Last Friday, my bf and I went on a little date to try out Kin Shop. This is one of the two new buzzy “Thai” restaurants right now, the other one being Lotus of Siam. I don’t believe the restaurant is trying to go for authenticity. And I don’t really care about authenticity either; I only care about good food. In any case, as if a disclaimer, Kin Shop describes its food as merely a contemporary nod to Thai dishes and its ingredients. I went there a calm soul who had no expectations, in spite all the raves (see Serious Eats review and other press), and no desire to reminisce my numerous visits to Thailand.
Chef Harold Dieterle’s so-called inspired dishes never took flight for me. The meal didn’t transport my taste buds to a contemporary Thailand, bored me when I wanted to be excited, and tipped me over when I sought balance.
We started our meal with two specials: the Roasted Bone Marrow served with Roti and the Prawns with Lime and Black Pepper Sauce. As with any bone marrow dish, greasiness is a concern and so I appreciated the effective and creative use of radish greens on top of the marrows. I love Roti, Bad Roti, Fresh Roti, Frozen Roti, Good Roti. Give me any Roti. However, serving the marrows with these lovely doughiness made me feel like I was eating oil on top of oil. Not to mention, I was shocked that they can get away with serving two pieces of these average version Roti (it reminded me of ones I can buy frozen in Chinatown’s Kam Man supermarket) at a hefty $5! The prawn appetizer, which was sold per piece, was so intensely flavored, I was glad we only got one each. Don’t get me wrong. I love flavor but eating the lime marinated prawn reminded me of the japanese Super Lemon candy that punked me as a child. And I’m supposed to dip this into another intensely flavored massaman black pepper sauce? Flavor explosion but not in a good way.
The main courses were a conscious mix of meat, fish, and vegetables. As an eggplant lover, there was no way I wasn’t going to order the Selection of Grilled Eggplant. We also tried the Massaman Goat Curry and Steamed Red Snapper. I hate to sound like a complainer but the goat was bland, the red snapper was mooshy, and the grilled eggplant, which only arrived quite late into our almost finished meal, was undercooked, underwhelming, and certainly didn’t deliver on the variety a “selection” promises. On the bright side, the goat was tender in a pressure cooked kind of way and the red snapper sauce was quite tasty.
I wish I could have played a game of mix and match with our meal. The black pepper massaman tasting sauce would have been awesome with the goat. It would’ve given it the punch of flavor that I was craving for. The lime in the shrimp could have been rationed for the bone marrow dish. That could’ve made me not mind the oily Roti.
I didn’t watch the first season of Top Chef and so I put Dieterle in the pedestal of an unknown chef who just wants to show us that he is good. For this reason, I want him to be good, too. If the promise is a new take on Thai, Kin Shop succeeds. I don’t think his interpretations are a blasphemous attempt at South East Asian cuisine, unlike the SEAs and Spices of this world. As a matter of fact, I respect his respect for Thai food. It’s been, what, 2,3 months since Kin Shop opened? I don’t think I saw Dieterle in the kitchen on that Saturday night. Perhaps, he was tending to his flagship, Perilla. Maybe he just needs to spend a little bit more time in his new kitchen.
