Bahn Thai

1902 Southwest 13th Street

Three Thumbs Up (It's the best Thai food in town. A friend told me that's like saying "She's the prettiest girl in Ocala.")

Price Range: Surprisingly expensive. It seems to always cost at least 5 more dollars per person than you'd think.

Menu Link

Menu Highlights: Red Curry, Stir Fry Tofu with Mixed Vegetables

First off, I'm sorry for the lack of pictures lately. I've been doing a bit of take out food and don't want to offer those photos as evidence of a place's quality. Otherwise, let's get to it!

Bahn Thai is easily Gainesville's best Thai restaurant. Granted, that's not saying much, but it's pretty good nonetheless. There are certainly downsides to the place, such as the mob hit feeling of the windowless room or the immediate proximity of several transient/hooker motels. The wall of photos from 1992 also doesn't help assure me that the place has been cleaned any time recently. You can clearly see the exact same decor behind Michael J Fox and Woody Harrelson when they ate at the restaurant during filming of Doc Hollywood. I am also always disappointed by the haggard appearance of the tofu in the vegetarian dishes.

All that aside, they do have some tasty food. My favorite is the stir fry tofu with mixed vegetables, or the ol number 86. It comes with bean sprouts and crispy noodles, but if you're smart like me, you ask for these filler ingredients to be left out in order to maximize the awesome higher quality vegetables. This dish is chock full of variety, with at least a dozen different types of veggies. The sauce is a light brown sauce that can tend to be a bit oily, but it's quite good.

Their red curry is right on and the tofu version comes with a bunch of delicious veggies as well. I also tend to like their cashew sauce despite it being quite different from other Thai restaurants' cashew sauces. It's less light and delicate and has more of a heartier, gravier taste(yes, I just invented an adjective form of the word "gravy").

If you're feeling cold or under the weather, nothing kicks up your body temperature like a bowl of Tom-Yum soup. I think it's deliciously tangy and they do it quite well.

Their menu literally has a billion items on it, so feel free to experiment in order to find the dish that's just right for you.

If you eat in, make sure to take advantage of the complimentary dessert, which tends to vary between black sticky rice (think purple rice pudding) and sweet potatoes in coconut milk (very soft, small pieces of potatoes swimming in deliciousness). Both are really great and totally unexpected forms of dessert.

One final note. The service is always polite and professional. The owners (wife runs the business while husband runs the kitchen) are also very courteous and gracious hosts. This is certainly a selling point for me, as they always make sure you enjoy your meal.

All in all, Bahn Thai does the trick. I'd honestly prefer the place to be a bit better and certainly much cleaner, but it'll do.