First dinner in Ubud @ Siam Sally

Have I mentioned that Wade and I had to go to Bali recently to renew our visas? What a shame!  What an amazing few days! 

After a couple of weeks of eating out for every meal in Dili, I was feeling pretty unhealthy.  So it was surreal to suddenly find ourselves in Ubud, where eating out for every meal could actually be a nourishing and enjoyable experience.  I was determined to make the most of my access to the variety of healthy and wholesome foods that Ubud has to offer.  That, combined with a 5-class yoga pass at the Yoga Barn (with our accommodation right next door), meant I would be coming back from Bali a more limber, glowing, trim, clear-eyed version of my former self. 

It started at Siam Sally.  Siam Sally is a Thai restaurant on the corner of the little walkway that leads to the Yoga Barn, and so it was really close to our accommodation.  We hadn’t arrived until six that evening, so we were pretty tired and hungry.

For entree, we ordered Vegan Summer Rolls:

Look how healthy they are!  Just a bit of rice paper, some crunchy greens (I believe it was spinach, lettuce and a herby trio of basil, mint and coriander, but I could be wrong) and fresh roasted cashews.  The dipping sauce was soy and coriander.  Just divine.  My first bite almost made we want to turn into a vegan. Eating them felt like all my iron levels were being restored and the cells in my face were reconstituting. 

Main course: I had the Crisp Fish and Green Mango Salad.

What made me so excited about this salad was that it is something I can easily make at home.  After all, I do own a mandoline, so those pretty green mango strips are a breeze.  The crisp fish was actually dried fish that had been toasted (or fried – I’m not sure) and then crumbled over the salad.  The sensation of the crispy fish in my mouth felt a little bit like eating sand, but the flavour was nice. Dried fish is quite strong, but I really enjoy it.  There were cashews again, but I wasn’t complaining.  The “sweet sour garlicky dressing” was as per your usual Thai salad – fish sauce, lime juice, sugar, chilli – and although I was dubious of the “garlic” factor, I didn’t feel like I’d just eaten a whole head of raw garlic by the end of it.  The chilli punch was powerful, but I felt that that only added to my cleansing/detox mood, as my pores got a good flush out.

My drink was a traditional Thai iced tea (unsweetened). 

There was some pomp and ceremony in its delivery, where the waitress brought the glass of crushed ice to the table and poured over the steaming cup of orange, milky tea at the table.  I have no idea why the tea was orange; it certainly didn’t taste like orange.  I really enjoyed the flavour, but for a dinner accompaniment, I would have to say I would prefer something less milky.  A bad choice on my part.  I thought the lemongrass swizzle stick added to the aesthetics of the drink, but nothing to the flavour.  A couple of times I mistook it for a straw, which was a little embarrassing.

Wade went for a celebratory cocktail:  the Bangkok Bling:

Tequila, rum, triple sec, passionfruit puree and Angostura bitters.  Refreshing, passionfruity and alcoholie.