"I like being able to play around, change things up a bit," says Harold Dieterle of the crab dinners he's doing at his West Village Thai restaurant Kin Shop every Monday. The five-course meal is $60 per person ($23 extra for beverage pairings) and features crab four ways—plus a crab-inspired ice cream sandwich at the end. More

There are two Crispy Chinese Watercress Salads on the menu at Sripraphai in Woodside. I'm not saying that A-6, the salad on the regular menu, piled high with shrimp, chicken and squid isn't a great choice; but VA-2, Crispy Chinese Watercress Salad on the special vegetarian menu ($9.50) is even better, and it's a dish that I order again and again. More

Ngam, I feel, has not yet gotten the attention it deserves. This East Village newcomer has received relatively little notice, yet its modern twist on Thai actually manages to be as delicious as it is inventive. The chef trained under one of Thailand's top chefs before working at the likes of Jean George's Spice Market and Perry Street, and now at Ngam, she's letting her creativity shine. More

In my opinion, New York could always do with a few more good Thai restaurants, particularly ones that lean towards to the hotter, more impassioned, down-and-dirty end of the scale. I mean, they exist already, but most are a trek for me. The closest we've got in the northern reaches of Manhattan is Thai Market, a street-food themed restaurant near Columbia campus that is one of the better options north of the Village. More

Few things could ever persuade me to venture through the crowds of Times Square, but when a friend told me of a cocktail at the newly opened Qi Bangkok Eatery named "Krungthepmahanakhon Amornrattanakosin Mahintharayutthaya Mahadilokphop Noppharat Ratchathaniburirom Udomratchaniwetmahasathan Amonphiman Awatansathit Sakkathattiyawitsanukamprasit" (pictured), I couldn't help myself. More

Lunch in Midtown is a challenge in so many ways—time is limited, good eats may be scarce, and service is by necessity rushed and harried. While lunch at Pongsri Thai Restaurant on West 48th Street is not exactly a relaxing experience, the restaurant's wonderful food and attentive service make it, against all odds, a delightful place to go have a family lunch. More

These days, calling a restaurant good for its neighborhood somehow seems like an insult, but is it really? Such a statement describes Wave Thai. If you're in Brooklyn, you might not trek out to Astoria to visit, but if you're already in this part of Queens, a meal here would make for a nice evening, especially after the lights go down: the pinks and reds give the place a decidedly mature atmosphere. More

Orchard Street sweats to the chili-laden beat of fast-casual Thai from Rhong-Tiam Express, and Steve Ells, who is launching a fast-casual Southeast Asian concept of his own, has very good reason to watch his back. Despite minor opening setbacks, these bad boys are ripe for replication. More

Mango and sticky rice cooked in coconut milk is a popular Thai dessert often found on the daily dessert board (they serve one type of dessert each day) at Pure Thai Shophouse. More

I'm not one for suspense, so I'll give it up right away: Zabb Elee has easily the best Isan Thai food in Manhattan. A couple weeks back, Serious Eats Drinks editor Maggie mentioned that Le Da Nang, the East village Thai spot, had just been converted to a Manhattan branch of Zabb Elee, a popular Queens Isan Thai restaurant. Preliminary reports of takeout seemed promising. About a week later, I received a hastily written email from Harold Dieterle, Chef at Kin Shop, and authority on Thai cuisine—and his recommendation meant that we just had to visit. More