Sugar & Spice

Everybody needs a go-to Thai restaurant in their life, and this place is one of my all time favorites.

We are on Mass Ave in Porter Square, Cambridge, at a legendary restaurant named Sugar & Spice. Sugar & Spice is owned and operated by Amy and Penjan. They're a mother daughter duo. So this place is family owned and female owned, and most importantly, the food here is all about freshness and authenticity. Penjan opened this place back in 2003 and over the past couple of decades, she has made hundreds of 1000s of plates of Pad Thai. But unlike most Thai restaurants, this place is not just about Pad Thai and Drunken Noodles. They have a whole lot more on the menu.

If you look at the menu, you realize they are highlighting the four different regions of Thailand. You have the South, the North, the Central and Isan. Each region has their own distinctive flavors and ingredients and recipes, and each one is more dynamic and more delicious than the next. And by the way, if you hear some banging going on, the kitchen is right behind this wall. It is busy, it is loud, but a lot of energy.

From the Northeastern region known as Isan, they have the Crying Tiger, as the story goes, the name ‘Crying Tiger’ comes from the fact that when you're grilling the beef, you see some of the juices dripping down, which I guess sort of looks like the tears of a tiger. Not that I would have any idea what that actually looks like, but I do know it's a delicious dish. It's sliced thin, presented beautifully, served to the side of a spicy dipping sauce. You can see the beautiful char marks on the outside, cooked to a perfect medium, so you have a little bit of red on the inside. And as for the taste, I'm gonna be crying tears of joy. That is delicious.

Amy and Penjan come from the south of Thailand, and this is that region's most famous dish. They call it Chicken on Fire. I mean, just check out the presentation of this dish. I mean, it is literally on fire, and it's a beauty to behold. You can see the cinnamon sticks singed, and they have a little bit of smoke. They actually have some coffee beans on the bottom. So as the juices from the chicken fall into the coffee beans, into the cinnamon, you get this aroma, this incredible, enticing smell. And if you're wondering, how do you eat this thing? Don't worry, after they light it on fire, they'll bring it back to the kitchen. Slice it Up nice for you. So you get those beautiful, bite sized pieces of white meat chicken. As soon as they serve one of these, the entire restaurant orders another.

Up in the North, they do chicken completely differently. This is the northern dish known as khao soi. So this is more of a curried kind of stew served in a big, beautiful bowl. You can see how the broth has so much depth of flavor, so many ingredients. You got a whole chicken drumstick here, and it's a big one. They slow cook this in the sauce so it gets super tender and moist. Underneath, you have a huge pile of these beautiful noodles. I mean, you just can't wait to slurp these things up. And the best part of this dish, when you're done with everything else, you still have some of the crispy noodles on top to finish off.

I always love Thai style duck. And this is from the Central region of Thailand. This is the tamarind duck. This is half of a boneless duck. It is slow roasted, so the meat gets nice, tender, meaty, delicious. You have a little bit of crispiness on the outside of that skin, and it's served over a huge bed of vegetables, so you can at least pretend like you're eating healthy for the day. The duck is already delicious by itself, but then you pour some of the sweet tamarind sauce over the top. Adds another layer of texture and sweetness and stickiness. This duck dish is all it's quacked up to be. T

here are tons of tasty appetizers here, but I definitely recommend this one, the Miang Kham. The only thing better than the presentation of this dish is the taste. This is a complete edible dish, all rolled up inside of a leaf. It's packed with crispy chicken, shaved coconut, peanuts, ginger, lime, fresh chilies and some tamarind sauce. That is surprising. Whoa, so many flavors, so many textures, my brain has to catch up here.

Now here's a perfect Thai comfort food dish. This is the Massaman curry. This is basically slow simmered beef that comes out in this beautiful presentation. I mean, look at the bowl that it's served in. You can see the steam rising over the top. They have the fire lit underneath, so it stays piping hot throughout your entire meal. And the beef itself is slow cooked for such a long time, it basically just melts in your mouth. You can cut it with a fork, no knife necessary. You have some potatoes in there. You have some peanuts in there. So this has what's considered umami, that real savory, earthy kind of flavors to it. If it's a cold day, winter months, Massaman curry is the ultimate antidote.

Obviously, the food is very special here, and the atmosphere matches the menu. You look around this place, it's very tasteful, very stylish, the mosaic tile walls, lots of booths and tables, big floor to ceiling windows that overlook Mass Ave and you gotta love the people here. They're all so nice. The service is professional, and it just has that great family feel. So if you love food that is full of bold flavor, super authentic and presented in a beautiful way. I'm telling you right now, Sugar & Spice is oh so nice.