Sawasdee Thai Restaurant:West Bloomfield

Our experiment in Thai this afternoon took us to Sawasdee Thai Restaurant in West Bloomfield. The restaurant is tucked into a strip mall and we almost missed what looks to be the only source for Thai food in miles. We were happy to see the store was busy but got a table immediately. We were joined by Fred again and just about the time we sat our soup orders were taken. While Marshall and I selected what looked to be our usual testing dishes (Marshall picked their FR2 Chicken Kow Pad Prik and I their 122 Chicken Potato Curry), Fred picked their ND1 Chicken Pad Thai from their moderately priced lunch menu. The soup arrived and while Fred and Marshall liked their Chicken Noodle, I wasn't pleased with their Hot & Sour Soup which had a very plain and unpleasant taste. A short while later the spring rolls arrived. Those were good, mostly cabbage, but flakey and not overcooked as we've seen elsewhere. The entrees were varied. Fred's Pad Thai was very good, served very hot both in temperature and spice. Marshall was happy with his Kow Pad Prik at first, but the further he got into the dish the less he liked it. As for my Potato Curry it wasn't even close to a Masaman. This was more like an Indian Yellow Curry dish and didn't seem to have the coconut milk nor peanuts. I was very disappointed in the dish mostly for the indian flavor. They did do a good job preparing the dish with the potatoes being cooked well. Given the price of the complete meal we're not likely to return for a second test on this store but being that there are so few Thai restaurants in this area we might end up giving it one more try.

Darryl: 5/10
Fred: 7/10
Marshall: 6/10

Google | Urbanspoon | Yelp

Ahan Thai:Royal Oak

One place we've been hitting on occasion is Ahan Thai in downtown Royal Oak. This stand-alone building had been a coffee house near the tracks in it previous life but now is a very attractive Thai restaurant. This afternoon we were joined by a coworker to try the place again. The lunch menu seems to have been reduced in price and now falls far toward the low end of the Thai lunch rates -- a very welcomed change! I ordered their Chicken Masaman (C4) while Marshall settled on their Chicken Kow Pad Prik (FR2) and Fred tried their Chicken Peanut Curry. The meals came with Hot & Sour Soup which we all agreed was too salty to eat and didn't have much substance (all broth), but Marshall substituted his soup for a terrible spring roll (bitter and greasy) which he also didn't eat. Fortunately the entrees were good rescuing the overall rating. They were still lacking with Fred and I commenting that they were dry and lacked the spice we've expected and heat we ordered. Given the price it's good, but we'll take the drive to one of the other restaurants next time.

Darryl: 6/10
Fred: 7/10
Marshall: 5/10

Google | Urbanspoon | Yelp

Sala Thai IV:Troy

Sala Thai is a well know Detroit option for Thai food with four stores, the most recent occupying a former Quizno's Sub Sandwich Restaurant at 15 Mile Road and Coolidge near the Somerset Collection. Our trip for lunch on Tuesday would be our first to any of these store (at least that I could recall). The store had only been open for about a week at that point, and their website still had not been updated to include the new location, nor has the location appeared in Google Places, Urbanspoon, or Yelp. The store had been closed on and in the process of remodel for months but the Quizno's underpins were evident in the remaining bench seating, chairs, dividers, and even the empty menu board. The result is an uncomfortable mash-up of styles. I ordered the Chicken Gaeng Mud-Sa-Man while Marshall ordered the Chicken Kow Pad, both with the Tom Kha soup. I enjoyed my Tom Kha but it wasn't a flavor Marshall liked. My Mud-Sa-Man was a most unusual take on the recipe with a significant cinnamon taste and what I considered to be an Indian flavor. Marshall was pleased with his Kow Pad but didn't find it to be above the average. Overall this store deserves another trip once they've been open for a more than a few week to see how they've progressed.

Darryl: 6/10
Marshall: 7/10