I've already reviewed Bahn Thai on this blog and gave it a pretty favorable review. Certainly it's in a shady part of town, the decor is kinda creepy, and the fact that their front wall is emblazoned with photos from 1992 makes you wonder the last time they cleaned up the place. But all in all, it was good. It was a Mom and Pop operation, with Mom up front and Pop working the kitchen. You somehow trusted their preparation practices and food quality because they were personally connected to the business. Also, they'd been doing it for ages.
Upon recently re-visiting the place twice in the past few months, I realized something was up. The first hint was a remodeling job that half the restaurant underwent. Chairs, tables, and sculptures that were clearly bought at a restaurant goods bankruptcy auction replaced the old dingy tables, and the walls received some fresh paint (which upon closer inspection was very poorly done). They also were offering sushi and japanese food items.
I quickly realized something was up.
Upon the dinner visit (at 8:30 on a Saturday), the lunch buffet was still out, all congealed and crusted to the pans some 7+ hours after it was last touched. Furthermore, I noted that the sushi coolers had heavy condensation. After looking closer, I realized that the doors were open. All this RAW FISH was being exposed to the open air in suboptimal refrigeration conditions.
The new owners purchased all the old recipes and the regular menu items were still accurate to the originals. But they stopped the complimentary dessert! It was a small gesture, but certainly a welcomed one and a favorite item of many long time locals.
If you need advice on when to be skeptical about a place's sushi, you shouldn't be eating sushi at all, but I'd strongly, and with all my powers, urge you to AVOID their sushi. The Thai still seems acceptable, but I'm not feeling too hopeful. There wasn't one other party eating dinner on a Saturday night in the whole place.
Bahn Thai was never the best Thai Restaurant in the world, but it was certainly the best we had in this town. If the new owners don't get their act in gear, it will be a shame to lose it.
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Your skepticism about the new ownership was well founded. I had dinner there a few nights ago and it was horrid. The food was not at all what I remembered it to be like under the previous ownership. Our starter, of pre-prepared tempeh and peanut sauce, took 40 minutes to arrive and came with my main. Four bowls of rice came 10 minutes later. Each main dish arrived one at a time in 10 minute increments thereafter. One of the main dishes was prepared incorrectly and was sent back. It didn't arrive until we were leaving. The kitchen was obviously at fault, but service itself was terrible because they had one poor girl serving the entire restaurant.
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