Sawadee Thai

[Daniel]

I recently went to this restaurant in Metuchen called Sawdee thai. My parents live in EB and my mother has been on a thai kick lately. She has me traveling from South River, to Edison, and surrounding areas searching for the best thai. And among all these new places that have sprung up, non of them really seem to have gotten it correctly, that is until i went to Sawdee Thai.

I went with a fairly large party so i was able to get a variety of dishes. We started off with the thai wings which were fried to perfection. Crispy and with an amazing sauce. I would compare them to the wings at Lotus of Siam in Vegas, baby Vegas. We also had the beef and chicken satay, which is as good as i have had anywhere. Also tried the fried crab sausage in a sweet and sour sauce. My least favorite appetizer, but i would happily eat them on any occasion. We also ordered pork spring rolls which i didnt eat, but everyone said they were terrific. We also had a vegetable soup which was great.

For entrees we got Cat Fish in a cho chee sauce.. I really really like spicy food. In fact i often am disappointed at the heat of thai restaurants because the thai peppers can only reach a certain heat level. So, i often look for thai places like LOS that will cheat and use habeneros as well. But everything at this place is served pretty hot to begin with. So i ordered the cat fish as hot as they would make it, and after several minutes of the waitress warning me that she would not take the food back, she placed the order.. All i have to say is that it was perfect. They must use habeneros too. We also got the Beef Penang which was fabulous. The drunken noodles which were the best i have ever had. And the pad thai which was love as well. There were a few pork dishes which i didnt eat, but everyone was raving about this place.

I would highly reccommend this place to everyone in the area. I would say its worth a half hour drive to get to. My only warning would be to watch out for the spice. There normal heat is still pretty hot. And medium is most places 10.

Daniel

[rozrapp]

Daniel,

Could you please give us the street address and phone number?

Thanks.

[Daniel]

Sawadee Thai Cuisine 400 Main St Metuchen NJ 732-549-8383

If you go friday night there will be a singer.. He actually wasnt horrible.. I would prefer to night have a singer, but whatever. Also down the street there is a pretty good ice cream place. Oh and the desserts were really good too. Had a coconut custard thing, and sticky rice with mango.. The sticky rice was really good.

[rozrapp]

Thanks for the info, Daniel. We generally go out to dinner either mid-week or Sunday, so I guess we'll be missing the singer. I called the restaurant and was very pleased to learn that smoking is not allowed. Also, they are closed on Monday.

[Daniel]

You want to see smoking ask for your food hot.. I am looking foward to another persons opinion

[Casey]

This is one of our staple places, to go in person or even for take out. They do a fabulous job, and I don't think we've ever had a bad meal there.

What I also like is that they open up the large windows in the front so you can have an outdoor dining experience without sitting on the sidewalk.

Rosie would know this better than I, but I believe they are owned by the same group that owns Pad Thai in Highland Park. But I like the physical space of Sawadee better....

Casey

[Daniel]

Is that your favorite thai in the area. Also what would you suggest to get there.

[rozrapp]

We had lunch at Sawadee today. The space is quite large with pleasant décor – lots of dark wood and a lot of plants, some real and some not – and a good-sized bar on one side. (They have a liquor license.) Not too surprising that at 2 p.m. on a Wednesday afternoon, there were not many diners. We were given a table for two at the front of the room. Only one of the doors at the front was open, but it provided sufficient cooling even though the a.c. was not on.

We were first given lunch menus. There were lots of dishes listed, as well as a 2-course lunch special for $10.95. However, there was no section listing appetizers, and I love appetizers. When we asked our server about this, she said that this was the quick lunch menu, and if we wanted the regular menu, she would bring it. So, we turned in our lunch menu and perused the regular menu, which was almost the length of a novella. After my husband and I chewed over the possibilities, we put in our order.

For appetizers we had vegetable spring rolls, chicken satays, and steamed dumplings. The 6 little spring rolls were delicious -- perfectly fried, not a hint of oiliness, and with a tasty sweet and sour dipping sauce. The 4 satays were nicely grilled and came with two accompaniments: a luscious peanut sauce and a little bowl of lightly pickled chopped cucumbers and red onions. My husband wanted the steamed dumplings (6) and, while he was happy with them, I would have preferred them fried. To me, steamed dumplings taste like stuffed cotton. However, the spicy -- but not too spicy -- dipping sauce made them much more palatable to me.

We had two main courses: Pad Thai and Gaeng Massamam. The Pad Thai here combined the rice noodles with shrimp, roast pork, tofu, green onions, ground peanuts, bean sprouts, and minced fried egg. We both thought it was super – the best version we’ve had. The Gaeng Massamam is, basically, a stew of broiled potatoes (both white and sweet), onions and mushrooms sautéed with peanuts and choice of meat – my husband chose beef – in massam curry. It was served with white rice. We discussed the level of spice with our server, and she said that the kitchen would not spice it up unless we chose to have it that way. Since I don’t like things too spicy, we decided to go with no extra spice, and my husband would add extra spice at the table. I wasn’t that crazy about the stew – I thought the beef was a bit tough, though I liked the sweet potatoes and the sauce had nice flavor -- but my husband was pleased with it. Portions are very generous, and we took home some leftovers from both dishes.

We did not have dessert. My husband had a beer. The bill, with tax and tip, came to $47.

Daniel mentioned a singer on Friday nights. According to a couple of billboards that we noticed near the door on our way out, they have jazz on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and the names of the performers and dates were listed. No singers during our lunch, but the very large flat-panel t.v. above the bar was tuned to soap operas on Channel 7. I could have lived very nicely without One Life to Live. Despite that, we both enjoyed the meal and will definitely come back sometime.

Sawadee's web site

Edited July 1, 2004 by rozrapp (log)

[Casey]

I don't think I have a favorite--it is a large menu and we tend to jump around and try lots of things! The two things we always get without fail (takeout or on site) are the vegetable spring rolls (I agree Rozrapp--they are done perfectly!) and the neau dau dow, which is crispy beef with a very hot dipping sauce.

Is it our favorite Thai place? Hmmm, that depends. I actually like the food at Mie Thai in Woodbridge a little better, but only make it there when I get my hair highlighted down the street! I prefer Sawadee's convenience and ambience to Mie Thai, where the decor/feeling is a little too "strip mall" for me!

Casey

[Daniel]

Thanks for the review rozrapp i am glad that you enjoyed your lunch. I have never tried that stew you had, and am now not in a hurry to. I am excited to try that beef app casey and to try the restaurant in Woodbridge.

[Daniel]

http://www.miethai.com/

Nice nice. Looks like i am driving into New Jersey soon.. Thanks for the new place!

[Casey]

Daniel:

If you're driving from NYC, one thing that might help is that both restaurants are within walking distance to train stops. Sawadee in Metuchen is a stone's throw from the Metuchen train station, and Mie Thai is close to the Woodbridge train station (both NJTransit).

Casey

[Daniel]

Hey thanks casey.. That is a good idea. I just prefer to drive. But i did notice how close it was.