I finally made it to Thai Market, and I was mightily impressed. First of all, I loved the look of the place. There were blown-up photos of markets in Thailand, umbrellas on the ceiling, and Thai cups cleverly placed in and on gold-leaf walls. Its owners have managed to make the place look great without spending a lot of money, much like Land Thai Kitchen did 25 blocks south.
Steamed Thai dumplings with delicate wrappers were filled with minced chicken, preserved radish, and peanuts. Grilled sliced skirt steak was accompanied by al dente string beans and delicious preserved chili purée. A minced pork salad was enlivened by ginger, bird’s-eye chili, and crunchy Napa cabbage. A dish called Amber Shrimp mixed Chinese celery, onion, egg, and chili and was sautéed with yellow curry.
Kow soy featured chicken, egg noddles, pickled mustard greens, roasted shallot and Chiang Mai curry. The dishes noted as spicy on the menu had enough heat for me. Fans of incendiary Thai food will be disappointed, though it must be noted that we didn’t order any dish with three asterisks next to it, which were marked as the hottest dishes. My guess is if you ask for it incendiary they will oblige you with pleasure.
The flavors were clean and distinctive, the ingredients sometimes unusual and always fresh, and mercifully we had no dishes with that cloying New York Thai food sweetness. But we didn't have Pad Thai, which is the dish most often excessively sweetened in Thai restaurants.
Thai Market joins Land Thai Kitchen as standout Upper West Side Thai restaurants. I can’t wait to go back.
Thai Market
Address: 960 Amsterdam Avenue (b/n 107th and 108th streets), New York NY 10025
Phone: 212-280-4575
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