Chicago: Immm Rice and Beyond

When CK suggested checking out the new Thai street food place around the corner from Double Happiness, I figured we would get a couple desserts and then call it a day.

I should have known better.

The storefront of Immm sure looked innocent enough:


It was pretty much empty inside, but that was very likely due to the odd hour:


Once I started perusing the menu, I quickly came to the realization that instead of the snacks and desserts I had been envisioning, CK had tricked me into a second meal.

Despite just finishing a giant bowl of noodles per person not 15 minutes prior, we somehow ended up with a plate of som tum or papaya salad in front of us:


We got the one with preserved crabs ($9) for that touch of funk.  And whew, was it funky!  That fishy flavor was no joke. 

I liked it.

CK and her husband can both handle their spice (one being Korean and the other being Thai), but they asked for the som tum to be on the mild end of the spectrum out of consideration for me.  Even so, it still had quite a kick.  I'm scared to even imagine how spicy it can actually get.

What's cool about Immm was that you could ask for samples of most curries at their hot bar.  If you liked it, you could then decide whether to order it in tasting size or family size.  We skipped the sampling and just ordered the gaeng tae poe or tamarind red curry with pork belly and water spinach in tasting size ($5):


Rice had to be ordered separately ($1.50).

Some things couldn't be sampled though.  Such as the kai loog kuey or fried hard boiled eggs ($5 for tasting size):


It came sprinkled with fried shallots and with a tangy tamarind sauce on the side.  The sauce was delicious, but the egg itself wasn't super special.

The curry, on the other hand, was awesome.

We eventually made it to dessert.  The kluey kaak ($5) or coconut battered fried banana, sweet potato, and taro sounded most appealing, so that's what we got:


I loved the concept of tasting sizes.  I'm all about trying as many things as I can and Immm makes it easy to do so.  I feel like Immm had a lot more to offer, but we didn't get to have the complete experience because we entered its doors with our stomachs already over half full.

Don't make the same mistake we did.


Immm Rice and Beyond
4949 N Broadway St
Chicago, IL 60640
(773) 293-7378
http://www.immmchicago.com/

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