- NEWSDAY.CO.TT - A la Une - 06/Jul 05:37

Lemongrass Express: A new Thai dining experience

IF you love Thai food then you’re in luck, because a new brand is coming to Trinidad. Lemongrass Express, a franchise out of Lemongrass Noodle Bar and Grill in Barbados, will be revving its engines and launching its food truck on July 10. Jake Gillette, director of Lemongrass Express told Newsday before the pandemic, his father and uncle visited Barbados and discovered a Lemongrass Express food truck. “They are foodies. They love food just as much as they love their kids. And they loved the quality they found at Lemongrass, so much so they went back every night for the week they were there and kept bringing people to taste the food.” Impressed by the consistent great taste, at the end of that week they approached the owner and it was agreed the franchise would be brought to Trinidad. Covid19 derailed their plans but, when they realised Lemongrass in Barbados was up and running and stable, the businessmen decided to revive those plans. Gillette said even though there were already some great Thai places in Trinidad and Tobago, they decided to pursue it because it was one of the foods Trinidadians love due to the flavours. Chef Calvin Smith, a chef for over three decades, described those flavours as simple yet “delightful.” [caption id="attachment_1164781" align="alignnone" width="768"] Chef Calvin Smith cooking up some delights in the Lemongrass Express food truck kitchen. Photo courtesy Lemongrass Express. -[/caption] He believed Trinidadians would enjoy and gravitate to several dishes, such as the phad kee mow, red curry, phad thai, ramin and udon. He explained Thai noodles were mostly made of rice, but in udon the noodles had the consistency of pasta, which allowed it to better absorb flavours. Most of its dishes were vegetarian-based and allowed customers to add the protein of their choice, but two were made with seafood. He added that some of the dishes had a local twist with the use of green seasoning, tamarind sauce or pepper sauce, but they were mostly authentic Thai. Gillette said his family members decided to stick to the food truck idea because they wanted the look and feel of street food. They were also attracted to the idea of the mobility of the place so they could go to events, as they did in Lost Tribe earlier this year. However, one of the biggest challenges to opening the franchise was finding the right location for the truck. They wanted the first location to be in west Trinidad as there were already several Thai food places in Central. [caption id="attachment_1164783" align="alignnone" width="857"] Phad siew – wok fried rice noodles with egg and assorted fresh vegetables in a delicious oyster sauce. - Photo courtesy Lemongrass Express.[/caption] “We didn’t foresee locking down the location being such a problem. We thought the mobility would make it easy for us to open when and how we wanted. We already had gas and a generator for power, but based on it being Thai food and having the woks we needed constant access to water.” It also took a while to source some of the ingredients but, as the family already had experience in the quick service restaurant industry, they felt confident they could keep the level of quality and consistency they expect of themselves, and that they believed would draw in customers. Finally, a good location was found around the Queen’s Park Savannah at the corner of Woodford Street, Queen’s Park West. It had utilities, parking and was close to the “food scene” on Maraval Road, Newtown. And there were already plans for expansion. Gillette said they hoped to begin distributing packaged frozen meals for sale in supermarkets, as is already being done in Barbados, and eventually open other locations.   The post Lemongrass Express: A new Thai dining experience appeared first on Trinidad and Tobago Newsday.