Thai Street – Authentic Thai Food in Saigon

I’ve heard a good thing about Thai Street a few weeks after they opened, but too bad at that time they only open for dinner. I don’t want to go to District 2 just to have dinner, as I live in District 1. But about a month ago, they also open for lunch. I was so excited to try! About 2 weeks ago, I went there (finally) with my friend. She is a regular there so she knows which menu is good.

The place itself is made with a sense of Thailand, with all the signs and decorations. It has outdoor seating (with roof) and indoor seating (with aircon). We sat outdoor because we brought our dogs as well.

We ordered several dishes and when the food came, my friend showed me how to eat it Thai’s way. First of all, most of the dishes are for sharing. You can have it all by yourself of course. But by sharing you get a chance to try another menu as well. Maybe it is just a thing in Asia where we like to share. I’ve had meal with people with Europe and most of the time they didn’t share their food.

Next thing I learned from her about Thai food was Thai people likes to eat their food with 4 flavors at the same time. Salty, sweet, sour and spicy. That is why in an authentic Thai restaurant they should have these 4 items, which are fish sauce, sugar, chili pickle, and dried chili. Interesting. Saying is easy, but the most intriguing scene was when I saw she actually did it. Especially when she poured sugar on top of her food. I know we can use sugar for cooking to enhance the flavor, but usually I used it during the cooking process! Not on the plate.

She showed me how to do it with this flat noodle dish. She took a little portion of it to her plate and add everything there. I didn’t do it…at first. This noodle was really delicious! It reminded me of the fried kwe tiaw in Indonesia. I ate it without adding anything. Then she asked me to try hers. I got hooked. It was even tastier! I put some sugar, pickle water and chili and mixed it together. Now I always eat this noodle that way haha. I’ve been there several times already now and this noodle is always on my table 😀 Can’t miss it.

My second favorite dish there is Chicken Green Curry. I just love it. If you order this during lunch time, they will come in set with rice and vegetable as well. Not during dinner though. What I like about this curry is… everything! The chicken is tender, curry is thick and flavorful, and the green leaves in it made the curry fragrant. Very pleasant smell for us. The steamed rice was cooked well as well. There was 1 time when I got a bad steamed rice though. It was hard and dry. But overall, this dish is recommended. Better than green curry in another Thai restaurant that I’ve tried.

This fried rice was not bad actually, but I think it has less flavor than the other two above. I like it for a change if I don’t order green curry. It came with stir-fried pork, small dried shrimp, eggs, mango salad, and cucumber. Topped with lime, and mix it together.

I’ve never tried Thai pork satay before. I was expecting a brown, char-grilled pork meat and some fats, marinated in dark soy sauce. Oh.. my favorite! But when it came.. it was totally different looking. Thai pork satay used all meat, and they used spices. I can taste a strong turmeric flavor on it. I don’t mind it since I like turmeric, but I don’t think I will order this again in the near future.

During lunch time, all of tea menu are free! I like their Thai lemon tea. The sugar is separated. If you like sweet drink, then you should order Thai Ice Red Tea.

They give free dessert after meal. Ice slush for lunch and Ice Cream for dinner. Yum!

What is your favorite dish there? Let me know in comment. Ciao!

Thai Street

Address : 26 Thảo Điền, Quận 2, Hồ Chí Minh, Vietnam.