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2013-10-05
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Sawali Club has been on my list for a while. First, WC is supposed to be a hotspot for Thai in HK. Second, Swali Club's got a good openrice rating (and if you look just at the English reviews, it's 5-smilies, 1-OK, and 0-frownies). So when some friends invited me to a movie in WC and asked for a restaurant recommendation, I immediately said: "Sawali Club." Unfortunately, I wasn't impressed.OK, so I've probably had pomelo salad before, but I don't really recall where or when. So this was relative
[Note: I arrived after food had been ordered, so I can't vouch for the exact names of any of the dishes.]
OK, so I've probably had pomelo salad before, but I don't really recall where or when. So this was relatively new to me. It was pomelo, obviously, with some crispy fried shallots. I enjoyed it, but it didn't leave me craving more. Good: B+
The pad thai was pretty mediocre and bland. I never order pad thai myself, I find that it's usually one of the worst things on the menu. Average: C
I love fried tofu with basil and chili. There's a version of this dish that they sell at Thai Cuisine Village in Tuen Mun that has the best tofu I've ever eaten in my life, it's divine. This was pretty good too, though far less divine (and totally not spicy). B+
This had to be the most boring Thai dish I've had in quite some time. I don't even know what's supposed to make it Thai. Maybe it had some fish sauce in it? Below average: C-
This last photo is just eye candy. We were eating at a very early time of day, and I had just had a slice of pizza after the Australian Rules Football Final, so I wasn't very hungry (you can see how little I put in my bowls. I didn't have any of the green curry.Would I come back here? Yes, I think it deserves another chance. Was I disappointed? Yes, things just weren't spicy or flavorful. When you serve mostly expats like Brits and Australians (two countries with flavorless food) and flavor-despising HK locals, slowly all the flavor starts to fade. I know this place is run by Thais, but this isn't what you'd get in Thailand. Below Average: C-
And for the people who say "you can't get better in HK" or "it's better than anything in soho" or "it's the best in WC," I think all those things are wrong. Better in HK? Thai Cuisine Village, Tuen Mun. Better in soho? Tuk Tuk Thai and Cafe Siam. Better in WC? Chili Club. It's trivially easy to find better Thai than this.
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