Flaneur wrote:Indie Cafe, at 5951 N. Broadway, is up there with Opart and the others on Scott's list.

Yes it is, cheap too. Gotta love the name!

We have really fucking great Thai food in Los Angeles.

For years, I was a "vegetarian" who ate only seafood, so I'd always get pad thai with shrimp. When I was in grad school, though, there was a hippie noodle place in Amherst, Mass., that offered pad thai with squid. Only it wasn't pieces of chopped up squid, it was tiny squids in their entirety, tentacles and all. It was delicious to say the least, but gnawing on a tentacle is pretty discomfiting.

Pad thai is not crap, though I haven't eaten it in years either. And I second (and third) the kudos for Opart. That's the finest Thai restaurant I've ever been to. They have a red curry dish with chicken and sweet potatoes; ask them to make it with shrimp, and prepare to have your mind blown.

Opart, Opart . . . Are we all talking about the one on Western in Chicago, between Wilson and Lawrence?

I live in the neighborhood and have been there twice. It was fine both times. No complaints, but I'm trying to figure out why everyone insists it's the best Thai food in town....

Please suggest a dish (non-beef, if possible).

Thanks.

Superking wrote:Opart, Opart . . . Are we all talking about the one on Western in Chicago, between Wilson and Lawrence?

I live in the neighborhood and have been there twice. It was fine both times. No complaints, but I'm trying to figure out why everyone insists it's the best Thai food in town....

Please suggest a dish (non-beef, if possible).

Thanks.

Yeah, that's the joint.

You could get the Pad Thai (tofu) if you haven't already.

I'm a big fan of the Massaman/Mussaman and Panang curries, either of them with chicken. That would be my preferred dish these days.

Anyone in Cleveland? There is this great place called Thai Orchid in the suburb where i grew up. I got theduck special once, which was "five peppers hot" (only thing on the menu that was "five peppers" hot) and it was the hottest thing I have ever eaten. So good, so hot.

I have eaten multiple times at the following Chicago Thai places:

Opart (on Western)
Duck Walk (on Belmont)
Bamee Noodle Shop (on Broadway)

All are good - though I find Opart to be a bit overated. Of the three, Bamee might be my favorite.

I have not eaten at any other Thai places in Chicago.

Not crap in the sense that it's better than 90% of White People Food.

But you can do better in a Thai place. I would say that it's the chicken tikka masala of Thai food, except that CTM really is the best thing on the planet, even if it is the new national food of Britain.