ON THE MENU | PALM GARDEN THAI CUISINE

5Random Facts

1. I bake and decorate cookies all the time (at least a couple of thousand a year). I rarely start a batch of cookies before 8 p.m. I’m an insomniac.

2. We have two daughters. Phoebe just graduated with a degree in business and marketing currently operates as the Visit Spearfish office and visitor information coordinator. Sophia is a sophomore in college pursuing a degree in civil engineering and plays college softball.

3. I can write backwards in cursive almost as fast as I can forward—one perk of being left-handed.

4. Marching band drum cadences give me goosebumps. Marching bands generally make me choke up. I have no idea why.

5. I love grocery shopping. On Saturday mornings, I go to every grocery store in Spearfish and usually at least one of the local farmers’ markets. I go down every aisle, literally.

Game Day Grub Speaking of athletics, the Stadium Sports Grill has my go-to game day food—marinated beef tips. The more rare, the better. If I’m looking to mix things up, I either want a Frickle Burger from Lucky’s 13 Pub, or some freshly sourced pork carnitas nachos from Barbacoa’s Burritos and Wraps.

Can’t-Miss Meal The Farmhouse Bistro and Bar is a great date night choice. If you’ve never had their Mediterranean Plate, you should; it’s fantastic. It features Margie’s Blue Cheese dressing as one of the condiments. When Meredith Pangburn opened the restaurant, she called me and asked if she could have our Ainsworth-family recipe from the former Spearfish staple, Margie’s Dinner Club. The Ainsworth family was humbled to be asked and thrilled to share the recipe.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, VISIT VISITSPEARFISH.COM.+

On The Menu

Palm Garden Palm Garden Thai Cuisine Thai Cuisine

by Dawn Geertsema

Before Palm Garden Thai Cuisine opened in Aberdeen in March of this year, the building had nearly 90 years of history as other businesses.

“The Palm Garden opened in 1932 as the Palm Garden House of Chicken,” said Karla Stangl. “It is a historical building with loads of history in it.”

The first owners and the first business were around for 50 years before the building became part of a trust and was rented out as an antique store.

“I turned it back into the Palm Garden Café and Chocolate Shoppe in 2007,” she said.

Unfortunately, Stangl ended up closing about a year ago due to the pandemic.

Aberdeen welcomed its first Thai restaurant when Saw Jack, a refugee from Myanmar, opened Palm Garden Thai Cuisine.

“Part of our agreement to purchase was that they keep the Palm Garden name.” -Karla Stangl

“[Our] goal is to share good Thai food with Aberdeen,” said Jack.

“He worked for a Thai restaurant near Saint Paul, MN, before coming here to try to open his own,” explained Stangl.

One of the 10 appetizer options is an order of the Fresh Spring Rolls, which are made with chicken, shrimp, lettuce, carrots, mint, cilantro, and noodles.

There are, of course, the classic Pork Egg Rolls and Veggie Egg Rolls and an option to order Cream Cheese Wontons.

“Everything is fresh and cooked to order, even soups,” said Jack.

Pad Lawn is one of the most popular entrées and is made with stir-fried mixed vegetables and a choice of chicken, pork, mock duck, beef, shrimp, veggie, or tofu. The vegetables include onions, carrots, cabbage, green beans, broccoli, bell peppers, mushrooms, and celery.

Among Jack’s Chef Selection menu items is Karapao Mussel. A spicy dish, Karapao Mussel is made with jalapeños, fresh mushrooms, onions, and shell-less mussels.