Popped in for dinner a couple of days ago. Plenty of spots in the parking lot. It's a small parking lot but if it's full, wait for a few minutes extra, another car would bound to exit as it's a fast turnover time (most people park to grab their takeout order only). When we entered there were 2 other tables finishing up. The lady owner greeted us and told us to sit anywhere. Promptly she brought us the menu and came back with our water. She gave us enough time to study the menu while she cleaned up the other table that just left.
We came here upon a recommendation of our friend who said that the food is delicious but did not give further caution. So when we put in our order and I went with my usual "4-stars" spiciness, the lady's eyes almost popped out of the sockets and told me "this is Thai spicy, 4 stars is the max!" and my guy said "ok give us 2 stars" and I thought to myself 'lmao what a wuss!', but being a team player, I said ok.
We ordered a 2-star Tom Kha Gai (a must order for him), the highly praised Crispy Garlic Chicken, and a safe bet of 2-star Beef Pineapple Fried Rice. The Tom Kha Gai was indeed amazing. Very good. You can taste the tanginess from the lemongrass instead of the overpowering coconut cream at other Thai restaurants. The delicious soup started with a mere sinus-clearing spicy level for us. Then the Crispy Garlic Chicken came to the table. This one got no spice at all, it was just sweet.. too sweet if I may add and I couldn't taste any garlic. The basil leaves lend nice aroma to the dish as expected, but I must say that I had better Crispy Garlic Chicken elsewhere. On to the Beef Pineapple Fried Rice, this one was very good as well. Somehow the 2-stars in the Fried Rice was not the same spicy level as the Tom Kha even though both were requested in 2 stars. Maybe because the Tom Kha was still a little bit pipping hot as well so it felt extra hot in my stomach.
Not sure if it was just my off-day, but about 10 minutes later, the spiciness *fully* kicked in and I had to admit defeat. I had to retire to my car and regretted I hadn't written my will yet. On the other hand, he soldiered through and teased the fact that earlier I was gonna get 4-stars. On a positive note, the spicy level helped my guy out who had been constipated for a couple of days. Conclusion on the spicy level: 2 stars over here is equivalent to 5 stars elsewhere!
A lot of people came in and out for their takeout orders. Reading previous reviews, many people have remarked that the service is poor. This restaurant is family-owned and the lady owner took charge of the floor and I think a boy who I assume is her son (?) was helping out bringing out the food and drink. She indeed tends to be abrupt but it's because she's all business and wants to move as fast and efficient as possible. However when she stopped by and I told her that the Tom Kha Gai is delicious, she was very happy and it put her in a better spirit.
But I did witness she scolded the guy at the table behind us, cause apparently he wanted to order their god-like omelette or egg dish but they would only make it for you if you call first and order ahead. The guy said that he had been scolded many times about it so he was aware of this rule and said she always agreed to make it for him in the end.
The place is clean but not very large inside so seating can be limited when busy. When we came they didn't turn on the TV even though I could hear the whistle from the NFL game played on the TV in the kitchen. So the dining area was dead quiet with no music and no TV, and two women were having very loud, uncomfortable tense conversation across us which made me feel uneasy throughout. Price is in a very good range for the big portion you get. We'd love to come back here and just do 1-star Thai spicy (which I think falls in 3-stars category at other Americanized Thai restaurants) next time. By the way if you hate yourself or if you want to punish a loved one for a wrongdoing, this restaurant also do 6-stars spicy level upon request. read more