Squid Eggs on a Stick!

It's State Fair time here in Minnesota! Here is what Wikipedia has to say about the "the great Minnesota get-together":

The Minnesota State Fair...may be the largest state fair in the United States in terms of average daily attendance....Residents of the state and region come to the fair to be entertained, exhibit their best livestock, show off their abilities in a variety of fields including art and cooking, learn about new products and services, and enjoy many different types of food—often on a stick.

All I know is that satay is the original food on a stick, and that it was invented by the Javanese in the early 19th Century, well before there was a Minnesota State Fair. I do not know the exact year, but I do know that the year after the Javanese invented satay, the Thai were serving satay and our satay was better because we served it with peanut sauce! Also ours was made with pork and chicken, unlike the Javanese who used mutton. Mutton on a stick tastes as bad as it sounds. You could dip it in chocolate and wrap it in bacon but you still could not sell it on the Midway except maybe to tourists from Iowa or Wisconsin.

Chicken and pork are not the only Thai foods you can buy on a stick, although they are the only ones you can buy at True Thai. In Thailand, food I have eaten on a stick includes squid, squid tentacles, insects, jellyfish, quail eggs, and every part of a water buffalo including spleen, kidney and testicles.

I have also had chicken eggs on a stick and they are very tasty. Maybe someday we will add them to True Thai's menu. Thai Food & Travel Blog has a picture of many other kinds of Thai food on a stick, none of which have been dipped in chocolate or molested by bacon. But who needs chocolate when you can have your pick of hot dogs, fish balls, sausage, pork wontons or squid eggs on a stick!

Mmmm, squid eggs on a stick — I am getting hungry just thinking about them.

I was happy to discover that Minnesotans approve of food on a stick. When Anna was little, her mom got her to try new foods by putting them on a stick. If it was on a stick, little Anna would eat it. Little Anna was a very active child and as any Fair goer can tell you, food on a stick is the very best food for when you are eating and moving at the same time.

As good as Thai food on a stick is, it is considered to be street vendor food and not restaurant food, and that is why True Thai sells only chicken and pork satay on a stick (#6 on our menu).


Delicious with peanut or cucumber sauce.

The Land of 10,000 Smiles!

Did you know that Hubert Humphrey visited Thailand? This picture is based on a famous photo of Hubert Humphrey when he visited a refugee camp not far from my home. Well, maybe more famous in Thailand than it is here in Minnesota.

Famous people eat at True Thai but you will never see their pictures on our walls or in this blog. Thai hospitality is based on the belief that every customer should be treated like a V.I.P. We also believe that truly famous people deserve respect, and should be allowed to enjoy their meal in peace and privacy.

Thanks to the internet anyone can be a restaurant critic and I try to read every comment and online review written about True Thai. Most of you are very complimentary and I thank you for that (ขอบคุณ)! But sometimes you don't like the food and I immediately try to figure out what went wrong, if maybe one of the cooks is not making a dish the correct way, or a wait person is not taking orders accurately. Criticism is very important to a restaurant because even True Thai is not perfect and we are always trying to do better.

But sometimes I read that someone came to True Thai and received bad service. When I read that I just want to die. Rude or bad service is unforgivable to Thai people. We take great pride in our hospitality and believe that no meal is satisfactory if the service is anything less than excellent.

Please do not hesitate to tell me personally if you receive poor service. I am as loyal to my employees as I am to my customers, but in Thailand customers always come first!

Hubert Humphrey was famous for smiling. Had he not been a world famous statesman I think he could have been a great Thai waiter!