East Oakland Thai: Old Weang Ping (don't blow it up)

Old Weang Ping is overgrown with ivy and tropical plastic flowers. Wood birds suspend from the ceiling, mismatched string lights adorn the walls, and a cascading alter to an orange-cloaked meditation guru greets you at the doorway. But here my normal gag reaction to clutter doesn't kick in. In fact, the palm thatch booths, the tiny window that peaks into the kitchen, the easy, beachside paced service and yes, the chachki exude the feeling that somewhere along I-580 E we exited and ended up at a Phuket hideaway.

This tiny restaurant sits next to an apartment building on MacArthur and 62nd, it's both out of place and yet completely at home in its quirkiness. A husband and wife tag team the kitchen and floor, and for the duration of your stay in what feels like their converted home you submit to their pace and their rules. Survive the hurdles- a locked front door, a timely wait to order, flavorless tea (in glasses that cater to your play-pretend pimp desires) and you'll make it to what's anything but quirky, their seriously good food.

The menu is a black and white photocopy underneath the glass top of our table. Half of it is handwritten, the subheads are in old English (pimp cups, pimp font!), and the prices are all under $7.25. Specials up on the chalkboard range a little more. Aside from your standard appetizers and sides like satay and papaya salad, you'll also find a  barbarian soup, seafood cucumber salad, three different kind of cakes, and a fruit drink (it's not a juice, it's a fruit drink).  But for the most part the menu works as so: pick a protein ranging from duck to catfish and pick a sauce (curry, peanut, sweet basil, etc.) Or for the vegetarians, pick three veggies and pick a sauce. If there's a chili pepper next to the sauce believe it means you'll get a little sweat on the brow. 

Our dishes appeared one by one, the pad see ew with more flavor than normal, the green curry with major bite, and the heaping basket of sticky rice provoking an urge to ask for a lifetime supply to go. Fire-loving friends don't neglect the salsa. 

For those of you who don't have a copy of the Berkeley High Slang Dictionary, the term referenced in the title of this post, "don't blow it up" means don't go running and tell all your hipster friends about this place. As we bid goodbye and promises of good reviews the owner called out, "noooo, no more yelp! Too many good reviews!" with a weary smile on his face. Which I can only interpret as, this is a family restaurant with happy regulars and a slow flow of new customers, and we don't want to overwhelm the service (which is also the kitchen and the management). Come here quietly and come with an appetite. 


Got the travel bug?
Old Weang Ping, 6217 MacArthur Blvd, Oakland
They do take out! 
Phone: (510) 430-8771

LA for Dinner, LA for Breakfast

A good guide is one who picks you up from the airport and says,
"You hungry? Great, I know delicious Thai place. It's a total dive."
The thing I love about a 12-hour trip is that you have a very short window to have a bad meal. Couple it with a cousin that knows how to eat and you're bound to have two great meals like this:

Dinner: Sri Siam Cafe makes a duck curry that melts in your mouth- pineapple, peppers, whole tomatoes and perfectly cooked duck. A Tom Kha Gai with some heat, a beef salad to cool you off, and a Sapporo to wash it down. Here the owner runs out in his chef's coat to make a delivery, there's neatly written Thai script on the whiteboard (OK, I don't know what messy Thai script looks like), the "mild" means "damn spicy," and you can bring your own beer in from the liquor store next door. A chill and authentic lil dive.


Breakfast:  If the bacon waffle I had in NY and Jumpin Java's Cinnamon-Kiss French Toast had to get in the ring together and battle it out for fattiest fat girl breakfast, I'm not sure who would win. The baguette is dipped in brandy egg batter and glazed in sugar and cinnamon, towered on top of caramelized bananas and walnuts, and showered with powdered sugar. I've never put aside a cup of butter and a bottle of syrup so immediately.

 

Jumpin Java is a pleasant throw back- The faded green and yellow color scheme hints at their 15 year history and so does the genuine friendliness of their servers. They're nice, but not overly nice- cause they know you'll wander back. 

Oh! And if it's a sunny day you can sit outside and then head over to the farmer's market just two blocks down.

Got the travel bug?
http://jumpinjavarestaurant.com/ (Studio City)

http://www.srisiamcafe1.com/ (North Hollywood)