vermontliving

Nestled on the lower end of Lake Street in St. Albans, in the building that formerly housed The Docks, Thai House seems to have finally brought life back to the building.  The Docks was great, but St. Albans’ no-smoking policy killed the popular pub.  A second restaurant failed in its attempt to remain open for any length of time.  Thai House always seems to have a decent crowd and the food is fantastic.

I’ve been numerous times and find the service to be amazing.  I always check with the state to see how their health inspectors have rated a restaurant, and Thai House passed with a score in the 80s.  There certainly is room for improvement, but at least they are not in the low 70s like many area restaurants.

 Thai House is open seven days a week.  Monday through Saturday lunch is served from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.  Dinner is served from 4:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.  Sunday offers dinner only from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.  The restaurant offers every item on their menu for take out by calling 802-524-0999.

I’ve never been to Thailand, so I can’t vouch for how authentic the food actually is.  I can, however, say that I’ve yet to taste a dish on the menu that hasn’t thrilled me!  The menu is quite diverse and offers many scrumptious dishes:

Appetizers

For $3.50, the spring rolls are stuffed with crispy vegetables and cellophane noodles.  Somewhat small, you really will want more than one order if you have a group of people with you.  Chicken Satay ($4.50) is a favorite with my family.  The four skewers of chicken are all juicy and flavorful.  The Thai peanut dipping sauce is perfectly balanced with a hint of ginger, but it is the cucumber sauce that I truly love.  I haven’t figured out all of the ingredients, but it is sweet and tangy at the same time.  Prawn rolls ($4.50) aren’t bad, but the portion is too skimpy to bother with again.  The Crispy Calamari ($4.50) is our other favorite.  Instead of rings, the calamari is left whole and then battered in tempura batter and fried perfectly.  The sauce is tangy, just enough chili to hit the back of your throat, but not overpowering.

Main Dishes

Hands down, Drunken Noodles is my favorite dish.  For $6.95 (lunch) or $8.95 (dinner), you choose between chicken, shrimp, tofu, pork or beef.  The noodles are not for the finicky; they do have quite a bit of spice to them.  The Pad Thai or Pad Si-Ew, also both $6.95 (lunch) or $8.95 (dinner), are mild and full of flavor.

If you want curry, there are numerous offerings.  I recommend the Chu Chee (priced from $6.95 to $9.95 depending on the meat or seafood you select).  The sauce is mildly spiced, but the addition of pineapple lends a sweetness that helps tone down the heat.  Prik Khing is also excellent, but the lime leaves were tough, in my opinion, and sliced tiny so it was hard to pick them out.

Salads are available and range from $3.50 to $6.50.  The Thai House Garden Salad is my daughter’s favorite, but my husband enjoys the Jungle Shrimp Salad with its spicy dressing and grilled shrimp.

Dessert

I won’t lie.  If I actually make it to dessert, which is rare, I tend to skip over the authentic Thai desserts and head straight for the Fried Ice Cream ($3.50).  A large scoop of ice cream is wrapped in pound cake, covered in tempura batter and deep fried until golden.  The ice cream ball is then covered in chocolate and whipped cream.  It’s decadent!  Thai Custard Sticky Rice is offered ($3.50) and equally good if you can get past the unusual blackness.

Beverages

I usually go for Mango Juice ($1.75), but I recently sampled Thai House’s Thai Iced Tea ($1.75.)  First, the color was unusual.  It’s a brilliant caramel-orange shade.  The drink itself was sweet, nothing like iced tea, and exceptionally creamy and flavorful.  I had to look up how it is made to find out what makes it so unique.  Apparently, the tea is steeped with star anise, cinnamon and vanilla first.  Then it is mixed with sugar syrup, poured over ice and topped with a mixture of condensed milk and cream.  

Sodas are available (Coke products) and there are other teas, coffees and fruit juices.  Thai House does not have a liquor license, so if you want beer or wine, you must bring it with you.

Trackback URI | Comments RSS