Thai Kitchen

Having seen the great reviews on other websites, I wanted to check this place out. I went in with high expectations, but I left in disappointment. My experience was just poor all around.

Thai Kitchen has been around Nashville for a long time, as evidenced by the signed photographs that line the back wall of the ordering area. I was a bit surprised to see the pictures of meals above the ordering location like a typical take-out Chinese place. The proprietor told me that they have been here for about sixteen years, so I was looking for an authentic dish and experience. When I ordered, I noticed that the woman was more interested in the television over my head than looking at me, so it took me a moment to realize she had actually asked me if I wanted something. I asked if the peanut sauce was spicy, and she said a little, but not very much. This was exactly what I was hoping for.

As a comparison, the peanut sauce with fried tofu at Jasmine's in Cool Springs is excellent and worthy of the trip. It is thick but not gloppy, and I hoped to get something like that here. I ordered the vegetables with peanut sauce and white rice and looked forward to seeing what they could put together.

At 5:30 on a weekday evening there were a few other people in the restaurant. I was on my way to an appointment, so I needed it to be fast. This meal arrived within five minutes, just like I was told it would, and they passed with flying colors on two measures: speed and price. Most of their comprehensive menu was under $5.00, even for dinner, which means this place is a great choice for the budget minded foodie. There is ample space for seating as they have approximately fifteen tables available for dine-in. A goldfish tank is placed along the wall next to the table I selected.

When my meal arrived, I noticed a problem. It was chicken. If I had been a vegetarian, that would not have been welcome. Luckily, I am not vegetarian, but was disappointed in other respects. The peanut sauce was very liquidy, almost runny. It did not have much noticeable seasoning in the peanut sauce. I know when I attempt this dish at home, this liquidy state can result from adding too much coconut milk too late in the process and not giving the peanut butter time to meld with the spices. The chicken slices did not impress me one way or the other. With my scoop of rice had come block lettuce in large chunks and carrot slices that looked like they had come straight from the Sisco truck and fridge. That was the entirety of my vegetables - with the caveat that they probably thought I ordered chicken with peanut sauce. I have no guesses as to what caused that confusion. Given the lack of attention I received while ordering, however, confusion was not surprising. Overall, I had received a bland meal.

There were a couple of small things worth mentioning: the TV was tuned to some sort of animal-attacks-prey program which did not make for an appetizing experience. On the positive side, I noticed the person behind me ordered in some other Asian language, meaning that service is provided bilingually. On my way out, I noticed that person had some excellent-looking fried appetizer plate - which I could not identify but was intrigued by.

Alas, I cannot add my name to the list of satisfied customers that seem to color the experience of other reviewers.

Thai Kitchen
(615) 385-9854
738 Thompson Ln
Nashville, TN 37204