Note: It's time for another edition of Street Food Profiles. This week we scoot to Portland, Oregon, a sidewalk cuisine mecca where this one-item menu finds inspiration from Bangkok vendors. [Photographs: Nong's Khao Man Gai] Name: Nong's Khao Man Gai (pronounced cow-mon-guy) Vendor: Narumol "Nong" Poonsukwattana Location and hours? SW 10th Avenue and Alder Street (map) across the street from Jake's Grill in Portland, Oregon. What do you sell? Khao Man Gai ($6), or poached chicken served on jasmine rice with cucumber slices and cilantro. And don't forget that little tub of sauce—it's made with fresh ginger, garlic, sugar, fermented soy beans, and chile, and meant to be poured all over the meal. The Piset (pee-set), or "special" in Thai,...
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When I read Joshua Kurlantzik's fine piece on Bangkok street food, I immediately thought of my late friend Johnny Apple, who wrote an equally spirited and passionate story on the same topic a few years ago. One plus of Kuralntzik's piece: He gave props to the terrific Thai food blogger Austin Bush. Johnny Apple, on the other hand, leaned on American writer Robert Halliday for guidance. The times they have changed. But did they write about the same restaurants?...
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