I've become part of a new tradition of monthly dinners with a particular group of girlfriends. We've always had a holiday tradition of drinks and a gift exchange at PJ Ryan's in Teele Square in Somerville, but one of the girls suggested we make it a monthly get together and we all enthusiastically agreed! So far we've met for dinner at Rudy's in Teele Square, Tory Row in Harvard Square and this Friday night we met at the King & I in Beacon Hill.
The King & I is located right at the top of Charles Street, literally steps from the Charles/MGH T stop. I'm always struck by how charming Charles Street is. Something about the cobble stone streets and the classic lamp posts is just so Boston.
When we entered the restaurant I was a bit taken aback because we were hit by a smell that had us searching for a wet dog somewhere on the floor. Very unpleasant.
The restaurant has a small front room, which leads to a larger back room. Thankfully, our table was in the back room which was smell-free!
The waiter brought us menus to peruse and I absolutely loved the design! The colors and graphics were so fun and perfect for a girls night out! The menu also had a vegetarian section, which I really appreciated.
He also brought us a basket of chips. The waiter asked if anyone was vegetarian because apparently the chips have some essence of shrimp in them. As a result, I didn't taste them, but the girls gobbled them up!
We ordered two appetizers to start. First the vegetable rolls, which were similar to Chinese spring rolls.
We also tried something called vegetables in batter, which was basically a vegetable omelette. I think I was expecting more of a tempura. The yellow dipping sauce that came with the veggies was delicious! I wanted to put it on everything.
For dinner, we tried a few different dishes. Two of the girls ordered the noodle tofu which was pan fried noodles, tofu and an assortment of vegetables. They loved it and each took home half for lunch the next day.
One of the girls ordered chicken in green curry which she said was delicious.
I ordered the chef's tofu which was pan fried tofu, bean sprouts, snow peas and scallions. For some reason the texture of the pan fried tofu freaked me out and I really couldn't enjoy the dish.
I have to say, my favorite Thai restaurant in Boston is still Montien. If you're craving Thai, head there instead.
