Sab E Lee 2 - More dishes

I realize that Cathy and I have done posts on Sab E Lee 2, but I thought you'd like to see a couple of other dishes.  

First up, Miang Kum (เมี่ยงคำ - $7.95), a simple, but wonderful appetizer:

These are basically leaf wraps, and though I've read that the classic Miang Kum uses Betel Leaves, all of the variations we've had uses spinach leaves. At first the combination of perfectly diced red onion, galangal, slivered lime, peanuts, dried shrimp, and thai bird chilies, topped with roasted coconut and a tangy and sweet, tamarind and palm sugar "sauce" seems a bit strange. But take my word for it, the sum of the parts is a wonderful melange of flavors.... it seems that each one is jockeying for position.

When working with such basic ingredients, freshness is the key, as I've had several versions (and one terrible version in San Diego) featuring dried out galangal and limes, and low quality shrimp. Everything here was shiny and fresh, and the tamarind dip brought everything together for us.

Bags of Gold ($7.95):

Think of these as Sab E Lee's fried won tons if you will. These "bags" are full of minced pork, shrimp, shiitake mushroom, and water chestnuts. While the portion of the "bag" holding the filling is almost crepe-like, the top portions are light and crisp.

Pretty nice to look at too.

The Superwild Shrimp ($8.95) is a shrimp salad of sorts:

It is dressed with a fish sauce - chili - garlic - palm sugar sauce. Though we prefer the Plaa Shrimp, the shrimp in this dish was cooked to a "just well" doneness.

Of course I had to try the Koi Soi/Koi Nua (Spicy Raw Beef - $7.95), one of my favorites at Sab E Lee 1:

 
  First off, this version is not nearly as spicy as SEL1. In fact, after tasting a few of the same dishes, I'd say that the dishes are about %30 less spicy here in Santee. I usually get a'9' on the heat scale, this was more like a 5. That's not to say that this wasn't good, it was. Less spicy, but the inclusion of raw garlic added pungency and bite. This version is also a bit more citrusy and herbaceous. The nutty flavor provided by the roasted sticky rice powder is a bit more muted.

The Larb Duck($7.95) is another similar but different dish.

 
This version was a bit more herbaceous, and truth be told, we enjoyed this one more since the flavor of the duck came through very clearly.

Since the Chef had cut his teeth cooking in Bangkok, a version of the classic Bangkok Red Curry Duck was a necessity. Here it's called Royal Duck Curry ($10.95):

In all honesty, of all the dishes we've had here, this was our least favorite. It seemed that all of those reasons we don't enjoy the overly-Westernized Thai food in San Diego were in display here. The curry was too sweet, too fruity (via pineapple and grapes), and used too much coconut milk for our tastes.

The flavor off the duck was overwhelmed and buried in our opinion.

The Missus loved the Three Flavored Fish (Halibut - $14.95):

 
The fish was put panko crusted, and put together just as the Pinecone Fish we encountered on our previous visit. This time it was fried even better if that was possible. The fish was moist, and almost sweet. The sauce is a tamarind-palm sugar based sauce, was perhaps a bit too sweet for me, but the Missus just plain loved this. I can't say anything bad about that fish. My perfect solution is to order the Pinecone Fish, and request a little dish of the Three Flavor Sauce on the side.

Fish Garlic ($12.95):

A classic Thai sweet-spicy-garlic preparation. I loved the sauce, and in fact ate up all the cabbage, and even the carrot garnish. Unfortunately for me, the fish used was catfish, and it was a bit muddy for my palate. The Missus joyfully scarfed the whole filet in minutes.......

On one visit we ordered the Fish on Fire ($16.95):

Two large Halibut Filets covered with a red curry sauce and served with a flambe of rum. One quick piece of advice for this dish, let the alcohol burn off before sampling, otherwise the rum adds a rather strong astringent flavor to the dish. The halibut was moist and tender. There was a bit too much going on for me in this dish, but again the Missus loved it.

One of my favorite menu items at Sab E Lee 2 is one of the cheapest..... the Garlic Rice ($3):

Those regular readers know that I love garlic anyway.... but this was so very good. Much better than any version of Filipino Garlic Rice I've ever had, as there was golden sauteed garlic and crisp fried garlic and shallot in this. The herbs added some great flavor.... and the rice being prepared well didn't hurt things.......

By now, most regular customers of Sab E Lee know Koby..... his wonderful demeanor, gentle, kind, and always helpful just makes the whole experience better. He obviously loves to please his customers. On one occasion, I ordered the Garlic Rice, and mentioned an egg and pork street food dish we had in Bangkok, and how it would be just the perfect item with this. Koby smiled and told us, "I know what it is, we'll make it for you!" And just like that, we had a classic Thai omelete, which we were later told is called Khai Jeaw:

Wonderfully savory, fluffy, omelete, with a quick dip in the Nam Pla Prik(fish sauce and chili) which helps cut the richness, followed with a bite of garlic rice.... There are few things better in the world.

And for a second, I was here:

The crazy streets of Silom in Bangkok........ You know, they say in America, the streets are paved in gold. In Bangkok, the streets are paved in food! Looking at this makeshift food stand, you wouldn't know that it's in front of massive financial buildings in Silom, which is Bangkok's business district.

Sometimes a smell, or just a taste can take me back.......

And Koby was nice enough to provide that for me.

Sab E Lee 2
9159 Mission Gorge Road
Santee, CA 92071

Comments

[kat]

nice quote at the end!

[bill]

The nostalgic of food that take you back in time. Awesome.

[Dennis]

I agree with Kat! But boy all those dishes look fantastic and I'm so with you on the garlic rice. If the pic were mine it'd be a runner up for favorite 10 photos of 2009. Are you doing one again this year? Please? haha :)

[Carol]

Perfect timing! We're going tonight for dinner and I was wondering what different dishes we should try. I was a little iffy on the Fish Garlic since it's catfish but we might still try it anyway. Thanks again for all the suggestions!

[Kirk]

Hi Kat - Thanks!

Hi Bill - Yes, sometimes food can do that for you.

Hi Dennis - I'm not sure if I'll do ten photos.... there's so much to go thru.

Hi Carol - As you can tell, the Missus loves the way they prepare fish here.

[ed (from Yuma)]

I want to try everything. Even the stuff that you say wasn't very good looks appealing. Yum.

[caninecologne]

hi Kirk
Great post! The miang kum sounds interesting. we just may try that next week! i noticed when i ordered the issan sausage last time, there was chopped galangal (or maybe it was ginger). the flavors were so fresh and bright. i'd also like to try that garlic fried rice - makes my mouth water just looking at it. and the pine cone fish - we wanted that last time but ended up getting something else. there's so many things on Koby's menu that i want to try!

[Ken]

Great timing, indeed. I'm planning to have dinner there tonight also. My wife loves the duck curry dish, BTW. Thanks.

[Stephen]

Great Post! I just tried Sab-E-Lee 1 a few months ago. Is #2 worth the drive to Santee?
There are so few GOOD Thai places.
Pictures are beautiful

[Cathy]

We were there on Monday and I overheard one of the people in the group by us commenting that 'last time I got a 7 and I think I will only get a 5 this time'...got the Yum Woon-Sen, Tom Kah Gai and General's Noodles. All excellent and still so much more of the menu to go...I'm thinking larb mushrooms from the vegan part of the menu...

[Kirk]

Hi Ed - The food is well prepared, especially the shrimp and fish.

Hi CC - You know, as far as I can remember they've always included galangal with the Issan Sausage. Speaking of which..... I need some today.

Hi Kenneth - I'm glad you enjoy SEL2. They do a good job.

Hi Stephen - If you enjoy Thai food it is worth the drive. SEL2 is pretty much a different restaurant from SEL.

Hi Cathy - Still it's not nearly as spicy as SEL - the time we all went it was 2-3's, so I'm thinking a five is about right.

[caninecologne]

hi kirk
at the old sab e lee, i never had it with galangal or at least they never served it to ME with galangal. at SEL2-yes. i like it! : )

[foodhoe]

This looks like such a great restaurant. I've only had that leaf wrap thing once before, but this version looks really good with all the fresh veggies and herbs! That Thai omelette looks grand

[Dennis]

Hi Kirk, finally ate here this morning. They open at 10:30am which is great. Everything was fantastic! Can't wait to post about it.. Commenting from the Apple Store again, he he. Getting myself an early Christmas gift. yay (Your site looks great!)

[Saya]

Hi Kirk! Can I steal your pictures for Yelp.com's Sab-E-Lee 2 reviews?

[Judy @ TinkerWithFood]

the spicy raw beef looks amazing!!! happy holidays kirk & the missus ;)

[Kirk]

Hi CC - It does have a nice cleansing taste.

Hi FH - Nothing beats good street food dishes for comfortt!

Hi Dennis - Did you eat at the Santee or the Linda Vista location? They ara both excellent, but are pretty much two different restaurants.

Hi Saya - LOL! It ain't stealing if I give you permission, is it? Of course you can.

Hi Judy - Koi Soi is one of my favorite dishes! Happy Holidays to the three of you! (I can't forget Einstein, can I?)

[Dennis]

Hi Kirk, I went to the Santee location (twice now). Koby is so way cool! He explained to me about galangal (never heard of it before until this blog post) and what dishes typically use it. He said he'll make me the your omelet next time since I expressed so much interest in it. =) I think it'll be perfect for my part three "not so ordinary breakfasts" post. You never fail to bring me new and great dining experiences kirk! Cheers

[Kirk]

Hi Dennis - I'm glad you enjoyed your meal.

[Didi]

Hi Kirk, that Miang Kum was excellent. We couldn't wait to keep eating it throughout the meal. Koby was on vacation that day so we didn't get to chat. I agree the spiciness is less here overall which is weird to us.

Hmmm...issan sausage is just so tasty.