Well, everyone loves Thai food, of that I’m certain. I don’t know anyone that hasn’t ordered a good Pad Thai or a Red Curry at some point, including me. I love Thai flavors, sweet, spicy, sour, their flavor combinations are ver distinctive (and delicious). Of course it was time to find some really good Thai restaurants in NYC. I didn’t have to look far, I think I did visit three of the best, I loved every one of these restaurants.
Bangkok Supper Club
I heard a lot of good things about this restaurant for a while now, it’s been on my list probably since it opened. I finally went, and no matter how good they say it is, it’s even better. It’s hard to surprise me, but they got me. It’s only January, and I feel this one will be hard to top this year. Bangkok Supper Club is the sister restaurant of Fish Cheeks, which I also adore, and it’s located in the West Village. A muted and elegant restaurant, you won’t find your run of the mill dishes here, it is elevated and innovative dishes that are served here.
Here’s what I ordered. I ordered three dishes, being very certain that there will be leftovers to take home, but quite honestly, I ate until I was about ready to pop. My appetizer was a Foie Gras Duck Breast Wrap. Charcoal grilled duck breast and foie gras wrapped in a betel leaf stuffed with mien kham and cashews. Exquisite. Next was a Prawn Satay (huge tiger Prawns) with cilantro, pickled cucumber, shallot, red chillies over a curry cashew butter sauce. It was spicy and sweet, just so, so good. The bartender suggested Bangkok Gai Yang as the main dish, and he was correct to do so. Charcoal grilled chicken thighs marinated in lemongrass and cilantro, this dish was served with Nam Jin Jaew sauce with a side of a charred sticky rice patty, this was possibly the star of the show (I’m not 100% sure, it was all so delicious). All in all, one hell of a dinner. I highly recommend.
Thai Diner
Thai Diner is located close to Little Italy here in New York. This is another place that has been on my list for quite a while. It has great reviews, and the Chef de Cuisine happens to be (or was at the time) Patricia Vega, who competed on Bravo’s Top Chef. So of course the place was going to be a definite for me either way. It’s a cute place with pretty traditional decorations, space-wise it’s a typical New York City restaurant, a little tight, but cozy and lively.
My dishes were super delicious, traditional with a twist, lovely plating. I started my dinner with Green Curry Clams, which were stuffed with Thai herbs and rice in a green curry sauce. So different and so good. Next I had the Coconut Chicken Thailandese, which is coconut crusted chicken with passion fruit Nam Prik, served with green mango, avocado, mint, cilantro and lemongrass. It was huge and perfectly cooked. So nice and crispy. I attempted to eat a third dish, Khao Soi, which is a northern style golden curry with egg noodles, chicken leg, pickled mustard greens and fresh turmeric. It is served with chili jam, and it is all that! Probably my favorite dish that day. I ended up taking it home, making it my dinner. What a great day, what a great meal.
Tha Phraya
Tha Phraya seems to be the new kid on the block. Located on the Upper Eastside, this restaurant is a bit more like the traditional New York Thai spots. The restaurant is long and slim, just like a lot of Upper Eastside restaurants. It’s welcoming and the whole place smells delicious, the promise of great food is in the air. I happened to dine here for restaurant week with a good friend, and here are the highlights of our dinner,
My appetizer was called Tod Mun Goong, which are crispy shrimp cakes in the shape of a little donut, served with a homemade plum sauce. I loved these! My dinner was Pla Tod Yum Mango, a fried Bronzino, served with a green mango salad, shallots, chili, scallions, cilantro and lime dressing. It had a nice little char on it, it was really good. My friend had Kaeng he’d Red Yang, which consisted of a pan seared duck breast, lychee, pineapple, tomato and basil in a homemade red curry. Everything was perfect! Very traditional, very tasty, we felt that we really had a great dinner.
Leave a Reply