Thai One On :: Thailand Kitchen

As adventurous as you may be in the rest of your life, if you're like me, when it comes to ordering take-out and/or delivery, you usually reach for your tried-and-true favorites; local joints that you've come to rely upon for fast and easy meals. So you'll understand why although I had every intention to try them much earlier, it took me a while before I finally ventured to Thailand Kitchen, at 86-05 Jamaica Avenue.

And since I was trying something new, I wanted to sample something other than my usual Pad Thai. But...

That's what I tend to judge a Thai restaurant on- its Pad Thai. The 'classic' Thai dish, it consists of wide rice noodles saut?ed with egg, dried bean curd, bean sprouts, ground peanuts, green onions, and your choice of chicken, beef, tofu, vegetables or vegetarian duck (in this case). Talk about a filling entr?e!

Obviously Thai cuisine has more to offer than "just" Pad Thai. With diverse flavors and ingredients that set it apart for Chinese, Japanese and Korean cuisine, Thai food nonetheless often gets thrown into that mix, likely because so many restaurants offer an odd mix of some (or all) the above cuisine, leading to confused diners- and gross generalizations regarding "Asian food."

Another popular Thai dish is Thai curry, which is not a single spice but a combination of spices that usually contain tumeric, cinnamon, coriander, galanga and anise seed. A Massaman curry tends to add red chili, garlic and cumin.

Turmeric has a peppery, warm and bitter flavor and a mild fragrance slightly reminiscent of orange and ginger. And while it is best known as one of the ingredients used to make curry (here's some random food trivia!), it's also the "secret" ingredient that gives ballpark mustard its bright yellow color. It's the cumin that is widely used in curry that gives the dish that distinctive taste and strong aroma.

You may also associate lemon grass with Thai foods, especially soup. In fact, much of that flavor comes from Kaffir lime leaves, which- when combined with lemongrass- creates a great citrus flavor widely used in Thai soups.

Thai cuisine tends to use chili to spice things up, and although I've got sensitive taste buds and usually shy away from anything more than 2-stars, I decided to give it a go this time around and went for a "safe" salad and one spicy soup. Glass Noodle Salad is a base of translucent vermicelli noodles made from mung bean starch. To this they add minced chicken and shrimp, chili, onions and cilantro, and it's topped with a lime dressing. Yum!

Lemongrass Shrimp Soup- better known as Tom Yom- is a hot and sour soup with lemongrass and galanga root, a white-fleshed root from Thailand that's often described as a ginger alternative. What makes the soup "hot" is the chili pepper. Luckily for me, I found that this particular chili doesn't circulate around your whole mouth and make it unbearable. It hit the back of my throat, and within a few spoonfuls I was able to build up a tolerance and appreciate the excellent flavors.

On another occasion I ordered the Coconut Chicken Soup, made with coconut milk, galanga, kaffir lime and scallions. It was quite good and much milder than the Tom Yom.

Being one for variety, I sampled most of the appetizers. The Crispy Spring Rolls are much different than the Chinese ilk, and are filled with glass noodles, cabbage and vegetables. Shrimp Fritters were similar to fried wontons, and filled with ground shrimp and chicken served with a sweet chili sauce. One other appetizer that caught my attention was the Chicken Wings in Sweet Chili Sauce, which didn't disappoint. Fresh and uncoated, the sweet chili sauce, scallions and cilantro gave it added flavor.

Thailand Kitchen is noted for having a special fresh fish of the day, a delectable way to add some Omega-3 to your diet. They serve Steamed Ginger Fish, a whole red snapper, with vegetables and a delicious ginger sauce. However, browsing the bill of fare, I opted for the Grilled Lemongrass Chicken. The marinated half-chicken is served with a plum sauce and some veggies. The marinade is not spicy and the plum chili sauce is perfect- with a bit of a kick- that was toned down by the sweetness of the plum.

I've yet to order a dessert at Thailand Kitchen because I normally order their Thai Iced Coffee to counteract the spiciness, and always feel as if I've already had dessert, in the form of liquid coffee ice cream. Thai coffee, known as "oleang" is a blend of coffee, sesame and corn. Thai restaurants either add milk and sugar or sweetened condensed milk.

Thailand Kitchen has a wonderful outdoor garden in the back and is a warm, friendly and relaxing dining spot. Immerse your taste buds and "Thai one on" for me!

Thailand Kitchen :: 86-05 Jamaica Avenue
718-847-4700