Thai, Mekong River has a good representation of dishes from both cuisines. I think what I like the most is that the menu isn't overambitious. There aren't nine million items on the menu that are average in execution. They have a wide enough representation without being too limited. Our experience certainly warrants another visit.

Mekong River
1918 Lee Rd
Cleveland Heights, OH 44118
(216) 371-9575
www.mekongriver-cleveland.com

Ty Fun

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Tremont never ceases to amaze me when it comes to the sheer number of good restaurants that exist in such a small geographic area. I like to try new places just as much as anyone else. I, however, it a little harder to do in Tremont because so many of my favorites already reside there. It's hard to pass up a tried and true fave for the unknown.

Enter Ty Fun.

This choice wasn't particularly hard for me, due to the fact that my wife was including it as part of my surprise visit to The Improv to see Lavell Crawford. As a side note he has one of the funniest acts I've ever seen.

If there's one thing I don't like about Tremont it's that the snow removal can be horribly lacking. On the night we went it was not pretty.

After parking the sled we head into the restaurant. I'm immediately struck by how small it is. I'm guessing that capacity is somewhere around 20-30 people.

The décor is very tasteful and restrained. I've noticed that a lot of Thai restaurants have a tendency to go trinket crazy. You aren't going to find any of that here. Pillows double as backrests along the side wall, which has inward facing benches. The back walls have modern artwork with gold leaf decoration.

For dinner I had the #18 (the server told me that was her favorite dish), which is the Kai Kra Prow Sautéed sliced chicken breast with red pepper, onion, string beans and basil leaves in chili garlic sauce. Wow! I thought it was a great balance of spice and flavor, while not being overly heavy on the sauce.

Regina had the Gang Keow Whan which had Jumbo Shrimp, green curry cooked in coconut milk with string beans, eggplant, zucchini and basil leaves. She runs from anything spicy just as quickly as I run to it. Overall, she was pleased with the large amount of vegetables and shrimp that were swimming in a savory (not spicy) broth of coconut milk and curry.

If you've read any of our past posts you know that we're dessert freaks. Typically when it comes to Asian food the equation goes something like this: Asian Restaurant = Bad Dessert. Not here. You have got to get the Chocolate Mousse Cake. It was the best dessert I've ever had at a purely Asian restaurant. It consisted of chocolate mouse covered in different types of chocolate shavings.


I'm adding Ty Fun to my Tremont rotation. It is definitely a must try if you're daring enough to go somewhere other than one of the established Tremont institutions.

Ty Fun
815 Jefferson Ave
Cleveland, OH 44113
(216) 664-1000
www.tyfunthaibistro.com