Cocina Sunae

F 2.22.13

• some friends invited us to dinner at a closed door restaurant, Cocina Sunae, their 2nd visit, our first

• Cocina Sunae is located in Colegiales and is set in a couple's home, she, an Asian-American chef living and cooking in BA with her husband and children
• they have a cute little side garden for outdoor dining, and a number of tables inside for separate parties
• the atmosphere was nice, calm and relaxing, and the food, spicy and different (GOOD different)

• the lighting is not great in these photos, but...
• we started with a Philipino Ukoy: crispy shrimp cake with sweet potatoes, carrots, bean sprouts, scallions, served with a shallot-garlic vinaigrette dipping sauce (really loved this! ...oh, and we shared a bottle of Torrontes)

• second course: Thai Yum Gung: hot and sour shrimp salad with lemongrass, mint, cilantro, cucumber, cherry tomato, and onion

• for the main course, we had an option between: Philipino Pesa: pan fried fish in a ginger garlic broth with potatoes and greens, topped with a spicy tomato compote and fried shallots, served with steamed rice 

• or Thai Massamam Curry: Muslim curry in coconut milk with chicken, potatoes, onions, cardamom, tamarind, and peanuts, served with steamed rice

• Jake got one, I got the other so we could sample both
• I enjoyed the curry better, but it was super spicy! (nose was running, but good to have some picante for a change!)
• the night was topped off with Philipino Halo Halo: lychee, passion fruit, nata de coco, oranges, and grapefruit, topped with green tea ice cream, ginger cookie and panden merengue cream...light, yet sweet and tasty...cookie was very gingery and the bitter ice cream balanced out the sweet fruit nicely

• the menu changes weekly, and they are open on Th, F, Sa evening...reservations only
• next time we're craving some Asian spice, we know where to go!
• thanks for the invite friends! ^^*