Introducing Sarah, one of our TableCrowd members. See how Sarah got on at her latest “Friday Night Fun and Pan-Asian Street Food“ dinner, in her latest blog:

Despite considering myself a sociable, friendly person after a very hectic week at work I was a little nervous about meeting a group of strangers for dinner. I was reassured though as it was a full table I was sure that a group of seven would have more than enough to chat about.

We dined at the Asian Street Food restaurant http://kinstreetfood.com/ on Leather Lane and as soon as I arrived I knew it was a good choice.

Its website describes it as “a small, family-run restaurant offering fresh, tasty, healthy pan-Asian street food at affordable prices.” And I think that is a perfect description!

It’s only a small restaurant but is really cosily decorated, warm and inviting. All the waiting staff were efficient and welcoming. The manager also made the effort to come over, introduce herself and explain she knew about TableCrowd and was excited by our visit. Throughout the evening we were chatting so much we had to keep asking for “five more minutes” to check the menus and order, however, saying that we never felt rushed or hurried.

In my group were Karen, Jay, Max, Seref and Jon and all had been to a TableCrowd before – only Andrew, like myself was a newcomer, I think I can confidently say we both enjoyed the first experience. Even before the starters we were all bonding over an eclectic mix of subjects such as yoga which several of us enjoy – I actually was on the soft drinks (yawn!), due to a yoga class the next morning. Other subjects touched on over the course of the night included salsa dancing, stand-up comedy, London walking tours, fireworks and our love/hate of Gaudi sites in Barcelona! It was a really relaxing atmosphere and we all were chatty, engaging folk with plenty to talk about.

The menu itself was a an interesting mix of Asian dishes from a variety of countries – so there were recognisable dishes such as Pad Thai and Chicken Satay – mixed with the more unusual. They also have a regularly changing specials selection. We asked about an offer and we found out you get 20% discount if you order a minimum of two main courses, which with the seven of us, was easily done!

I played it safe with my starter and went for a favourite – Chicken Satay, it was delicious and everyone else also said the same about their dishes – Jon particularly enjoyed his Pot Stickers (dumplings served with a dipping sauce). For the main course I decided to live on the edge and ordered the Prawn Pad Kee Mao – which was described as “Super​ spicy wok fried flat rice noodle dish (aka’drunken noodles’) with vegetables, thai basil, chillies & finely chopped lemongrass”

I asked the waitress how hot it was and she said ‘medium’ so as a fan of spicy foods I thought I would enjoy it. It was, it had to be said a bit too hot for me and I was defeated! Andrew ordered the chicken version and also asked for it ‘spicy’ and I think he might have slightly regretted upping the stakes! But he put on a brave face and stoically cleaned his plate! Everyone else’s dishes were less spicy and each person said they enjoyed them. If I had any complaint I would say that there was not that many prawns in the actual dish – only four or five, whereas Andrew looked like he had more chicken in his.

After a few more drinks and a chair re-shuffle swap suggested by TableCrowd veteran Jay, most of us also had a desert – I picked the banana fritters which were served with coconut ice cream and syrup on the side – they were delicious!

When the bill came, even with the 20% discount we were all very surprised with how reasonable the meal had been – so much so that some of the group headed off to a nearby pub to carry on the evening. The rest of us all made promises to get together again soon and headed off with happy smiles and full bellies. Kin definitely lived up to its hype.

If you want to meet Sarah at a future dinner? Why not connect with her on TableCrowd here.

Alternatively, if you fancy joining one of our Friday night TableCrowd dinners you have  the choice of either dinner with:

Caitlin – I know a great little Italian place! at Sartori restaurant, or

Anna – Dinner & Drinks at Cape Town Fish Market.