Grilled Chicken with Soup at Mekong Cafe - Fast 800 Edition
(Sorry for the lack of posts lately, first I broke my ribs, twice, then I got the flu and life got in the way. I'm back to regular posting, all things going well, or at least not terribly)
So, I went on a diet. Apparently being chunky yet funky is not good for one's health according to my long-suffering doctor. Also none of my clothes fit. Yes, a calorie-counting food critic. It's positively Tartarusian. I know this is not the reason you are on a food blog, so I'll keep it brief. The Fast 800 diet was invented by a Dr. Michael Mosely, and is backed up by legitimate science, with doctors and medicine and stuff. It is basically intermittent fasting and is low calorie and relatively low-carb, high-protein. As the name suggests, the calorie limit per day is 800. That's not an awful lot. I'm doing it for 12 weeks and intend to drop 20kg, all things going according to plan. That means there are quite a few restrictions as to what I can feed myself. You're going to see a LOT of salad reviews! Anyway, enough with that boring subject. On to the review!
Mekong Cafe is a Wellington institution (and yes, I am aware I have used that description before but it is completely apt). I have been coming here for nearly a decade. I was introduced to this little gem of a restaurant by a dear friend from technical college and I believe, if memory serves, that it was my first experience with Vietnamese food. It was the start of a delicious (and often healthy) love affair which will never end. I'm almost 60% sure the Grilled Chicken with Rice and Soup was the first dish I ever ordered there. What can I say? I'm a creature of habit. The exterior of Mekong Cafe is charmingly dilapidated, with a red awning, neon Open sign and cute plants in a row by the entrance, giving it a homey feel. Almost like popping to your friend's house for lunch, only your friend happens to be an awesome Viet chef. Little pictures and kick-knacks dot the walls, I am particularly fond of the large black velvet painting of what I assume to be the Mekong Delta. According to the sign on the door Mekong Cafe does not take credit cards, and they deliver via DeliverEasy.
A lovely, polite and friendly lady takes my order and my food arrives prontissimo. I have ordered my favourite Grilled Chicken with Rice and Soup, only minus the rice, in keeping with my current low-carb lifestyle. I also order jasmine tea (a steal at only $1.50 per pot). As the photo suggests, you get a generous serving of marinated grilled chicken breast, a small bowl of broth-like soup and some token vegetables for garnish. As I hate food wastage, and love vegetables, I am one of those weirdos who eat the garnish. I begin with the thinly sliced cucumber. It is fresh and crunchy, and would be even better in the summer when cucumbers are in season. The grated pickled carrots are tangy and crisp to the bite, a delightful balance of sweet, sour and salty.
Onto the star of the show - the chicken. It is grilled flawlessly, not at all dry and stringy as breast can easily become. The marinade is to die for. I would love to know the chef's secret blend of herbs and spices. I detect a delectable hint of lemongrass, but am unsure as to the rest. It comes with a small bowl of dipping sauce: the standard Viet flavour profile of fish sauce, palm sugar and lime. It is such a beautiful and subtle, underrated profile. Every time I eat at Mekong I ask myself why I don't eat Vietnamese food more often. It is so good for both body and soul.
I move on to the soup, anointing it with chilli oil from the tray of condiments on the table (chilli oil, soy sauce, sriracha, sugar). On its own it is a simple savoury, clear broth but I turn it crimson and it sets my tastebuds alight. It is a perfectly sized portion, enough to wet your whistle, but not enough to make you feel all gluggy and soupy. On a rainy, miserable Wellington day it is the perfect antidote to the late-Winter blues. By the time I have finished savouring my soup, the chicken, which is very thinly sliced has grown cold. It is just as delicious cold as it is hot and would make a magical Banh Mi filling. Strangely, Mekong does not do Banh Mi, but if they did I'm sure it would be delicious. While I did not order rice, I have had enough rice from Mekong over the years to vouch for the fact that it is consistently well-cooked, neither overcooked and soggy or undercooked and hard.
I finish my meal in record time (some say that my eating style is reminiscent of a gannet...) and am pleasantly sated, feeling virtuous. With food like this, the low-carb life ain't so bad! I finish my jasmine tea and read my fortune in the tea leaves (hold the cup in your left hand, swirl it counter-clockwise three times and see what the leaves resemble pictographically). It's silly, but harmless fun. The tea leaves resemble a clock. Time to get another bargain bite. So many cheap eats, so little time!
Mekong Cafe 138 Vivian Street, Te Aro 6011
Service: 9/10
Ambiance: 7/10
Food: 9/10
Cost: $15
So, I went on a diet. Apparently being chunky yet funky is not good for one's health according to my long-suffering doctor. Also none of my clothes fit. Yes, a calorie-counting food critic. It's positively Tartarusian. I know this is not the reason you are on a food blog, so I'll keep it brief. The Fast 800 diet was invented by a Dr. Michael Mosely, and is backed up by legitimate science, with doctors and medicine and stuff. It is basically intermittent fasting and is low calorie and relatively low-carb, high-protein. As the name suggests, the calorie limit per day is 800. That's not an awful lot. I'm doing it for 12 weeks and intend to drop 20kg, all things going according to plan. That means there are quite a few restrictions as to what I can feed myself. You're going to see a LOT of salad reviews! Anyway, enough with that boring subject. On to the review!
Mekong Cafe is a Wellington institution (and yes, I am aware I have used that description before but it is completely apt). I have been coming here for nearly a decade. I was introduced to this little gem of a restaurant by a dear friend from technical college and I believe, if memory serves, that it was my first experience with Vietnamese food. It was the start of a delicious (and often healthy) love affair which will never end. I'm almost 60% sure the Grilled Chicken with Rice and Soup was the first dish I ever ordered there. What can I say? I'm a creature of habit. The exterior of Mekong Cafe is charmingly dilapidated, with a red awning, neon Open sign and cute plants in a row by the entrance, giving it a homey feel. Almost like popping to your friend's house for lunch, only your friend happens to be an awesome Viet chef. Little pictures and kick-knacks dot the walls, I am particularly fond of the large black velvet painting of what I assume to be the Mekong Delta. According to the sign on the door Mekong Cafe does not take credit cards, and they deliver via DeliverEasy.
A lovely, polite and friendly lady takes my order and my food arrives prontissimo. I have ordered my favourite Grilled Chicken with Rice and Soup, only minus the rice, in keeping with my current low-carb lifestyle. I also order jasmine tea (a steal at only $1.50 per pot). As the photo suggests, you get a generous serving of marinated grilled chicken breast, a small bowl of broth-like soup and some token vegetables for garnish. As I hate food wastage, and love vegetables, I am one of those weirdos who eat the garnish. I begin with the thinly sliced cucumber. It is fresh and crunchy, and would be even better in the summer when cucumbers are in season. The grated pickled carrots are tangy and crisp to the bite, a delightful balance of sweet, sour and salty.
Onto the star of the show - the chicken. It is grilled flawlessly, not at all dry and stringy as breast can easily become. The marinade is to die for. I would love to know the chef's secret blend of herbs and spices. I detect a delectable hint of lemongrass, but am unsure as to the rest. It comes with a small bowl of dipping sauce: the standard Viet flavour profile of fish sauce, palm sugar and lime. It is such a beautiful and subtle, underrated profile. Every time I eat at Mekong I ask myself why I don't eat Vietnamese food more often. It is so good for both body and soul.
I move on to the soup, anointing it with chilli oil from the tray of condiments on the table (chilli oil, soy sauce, sriracha, sugar). On its own it is a simple savoury, clear broth but I turn it crimson and it sets my tastebuds alight. It is a perfectly sized portion, enough to wet your whistle, but not enough to make you feel all gluggy and soupy. On a rainy, miserable Wellington day it is the perfect antidote to the late-Winter blues. By the time I have finished savouring my soup, the chicken, which is very thinly sliced has grown cold. It is just as delicious cold as it is hot and would make a magical Banh Mi filling. Strangely, Mekong does not do Banh Mi, but if they did I'm sure it would be delicious. While I did not order rice, I have had enough rice from Mekong over the years to vouch for the fact that it is consistently well-cooked, neither overcooked and soggy or undercooked and hard.
I finish my meal in record time (some say that my eating style is reminiscent of a gannet...) and am pleasantly sated, feeling virtuous. With food like this, the low-carb life ain't so bad! I finish my jasmine tea and read my fortune in the tea leaves (hold the cup in your left hand, swirl it counter-clockwise three times and see what the leaves resemble pictographically). It's silly, but harmless fun. The tea leaves resemble a clock. Time to get another bargain bite. So many cheap eats, so little time!
Mekong Cafe 138 Vivian Street, Te Aro 6011
Service: 9/10
Ambiance: 7/10
Food: 9/10
Cost: $15
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