Marni pretended food was a medium.

Marni Newell
Thai Cuisine: A hot spot in the middle of winter
2/4/09

In a typical Thai fashion, Thai Cuisine, on Drake Rd. near West Main, has an air of exotic fashion with a modest twist: the neat square tables with stark white table clothes are each covered with their own matching white disposable sheet to be removed as the customer leaves, allowing for slick, clean look all day. It isn’t too distracting, the walls are covered in bright red and gold wall paper featuring Buddha, and ornaments and statues grace the walls and doors with mosaic colored mirrors. The atmosphere distracts long enough for the wait staff to notice within a reasonable amount of time to seat customers.
This exotic on the outside, modest at a closer look theme resonates through the entire meal starting with the thick menus encased in chic plastic and leather holders, but with a picture of Buddha printed on white paper that has that Microsoft Word Art feeling, not to mention the loose leaf of white paper with the lunch specials printed on it.
Thai Cuisine has authentic Thai appetizers like barbequed skewered pork, Moo Tod, and deep fried tofu along with more generally Asian items like Crab Rangoon and hot and sour soup. They offer Thailand’s two biggest drink options: Iced Tea and Coffee, in an accurate, if classier, representation of the bright orange and light brown super-sweet bagged drinks bought on street corners in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

Meals are moderately priced at Thai cuisine with lunch specials between nine and twelve dollars for a cup of soup and lunch entrée and twelve to twenty-five dollars for any dinner entrees. Appetizers are three to six dollars and their coconut ice cream is three dollars. Not only are there strictly vegetarian options, but all meals can be ordered with either pork, chicken, shrimp, beef, or tofu.
When ordering dishes, the wait staff asks what heat level the dish should be: mild, hot, very hot, and Thai hot, in an effort to appease Westerners. Mild hot still leads to runny noses, and one customer had a full plate of fried vegetables, Pad Pak, she couldn’t eat even though it was only ordered “very hot.” Discretion should be taken when requesting hot dishes from Thai Cuisine: they’re used to making meals much hotter.
The entrees come quickly after the soup to start and are hearty portions, mostly curry or fried vegetables with a scoop or two of rice on the side. The presentation is once again beautiful at first glance and when a zigzag cut carrot is speared in the curry, it brings back the modest air of crossing cultures.
Though Thai Cuisine uses more American vegetables like green onions and carrots, but the general flavor is reminiscent of Thailand. The sweeter and milder flavors of Thai Cuisine will bring customers the ultimate Thai-American meal for a moderate price. The atmosphere is comfortable, the music quiet and soothing, and although customers are treated with a large view of the snowy parking lot and adjacent pancake restaurant, it’s all oddly part of the endearing exotically modest experience. After all when a meal for two including drinks and a dessert is under thirty dollars, the view is definitely not a deal breaker.