Bottom Line: 4 stars for service and food, 5 star location, 3 star atmosphere and value. We ate here twice during our 2-week visit to Sarasota, so clearly we would return.
We love Thai food. For awhile I was obsessed with Thai food and was eating it multiple times per week.
This place is in a great location: right in the heart of Main Street. Many restaurants, many choices. The only issue is homeless people in the area: sleeping on the street, urinating on the landscaping, blocking the sidewalks, panhandling. I can't believe Sarasota permits this to continue, it can't be good for tourism and business.
Back to the review.
Atmosphere is a bit fuddy-duddy, dated. Tables have glass tops, chairs seem low for the table, diners are a bit close together, not terrible. One server, clearly the owner, a sweet, charming person. On our first visit, at Christmas time, they played a loop of Christmas music that repeated every 10-15 minutes. So amateurish. On our second visit, no music at all, and this detracted from the festive atmosphere. Seems like a struggling family business, I hope they can stay the course.
Menu has many offerings. We are non-meat eaters, and there were many choices for us. I happen to love panang curry, and the server accommodated my request for panang with fresh fish, in this case, local grouper. Others in our party had panang vegetables/tofu. Some had coconut soup. I had egg rolls on our second visit. And I had a Singha Thai beer.
The panang fish was outstanding. Batter fried, served on a small bed of vegetables, with a remarkably tasty panang curry sauce, one of the best I've had.
Food came out hot each time. Preparation time was normal, not especially fast or slow.
The others in our party remarked that their food was ok, nothing great. But those of us who had the panang were super happy. Lesson to learn: if you stick with boring choices you will get boring food.
On our second visit it cost us roughly $90 for three of us including two appetizers, two beers, and three entrees. I find this a bit pricey, although not unreasonable. I cannot make this panang fish dish at home and it's flavor is compelling, so I would definitely return and happily pay this price.
I am amazed that this place has only a handful of Elite reviews, and the most recent was from 2010. This place doesn't seem to be on the 'hot' list, but we will be back. read more