This underscored what I was thinking. Thank you, oh great Google machine.

So what we are looking for here are good all-rounders with the fresh clean flavours of Khmer food and subtle Asian spices. Aromatic whites of course shine with the fresh herbs, greens and spices abundant in Khmer dishes and the wide use of seafood and salads make then perfect partners: think Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Alberino, Pinot Grigio and you are on the right track.

Rose also works well, particularly with the spicier dishes, look for the slightly off dry styles.

If it has to be red then I adore Pinot Noir with Khmer cuisine although most fruity and fruit driven reds work well such as Merlot, Pinotage, Carmenere, Grenache, GSM (Grenache, Shiraz, Mourvedre) blends. For heavier red meat dishes I like Malbec from Argentina or juicy Aussie Shiraz.

I’m planning on bringing a Gewurtztraminer
Those are often great with spicy food, but agree 100% that bubbly would also be great

irisarbor wrote:I’m planning on bringing a Gewurtztraminer
Those are often great with spicy food, but agree 100% that bubbly would also be great

Long ago there was a poster with a Thai ex-wife who would agree with your choice.

I believe he also did a personal taco crawl comparitive eating chicken tacos ... ah the memories!

Cathy2

While I know they are different cuisines, this guide to pairing wine with Thai food may be helpful.

Hi all,

Just a few reminders/notes about tomorrow . . .

The only permitted byo items are wine and champagne.

Party starts at 6pm (with passed appetizers until ~6:30)

Do not forget to bring items and donations for the food drive!

Please remember to bring a gift (value ~$15) if you'd like to participate in the gift exchange.

If you're not feeling well -- covid or other -- please do us all the courtesy of not attending. No one wants to get sick, especially unnecessarily.

Thanks -- see you all tomorrow!

=R=

My guest cannot attend due to being ill. So I have one ticket to sell for the party tonight.
Please dm me if interested.

ronnie_suburban wrote:The event's just a few days away so I figured it might be a good time to ask if anyone's interested in running/MC'ing the gift exchange? If so, please step forward. I've got the 2-part raffle tickets at the ready for whoever would like to do it.

If nobody offered yet, I will do it. I have my magical Garrett popcorn tins waiting for this special moment.

If the rules from the past still apply:
- Each person who brings a gift will receive a ticket
- If a person brings more than one gift, you still get one ticket (not a ticket per gift).
- When tickets run out and there are still more gifts, then everyone who has a ticket has a second chance.

If someone already committed to do this, then I am off the hook!

Regards,
Cathy2

Cathy2 wrote:

ronnie_suburban wrote:The event's just a few days away so I figured it might be a good time to ask if anyone's interested in running/MC'ing the gift exchange? If so, please step forward. I've got the 2-part raffle tickets at the ready for whoever would like to do it.

If nobody offered yet, I will do it. I have my magical Garrett popcorn tins waiting for this special moment.

If the rules from the past still apply:
- Each person who brings a gift will receive a ticket
- If a person brings more than one gift, you still get one ticket (not a ticket per gift).
- When tickets run out and there are still more gifts, then everyone who has a ticket has a second chance.

If someone already committed to do this, then I am off the hook!

Regards,
Cathy2

Katje volunteered Bill a few posts back but if you'd like to join/assist him, I'm guessing he wouldn't object.

=R=

See you tonight!

ronnie_suburban wrote:Katje volunteered Bill a few posts back but if you'd like to join/assist him, I'm guessing he wouldn't object.

=R=

Great!

Plus he does the speed dial raffle ...

Hi,

Fine evening, fine conversation, fine food and now I need to sleep.

Chouxfly suggested people attach a note with their name and what they offered for next year. I am as guilty as anyone else.

Thank you to Mamagotcah and Chouxfly for the honey from their industrious bees. It will go to my Dad for his birthday. Thanks!

Regards,
CAthy2

So good being together again. Enjoyed the company. The food was delightful and abundant. The raffle was fun, as always. Could hardly have been better.

Oh and learned something -- Cambodian eggrolls are the only ones in S.E. Asia that use taro root as a filling, rather than the more common shredded cabbage. Fascinating.

It was a lovely evening. It was good to see folks in person again. I appreciate Joel's write-up in the restaurant thread. Thanks to Ronnie for setting it up. Thanks also to the mystery gifter for the J.P. Graziano's hot giardiniera and hot muffuletta. Happy holidays everyone!

The GP wrote:It was a lovely evening. It was good to see folks in person again. I appreciate Joel's write-up in the restaurant thread. Thanks to Ronnie for setting it up. Thanks also to the mystery gifter for the J.P. Graziano's hot giardiniera and hot muffuletta. Happy holidays everyone!

That was from Petite Gourmande

boudreaulicious wrote:That was from Petite Gourmande

But isn't there a petite gourmande in all of us?

LTH,

I took some pics of the food, which I plan to post eventually on the main Khmai thread but I just wanted to thank everyone who attended for coming to the party, and for their donations to the food drive. And thanks again to Katje and Bill for running the drive, as well as the gift exchange. It was a fun night and it was nice to have everyone together again after a couple of years off.

I really enjoyed the food (even though some dishes didn't scale up quite as well as I hoped they would) and I appreciated that even though Chef Mona had not one, but two FOH no-shows that night, her team still did a great job of taking care of us. As it turned out, she and her mother were named Eater's Best New Chefs for 2022 on the very day of our event. I think they can expect to be very busy, starting right now.

I'd love to know how we did on donations, so maybe Katje can chime in at some point.

Here's a shot of Chef Mona (left) and her team that I grabbed at the the end of the night . . .


Team Khmai - 22.1201

Happy holidays, everyone!

=R=

I meant to post earlier that the 2 gals handling service were delightful—they were very knowledgeable about the dishes and added so much warmth and enthusiasm to the evening. Knowing they had to handle ALLLLL of those dishes for so many people made it that much more remarkable.

Thanks to them, our chef hosts, Ronnie and all of my fellow LTHers for a wonderful evening!!

I could not say it better than boudreaulicious. Everything that she said, I agree with.

My sincere apologies for being so tardy with this update!

The food drive brought in three big bags of groceries, brought to one of the Greater Chicago Food Depository's distribution sites (however, I must admit that I skedaddled from the premises before the can of haggis was unearthed). And we sent in a total of $800 of donations directly to GCFD. According to their website, that amount will help provide 2,400 meals to our hungry neighbors.

I am so very glad to be part of this LTH tradition! We are making a difference, together. Thank you all for your kindness and generosity.

Thank YOU for heading this for our organization.

mamagotcha wrote:My sincere apologies for being so tardy with this update!

The food drive brought in three big bags of groceries, brought to one of the Greater Chicago Food Depository's distribution sites (however, I must admit that I skedaddled from the premises before the can of haggis was unearthed). And we sent in a total of $800 of donations directly to GCFD. According to their website, that amount will help provide 2,400 meals to our hungry neighbors.

I am so very glad to be part of this LTH tradition! We are making a difference, together. Thank you all for your kindness and generosity.

Thanks again Katje, for handling this on our behalf. We all really appreciate it. As we all know, holiday time is an especially crucial of year for charities like GCFD to fulfill their missions.

Can you please let us know the date on which cash/check donations were handed off to GCFD? The reason I ask is because as of today, my check has still not been deposited. Wondering if I should stop payment on it and send another to them, or if there was an issue on the receiving side.

Thanks again!

=R=

I am chagrined and embarrassed to say that the check donations were put into the mail to GCFD on. the same day I posted last, January 2nd. My check has not yet been deposited either.

I sincerely apologize for the delay, and for the inconvenience I have caused others.

mamagotcha wrote:I am chagrined and embarrassed to say that the check donations were put into the mail to GCFD on. the same day I posted last, January 2nd. My check has not yet been deposited either.

I sincerely apologize for the delay, and for the inconvenience I have caused others.

Okay, thanks. Mystery solved. I'll give it another week or so before I do anything else.

=R=