Find It...

Thai Nongkhai

Under a photo portrait of the King of Thailand, my dinner guest and I start our meal with Thai Nongkai’s signature two-person appetizer sampler, royal Thai Nongkai ($20). It’s a suitably various dish under a suitably international pictorial gathering on the restaurant’s walls.

The restaurant’s namesake city is located in Thailand’s northeast corner on the Mekong River. A major hub between Thailand and Laos, the city is known for its diverse cuisine, which not only borrows from its cross-river neighbour, but also from China, Vietnam and France. This may explain the restaurant’s sprawling and varied menu.

While our game of “name that monarch” is going nowhere (I’m pretty sure that’s not Muammar al-Ghadafi in that picture, and that lady’s tall, but that doesn’t make her Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands), our starter platter is fit for royalty.

The plate is attractively filled with two of everything. We start with chicken wings. Though they’re not the stuffed variety on the menu, they couldn’t be better or hotter (temperature-wise). They’re golden brown, meaty and extra crisp, but not overcooked. They taste a bit similar to good Vietnamese quail.

Purple flower-shaped dumplings (shaw muong, a traditional Thai favourite) impress with their good looks, though they are mild. These small bites are filled with crumbled chicken filling. Two breaded, butterflied shrimp (sakuna) have been fashioned into small birds. Their heads are formed of mashed potato with black sesame eyes and a chopped carrot beak. There isn’t much taste in this cute edible bird-costume, but the shrimps are light and crisp. Two satay chicken skewers — flat strips of well-sauced chicken — round out the platter. They are the least interesting of the lot.

Our main dishes arrive just as we polish off the appetizers. Starting with heaping spoonfuls of coconut rice ($3.25 per person), we fill our plates with portions of each entrée dish.

Larb moo ($13.50) is described in the menu as “a room temperature pork dish.” In other words, don’t send it back because it’s not hot. The meat is spicy, though not numbingly so. The spicy heat quickly dissipates. Its bold and complex flavour is created with ground rice, lemongrass, garlic, cilantro and lime. Generous and refreshing mint leaves punch through the sauce. This may sound as if there’s too much going on — a taste overdose — but it impressively holds together.

The Kra pao kai tod ($14.50), though completely different in taste, shares the pork’s complexity. Deep fried, this chopped-chicken has a light, crispy layer that’s been dressed in a thin, dark and tasty glaze, flavoured with basil and roasted chili paste. Salty and succulent, it’s a skillfully executed dish.

Our third main selection carries a mild, spicy warmth. Pra ram long song goong ($15.95), a.k.a. swimming rama shrimp, features peeled shrimp in red curry peanut sauce on spinach-like Chinese greens. This one’s a flat-out crown pleaser. The sauce is more peanut than curry, and compliments the plump shrimp. The lightly cooked greens also combine well, but would make a nice side on their own.

Now, I could stop here as my dinner companion does, but I can’t resist a Thai crepe dessert ($3.95). Caramel or chocolate toppings can be added for an extra 55 cents, but I go sans. The small crepe, with its just-so pan-fried crispness, is dressed with sweetened condensed milk and served rolled.

This light, sweet bite ends a meal that, despite being chosen from all corners of a giant menu, has a real cohesive feel. I’m pretty certain that has less to do with my awesome ordering skills and a lot more to do with Thai Nongkai’s kitchen. The chef’s refined skills are obvious in the balance and subtle touches within each dish.

Though I’ll admit I don’t know non-U.K. royal personages from a bowl of fruit, take it from this commoner, Thai Nongkai will give you the royal treatment.