Some called us crazy, some saluted us and some asked us for the address because they want to do the same! What did we do? Along with our friend, Dahlia, who was visiting from New York, we drove ~3.5 hours and stayed overnight at a hotel, just to try a dish at a food cart in Portland the next morning!
[bq_right]We looked at each other and without saying a word, we knew what the other was thinking…. “This trip is worth it!”. No words needed.[/bq_right] Being true Malaysians, we are obsessed with good food. One of the foods we miss most is chicken rice. There are many different “versions” of chicken rice. The two we like are Hainanese Chicken Rice (Malaysia) and Khao Man Gai (Thailand).Craving for Khao Man Gai, we searched online for “Khao Man Gai Seattle” (we have not found a good chicken rice restaurant in Seattle so far!) and “Nong’s Khao Man Gai in Portland, Oregon” dominated the top 10 search results! Nong’s Khao Man Gai received 4.5/5.0 stars on Yelp, was filmed by Food Network Canada as one of the Top Food Carts and is featured on multiple sites. We were convinced. We made a plan to drive to Portland (~3.5 hours) after work on friday, stay a night and be at the food cart the next morning (they close on Sundays, so we had to be there on Saturday morning).
We were also intrigued when we saw Nong’s tweets…
Saturday morning, we were at the food cart just in time for brunch. Needless to say, Nong’s Khao Man Gai did not disappoint. It was delicious! We will not attempt to put into words how mouth-watering and full flavored the dish was. As Malcolm Gladwell says in his book titled Blink, “We have, as human beings, a storytelling problem. We’re too quick to come up with explanations for things we don’t really have an explanation for.” When we bit into the juicy chicken and the fragrant rice, we just went “mmmmmm….”. We looked at each other and without saying a word, we knew what the other was thinking…. “This trip is worth it!”. No words needed. We spoke to Nong and asked her to expand her business over to Seattle. She said she’ll think about it 🙂
Here are pictures taken on my cellphone (excuse the quality)… Lost some memory cards containing precious photos (long story)…
Nong’s Khao Man Gai Food Cart
Sidewalk seating, just like in Asia, except in colder weather!
Delicious, mouth-watering, Khao Man Gai!
Photo courtesy of Dahlia Bock
Photo courtesy of Dahlia Bock
TRY IT YOURSELF
[two type=”joint” height=”230″]Address:
SW 10th & Alder St.
Portland, OR 97209
971-255-3480
Email: nongskhaomangai@gmail.com
Website: http://www.khaomangai.com/
[/two] [two_last type=”joint” height=”230″]Hours:
Mon – Fri: 10am until Sold Out
Sat: 11am until Sold Out
Sun: Closed
Twitter: https://twitter.com/nongskhaomangai
What to order: Just say “Piset”! Get the whole shebang!
[/two_last][notification type=”star”]
REMEMBER:
- Nong’s Khao Man Gai is closed on Sundays.
- We followed their tweets for a few days and the average seems to be about 4 – 5 hours of selling time before they’re sold out. Be there in the morning just in case they sell out quicker!
- What to order? Just say “Piset“. More chicken, more rice, more sauce, more chicken liver (yes, liver. It’s actually pretty tasty with the sauce and rice combo!)
- Menu located here: http://www.khaomangai.com/menu.html
- No gimmicks, no fancy restaurant, no fancy price list. Just pure, delicious, home cooked chicken rice!
- We loved the pickled vegetable soup that came with the rice combo. Tasted like “home”. We asked for refills! Yes, you can ask for refills of the soup! Nong kindly obliged!
- Here’s a site that lists other carts in the area for you to try as well: http://www.foodcartsportland.com/
- Another recommended food cart list located here: http://www.wweek.com/portland/article-11721-cart_bites.html
- Enjoy!
Have you driven miles just for a dish? What was the dish and where? Let us know, so we can try it too!
38 Comments
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I have partaken in the best food on earth in Portland. My company would actually put me up in a North Seattle hotel because our business was located there, but I never hesitated to take my rental down the nearly 2 and a half hour trip from my location, just to have dinner. I prefer the dishes in Portland over those (that are also incredible) in the Seattle area and I’m willing to drive a long distance to prove it!
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Portland has an awesome food cart scene. Me thinks its time to head back to Portland!
Hester Goodwin recently posted..Heather Penko
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Author
It absolutely is! We’ve been back a few times and can’t wait to go again this summer!
Jeremy & Shirlene recently posted..{Canada} Our favorite restaurants in Whistler, BC
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Well, the food looks delicious in a foreign country and all!
travelyn recently posted..Royal Palace | TheThrone Hall | Phnom Penh
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It tastes delicious too!
Jeremy & Shirlene recently posted..{Spain} Best Tapas at Pinotxo Bar in La Boqueria, Barcelona
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Its 3am & I am craving NKMG!! –> {USA} Khao Man Gai @ Portland, OR http://t.co/wngpQSDp
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NKMG is delicious. Reminds me of my mom’s simple cooking. Portland has an awesome food cart scene. My GF & I tried 5-6 within the one weekend we were there.
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I’ve been craving for NKMG for a few weeks now! Me thinks its time to head back to Portland!
Idelish (Jeremy & Shirlene) recently posted..{India} India’s Golden Triangle, 7-day Itinerary
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