I've made a wonderful new friend this semester, and she's obsessed with Baan Thai. She has been known to eat it on her way to class in the morning, or sometimes twice a day. I liked the idea of trying a new Thai restaurant but I was of course nervous given that gluten allergies are not always easy to accommodate. I did my usual research; an in depth look at Baan Thai's website and online menus and to my surprise, they are able to make about 75% of their menu items gluten-free! Everything was looking quite delicious at this point as I saw a world of options open up in front of me, but I wondered to myself, when would I take the leap of faith and try something new? Well, last night was THE NIGHT! And wow...it was something special!
My friend and I ordered two dishes to share, ordered off the "Take Out Menu":
#17: Pad Thai Gai: Rice noodles, flash fried with tender chicken, extra firm tofu, salted radish, tamarind, egg, green onion with fresh bean sprouts topped with roasted ground peanuts.
#44: Pra Ram Long Song: Tender sliced beef, sauteed with fresh vegetables with Baan Thai's own peanut sauce and chili paste oil. Ordered with a side of Steamed Rice.
To our dismay, we came home with our aromatic paper bag package and opened it up--the portions were much smaller than Little Thai Place and the dishes were slightly more expensive. Usually when we order from Little Thai Place, we have enough food for two dinners under $30. "Nevermind" I told myself "Let's see how it tastes!" My friend and I sussed out the details, ensuring each of us had the exact same amount of food each...both of us are big eaters and sometimes sharing can be complicated. We emptied out the aluminum pans of every last morsel of goodness and we sat down.
Okay, I'll be honest. Regardless of the cost or the portion size, the food was EXCELLENT. Mouth-watering, savory, and perfectly balanced. This food had serious flavor and I felt bad for judging a book by its cover (or meal by its size). I could finally understand how my new friend could eat this every day...it was everything I wish my homemade Thai food could be. And I didn't get that gross, heavy feeling I usually get after eating oily take-out--this food actually tasted like REAL food. The saddest thing was we finished our plates, and we were both hungry after. Baan Thai was satisfying in every way except it could not tame my big appetite while being friendly to my student-sized wallet. Bottom line, I would DEFINITELY have Baan Thai again, and I would DEFINITELY recommend it to anyone with a gluten-allergy. Just inform your server (or call-taker) that you have a gluten-allergy and they take care of you from there.
Thanks for the info. I'm curious about the peanut sauce as I know the peanut sauce at Little Thai does have gluten (from soy sauce, I believe).
ReplyDeleteAs far as I know, Baan Thai uses mostly gluten-free ingredients in everything. There are a few exceptions...like Spring Rolls. The peanut sauce in this dish from Baan Thai is different from what you'd expect--its not a dipping sauce, it's more like a savory peanut jus. If that makes sense :P Highly recommend trying it though!
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