Best Thai in Chicago

[Dave in Dripping Springs]

Hey guys and gals,

I'm coming into town from Austin and am looking for great Thai food, specifically Pad Thai and Curries. I will be around O'Hare if that makes any difference...Thanks!

D

[ngershman]

In Lakeview, between Sheridan Road and Diversey, is an outstanding little neighborhood restaurant called Miss Asia. The Duck Curry with Lychees, pineapple and basil cooked in red curry is succulent, bursting with flavor and only $9.95. Although I think their takeout business may be bigger than their eat-in, the decor is actually beautiful with sculptures not only on the walls but between tables. Very romantic. They also have Camboidan dishes like Beef in Tamarind Curry (with pumpkin and pineapples) and Indian dishes like samosas and grilled fish with "pakistani spices." I'm salivating as I write this ...

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Miss Asia
434 W Diversey Pkwy, Chicago, IL 60614

[Willgly]

TAC Quick is good.
I also like Vong's Thai Kitchen downtown. Very good Pad Thai, a great three course offering for $26, and a classy joint.

[Chicago Wine Geek]

I love Dao on Ohio.

http://www.daothai.com/

[aelph]

Remember if dining at TAC or Spoon to ask for the Thai translated menu.

[Eaterlover]

I don't think we've ever had to ask for the trnaslated menu at Spoon Thai. It seems to be provided to everyone now (thank god!)

[gordeaux]

If you wanna condense noddles with curry, and try other things, you might wanna look into a dish called khaosoi or khaosoy. It's usually a coconut milk curry with deep fried noodles. I think tac makes a very respectable version of this. When I feel like having a "comfort food" meal at Tac, I usually have:
Cucumber salad
Chive dumplings
Thai fried chicken
Khaosoy or panang curry (a little extra spicy)

This will generally STUFF two people and have a good amt of leftovers. It will easily feed three.

[jbw]

TAC also has a fine duck curry, often listed as a special on the chalkboard. If you go, be sure to take a look at the chalkboard; I've rarely been disappointed when ordering direct from there.

[aelph]

Just to condense Nsxtasy's comment: you're gonna have to travel(from O'Hare) for the great Thai food Chicago-proper(not suburbs/not Evanston) has to offer. I like TAC, Spoon, Opart, and Ros Ded...the latter three are all within blocks of one another in Lincoln Square.

[Dave in Dripping Springs]

Thank you, I can't wait!

[nsxtasy]

Well, there's "best", and there's "best"... ;) There are also differences in location. So, without further ado...

IMHO the very best Thai restaurant in the entire Chicago area is Thai Sookdee, in Evanston. The best tom kha gai in the area, wonderful panang curries, and just everything I've had there is consistently excellent. Evanston is the first town north of Chicago on Lake Michigan, about 30 minutes driving from O'Hare. So if you want the very best Thai food we've got, this is the place:

Thai Sookdee
1016 Church St.
Evanston
847-866-8012
www.thaisookdee.com

There are several places in the city of Chicago that people consistently recommend, including TAC Quick, Spoon Thai, and Sticky Rice. I think TAC Quick is the best of these three, but its tom kha gai isn't all that great (seems tomatoey). Overall I would say it's pretty good, but I like Thai Sookdee (above) a lot better. All are 25-30 minutes driving from O'Hare (assuming it's not rush hour).

TAC Quick
3930 N Sheridan Rd
Chicago 60613
[phone]

Spoon Thai
4608 N. Western Ave.
Chicago, IL 60625
(773) 769 - 1173
www.spoonthai.com

Sticky Rice Thai
4018 N. Western Ave,
Chicago, IL 60618 USA
[phone]
www.stickyricethai.com

Another place I've heard people recommend, but is the one place mentioned here I have NOT been to (and thus will not comment on how good it is), is Elephant Thai. Elephant Thai is quite close to O'Hare, only 10-15 minutes away.

Elephant Thai
5348 W Devon Ave
Chicago
773-467-1168

In the other direction, away from the city, AltThai in downtown Arlington Heights is very good, as good as TAC Quick (but again, I like Thai Sookdee better). Trendy modern decor (like TAC Quick). 15-20 minutes driving from O'Hare.

AltThai
40 S. Arlington Heights Road
Arlington Heights IL 60005
847-797-8442
www.altthai.com

Another place that's closer to O'Hare (10-15 minutes) is Siam's House in Niles. I ate there and I really did not like it at all, and would not recommend it.

Siam's House
7742 N Milwaukee Avenue
Niles, IL 60714
[phone]

Two other Thai places I'll mention (out of maybe 50 or so Thai restaurants I've tried in the Chicago area) are Ruby of Siam in Evanston and Skokie, and Thai Pavilion 2 in Skokie. Both can be very good, but are occasionally inconsistent; sometimes they're excellent, other times they're just okay. If you're considering eating Thai in Evanston or Skokie, Thai Sookdee (above) is easily the best of the dozen or so Thai places in those two towns, but if you'd like to try another, these two are also worth considering.

Ruby of Siam
1125 Emerson
Evanston
847-492-1008
9420 Skokie Blvd.
Skokie
847-675-7008
www.rubyofsiam.com

Thai Pavilion 2
4654 Church St.
Skokie, Illinois
[phone]
www.thaipavilionskokie.com

[nsxtasy]

Elephant Thai has a website: www.elephantthaicuisine.com