Not Too Sweet #1

The Inauguration

Thai and Vietnamese · January 10, 2026

This was the first Not Too Sweet dinner. I'd recently come back from a solo trip through Southeast Asia, and the menu was a handful of my favorite things I ate there.

Shaking beef straight off the wok, som tum dressed at the last second, khao soi, and mango sticky rice with pandan to finish. The cocktail was a clarified Thai tea milk punch, my version of one I had at Bar Us in Bangkok.

The Inauguration menu beside plates of shaking beef, som tum, tomato rice, and jasmine rice

The menu

Starter

  • Bò lúc lắc, wok-seared shaking beef with lime and Kampot salt
  • Som tum, green papaya, tomatoes, long beans, peanuts, lime, chili
  • Tomato rice

Main

  • Khao soi, coconut curry broth, braised chicken thighs, egg noodles, and the accompaniments

Dessert

Drinks

See the night on Instagram

The list

Hear what's next first.

The dinners are just for close friends for now, but I'm working on what's next. The list hears about it first, along with new recipes.

Only the occasional email. Unsubscribe anytime.