Black Canyon Coffee: International Thai Cafe + Giveaway

Among Asian cuisines, Thai is one of those I haven't figured out yet if I truly like or not. Although I'm adventurous when it comes to food, I find the bold and complex flavors of Thai cuisine quite overwhelming for my palate. However, I'm learning to understand the merge of sweet, spicy and sour by trying out more Thai restaurants. And for my most recent adventure, I headed to Black Canyon Coffee, the largest café chain in Thailand.

A highly successful brand, Black Canyon Coffee is a coffee shop and full service casual dining restaurant with over 200 branches throughout Thailand. With about 40 branches abroad, the Thai café finally opened its first in the Philippines -- at SM Southmall. And although Black Canyon Coffee has just opened its doors to hungry and thirsty Metro diners last Friday, June 22, I was surprised to see its warm, casual and laid-back space packed when I went for an evening visit yesterday.

Black Canyon Coffee has a really wide selection of food and beverage items. And for a light start, I first had a serving of Yum Salmon (P188) -- a spicy salmon salad with green onions, shallots, chili and cashew nuts drenched in a lime sauce. This Thai salad has a refreshing blend of zesty flavors which I really dig. However, it was a little too spicy for me. (The spiciness of the dishes had already been toned down to suit Filipino palates.)

Next I sampled was the café's award-winning Tom Yum Goong (P192) which is a spicy but flavorful prawn soup. Being the 2010 and 2011 Tom Yum Champion in Thailand, this hot bowl didn't fail to impress. Every spoonful is an explosion of hot chili flavors and refreshing zesty notes from the cilantro and lime. Unlike the Yum Salmon, I was able to tolerate the mild yet gradually kicking spiciness of this traditional Thai soup.

After the spicy dishes, I got to try another award-winning item, Pad Thai (P168). Hailed as the 2009 World Pad Thai Champion, this serving of sweet, savory and tangy stir-fried rice noodles with tamarind, lemon juice and fish sauce didn't fail to get me digging in. The noodles, eggs, shrimps, beansprouts and crushed peanuts also created a very interesting mix of textures which made every forkful enjoyable.

Being in a coffee shop, I also didn't miss getting my dose of caffeine. From the café's separate menu for beverages, I ordered the Mexican Iced Coffee (P130) -- a nutty-tasting blend of iced coffee with Kahlua syrup, milk and dark chocolate shavings served in a quirky glass boot. (Trivia: They had 34 boot glasses in BCC Southmall.)

THE VERDICT

Although I still haven't found myself converted to being a hardcore Thai cuisine fan, I sure gained a new-found puppy love for Thai food after this visit. SM Southmall might be a little far from my place, but with Black Canyon Coffee's sleek and laid-back ambiance, friendly service, wide selection of food and drinks, and a set of very affordable prices to boot, I think another trip down south is in order.

Taste - 4/5
Ambiance - 4/5
Service - 4/5
Price - 4/5
Overall Value - 4/5

Black Canyon Coffee, SM Southmall
UGF Food Street, SM Southmall
Alabang-Zapote National Rd.,
Las Piñas City, Metro Manila
Philippines
Facebook Page

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Now that you know what I think about Black Canyon Coffee, I'm giving away P1000-worth of gift vouchers to 1 lucky winner so you can also try this famous Thai café!

Prize: Four P250 or P1000-worth of Black Canyon Coffee gift vouchers valid for food and drinks at SM Southmall until December 31, 2013.

To enter the giveaway raffle, you will need to do the following:

1. Be a Metro Manila resident or someone (even not within Metro Manila) who can actually use the prize, or have a person you'll give these prizes to in case you can't use them.


2. Like The Purple Doll and Black Canyon Coffee Philippines on Facebook.
   


3. Click THIS and post the following message on the text box:
   

   @The Purple Doll is giving away P1000-worth of GCs from @Black Canyon Coffee Philippines! http://bit.ly/KIuktv Let's win some awesome prizes @Friend 1, @Friend 2, @Friend 3

   Make sure that you tag The Purple Doll and Black Canyon Coffee Philippines' pages, 3 of your friends, and have set your wall post public.


4. Follow this blog thru Google Friend Connect which can be found at the sidebar under the label Followers.


5. Lastly, leave a comment to this post with the following info:
   

   Name:
   GFC Name:
   Email Address:
   FB Post Link:

   Note: To get the FB post link, click the timestamp. Example: 5 seconds ago

The giveaway raffle will run from today until July 20, 11:59PM. The winners will be chosen via Random Picker and will be announced on July 22. So join now everyone and get a taste of an array of international dishes, authentic Thai food and great-tasting coffee from Thailand's Black Canyon Coffee.

Disclaimer: Black Canyon Coffee GCs were provided by good folks from Black Canyon Coffee Philippines.