Thaila Thai

Thaila Thai- Royal Thai Cuisine, 82 Lygon Street, East Brunswick

I recently found myself discussing the perks of the East Brunswick food scene with a work friend/neighbor. We often talk about food, exchange tips, give warnings and the like. My friend has just returned from a five week stint in Spain, France and Italy and is carrying on about how much he missed Asian food during his travels.My sympathy can only stretch so far... but I'm listening. Thaila Thai is where he is heading, he is craving the Chicken with basil and chili. Come to think of it...maybe I am as well.

So upon being rejected from the Moroccan Soup Bar last night, my sister and I decided to give Thaila Thai a go. We both like Thai food a great deal, and were excited to try a new place. Now, I have recently had take out from here, but I strongly believe that its really not the same experience (the take out was good).

Thaila Thai is one of those places which instantly smacks you in the face. Its warm, its noisy and a little chaotic. The entrance is the take away section, and the restaurant is in the back, upstairs and out the front. Every possible nook and cranny which could fit a table is utilised. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but I probably wouldn't recommend bringing a first date here.

We are seated upstairs on a shared table. I'm not the biggest fan of this style of dining. I find it a little intrusive, particularly when juicy gossip is in need of being shared. However, I digress. We order vegetarian spring rolls, chicken with basil, chili and cashew and red beef curry.

Despite waving our hands around, people seated after us were served before us and after several failed attempts at delivering the right meal, the spring rolls arrive. I find myself being a little pushy with the waitress, "no we did not order satay chicken squares, no we did not order satay chicken stir fry, we did not order satay anything! thank you, it looks lovely, but its for the girls next to us...seriously!" I really despise having to insist like this, alas, everything arrived, no one missed out on anything.

Other than that, our meals were fab. The curry was rich and spicy,and the beef was tender. The chicken was light and the veggies were very fresh and tasty. I was pleasantly surprised to see pumpkin in the stir fry. Pumpkin! I was over the moon. Be warned, the portion sizes are HUGE. Two mains could easily feed three people. At $36 in total, this was pretty much a cheap eat. Between three people, its would be super.

Overall, I enjoyed Thaila Thai. I will definatly go back, but will probably avoid eating in the restaurant. The service really lets the place down. On this visit I can only really offer 11/20.

Menu- 3/5

Service- 2/5

Value- 4/5

Ambience- 2/5