CCU Undercover: Red Spoon Thai

CCU breathed in the smell of peanuts and coconuts, their aromas tickling her tastebuds as she walked through the crowded streets. A merchant here, a food stall there, there was just too much!

Well she had to start somewhere so she ambled over to an exotic location where the scent was especially strong.

Mmmmm…. was her last thought before she shut the door behind her

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Guys I apologise today that I do not have a recipe to share with you all (though I am planning to this weekend :D) – in its place, I have decided to take you on my Thai adventures so you do not get huge withdrawal from your lack of Go Bake Yourself (a real condition with symptoms include grumbling stomach, lack of chocolate and hallucinations of Nutella)

Allow me to introduce you to the wonderful, magical world of Thai food. Simple, exquisite and no pretentiousness, just classy, ambience. Dark oaks mixed with crimson as well as darker lighting set the mood inside but we sat outside with the sun waving goodbye.

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Perfectly set tables with a very innovative idea for a pre-packed hand sanitiser for your use either before or after your meal. Promoting hygiene before eating is such a big plus!

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As soon as we sit, a waitress approaches us and though, unlike Crinitis, she is not designated to our table, they are all each as efficient as last, no matter the order you put them in. They immediately filled up our cups with water and left with the menus, looking so determined which I found actually a little humorous 😛

And then suddenly, the food and drinks arrived *stomach grumbles from memories*

In less than 5 minutes, I kid. You. Not. Our drinks had arrived.

Firstly, my mum went for the very exotically displayed coconut juice, which she had been lusting after forever!
Sweet and refreshing, I love the authenticity with which is arrived, all umbrellas-cocktail-style and rustic cut up coconut!

Fresh Coconut Juice - $6

Fresh Coconut Juice – $6

My dad, never separated from his favourite Lemon Lime Bitters which was, as always, bittery sweet deliciousness in a glass!

Lemon Lime Bitters - $4.50

Lemon Lime Bitters – $4.50

Me, I may look old enough to order cocktails, order a mocktail (parents… sheesh ;)) called Daiquiri.
It is a minty concoction which looks quite thick but is actually as watery as mum’s coconut juice and full of a refreshing minty taste! The green is too pretty too 😀

Daiquiri - $10

Daiquiri – $10

As soon as the drinks are set, another waitress sashays out carrying our spring rolls and curry puffs. SPRING ROLLS AND CURRY PUFFS 😀

The spring rolls are presented just so beautifully, eating them feels like a crime. Actually. The spritz of sauce on the plate, the flower in the pot and the spring rolls standing in their glorious… gloriousness!

Fresh Spring Roll - House made fresh spring roll of marinated tofu, enoki mushroom, capsicum, snow peas sprouts and cucumber with house sesame and tamarind sauce - $7.90

Fresh Spring Roll – House made fresh spring roll of marinated tofu, enoki mushroom, capsicum, snow peas sprouts and cucumber with house sesame and tamarind sauce – $7.90

I loved the thin paper they used to make them more authentic, rice paper I believe, and it was chewy with a touch of sweetness. The inside was a delicious vegetable explosion with the additional of marinated tofu which went perfectly with the sauce!

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The curry puffs were a particular favourite of the evening. Warm, beckoning fried goods with a perfect crunchy but solid exterior, the inside was nice and warm mashed vegetables whose seasoning complimented the delicious sweet chilli sauce on the side!

 

Curry Puffs - Crisp fried pastry puffs stuffed with mixed vegetables served with sweet chilli sauce - $7.90

Curry Puffs – Crisp fried pastry puffs stuffed with mixed vegetables served with sweet chilli sauce – $7.90

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We had barely finished our last bite of entrée before we knew that our plates were whisked away and the mains had been set down before us. Honestly it was in the blink of an eye, their waiters are close to robotic!

Anyhow, the first main dish of the evening was my mum’s beautifully exotic, veggie lover’s delight, namely Chilli Peppercorn Tofu. Just saying it makes me feel so foreign! 😉
Obviously featuring tofu, the sauce marinated all the vegetables flavours and soaked it into the tofu, resulting in one of the best stir fries I have ever sampled 😀

Chilli Peppercorn Tofu - Stir fried mixed vegetables, tofu, green peppercorn and ka-chai with vegetarian home made sauce - $17.90

Chilli Peppercorn Tofu – Stir fried mixed vegetables, tofu, green peppercorn and ka-chai with vegetarian home made sauce – $17.90

Mum was certainly very very happy!

Daddy, brother and I went for the ‘Make your own meal’ option. And so many options there are! Honestly, if you check out the links below, you will be very pleased at the various combinations available 😀

Daddy went for the Stir fried meal and got the Chilli Peppercorn sauce (though his face at the peppercorn sitting on top of his dish was pretty hilarious :P) with chicken. No pain in eating this Asian dish, daddy loved it to bits!

Chilli Peppercorn Sauce - Stir fried mixed vegetables, green peppercorn, ka-chai with chilli peppercorn sauce w/ Chicken Breast - $17.50

Chilli Peppercorn Sauce –
Stir fried mixed vegetables, green peppercorn, ka-chai with chilli peppercorn sauce w/ Chicken Breast – $17.50

Brother dear, followed suit in the stir-fried section for chicken but was so not for peppercorn and instead, got the Chilli basil selection! As always, he was smitten with his dish from this restaurant! His looked quite similar to daddy’s just no peppercorn 🙂

They ate it with a delicious, plump bowl of rice, so fluffy!

Steamed Jasmine Rice - $3 per person

Steamed Jasmine Rice – $3 per person

Moi? I went all avant garde obviously and ditched the stir fries for some noodles. Ever had their noodles? No? Get on a plane, get in the car, I don’t care, just come eat their soft, deliciously incredible rice noodles – you will never eat Pad Thai anywhere else again

Sorry back to my dish ;)! As you know, I got noodles with my preferred Chilli Basil flavoured noodles along with vegetables and tofu. This dish is self-explanatory in how utterly delectable it tasted. Honestly. Just look at it.

Chilli Basil Noodle - Spicy and aromatic, stir fried thick flat rice noodles with fresh chilli, egg and sweet basil w/ Vegetables and Tofu - $16.50

Chilli Basil Noodle – Spicy and aromatic, stir fried thick flat rice noodles with fresh chilli, egg and sweet basil w/ Vegetables and Tofu – $16.50

And thus ended one very glorious Thai experience! Would I go back again? In a heartbeat. Would I take you with me? If I could, I would take the world with me 🙂

General Overview

  • I already noted how efficient everyone was but I think they might have been too efficient – I know, I know is there really such a thing at a restaurant? I loved the digital orders but the refilling waters at every attempt got a little disruptive. Also I appreciate the continuous dishes but when one has just finished their entrée, a 5 minute break is appreciated!
  • Fantastic options and range – vegetarians need not worry about meat overtaking the menu at all which I have found to be common in Asian restaurants

Rating: 9.5/10

Booking: Necessary, necessary, necessary!

Address & Contact Details: – Update (28/02/14): This is now called Kinns Thai 

Website: http://www.redspoonthai.com

Menus: http://www.redspoonthai.com/castle-hill/menu/

Address:

data=Ay5GWBeob_WIPLDYoIWcfVXxvZu9XwJ55OX7Ag,3ZqbN6aLS-59cypbORRgNfa2oLYSwwwLHY622oj0Xb_NbJ7vb0uWprFD99fBTgkaOe5yB8eEsDn3haBqmJNyefv-pt1ggycbmNbczTKOC0BBZnZAxueIBV7mkJ6lsH1Cy3KCsA&w=226&h=160

Castle Towers
Level Piazza, Shop 7,
6-14 Castle Street
Castle Hill, NSW 2154

Phone Number: 9899 5669

Red Spoon Castle Hill on Urbanspoon

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Oh, oh and before I forget, we DID have dessert!!! The most incredible sticky date pudding in the history of sticky date puddings, this restaurant is utterly one of my favourites! But I won’t mention it yet because I promise you, I shall be reviewing it soon 😀

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Yes I know, you are dying for me to go to this restaurant and review – daddy, I am hinting here 😀

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103 Comments

  1. Pingback: CCU Undercover: Mooberry Dessert & Breakfast Bar

  2. All You Do Is Eat says:

    Yum! I love Red Spoon!! I had THE most amazing vegetable stir fry there I’ve ever had! (I think it was called ‘assorted vegetable stir fry’ or something on the menu). SO good. And I totally agree with you about their noodles! They are amazing! They make the best chicken cashew noodles ever (though reading this it seems like you are a vegetarian so you might not go for that one!!).

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  3. Pingback: CCU Undercover: Maharaja’s Haveli | Go Bake Yourself

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  5. Kiran says:

    Deliciousness!!

    And I totally agree with you about being intrusive — some just can’t stop refiling water. As though as I’m dining only to drink water and nothing else 😉

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  16. Lisa says:

    Who needs a recipe when you can give us pure, unadulterated food and drink porn? LOL@ May I look old enough to order drinks. Drinking was so much more fun when I was underage and used a fake ID, which rarely ever worked lol

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  20. petit4chocolatier says:

    Everything looks delicious.., and then I scrolled further down to the dessert! Wow, the dessert blew me away! Magnificent 🙂

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  24. jlaceda says:

    I heart Thai food, too! I think it’s all that coconut milk and curry and Thai basil…mmmmmm, altogether, a wonderful combination! Have a happy weekend, CC Uru!

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  33. dianeskitchentable says:

    It all sounds & looks so good but that spring roll really caught my eye. I agree with you about almost too much service, especially when you would like to sit & chat with the people you’re eating with more than with waiters. I took my daughter out to eat one time where the waiter must have asked us how we liked our dinner about every 6 minutes! I finally said “well it’s STILL as fine as it was 5 minutes ago, thank you though”. We couldn’t even have a conversation but I’m sure he meant well (or was trying to hit on my daughter 🙂

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  34. Nami | Just One Cookbook says:

    To be honest with you, I can eat thai food everyday. It’s one cuisine that I really want to be able to make it at home, super authentic, but with all the spices and proper cooking I really need to study a bit. It shouldn’t be too difficult because the dish comes out pretty fast after we order. It’s quite expensive in our area to eat Thai food, and since I want to eat it often, I think I need to learn to cook at home! I’m so jealous of your meals…even desserts! I also think frequent re-fill of water can get a bit annoying and sometimes I don’t drink water too much when I find out. 😀 Well, perfect service can be pretty hard especially customers has different preference. 🙂 9.5 points is pretty good!

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  37. Hannah (BitterSweet) says:

    Good Thai food can really be hard to find… So much of it is “Americanized” and thus over-sweetened, over-sauced, and over-sized! Getting a whole fresh coconut for the water is the sign of a clear winner though. I sure wish there was a comparable local option for me!

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  46. Acacia says:

    It sounds like you really enjoyed the food. I hope we will be seeing some CCU reinvented versions…hint hint, nudge nudge, wink wink! They look utterly amazing 🙂

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  51. Three Well Beings says:

    Oh my! I really want that chili peppercorn tofu! Each of these dishes looks and sounds fantastic. I do love Thai food, and have a few little places I frequently have lunch, but I don’t think I’ve seen anything quite as elegant as some of these appear to be! Lucky you! I think you need to do reviews more frequently, don’t you? You want to be certain they keep up their high standards. 🙂

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  53. Reeni says:

    Everything looks insanely good! Those drinks too! Funny – at my favorite Chinese restaurant they are so attentive that every time you take a sip of tea they want to top off your cup. It is so annoying but I love the food.

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  55. Susan says:

    Never apologize. “Real life” gets in the way some times 🙂 I have finally let myself go beyond a week to post – it is wonderful!

    Wonderful meal you shared with your mom!

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  63. Sarah says:

    Oh my gosh, that looks absolutely delicious! Didn’t think it could get any better, then you hit me with that dessert! I love thai food, possibly my favourite ever 🙂

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  67. viveka says:

    Fantastic dinner … and the presentation – very classy. Big fan of Thai food and specially if it comes out like this – that Daiquiri looks good enough to drink too.
    Your photos are very good too – thanks for sharing this feast.

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  83. A_Boleyn says:

    Thanks for posting this wonderful assortment of Thai dishes. A little early in the morning but very inspirational. And that sticky date pudding dish … amazing. I understand you went elsewhere to have it though … not to the same restaurant. I’ve never tried it, though I’d like to.

    The curry puffs are one Thai dish that I’ve never had in a restaurant or at home. And when ordering at one of the 2 Thai restaurants I frequent, I usually stick to sate skewers (chicken or beef), summer rolls, pad thai or sometimes another noodle dish.

    I enjoy seeing the vegetarian dishes that you order as they’re not something I have ever considered ordering out though I may try to make one of them the next time I feel like cooking Thai food. Darn, I just realized that I never posted the spicy fish ball and shrimp thai inspired soup with coconut milk and lemon grass that I made a while back and wanted to share. I’ll have to remedy that omission.

    Keep up the posts whether recipe or review. 🙂

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    • Choc Chip Uru says:

      Yep that was at one incredible Italian restaurant that I have yet to review 🙂
      Haha I look forward to your thai inspired dishes my friend and hope to keep posting as much as school will let me!

      Cheers
      CCU

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  84. Sprigs of Rosemary says:

    I just love Thai food; recently ate at a great restaurant called Thai Sweet Basil in north Tampa, Florida, with my daughter. It was just a great meal. Sure looks like you had one fantastic meal (and good time) with your folks. (My rice came in a heart shape!)

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  91. Saguna says:

    Those dishes look beautiful what with the pink orchids and everything. Looks like it was lovely! I have enjoyed dates in dessert this week too. I love dates. They’re awesome! Looking forward to that cake… 🙂

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  96. daisyandthefox says:

    yummm! love thai food! what an awesome night of dinner!
    and that cake – you had me at sticky date… they are by far the BEST comfort cake with a generous scoop of ice-cream….. i’m drooling 😛

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