Thai food

[spicegirldc]

I adore Thai food. We haved back to the DC area after being away for 10 years. I am having trouble finding a true Thai resturant.. any suggestions? I dont mind driving to MD or anywhere in Northern VA or DC

thanks

[foodgeek]

I adore Thai food. We haved back to the DC area after being away for 10 years. I am having trouble finding a true Thai resturant.. any suggestions? I dont mind driving to MD or anywhere in Northern VA or DC

thanks

MD and NoVa? I like Tara Thai (Rockville) which is a new location and has nice decor. The NoVa (Viena) location that i tried is good as well, but I think i prefer the Rockville one.

I also like Benjarong (Rockville), although Tara Thai seems more authentic, and I prefer it. If you go to Benjarong...there are two bubble tea places in that strip mall. I recommend Tenren (no seating.)

BTW, it isn't Thai but I also recommend Taste of Saigon (Viet) in Rockville. Ther is also one in NoVA (Tysin's Corner.)

[spicegirldc]

I have tried the Tara Thai in N. VA and thought it was okay.. I will try the one in Rockville, sounds like it is good. 10 years ago, I used to eat at The Thai Kingdom in downtown DC, I think it was on K street. Have not been there is a while. Have you tried it?

[foodgeek]

I have tried the Tara Thai in N. VA and thought it was okay.. I will try the one in Rockville, sounds like it is good.  10 years ago, I used to eat at The Thai Kingdom in downtown DC, I think it was on K street. Have not been there is a while. Have you tried it?

nope. I'm not actually based in the DC area, although I'm in Rockville a lot.

I have heard that two of the best Thai restaurants in the DC area are Duangrat's and Rabieng in Fall's Church (NoVa.) they are owned by the same people. i haven't been to either. They are rated well by zagats, not that it helps. :)

http://eg.washingtonpost.com/profile/79959...ext=restaurants

http://eg.washingtonpost.com/profile/79466...vor_id=2&tmpl=1

[slarochelle]

If you are in the Rockville area, Wheaton is just down the road. On University, east of Georgia Ave is Dusit (sp?), a great Thai place. The restaurant is nothing fancy but the food is always great; it's our take-out choice, so the decor (or lack of it) is irrelevant.

A friend who spent a summer in Thailand said the food/flavors are pretty authentic.

[foodgeek]

If you are in the Rockville area, Wheaton is just down the road.  On University, east of Georgia Ave is Dusit (sp?), a great Thai place.  The restaurant is nothing fancy but the food is always great; it's our take-out choice, so the decor (or lack of it) is irrelevant.

A friend who spent a summer in Thailand said the food/flavors are pretty authentic.

I guess that was directed at me (since i mentioned Rockville.)

We are happy with Tara Thai and Benjarong (in Rockville) for now. And I have a great extremely authentic Thai place in nyc that I go to. :)

If you have other recommendations in or near Rockville, i'd love to hear them. You may want to reply to my Rockville thread, since I was more specific there. :)

[Steve Klc]

Come to the Courthouse section of Arlington--the place Tom S. just reviewed--Singh Thai, I believe--is fantastic and endearing. Not every dish is fantastic but on the whole, quite good. I've eaten there now 3 times--very enthusiastic staff, a few servers still "practicing" their English on you, it's a small place with a patio--the antithesis of "chain" Thai. Come early or make reservations--for now, at least, they seem to honor them.

Slowly, but surely, Courthouse and Clarendon are getting a few worthwhile restaurants doing interesting and/or technically adept food at fair price points--this place, Minh's (Vietnamese) just up the street from it, and the Boulevard Wood Grill further up Wilson Boulevard. I've always been partial to the stand-bys Mexicali Blues and Hard Times--for what they do as well--so now you have my neighborhood list.

[Malawry]

My esteemed housemate Abi raved about a soup she had at Dusit in Wheaton, so we drove out there a few months ago and checked it out. I liked their soups but thought the rest of the dishes we ordered were so-so. What do you like to order there, Steve L?

We ate at one other Thai place in Wheaton not too long ago, in the same strip center as Hollywood East...I forget the name. The food was terrible: greasy and thick. I have never been to a Thai place in the District that I regarded as worth returning to, but I haven't tried any in a long time. Star of Siam, Jandara, Thaiphoon, Sala Thai, etc etc. All the same oversweetened, undersharpened dishes.

I think the original Tara is the one in Bethesda's downtown (MD). I ate there periodically when I worked in Bethesda years ago. It was the first Thai restaurant I ate in (having moved from NC where Thai food hadn't exactly taken off yet) and I remember being impressed by the palate of flavors. But I haven't returned in a long time, and I think my impression was colored by my then-vegetarianism and my inexperience with the cuisine. I would try it again if I was in that part of Bethesda and hungry but unable to get into Jaleo.

BTW Tara Thai won snaps with me for not only having a vegetarian menu, but also offering to prepare vegetarian items without fish sauce upon request. I appreciated this greatly when I did not eat fish, and for a long time they were the only Thai place I saw that acknowledged that fish might not be acceptable to all vegetarians.

[slarochelle]

At Dusit, I've had (and enjoyed) the red and green curries, drunken noodles, and a couple others (can't remember w/out menu here). My wife's always loved whatever vegetarian item she's gotten, although we haven't checked on the use of fish sauce. We have heard that some Asian cultures consider fish products to still be vegetarian. As a result, and because of an argument with Oodles Noodles (?) Bethesda management, we aren't eating there ever again.

Oh, and the potato puff curry at Dusit is delicious. I'd like to figure out how to make the filling......

Steve

[spicegirldc]

WOW such wonderful suggestions, I will surely try some of these places and then post a review. I tried one near Tysons Corner a few weeks ago, something with b... (getting old - cant remember the name) -- well it wasnt any good ..thanks for the suggestions.. please keep them coming

On another note, when I lived in Boston, we ate a lot at Penang, a wonderful Malaysian place. I read somewhere that they have a branch in DC, has anyone tried it?

[foodgeek]

On another note, when I lived in Boston, we ate a lot at Penang, a wonderful Malaysian place. I read somewhere that they have a branch in DC, has anyone tried it?

Yes.

A better Malaysian place would be Malaysia Kopitiam in the Dupont Circle area. They know their stuff and can even steer you towards the Malay, Chinese, and Indian infuences in the menu. I love the Indian influenced stuff on Malaysian menus (assam laksa, roti canai, roti telur, curries) and I'm not even into Indian food.

[jeffsui]

WOW such wonderful suggestions, I will surely try some of these places and then post a review. I tried one near Tysons Corner a few weeks ago, something with b... (getting old - cant remember the name) -- well it wasnt any good ..thanks for the suggestions.. please keep them coming

On another note, when I lived in Boston, we ate a lot at Penang, a wonderful Malaysian place. I read somewhere that they have a branch in DC, has anyone tried it?

I think the Pennang in DC burned down - or at least had a kitchen fire. A friend of mine worked there and now she works in an NYC branch with a bunch of the old DC people.

She told me never to eat at pennang becuase they go very heavy on the MSG.

[Al_Dente]

Duangrat's and Rabieng in Fall's Church are both very good. As stated above, both are owned by the same people. I can't recall, but I seem to remember one of them being a little more upscale in decor and pricing and the other seemed to have largely the same food but for lower prices. I don't remember which was which though. Both had courteous, knowledgeable, and English speaking Thai staff.

[elyhtak]

Duangrat's and Rabieng in Fall's Church are both very good. As stated above, both are owned by the same people. I can't recall, but I seem to remember one of them being a little more upscale in decor and pricing and the other seemed to have largely the same food but for lower prices. I don't remember which was which though. Both had courteous, knowledgeable, and English speaking Thai staff.

Rabieng is the smaller, quainter, less expensive of the two - and interestingly also better and with more authentic tastes. While both are good, Duangrats is more suited towards a non-Thai palate. I highly highly recommend Rabieng. As someone already mentioned Singh Thai in Clarendon is also overall very good, small, and inexpensive. There is also Thai Pilin in a strip mall on Leesburg Pike in Tyson's. It is cafe-style, very little and best of carry-out, but it's inexpensive, good for the cost and speed, and quite consistent. It's great for a good, quick Thai fix.

I am not a fan of Tara Thai at all, the tastes in most dishes are over simplified.

[lackadaisi]

I also enjoy Singh Thai - and it is so inexpensive. I think that Duangrat's has gone downhill a little in the past few years. The best pad thai that I have had in the area is at Neisha Thai, which is across the street from Duangrat's. I have only been to Rabieng for their version of dim sum, and it was wonderful.

[jamesglu]

I have had wonderful meals at Neisha in the Tysons Corner mall (near the Circuit City, where there used to be a movie theatre). Also very good are Busara (Tysons again) and Thai Square on Columbia Pike in Arlington.

[coastcat]

Neisha is a mixed bag - it's a bit Polynesian in flavor and they don't quite understand squid, but the quality is definitely better than you'd expect in a mall. My husband is devoted to pad thai, and Neisha is his second-favorite (it would rank first if they offered bean sprouts on the side so they're still crisp - Benjarong does that, and thus remains his top choice). It has a stronger peanut flavor than most. It's definitely yummy. Neisha does a good tom yum goong. However, entrees listed as spicy tend to be on the mild side. The waiter highly recommended their barbecued seafood talay, which would have been tasty if you like Kraft honey barbecue sauce on your scallops! The green curry was good, though, and I've become a fan of their kao pad talay (spicy seafood fried rice). You just have to remember to tell the waiter that you want your spicy dishes to actually be spicy.

I rather like Bangkok Garden in Bethesda. It's not a particularly handsome space, but I've found a lot to enjoy there. The bean curd and pork soup is soothing on a cold evening, and anything with basil and chili or chili and garlic sauce makes me a happy lass.

We've only tried the original Tara Thai on Maple Avenue in Vienna. First visit was excellent, but subsequent visits have been disappointing.

I enjoyed the flavors of what we tried from Pilin Thai in Tysons, but was not impressed by the quality of ingredients - nor was I impressed to discover that two of the seven mussels in my order of pad gra prow talay had not opened during cooking (and were served to me anyway). We'll try Pilin again, but I'll avoid mussel dishes next time...

Our regular Thai place is Benjarong in Rockville. I love their yum woon sen appetizer and tom yum with vegetables, and my cure for a bad day is their phad poh tak (mixed seafood with basil and chili). They usually use frozen green-lip mussels, but at least they buy good ones. I'm also fond of their kee mao (drunken noodles).

I hear that Thai restaurants also serve dishes that aren't marked as very spicy. Maybe one day I'll even try one...

[bilrus]

My personal favorite is Sala Thai on P St. off Dupont Circle.

[jparrott]

I don't really know what "true" Thai is, but I like Paya Thai in Tysons. Mostly for the winelist, though--lots of Koehler-Ruprecht and other underrepresented, high-quality German producers and very reasonable prices.

[KatieLoeb]

I had a lovely Thai dim sum brunch with a friend I was visiting in D.C. at Rabieng. I thought the flavors were bright and delicious and the presentations quite nice. Not terribly expensive either, for the quality.

There was also an interesting Asian market in the same little strip mall where I was able to buy quite a few hard to find ingredients. Neat little shop.

[BBhasin]

come to my neighborhood girl. Po-Siam on Mount Vernon Avenue in Alexandria,is perhaps the most authentic thai in the area.

Get to know the owners Nicky and his wife Ratna ( who prepares most of the sauces ) it will enhance your future ding experiences here. They were among the 'top 40 value for money' restaurants in the metro area by members of consumers checkbook.

While on mount vernon ave, also checkout the following

Rt's

Bombay Curry Company

Fireflies

Evening Star Cafe

Taqueria Poblano

Los Amigos

[Monica Bhide]

I am in love -- we found a place called Natta Thai in VA.. the food is wonderful!! Very authentic, prices are reasonable and service is superb. We have eaten there a number of times and NEVER been dissappointed.. looks like my search is coming to an end.

BBhasin, I would love to try the places in your neighbourhood.. will I get to come to your restaurant too?

[Al_Dente]

come to my neighborhood girl. Po-Siam on Mount Vernon Avenue  in Alexandria,is perhaps the most authentic thai in the area.

Get to know the owners Nicky and his wife Ratna ( who prepares most of the sauces ) it will enhance your future ding experiences here. They were among the 'top 40 value for money' restaurants in the metro area by members of consumers checkbook.

While on mount vernon ave, also checkout the following

Rt's

Bombay Curry Company

Fireflies

Evening Star Cafe

Taqueria Poblano

Los Amigos

Whereabouts is Po-Siam? I'm familiar with the neighborhood (Bombay Curry, RT's, and Taqueria Poblano are all great).

Also, Monica, where is Natta Thai?

[edemuth]

I just looked up Natta Thai, which is in Vienna (never been though). Their website is at www.nattathai.com.

THAI in Shirlington gets my vote for Virginia Thai food, although most of my Thai-food experiences have been in DC (I like Bua). I've also heard the THAI in Shirlington owners are opening another Thai restaurant in the Washington Harbour complex later this year; I believe the name is Bangkok Joe's. Hopefully it will open soon enough to take advantage of Sequoia's waterfront bar before dining there!

I do not like any of the Tara Thai locations--many of the dishes are one- or two-note flavors and too sweet for my tastes. However, if you're nearby and just want drinks, the Ballston Tara Thai is worth a visit for the gorgeous decor.

[BBhasin]

forgot to tell you about my seccond favorite thai place THAIPHOON

They have two locations, pentagon row Arlington is closer to me but I prefer to go to the one in the Dupont Circle area, the food is definetly better there.