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Thai food

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Can anyone recommend a good Thai restaurant? We're looking for one which will serve "real" Thai food, not a melange of Indonesian, Malaysian, Chinese, etc. It should also be pretty fiery stuff. We've just moved back from years overseas, partly in Asia, and are desperate for the genuine article. My grandmother is half-Thai and she can only recommend one place in Flushing.

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  1. Use the Chowhound search tool to find articles about
    Sripraphai, in Woodside -- it's been discussed several
    times in the last year or so. Excellent and authentic

    1. I am Thai and I'm still looking. A few places I've found for specific dishes ( all restaurants in Manhattan): Thai Orchid on 1st and 52nd or 53rd has excellent pad see ew and OK lard na ( this is my brother's test dish of a restaurant). Thailand Cafe is in Chinatown on Bayard and Baxter. They have good noodle soups with the meatballs, etc. and curries that you rarely see on most Thai menus here in the US. They will also make it as spicy as you want it to be. One place I haven't tried in Chinatown is Mueng Thai, which is down the street from Joe's Shanghai. The tod mun at Jai-Ya Thai is wonderful. I lived in Thailand for a while and my quest to duplicate those flavors still goes on. Happy hunting and if you find others, please post.

      1. I'm not sure how "authentic" it is, since I've never
        been to Thailand, but I like Bua Thai House on West St,
        way downtown near Battery Park City.
        It's run by Thais, and many of the customers are Thai.
        It's also very inexpensive and informal.

        1. s
          Sue Llewellyn

          Has anyone tried Thai Village, on West Third St., near
          Sixth Ave. (next to the Blue Note)?

          1. What is the name (and address if you have it) of
            the place recommended by your grandma? I live in
            Flushing and have been searching for good Thai
            cuisine since I returned from SE Asia last winter.
            If you're ever in Forest Hills I can recommend
            "Simply Thai" at 118-16 Queens Blvd. Their food
            is a close approximation to the delectable fare
            I sampled over there.

            4 Replies
            1. re: christina z

              I followed up one of the suggestions posted in response to my first email and tried out Sripraphai, which turned out to be the same place my grandmother had mentioned. Maybe it was all the anticipation, but I confess the food wasn't all that amazing. Nonetheless it did have that genuine flavor. The roast duck green curry was the highlight - very tender meat (the first time I've had this meat in Thai curry) and a deep fiery curry sauce. We also liked the papaya salad and Thai beef salad. The disappointment was the pad thai, which was nicely cooked (not too greasy) but seemed to lack any real taste.
              The staff, however, were unquestioningly great. They were friendly and quick to help with suggestions and point out personal favorites.
              We also noticed lots of Thai customers coming in either to eat or to buy prepared foods - sweet and savoury - at the front counter.
              It's well worth the trip out to Woodside - only 15 minutes from Grand Central Station on the 7 line or under 10 minutes from Penn Station by the LIRR.

              1. re: Adrienne

                I love Sripraphai, but their pad thai is a
                dissappointment. Much better are their noodle dishes
                made with the broad fresh rice noodles. I esp. like
                the one with beef, broccoli and sweet soy, and another
                with ground meat, chili and basil -- so hot it really
                makes your mouth sing. i have also heard good things
                about their spaghetti with curry sauce, though I have
                never tried it.

                Nyonya, a Malaysian place on Grand, has some great
                noodles. Stand outs are a pad thai like dish with
                lots of shrimp paste and garlic -- very pungent and
                not sweet at all. It is called something like "cow
                chews toe" and is the first dish in the noodle
                section. (Gary Cheong, if you are listening please
                rescue me on the name, and weigh in on the dish too!)
                Also good is their mee siam, sort of a pscychedelic
                singapore (oxymoron?) riff on pad thai, with sweet and
                hot chili sauce and pork cracklings -- real wild.

                1. re: Alan Divack
                  Michele Fuchs

                  Gary, if you are listening "I am back!!!!" I got a new
                  computer and can access the site again.

                  Nyonya is very good, fast service, VERY reasonable and
                  VERY tasty! Right Gary???!!!

                  1. re: Michele Fuchs

                    Right, Michele. Glad to see you back