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Glencora
Nov 28, 2006 04:50 PM
What kind of food? Prices? I live near Lalime's and would love to have a good new place there.
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re: Robert Lauriston
That seems an unfair description--Vanni's was not some hole-in-the-wall Thai restaurant serving overly sweet pad thai and watered down flavorless curries; it was a welcome addition to West Berkeley before the intersection of Dwight and San Pablo heated up, before the hill-dwelling folk were attracted to the area by Sea Salt and Trieste. Vanni always billed his food as "innovative Thai," a description I think the food lived up to. Was there a specific menu item you think qualified as "Americanized Thai"?
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re: Leadbelly
Robert Lauriston
Nov 28, 2006 06:44 PM
Personally I much prefer Champa Garden in Oakland or Thai House Express in SF.
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re: Glencora
I think Vanni would be a nice addition to that neighborhood--sort of mid-range prices, "innovative Thai" (but not "authentic", I guess, though I am not the best judge of that!), as they billed themselves. Definitely not as pricey as Lalime's, but pricier than Mama Lan's, for example.
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re: Glencora
Morton the Mousse
Nov 28, 2006 07:38 PM
Vanni was one of my worst meals of 2006. I recall an eggplant dish that was saltier than a salt lick, and an asparagus dish that was so awful I couldn't eat more than one bite (and I LOVE asparagus and eggplant). Perhaps it was an "off night," and Vanni clearly has its fans, but when all of the dishes are dreadful I'm reluctant to give a restaurant a second chance.
OTOH, I adore Andy and Cindy's Thai Cuisine, the Farmers' Market stall that is an offshoot of Vanni.
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Do not fear! Vannis' will be back, in a new locale, near Lalime's on Gilman. A waitress there told us so about 2 months ago. We had questioned her about a closing rumor we'd heard.
The new Vanni's will reopen around April, she told us. (we have been regulars there for some time, and will miss them in the meantime!)
-Cacao
