Baan Thai

We are both pretty loyal when it comes to our local Thai restaurant, Thailanna.  So when my sister, Sara, and my brother-in-law, Gary, invited us to their favourite spot, we were of course a little skeptical.
As we circled Centrepointe Drive in search of Baan Thai, we pulled up to a surprisingly busy parking lot.  I was pretty sure the dentist office wasn’t open, so when we walked in, past the curtains, and found that every table was occupied at 6:30 p.m. on this Saturday, I thought to myself “well it can’t be that bad”.
And it wasn’t.  The warm orange decor was welcoming and inviting, you never would have felt as though you were sitting inside a Nepean strip mall.  After a bit of a wait for drinks and finally deciding on the dinner for four, the evening was finally off to a great start.
The dinner for four consisted of:
– Tom Kha Gai – hot and sour chicken soup with mushrooms in coconut milk blended with freshly chopped lemongrass, galangal and lime leaves
– Po Pia Pak – spring rolls stuffed with an assortment of vegetables and bean thread noodles, served with plum dipping sauce
– Gaeng Garee Gai – yellow curry with chicken and potatoes
– Goong Pad Pak – sautéed shrimp with mixed vegetables in garlic sauce
– Pad Ga Prow – beef sautéed with onions, sweet pepper, fresh chillies and basil leaves in a spicy garlic sauce
– Pad Thai – Thai rice noodles stir-fried with chicken, egg, bean sprouts, green onions and peanuts.
– Steamed jasmine rice
– Lemongrass tea
There was more than enough food to share, good value considering all the above was only $85 (plus tax).  I loved the variety of our selection, getting to try new dishes and sharing it with everyone at the table.
We each received our own bowl of Tom Kha Gai, it was hearty with lots of mushroom and chicken and the spice was just perfect, enough to clear your sinuses but not enough to make your eyes water.  And who doesn’t enjoy a good spring roll? Crispy, hot and you get to dip it in a sweet and sticky plum sauce.  It’s no different at Baan Thai, plus the spring rolls seem to be larger than some I’ve seen at other restaurants, bonus!
Gaeng Garee Gai is one of my favourite Thai dishes, however, I found Baan’s version to be a little meak, and tasted a too much like coconut milk (better safe than sorry I guess).  The Pad Thai seemed to lack egg or chicken, however it was still the sticky goodness I expected and probably one of the best I’ve tasted.  And the Pad Ga Prow was VERY spicy, even for the diehards like Greg and Gary, thankfully for the boys there was plenty of Tsing Tsao beer.
Overall we had a very enjoyable evening, and I could see us all meeting at our center point again for another dinner for four. ~kM