Decisions, decisions, decisions. How am I supposed to make one with this many delicious sounding options? Even before we got through the front door, my mouth was watering from the many specials written on sheets of paper and taped to the front windows, enticing people to step inside. Spicy asparagus with seafood, drunken noodles with crab...they all sounded phenomenal!
Judging from the hardcover lunch menu that could have passed for a decorative coffee table book, I'm guessing that the lunch selection is almost as extensive as dinner. It seemed like the dine-in options were more plentiful than what's listed on the website. Prices were certainly very reasonable for our lunch feast, with most items running under $10 including rice. Loved that when I ordered an iced tea they brought out a full glass plus an extra carafe for refills.
My favorite dish so far has been the aforementioned drunken noodles with crab. Since I'm a sauce loving girl and have often been disappointed by dry noodles, I asked for extra saucy this time. They were happy to accommodate the request and have now forever changed the way I'll be ordering drunken noodles. Loaded with crab and saturated with delectable garlic chili sauce, it was exactly what I hoped for.
The BF got the mango curry with chicken and shrimp. What kind of Yelper would I be if I didn't manage to sneak my fork in for a bite? The shrimp and chicken were cooked perfectly and the mango added a surprisingly savory depth of flavor. It also gave the curry some great texture. After trying this, I'll take mangos over potatoes any day.
Their chicken wings are very unique. Don't be expecting the usual breaded and fried variety. It was difficult to pinpoint exactly how they had been cooked, but it was completely different than any I had ever tried. Hot and crispy, uncoated, and slightly puffy with a smooth sheen and a light flavor of garlic marinade. They were served with two equally unique dipping sauces, a variation of sweet and sour, plus a vinegar/soy concoction.
We've also experimented with the spicy eggplant with mixed seafood. The eggplant was expertly fried in this dish, but I thought it overwhelmed the delicate seafood and gave everything a slightly unpleasant oily flavor.
A grilled combo of garlic steak, praram chicken, and teriyaki chicken arrived with juicy chicken, but overcooked steak. The beef had a good flavor, too bad it had been turned to jerky by too much time on the grill.
The dessert menu is equally hard to resist. The fried bananas with coconut ice cream was a banana lover's dream. I didn't care for the texture of the bananas once they're fried, but obviously it's a personal preference because the BF had no problem plowing through the rest of the dish on his own. My favorite was the green tea fried ice cream. It reminded me of a doughnut filled with ice cream and drizzled with honey. I was hoping the outside would be more crisp, but it was still pretty damn delicious.
If you want to avoid the crowds, be sure to get there before the lunch rush. We arrived about 11:20 and it was already filling up. By the time we were leaving, there were several groups waiting to be seated. I did hear the waitress mention that you can call ahead and they'll save a table for you, especially handy for larger groups. They also have a few tables set up out front with heaters.
I used to live right around the corner from here, but hadn't yet discovered my love of Thai food. Wish I would have known that Thai Chili would be a fantastic place to start a journey through the exotic flavors of Thailand. With their friendly servers or one of the many raving reviews as a guide, you'd be well-versed and enamored in no time.