Jonathan K. wrote: > I'm developing an interest in Thai food, and wonder where to go in > Berkeley/Oakland & environs... The Thai Buddhist Temple in Berkeley serves an outdoor lunch every Sunday, starting at about 11:00 and ending at about 2:00. The proceeds go to the temple. I cook Thai food myself, and I spent a month in Thailand several years ago, so I can say that the food they serve at the temple is pretty close to what you get in Thailand. The green papaya salad is *excellent*, and they always have several good curries. The dishes are cheap - usually three or four dollars each. You pay with tokens - buy the tokens from the table in the middle of the food service area before you get your food. The temple is on Russell Street in Berkeley, just east of Martin Luther King. If you go there, please don't park on Russell - they are trying to stay on good terms with their neighbors.
San Francisco, CA
Best East Bay Thai?
Right. Now it's on University, across the street from Andronico's. Pete F. wrote: > > Someone wrote: > > >I like Won Thai. It's the favorite place of a friend who wrote a Thai > >cookbook. They have some very unusual dishes, at least, they were new > >to me. > > > Is that the place that used to be on Sacramento near Dwight? > Where is it now? > > -- > Pete Fraser
Bo wrote: [snip] > >BTW, I've never understood the popularity of Cha Am. Is it just some >snobbish Berkeley "gourmet ghetto" thang? I've eaten at Cha Am on >three separate occasions in the past, and each time the food was >completely mediocre. > > I don't think so. What did you have there? To me the flavours are very deep but well balanced, the ingredients are extremely fresh, and the seafood is cooked close to perfection. Service is fast and efficient. I think Your Place is quite reasonable, but not in the same class as Cha Am. The one place I don't understand the fuss over is Plearn.
Pete F. wrote: > > The one place I don't understand the fuss over is Plearn. > Plearn was superb around 15 years ago - perhaps the best Thai food I've ever had (pretty much all my experience is in CA). They had already gone downhill a bit by 1990. I haven't been there in 3 or 4 years. Sometimes a name will outlive the reality.... Al Eisner ([email removed]) San Mateo County, CA
Jonathan K. wrote: > > I'm developing an interest in Thai food, and wonder where to go in > Berkeley/Oakland & environs. I already know Cha Am in > Berkeley--anyplace else? I'm more interested in variety & quality of > the good than in ambience, if that helps. A little farther away is Bangkok Thai in Pinole in the Aooian Way shopping center near the Safeway and Long's Drugs. The chef there, I think, used to be at Siam Cuisine on University Avenoe. The food is excellent, and there's quite a variety of dishes. John Fetzer
On Fri, 06 Feb 1998 05:01:10 GMT, [email removed] (Jonathan King) wrote: >I'm developing an interest in Thai food, and wonder where to go in >Berkeley/Oakland & environs. I already know Cha Am in >Berkeley--anyplace else? I'm more interested in variety & quality of >the good than in ambience, if that helps. > The best Thai restaurant in the East Bay, hands down, is Your Place on University Avenue in Berkeley. The menu has quite a bit of variety, and the food is always fresh, well prepared and extremely tasy (OK, except for the "gluten" <g>). It's also very inexpensive, and has a nice ambiance with tasteful decor. I've been eating at Your Place for the past decade and have never been disappointed. BTW, I've never understood the popularity of Cha Am. Is it just some snobbish Berkeley "gourmet ghetto" thang? I've eaten at Cha Am on three separate occasions in the past, and each time the food was completely mediocre. -Bo ------------------------------------------------------------------- [email removed] http://www.tdl.com/~bodacia
On Sat, 07 Feb 1998 11:00:17 -0800, [email removed] (Pete Fraser) wrote: >>BTW, I've never understood the popularity of Cha Am. Is it just some >>snobbish Berkeley "gourmet ghetto" thang? I've eaten at Cha Am on >>three separate occasions in the past, and each time the food was >>completely mediocre. >> >I don't think so. What did you have there? I can't remember the dishes as it was several years ago. What I do remember is being completely underwhelmed on each of the three occasions I patronized the place. Enough so that I vowed never to waste money eating at Cha Am again. >To me the flavours are very deep but well balanced, the ingredients >are extremely fresh, and the seafood is cooked close to perfection. Different strokes, I guess. I found the "flavors" to be completely bland and tasteless. >Service is fast and efficient. > >I think Your Place is quite reasonable, but not in the same class as >Cha Am. My sentiments exactly opposite. ;) Like I said, I've been eating at Your Place Thai restaurant for 10 years, and have always been more than pleased with the food. -Bo ------------------------------------------------------------------- [email removed] http://www.tdl.com/~bodacia
Jonathan K. wrote: >I'm developing an interest in Thai food, and wonder where to go in >Berkeley/Oakland & environs. I already know Cha Am in >Berkeley--anyplace else? I'm more interested in variety & quality of >the good than in ambience, if that helps. Am I the only one who likes DeVanni on College? Mark Miller
My favorite: Boran on upper Solano Ave. Inexpensive, fast, and terrific panang beef/chicken. The service is *much* better than the service I've had at Cha-Am. Sandi