Thailand Kitchen

My friend Tahrikh and I couldn't coordinate our schedules fast enough to start our tasting journey and finally get this blog started. We would go over what days worked for each and what didn't to no avail. Eventually "hunger" did it. He left work early last Wednesday and I happened to be home with food on the brain, so we jumped at the opportunity to set our bellies to smiling by filling it with some delicious Thai food.

I lived in Ozone Park, Queens for many years and would always drive by this tiny restaurant simply named "Thailand Kitchen". Situated right under the J train tracks, this quaint spot can easily go unnoticed. My curiosity about the little restaurant resurfaced and we made it our first stop on the food train to happiness.

Upon entering you are greeted with a glimpse of the kitchen which is located just right of the entry. I tried to sneak a peek at what was being prepared but just as I was about to get a good look our host came up to seat us.

We were offered our choice of table in a small seating area that can comfortably feed approximately 28 diners. The decor is not fancy by any means and appears to favor a cantina. Seated in a corner near a small tv and under a chalkboard drawing of a bull we ordered our starters and tried to make a decision on the entrees.

My belly made spooky noises as the wait for our steamed wantons with chicken and crab and crispy fried shrimp rolls went on for about 20 minutes.

Finally, the golden goodness, that was the shrimp roll, arrived and we were certain we were in for a treat. They were served with a homemade duck sauce and a sprinkling of scallions. Living up to every expectation, they were crisp,hot and the chopped shrimp filling was well seasoned. Soon the wantons came and they too were well received. The wantons weren't like any I've seen as they were open faced. The filling was a bit disappointing as the canned crab was bland and not the best quality. However, the black bean sauce made up the difference in flavor and we ate them all.

Pineapple duck curry and Thai fried rice with chicken were the entres of choice. The curry arrived on a cloud chilly peppers. The spices, coconut milk and pineapple were married in a warm ceremony and a happy processional made it's way to our anxious tummies :-).

It was Tahrikh's first time having duck and it proved not to be the best experienced. While the curry sauce was quite good the precooked duck rendered little flavor to the dish and was a bit rubbery.

The Thai fried rice was a welcomed mild contrast to the curry and was thoroughly enjoyed.

This meal's good and not so good qualities left us sitting back with little room to spare in the food tank but as we pride ourselves as being strong hardcore eaters we would've quickly made room for dessert. Sadly the menu didn't bear much offerings in that area. So we took some more pictures, finished our mango juice and green tea and paid the bill.

On our way out the hostess revealed that she was indeed one of the owners and engaged us in a hearty chat about the family pictures and native fabrics hung about the place. Her friendliness gave the place the warm feeling of a mom and pop establishment. We would give this restaurant's food a C+ but there were good things to be said about this little retreat's atmosphere. This is a warm, friendly place where one can find a decent representation of Thai cuisine.