Pad Thai and Coconut Milk: Who Does it Best?

Here is a look at three of Berkeley's best mid to upscale Thai restaurants.

Siam Cuisine: This West Berkeley cuisine has been one of the most exquisite Thai food restaurants in the city for over 30 years. Thai food can be anywhere from fancy and expensive to cheap and quick. While Siam Cuisine leans toward the expensive side, its versatility is unmatched by any other Thai restaurant in the area, pricey or not. They have a contemporary menu, as well as a more traditional one. If you are down on the whole Thai-California cuisine thing because it tends to translate to bad Thai food, give it one more shot at Siam Cuisine. Mango baby back ribs, sweet & sour basil chicken wings, and chili pot stickers are some stand-out members of a delicious, well-rounded, and contemporary menu.

The traditional menu is extensive as well. The best meat dishes are the prig-king, siam basil, and the spicy eggplant. A factor that most of you probably consider paramount in determining good Thai food restaurants, is the quality of their Pad Thai. Siam Cuisine is as good as any upscale Thai restaurant. Perhaps the most intense and delicious item on Siam Cuisine's menu, however, is the Som Tum (papaya salad). The papaya is always perfect, and is mixed in with a substantial but not excessive amount of lime juice, garlic, and chili. Overall, Siam Cuisine comes out as Berkeley's best Thai food location.

Ruen Pair: Located on San Pablo Avenue, on the Berkeley/Albany border, lies the East Bay's most critically acclaimed Thai food restaurant in recent memory. Before you even look at the menu and eat the incredible food, the interior of the restaurant wins you over. It is calm, beautiful, and feels secluded. American Thai food is certainly nothing like what people actually eat in Thailand. However, at Ruen Pair you can almost imagine that you are in Thailand due to the style of furnishings and art. The Banana Seafood appetizer, which comes with calamari, crab, prawns, and banana filled egg rolls, is wonderful. The Tom Ka (coconut milk soup) is better at Ruen Pair than anywhere else in Berkeley. Their thicker variety of Pad Thai is also among the area's best, but the restaurant’s best noodle dish is the Goy See Mee (crispy egg noodles in gravy). Any of their spicy curries is an excellent choice, and the Pad King Sod chicken is a heavenly and gingery treat.

Tiny Thai: After the neighborhood of Westbrae lost Mama Lans, people were sad because it had been there for such a long time. At the same time, people were hopeful that it would be replaced by a good restaurant­—due to the convenient residential location. Instead, they got a great restaurant. Based on the looks of it, Tiny Thai is not a place that anyone would take for a Thai food heavyweight. It is tiny, cheaply furnished, and so new that it is most likely not on your friend's "Best Thai Food" list yet. But there are a few items on this menu that everyone must eat if they want the best that Berkeley has to offer. The Pad Thai is just perfect. The noodles are on the thin side and are always fried to perfection, with a robust peanut sauce giving them an immense amount of flavor. The Pad Ka-Pow (basil chicken) is also un-improvable, with a spicy, garlicky taste that you won't forget. Complete your meal with anything else on the menu—it's all good—but make sure of two things: order the items I've mentioned so far and, more importantly, finish with their Sticky Rice and Mango. Without any doubt, it is the best around.

Photos:

• Ruen Pair (Hannah Bloom)