Plenty Thai Restaurant (Perth WA)

Shop 15, Shafto Lane
Perth WA 6000
Phone: (08) 9481 0090 
Email: plentyfinefoods@gmail.com
Website
Facebook
Hours:
Lunch  11am-3pm weekdays, 1pm-5pm Sat
Dinner 5pm-9pm Mo to We + Sat, 5pm-10pm Thu and Fri

Plenty Thai Restaurant is located in the lovely Shafto's lane, one of most vibrant charming areas in the CBD, and serves authentic Thai and Asian Fusion food. There are plenty of reasons to visit Plenty!

THE PLACE - The place is spotless clean, luminous and pleasant despite its functionality. It has many lovely decoration details, like the cute test-tube flower vases, the nice lamps, and the little Miró-ish floating thingy. The serving area is clean and well presented, as well as the self-service water area. Plenty is very popular with corporate crowds, mostly (nicely-dressed young) men, but also with young Asian students. Plenty offers take-away service and pre-order take-away by phone and email.  

THE FOOD - They claim their dishes to be authentic Thai and they look like! This is not sophisticated Thai, but home-style and street-stalls Thai food, and it looks and tastes great. The dishes are very spicy and hot, as real Thai food should be, and the serving generous, so you will not leave hungry. The food trays are constantly replaced, and the food is really fresh. Just the colour, appearance and taste of it will tell you that. 

 Beyond the traditional finger food, they have green and red curries, pad dishes (Pad Thai included), spicy soups (Tom Yum included), stir-fry dishes, minced meat and green papaya salads, and a small selection of packaged Thai sweets displayed beside the water jars, with a mix of mini-muffins, fried nibbles, bean-paste sweets, among other things. 

PRICING - Prices are fantastic. Lunch combos are 7-8.5$, and la carte dishes go from 5 to 14$, while dinner dishes go from 5 to 17$. The packed sweets are 6 bucks per tray. You pay the same you would be paying in a food court, but the quality and variety of food is ten times better. It is is exciting finding a business that does provide good food at bargain prices without compromising quality!  

THE SERVICE - The service is friendly and both the business and the staff are eager to serve and satisfy any of your requests. 

• They have an interesting selection of readings on the solo dining walled table, a Thai street food book included!
• They do have tap water jars, but they use a "Brita" jar to filter it (I saw them refilling it). 
  
• Sometimes, the staff fills in the water glasses of the clients, all over the place, which is something rarely found in Perth restaurants unless we are in a posh one. 
• Sometimes they approach you and ask you how is everything, if you like it, if things are too spicy for you, and so on. 

ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT
1/ Their green blackboard is difficult to read, as green is never a good background for coloured inks. They should use a black pen to allow the writing to be readable.

2/ The walled table is not very appealing as it faces the wall and it is very narrow. It would be great having the big tables in the middle of the room replaced with smaller ones, which could be joined for groups. A good deal of visitors are, indeed, solo visitors and pairs/couples.

MIND
The food is very spicy and hot, so if you do have a problem with chillies and spicy food, abstain. On the other had, if you like Thai food you know that Thai food is originally spicy and hot.

 ***

Plenty is great value for money, has a great location, good tasty food at terrific prices, and a pleasant dining area. They do not pretend to be anything, just deliver what they promise.  

Location: 9/10
Layout: 6/10
Ambience 6/10
Food: 7.5/10
Service: 7.5/10
Pricing: 9/10

****
MESSAGE FROM THE OWNER RECEIVED VIA YELP on 23/3/13

 Moo K.

Teo Degas
Thanks for your review and suggestions. We did rearrange tables and it worked well. If you come by you will see new signs in graphic prints. Also we plan to do some change to high counter which does not work functionally especially for dinner. Thanks again for your kind support.
Plenty

MY REPLY

Thanks a lot to you for taking the tame to reply. I visited two weeks ago, and it was great. I love your food!

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3 in 1 Market @ Showgrounds (Claremont, Perth WA)

Yesterday, I visited the 3 in 1 Market at the Claremont Showgrounds. It has three areas of sale: the handmade crafts and food, the antiques and collectables area, and the polka dot vintage market. I was expecting something similar to the very charming and gorgeous "Made on the Left" market held at the State Theatre grounds a few weeks ago, just bigger. However, it was bigger but without the charm. The area is huge, one of the wings of the pavilion devoted to the antiques, and the other to the vintage and handmade stuff. The place is not very appealing, despite the large range of things on offer. It is certainly spacious, but it looks old and run down, and too linear to be called a market. More like a pop-up shop of humongous size. 

I was completely disappointed with the Polka Dot area. I wanted to find one of those short bolero jackets typical of the 50s, now so in vogue, and to see real vintage of the 50s and 60s, pretty pieces, you know, classy pieces, not pieces that were worn by grannies in the 60s. :O. There were a few nice pieces of vintage, old Australian brands vintage (Review, Alannah Hill, if that can be called vintage), but nothing really wow. To be fair, I saw a few things that were really beautiful, but not my style or size. Most things were not that cheap either, although there were some racks with all-10$clothes, which were nice. There were a few interesting corners with old vinyl music and photographic material, and lots of vintage for men, which I thought was more interesting than the women's. The handmade crafts area was also less glamorous, classy and varied than in Made on the Left, although some of the stands where also here, but not many things caught my eye. 

To my surprise, what I liked the most was the antique and collectables area. I saw super-cool, super-cute, super-beautiful and super-kitsch things, mostly kitchen and table related. I am not into collectables or antiques, but there were so many pretty pieces, some of them expensive, but some others at really bargain prices. For whatever reason I always have my antenna tuned and it takes me about 15 seconds to spot what I like among a sea of stuff. I could not stop myself, and I bought three porcelain pill boxes (to give a royal look to my tic-tacs and mints) for five bucks the lot, an individual gorgeously artistic tea Thai silver-plated colander for 15$, and a pretty silver-plated sugar spoon for 5. It was too late for me to keep going, as the grounds were closing down, a grumpy old man hasted me out, and I had wasted my time in the wrong area.

***

The toilets were clean, but a bit scary and run down. That sort of beige marbley style that yo see in underground films, and from which you want to escape as soon as your bladder has been given a relief.

Nobody was able to explain to me how to get to the train station by foot. There is a free shuttle every twenty minutes, but I would rather walk than stand waiting for a shuttle. The organisers should have simple maps of the surrounding area available for customers, or just inform the ladies at reception so they can inform customers.    

 ***

The same market will be held at the same location on November 17-18 November. Still, Made of the Left is still in my memory and very much my kind of crafty market. I should have written a review earlier on. But Alas, sometimes I waste my time on reviews on Perth public transport :O.

The markets are still on today, so, if you have one of those lazy days with not much planed, go and visit. 

TIP
The entry is 6 bucks, but if you go mid afternoon the fee is halved! Yoohoo!

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Showgrounds Railway Station (Perth WA)

The Showgrounds Railway station is one of the stops in the Fremantle Railway Line, and very close to the Claremont Showgrounds, where the Royal Perth Show, business fairs, expos, exhibitions and craft and vintage markets take place. Do not to be mixed with Claremont Railway Station, which is a different one.
 
The place looks as new and it is well maintained, spotless clean and tidy, has a decent seating area, and a few ticketing machines on the ground.  The access to the platforms is by underground stairs, no lift or escalator available, but there is an access ramp for wheelchairs. 

The Claremont showgrounds and the station do no have a regular connection system, but a free shuttle operates during scheduled events, which is great, as the station and the grounds are close, but not that close!

There is no electronic or printing information system on the premises showing the timetable of the trains, and time remaining for the next train to arrive. There is a small information booth on the ground, but, if there is nobody there, an alternative information system is needed. I have just seen it closed, so it was of no use to the many customers arriving with the shuttle to the station. How difficult and expensive can be having a framed timetable placed in different areas of the station for the travellers to check?

There is a security booth on the platforms, but no body guard was there in the late afternoon of a Saturday. I hope the security camera is working and big brother is watching, especially after sunset.

There are no toilets in the premises or around them.

TIP
There are not machines to recharge your multirider, so do so before heading that alley.

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"Fahrenheit 451" by François Truffaut (1966)

Fahrenheit 451 is a visionary movie based on Ray Bradbury's eponymous novel. It was Truffaut's only English speaking movie. The title is related to the degrees needed for paper to get on fire.

The movie is set in an imaginary aseptic future world, ruled by an oppressive system that has created an uber-clean society that thrives on TV plasma screens, forbids reading or having books and burns them, and promotes drug use for emotional control. Guy Montag, married to an emotionally frigid Linda, is one of the firemen in the anti-book brigade, very passionate about his job and purpose, until he meets his neighbour Clarisse and starts questioning himself and the system.

The movie is an allegory about what a world without books and culture would be, an ode against ignorance and simple minds, a reminder that burning books is a sign of human degradation and typical of tyrannical regimes. The movie is also an homage to Literature, in this case to Truffaut's favourite books, which are part of the burnt books shown in the film, and his film is, of course, based on Bradbury's novel.

The movie honours Bradbury's visionary novel. Think about our modern world, dominated by big plasma screens hanging from the walls in which reading and culture are each time less valued and appreciated. Think about those reality shows in which our opinion is asked to create a false sense of participation when our answers are, indeed, irrelevant and certainly unimportant. Think about a world in which the information is manipulated by the media to support the political regime in vogue... It sounds familiar, no?

All the actors are good in their roles. Cyril Cusak is truly convincing as the fire brigade captain, completely sure about his Mission and about the danger of books for Society. Oskar Werner is also great as fireman Montag, and does a great job at going from his initial hieratic self to his soulful more sensible and sensitive self when the character starts to change. Julie Christie, despite being accused in the past of not being able to act, is great in her double role as Montag's wife Linda and neighbour book-reader Clarisse. I loved the fact that Christie was able, through characterisation and performance, to offer a Linda who is very feminine and sensual on the exterior but emotionally frigid, and a boyish Clarisse who is very sensual and warm.

This was Truffaut's first film in colour, and the colours are not randomly chosen. The movie offers subdued grey and pastel tones that are constantly highlighted by two main colours: dark grey (the colour of the grey society it represents, even the school uniforms are grey!)  and a beautiful intense deep red (associated to fire and passion).

The end of the movie is magnificent - lyric and full of hope. The whole snow scene and recitation of the old man with his grandson is gorgeous and very moving.

The OST by Bernard Herrmann is great, dramatically neurotic sometimes, lyric some others, while the tune that accompanies the fire squad's outings is very Ravel-ish and anticipative, also very catchy, and sets the pace of the movie. Most of the time the music is unsettling, but sometimes it is unnecessarily overwhelming and annoying.

I watched this movie for the first time on TV in my teens, in a special series showcasing Truffaut's films, and it had a huge impact on me. In fact, I forgot the title of the movie, but not the movie or its message. I saw the movie again last year, and, by re-watching it, I understood why it has a spot in my forgetful mind. It is the soul and the message, the power of the themes presented, its plea to Literature and the written word, and the power of knowledge and the Arts in creating a freer society.  You see, it is Bradbury's merit that I did not forget the movie, not the other way around. I have forgotten most of the other movies that I watched in that very series, but not this, because of the story.

The only think that does not stand the pass of time are the fashion and, above all, the special effects, which are very outdated, even cheesy, and made me laugh when re-watching it. However, the movie has a lot of experimental things that are still daring. For example, the opening credits, all spoken, no word written until we see "The End", or the scenes in which half the screen goes black.

 ***

Fahrenheit 451 is a cult classic science-fiction film that should be in everybody's bucket list. It is not an easy movie to watch, especially being so out of fashion in style, effects, music and conception. One of those movies you love or hate.  Still, it explores many themes that are still valid for our society and does a remarkable job at bringing Bradbury's novel to the big screen.

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"Kirikou and the Wild Beasts" by Michel Ocelot (2005)

A spin off of the first movie, with four separated stories about the daily life in Kirikou’s village.

The movie is lovely, the stories very entertaining and original, our fav characters are still there, and, most importantly, the movie offers glimpses of the life in a West-African village, which are precious to show to a Western children audience. The stories will show kids that not everybody is the same, dresses the same, or lives the same, that Africa is an amazing beautiful varied continent, and that the world is richer because of that.
 
Ocelot's drawings and visuals are simple, very attentive to landscape and plant drawing, very ethnographic in a way. The stories, though, have a good dollop of magical reality.

However, overall, the movie does not have the energy and spark of the original story, is not as engaging, and the different stories are unrelated -except for the fact that Kirikou and his neighbours are in them- and plainer - more for children than for adults.

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Beaufort St Museum Bus Stop (Perth WA)

This central bus stop channels most of the bus lines going to the Northern Suburbs as far as Morley, Bayswater, Dianella, Bassendean, and Maylands,. 

There are two stands at this location: bus stop no. 12132 (also called Stand 1) faces the Police Headquarters, and is where lines 16, 21, 22, 60, 67, 68 and 40 stop. The other stand, no. 12131, faces The Court Bar, and is where lines 41, 42, 43, 44, 48, 55, and 66 stop. Both stands are usually full at after-work hours during week days and at the sparse scheduled times that these buses pass by during weekends.

If you use the stop three things will be obvious to you. Firstly, that the area is always colder and windier than the rest of the surrounding area, because of the confluence of different streets on that precise point of Beaufort St. Secondly, the crowds do not line here, but people manage to get onto the bus without order but orderly, if that makes any sense: no pushes, not cranky people, and many gentlmen and nice kids letting ladies go on first. Isn't that nice? Thirdly, and most importantly, the stop is quiet and secure even in late evenings, despite drunkards and party-goers passing by all the time - the stop being in front of the Police HQ & Perth CSIs, you would not expect differently, no?

The timetable poles are quite precise and reliable, although occasional delays occur and people are left behind if there are traffic delays, heavy rain, or special events are happening in the city.

ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT
At first sight, the seating area is sufficient, with two covered places, and three uncovered benches. However, the uncovered area should be covered, and the covered area modified because when it rains, you get soaked wet even if you are underneath the covered booths! Moreover, during the summer days, a covered area it is just a relief from the scorch!

TIP
If you want to secure a seat, go to the stops on Barrack St.  The crowds are also considerable there, but the buses reach that point empty.

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Perth Street Art - 1 (Perth WA)

In our contemporary world, Art has become a Mass product, another commodity that needs to be sold and marketed, usually by middlemen, not the artists themselves, and bought by people who buy Art as it was a Gucci bag or an Alfa-Romeo -as a sign of status- or as an investment, in the best case as a whim.  Artists have to make a living out of their talent, but Art, the way I see it, the way I like it, is free in conception and genesis (no ties but you and your creative world) and gratis. In that regard, Street Art is what Art should be, especially when it is non-commissioned.

Perth Street Art is beautiful, colourful and very artistic. Our Street Art is not very subversive in its visual language as it moves around well-established formats and ways of expression. It is polished in forms and structure, rarely dirty, and it reflects the artistic tendencies in vogue among paper illustrators and comic book illustrators, just expressed on big walls. Our Street Art is not subversive in its message either, and it is more an artistic individual expression than a political or social way of protest. We are not San Francisco or New York, Tokyo, Amsterdam, Granada, or Barcelona, Melaka or Kuala Lumpur. Our street art is a reflection of what this country and this city is. We do not have the same culture, the same problems, issues, or lifestyle of those cities, our street art, per force, is going to be different.

There are a few regular artists who have left and leave their imprint on the walls of the city, with a cult following fan-base: Creepy, Stormie Mills, Rough, TwoOne, Beastman, Numskull, Robert Jenkins, Yok, Kid Zoom, Ryan Boserio, Daek, Hurben, Timothy Rollin, blackgreyviolet, Jeto, ROA, among others, which are talented artists painting on wall but exhibited authors too.  Some of them are locals, some others are visitors from the eastern states or from overseas.
 

There is a great deal of commissioned street art in Perth, mostly sponsored by government, city councils and Universities. However, non-commissioned pieces are spread in abandoned buildings, empty walls and public spaces throughout the city, some of them quite cute, artistic and even funny: murals, individual scenes, artistic tagging, simple tagging, stickers, and stencils can be found everywhere.

Business have also embraced Street Art as a way of cool, and they use themes and styles that suit the vibe, name or atmosphere of the place. It is a modern way of  patronage, of which Art History is full. On the other hand, movies have given an halo of funkiness and edge to street art, to the underground culture,  which is what many new places want to have because, well, Perth is not especially naughty for anything, but it is certainly becoming more edgy thanks to its Public Art. Examples can be found everywhere: The Flying Scotsman, Daily Planet, Lemon Lane, LTN - name it.

There are awesome murals in the Grand Theatre Lane, This Walk Talk and Wolf Lane (CBD), Street Art Gallery Building (Roe corner with Miligan St), Gold Lane (Off Rockeby St, Subiaco), various car parks and back streets in Northbridge and Highgate, some creative studios in North Perth an Northbridge, Collie St and Henderson St Mall (Fremantle), McGiver and Shenton Park's train Stations, Lemon Lane in Claremont, Williams Lane and LTN cafés walls. So many places all over Perth! Just open your eyes: Indoors, outdoors, on the roof, on the floor, on the wall, whatever, wherever, whenever.

I love illustration and magic worlds, I love comics and graphic arts, so I love Perth Street Art. What about graffiti?... 

  Two slideshows with commissioned and uncommissioned artwork

 

THE SECOND ONE

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