Sabai-Dee: changing leaves /changing plans

For Sabai-Dee (5359 N Broadway) I will break the ManDate's format of complaining about my first-world problems before writing about third-world food. Simply put: the Tom Yum Pho is possibly America’s most articulate pho expression (full disclosure: after the server suggested it, I punned “it’s got to be good – it has yum in the name!”). The broth was ambitious, flavorful, and tangy; without the oily aftertaste that typically accompanies pho at such a reasonable price. I usually reserve “ambitious” as one of my many terms for empty wine critiquing (see also my use of “complex”, “earthy”, and basically anything I ever say about wine); today I use it for a dish that fulfilled the exotic mystery of the orient for under $10.

I filed the steamed Lemongrass tilapia under “A” for Ape shit, as in where your taste buds will go once you douse it in the special sauce (I have a complicated archiving system). The pork sausage and veggie dumpling appetizers had an earthy complexity with a clean, almost nutty finish, but the mussels with the house fish sauce created a new touchstone in taste, as well as an interesting segue for Sizzlenuts to explore the divine. The tofu and curry dishes didn’t disappoint but neither did they alter my fundamental conception of humanity’s place in the cosmos.

Judging by the number of antique shops in the Edgewater neighborhood, it could be either the most gay or senior friendly neighborhood in Chicago. I like to think this is where mature gay couples go to raise their non-traditional families and decorate their tastefully arranged converted lofts.

Toupee and Sizzlnuts represented the Chosen Tribe for a second week in a row. We also had the pleasure of the two loveliest flowers in the Northwestern graduate cog-sci department meadow - Chłodnik Litewski (or Chłodnik for short) and Pointers. Certainly there’s a certain amount of how-you-say… “longing” for the intimacy of ManDates past when it was strictly a table for two. Still, ToucanSam has heard enough of me complaining about Chicago infrastructure, the uneven growth rate of fingernails, and how I didn’t want to work at company X anyways for him to feel more than a vague sense of ennui at the prospect of another evening listening to the same.

Is Sabai-Dee truly Laotian or rather a Thai/Vietnamese/Chinese fusion? A mute argument after a mouthful of good pho.