Sri Thai is on my watch list for places around town now. I am a huge fan of any place that makes delicious, well presented meals and doesn't mess up Thai iced tea (it happens a lot).
My boyfriend and I stopped by at Sri Thai for an early dinner before heading to pick up movie tickets. It was between this and 5 Guys. The line for 5 Guys was ABSURD. I mean it was crawling out of the building. Do these people know we have Nations in Pleasanton? And it's good? Weird that so many people were there yet its reviews aren't great. Anyway!!
The interior is beautifully decorated with a sort of steampunk vibe to it with the white table cloth and wrought iron chairs with black-painted ceiling equipment visible. A lot of restaurants nowadays don't cover up those ceiling innards at all, but Sri went and painted it all black so it actually had a decent, cozy, yet very open feel.
The staff was friendly and precise, but our waitress took a minute to come up and take our drink orders after we seated ourselves up front. We ordered 2 Thai iced teas and they came out decently quick. The speed isn't the real issue here but the FLAVOR! I am a huge, huge fan of Thai iced tea done right with fresh ingredients. It was light, very slightly sweet, and very slightly "creamed". Bright orange tones swirled around the glass and I just wish, for $3, that they put less ice and more tea.
For our meals (we did not get an app, sorry!), I ordered the basil chicken fried rice and Brian ordered the pumpkin curry with rice on the side. I know, fried rice isn't that great of a "meal" dish, but often times Thai fried rice is just so intricate, its a meal in and of itself. And they did not disappoint.
The rice was light and fluffy, but sticky and lightly fried. It clumped if you wanted it to clump, yet you could easily break apart clumps in the middle. The basil chicken that was interspersed throughout was DELICIOUS. Lightly seasoned with traditional Thai seasonings and a drizzle of that Sriracha on the side with other various vegetable accoutrements, this was a meal I would recommend for everyone.
The pumpkin curry, which I did snatch a bite of, was tender and mild. It was not especially spicy in the bite of pumpkin I took, but that's good because he doesn't like spicy stuff anyway (unless it's my southern home cooking). The flavors were clear, though, and I enjoy it when a restaurant serves food and I can clearly tell its fresh. I have a sensitive chef's palate, what can I say!
We got our check and were out the door swiftly after finishing our meals.
Our total bill was $30. Now, that's not terrible, but that price will leave your wallet wanting if all you're getting are 2 meals and 2 teas. I can't imagine how wanting it will be when you load up with apps. But what I will say is that if you do choose to spend your money there - it's worth it. Well-dressed meals, well-dressed staff (if a tiny bit inattentive even on slow days like ours was), and attention to detail. It's worth the extra 2 bucks or so than what you'd spend at a garbage dump with a line out the door. ;) read more