Mamarin Noodles brings Ban Beung kuay tiew to Bangkok.
MAMARIN NOODLES KUAY TIEW 281/7, Ekamai Soi 15 Daily 11am-9pm fb.com/mamarin.noodles 093-689-2424
THE SETTING
A kuay tiew experience doesn’t have to mean a quick shophouse meal where all the tables have the flimsy pink papers for wiping everything and plastic jugs filled with tea that look like they have never been washed. If the idea of kuay tiew has become uneventful, Mamarin Noodles can spice it up for you (lame food pun intended). You see, the new
kuay tiew restaurant highlights a Ban Beung (a district in Chon Buri) variation of the popular street food while taking it up a notch with the cosy ambience and, most importantly, quality ingredients.
Mamarin Noodles is just a short walk the top of Ekamai 15 but feels secluded from the hustle and bustle. Its mostly white interior is lit up amply with natural light through floorto-ceiling windows, which also allows you to enjoy your bowl of noodles along with a garden view.
FYI, Ban Beung kuay tiew is said to originate from Teochew Chinese immigrants, who first settled in a village called Hua Khun Jae. The broth contains a mixed essence of dried squid, dried shrimp and pork bones and one bowl can contain up to 10 elements, including ka-tung and eaw-leng (Chinese words for pork meat scrapped off a bone after it is used for broth). Now that we’re done with the brief history lesson, let’s dig in.
THE MENU
As you know, kuay tiew requires some decision making as there are many ways you can go about it from plenty of noodle and topping choices. Mamarin’s menu streamlines the process with an easy-to-follow chart. Choose your noodle or go kao lao first. Next, choose how would you like it prepared and then your add-on. The price tags here range from B69 for a kao lao (sans noodle) to B129 for a bowl of yen ta for with fish dumplings.
It’s obvious from Bamee tom yum prik sod with pork wonton (B99+) that they use quality and fresh ingredients. Nothing in the bowl tasted fishy and what made it memorable is the use of fresh chilli, which added a fiery and aromatic kick you won’t find with the usual chilli flakes. You’ll also get some crunches from pork crackling, too. Its only downside was pork wonton, which tasted rather bland in my book.
Dry yen ta for with fish dumpling (B129) is like a condensed version of its usual form. The pig blood curd was bouncy and smooth like it is supposed to. If you’re not a fan to begin with, you won’t become a convert. The sen
yai was just the right balance between stickiness and tenderness. The squid rings were fresh and not rubbery while the fish dumplings burst with flavour. The shrimp fritters that came with the bowl was audibly crunchy. Several yeses for this yen ta for.
Besides a wide variety of noodles, Mamarin also serves some signature dishes. Drenched in its ink, Sweet calamari (B220) gives you firm mantle, mushy inside and crunchy tentacles. It’s best to eat it with rice as a spoonful of it alone can be overwhelming.
If you like things salty, Ban Beung-styled mackerel on rice (B165) shouldn’t leave you salty. It’s basically a condensed version of
khao tom pla. Despite not having the broth to slurp, the rice grains managed to contain the unmistakable essence and aroma of good congee. The pieces of mackerel were of considerable size and cooked right, too.
I opted for Blue sticky rice pudding with coconut milk (B65) to quench all the strong flavours I have had. As you may have guessed, the sticky rice is blue because of an-chan (butterfly pea). While it’s drenched in coconut milk, I must say that it isn’t overly sweet by Thai standards.
INSIDER’S TIP
You have an appetite for both kuay tiew and vintage items, a trip to Mamarin can satiate that because Workmanship General Store is just next door for your antiquing. Fun fact time! The restaurant is named after the mother of singer Cake Poonyamund, who co-owns it. He brings his family recipes from his hometown to the restaurant. I learned of this fact post-tasting so there’s no fanboy point or anything of the sort. Ekamai 15 is a dead-end soi and you can park your car for free in the soi if you’re a skilful driver or at nearby Ekamai Terrace for B20 per hour or Acmen Ekamai for B40 per hour.
VALUE & VERDICT
Mamarin succeeds in trying to elevating commonplace food Thais have everyday into something somewhat special. The price point isn’t outrageous given the quality ingredients (and the fact that you easily pay B60 for your lunch at your office canteen these days). Those who live and work in the area should definitely give it a try. Noodle nuts, Mamarin is worth using Google Map to get there. Simply put, they serve kuay tiew done well.