Nava Thai - Wheaton, MD

When my Thai friends recommend a Thai restaurant, I need to trust their judgment pronto! Nava Thai is located in my old neighborhood. I grew up on Arcola Ave, and my mom had a hair salon across University Blvd.

There's street parking and a small lot 1/2 block down. The closest metro stop is Wheaton on the red line.

The interior looks like a converted house, which gives it a relaxed vibe, but the ornate Thai decorations make it look much nicer.

Even though I'm trying to cut back on sugar (it never happens), I ordered a Thai Iced Tea ($2.50) and the bf ordered a Thai Iced Coffee ($2.50). Look at the cute cups they used! The server said they are from Thailand. They were delicious and a great price.

They have a huge menu! They have 80 Thai dishes and 91 Japanese items (includes rolls). Good luck deciding what to eat! They all sound awesome. I came with a group of 7, but I'm only documenting items the bf, cousin and I ordered. They all happen to be very popular noodle dishes and a dessert.

1. Pad See Ew (ผัดซีิ้อิ้ว) Stir fried rice noodle w/ Chinese broccoli in bean sauce and choice of meat ($9.95). I ordered it with beef, and I'm salivating as I type. The noodles had so much flavor! Plus the char from cooking added a nice smoky flavor.  
2. Drunken Noodles – Pad Kee Mao (เกี๋ยวเตี๋ยวขี้เมา) Stir fried rice noodle w/ veggies & hot pepper, and choice of meat ($9.95). The bf ordered beef and found the two chili pepper symbol not too spicy. He thought it was good, but liked my Pad See Ew a little better.
3. Pad Thai (ผัดไทย) - Famous Thai noodles w/ egg, shrimp, bean sprouts, green onions & crushed peanuts ($9.95). The cousin ordered this, and though it had more of a fish sauce flavor rather than peanuts, it was still very yummy.
4. Mango and Sticky Rice ($4.50). The rice was sweet and the mangoes were ripe. Great way to end a meal.

I actually can't wait to go back and try other dishes. I was able to sample my other friends' and everything was flavorful. The service was great! They were so friendly. helpful and attentive. I found the prices to be very reasonable too.

11301 Fern St
Wheaton, MD 20902
(240) 430-0495
navathai.food.officelive.com

Thai Iced Tea

It is HOT outside and feels like summer is already upon us. The best way to cope with the heat is a tall glass of Thai Iced Tea.

Every blog post I have about a Thai restaurant includes me ordering this AMAZINGLY delicious drink. It is strong-brewed black tea with other spices, which can include orange blossom water, star anise, crushed tamarind seed or food coloring. After adding sugar and dairy, it is a very refreshing and addictive drink.

I bought this kit at the Bangkok 54 market after lunch one afternoon for around $5. It makes 65 servings, which will save me a lot of $. The brand also sells the tea in individual tea bags, but only makes 30 servings. I'm sure you could find different brands of the tea at other Asian markets too.

This kits comes a bag of ground Thai tea leaves...

...and this cloth tea strainer (aka Spongebob's jelly fish net).

To make 8-10 servings:
1. Measure out 1/4 cup of the tea and pour it into the cloth strainer.

2. Brew it in 4 cups of very hot water (boiling is not necessary) for 3-5 minutes. It should turn a deep orange.
3. Add 1/2 cup of sugar.

4. Pour into a pitcher and let it cool.

5. Serve it over ice with a splash of half and half and ENJOY!

I found that it is better to double the recipe because it goes fast!

The box suggests trying the sweetened tea with lime, pineapple or lychee juice too. I haven't tried those yet, but sounds interesting.

If you don't have this strainer, I'm sure you could brew the tea like you would with any loose leaves. Or try using a tied up coffee filter or simple strain the leaves out before you serve.

Bangkok 54 - Arlington, VA

I've missed you guys! It's been close to a month since I've posted (horrid). Life has been crazy busy but I'm back and ready to bring you along on my eating adventures. Let's go...

Many of my friends have considered Bangkok 54 their favorite Thai restaurant in the metro area, so I went with a couple of them to see for myself.

There is a front and back entrance with a small private lot behind the restaurant. The closest metro station is Pentagon City on the blue/yellow line.

The interior is very clean with a blend of Thai and contemporary decor. It's really cute in there.

The menu has a standard amount of items that I've seen at other Thai restaurants, but what makes them unique is their interpretation of the dishes. The food presentation was a nice bonus.

Thai Iced Tea!

I've included pics of my friends' dishes for visual reference.

We started off with 2 orders of Fresh Rolls (avocado, carrots, cucumber, fried tofu, lettuces, and vermicelli noodles) for $5.95. These are different than typical Spring Rolls and are AMAZING! The avocado makes this appetizer memorable. Next time I'm ordering one for myself and I'm not sharing.

Top: Green Papaya Salad (Shredded green papaya, peanut, tomatoes, garlic, dried baby shrimp, seasoned with chili, fish sauce and fresh lime juice) for $6.95. I've tried some that had too much fish sauce, but this was not the case here, when I tried a bite.

Bottom: Daily Special - Fried Soft Shell Crab. Beautiful presentation and great with the accompanied sauce.

Top: Roast Duck Curry (roasted duck, pineapple and cherry tomatoes in spicy red coconut-curry sauce) for $12.95. The pineapples were a great addition and I'm ordering this as my entree next time.

Bottom: Pork Belly Stew (I couldn't find this on the menu, so maybe it was a daily special). Reminded me of a Vietnamese dish that has whole boiled eggs with the pork. We all wished it was fattier.

Onto my my dish! I ordered the Penang Curry (panang curry in the light creamy coconut sauce with sweet basil served on top of steamed broccoli) for $10.95. I always order my curry with fried tofu because I like how it soaks up the sauce. I liked the curry sauce, but I thought there were too many crunchy vegetables.

We ordered some Mango and Sticky Rices for the table, which was a great way to end our meal. The rice was slightly salty, which added another element to the dessert.

Very minor observation, but we all agreed that the silverware was awkward to use because it was rounded.

The restaurant has a lounge and a market next door!

I got myself some delicious goodies and will have a short post on how to make Thai Iced Tea.

I had a great experience. The place was super cute, and not pretentious. The service was fast and nice. Everyone's dish was good! I was pointing out a few things I'd prefer with the dishes, but none of them tasted bad. I'm looking forward to coming back and trying dishes that other friends have suggested. I also ordered Pad See-Ew to-go for the bf and he thought it was exceptional.

2919 Columbia Pike
Arlington, VA 22204
703-521-4070
www.bangkok54restaurant.com

Benjarong - Rockville, MD

I haven't been back to Benjarong in so long! It was my family's favorite Thai restaurant during my high school and college years. We had stopped going for a while around the time the original owners had sold it. They have recently gotten back into the restaurant business and opened Sabai Sabai. Located in Wintergreen Plaza, there is plenty of parking. The closest metro stop is Rockville on the red line.

The interior is cute because they pay attention to detail and put a lot of traditional Thai decor everywhere.

One of my favorite drinks ever! The Thai Iced Tea was made just right. Wish they came in jumbo sizes or with free refills.

For our appetizer, we shared the Papaya Salad (Fresh shredded green papaya mixed with lime juice and chili pepper served with grilled shrimp, tomatoes, green beans and peanuts) for $8. I thought it was good but had way too much fish sauce. It was too the point you could really smell it. The Viet people at the table didn't mind that, but the bf couldn't eat it.

We also shared Peek Gai (Deep fried stuffed chicken with minced chicken, crab meat, mushroom and spring onions) for $6. It was really yummy and different since it tasted like a chicken wing with eggroll stuffing.

My dad ordered the best thing of the night, in my opinion. Crispy Duck Basil (Deep-fried quarter duck with fresh chili pepper sauce topped with crispy holy basil) for $15. I love duck and they did a great job because it was flavorful, crispy, yet moist. The basil on top were also crispy, which I found fascinating. I'm ordering this dish next time,

I ordered the Phad See Eew (Wide rice noodles sautéed with egg and black bean sauce with bean sprouts and broccoli with beef) for $10. I liked it but I didn't think it was better than other places I've had it at before.

My cousin ordered one of the daily specials. Gai Yang (Thai-style BBQ chicken) for $16. It came with a side of the same papaya salad we ordered as our appetizer. He said the chicken was moist, however it lacked flavor and tasted like plain chicken.

The bf ordered my favorite Thai curry, Panang Curry (Thick red curry with chicken) for $11. I thought it was too spicy for me, but he loved the spice level and the dish a lot.

Our meal ended with a delicious and delicate dessert of Thai-style fried bananas with mango sorbet ($7). The wrapper was thin and crispy with sweet banana filling. The honey on top made it that much better. OMG I loved it.

Service was fine, and the food was overall good. It had been a long time since coming back and I rediscovered some great dishes that I will be coming back for. The large menu and dining room makes Benjarong a good choice for larger parties too.

885 Rockville Pike
(301) 424-5533
Rockville, MD 20852
www.benjarongthairestaurant.com

Tara Thai - Rockville, MD

After training for a run with my cousin, we were hungry! After much debate, we decided on Thai food at Tara Thai. I haven't been back to that restaurant in around 8-9 years because I remember not liking it. It's been long enough, and it deserved a second chance. They have a few locations in the DC area, but we went to the one in Rockville. There is plenty of free parking in the shopping center's lot. The closest metro station is Twinbrook on the red line.

The interior feels like you're in the ocean. Very blue and marine-like. It's a medium-sized restaurant that offers a lot of booth seating in the center of the place.

The light fixtures reminded me of the jelly fish on Spongebob Square Pants!

We always get Thai Iced Teas at Thai restaurants. It's hard to get a perfect blend of tea flavor, sweetness and creaminess. We found these a bit too creamy.

My cousin loves spicy food and ordered the '#49- Kee Mao Goong-Gai (wide rice noodles topped with shrimp and chicken in a spicy basil sauce) for $11.50. This dish had 3 peppers next to it on the menu indicating its high level of spiciness. Sadly for her I was able to eat it, meaning it wasn't spicy at all. Where were the noodles?! There were too many toppings. Overall, we didn't care for the dish.

This is one of my favorite Thai dishes, '#40- Penang Curry (Chicken, beef, pork or seafood cooked in red peanut curry and fresh basil) for $9.95. This only had 1 pepper next to it on the menu, so I wasn't scared of burning my mouth. I always order fried tofu with my curry as I find it soaks up the sauce better. The curry was very dark and thick. I think because there was less coconut milk it in. The texture of the fried tofu did not taste or feel fresh. I was disappointed.

The server was polite and food came out very quickly. I was hoping after many years it would be better, but it hasn't changed. I usually order the same dish at different places, so I am aware of how I like those dishes to taste. I suggest eating Thai food at one of the many others in the area.

12071 Rockville Pike
Rockville MD 20852
301-231-9899
www.tarathairockville.com

Sala Thai- Bethesda, MD

I bought a $20 for $40 worth of food at Sala Thai deal from LivingSocial a few weeks ago, so I took my dad and bf to lunch on Sunday. I was so mad at myself because I was rushing to print out the deal that I forgot my camera. So here's another Iphone post, sorry!

You can't miss this restaurant while driving down Woodmont Ave. I've driven by it so many times because it's located on a street corner. The parking situation is either metered parking or a metered garage a block north, which are all free on the weekends.

I love the huge bay window we sat next to. It adds a nice circular feel to the restaurant, which has a second floor too.

The bf and I ordered a 'Thai Tea' for $2.95. It's one of my favorite drinks, but this one seemed more creamy than usual.

They have a big menu with weekday lunch prices and dinner prices for some of their items. We each ordered a dish, but ended up sharing them. Every dish came with a small bowl of rice too.

My dad ordered the 'Chicken Lemongrass (Sliced chicken sauteed with bell pepper, garlic in yellow lemongrass sauce) for $11.95. I found it to be slightly bland and I wish there was more sauce.

I ordered the 'Panang Gai (Chicken in peanut curry sauce) for $10.95. Usually Penang is spicy, but this wasn't spicy at all. I also wish there was more sauce.

The bf ordered the 'Wild Pork (Stir-fried sliced pork in red curry sauce and tomato with fresh pepper) for 11.95. This dish was AMAZING. The pork was so tender, there were fresh peppercorns and a really nice sauce with the tomatoes. I loved it because it had a great balance of flavor.

The service was really nice, I thought the place was cute. Perhaps we didn't order the right dishes because I thought the chicken dishes were slightly bland. The pork however was very special. Water glasses were constantly refilled, and the music was really cool house. They have a live jazz band playing Thursday-Saturday nights.

4828 Cordell Avenue
Bethesda, MD 20814-3011
(301) 654-4676
Website

Mon-Thu: Sun 11am - 10pm
Fri-Sat: 11am - 11pm

Sabai Sabai - Germantown, MD

To celebrate a coworkers birthday and unknowingly her engagement (Congrats!), we went to a Thai restaurant called Sabai Sabai in Germantown. The former owners of Rockville's Benjarong (awesome place) own this restaurant now. Located in Germantown Shopping Center, there's street parking and a parking lot around the corner. The closest metro stop is Shady Grove on the red line.

FYI, I'm using my Iphone camera since I don't usually bring my camera to work with me.

The place consists of only one dining room, which isn't that big. The place was PACKED for lunch, so we ended up eating at the bar. The decor is really nice, new, and full of inviting colors and materials.

Aside from their regular menu, they have a lunch menu that we all ordered from. Originally I ordered the 'Roast Duck over Rice ($8.95)', but the server heard me wrong and brought me the 'Roast Pork over Rice ($7.95)'. I decided to eat it anyway since I only have an hour lunch break, and I was not sorry. It was AMAZING. The pork was so tender and sweet. The rice was perfectly cooked and the simple combo of pork over white rice was delicious. I'd totally order this dish again. The 'gravy' it came out with seemed like soy sauce, but I didn't even need to use it.

My coworker ordered the 'Drunken Noodles (I don't know what kind of protein) for $8.95'. She let me try it and it was spicy, but had great flavor. She's the one that recommended this place to us. Good job!

The bride-to-be ordered the 'Grilled Chicken + Papaya Salad with Sticky Rice ($8.95)'. Look at all of the food! The chicken had a tasty marinade on it, and the salad was a little spicy, but good.

I really enjoyed the food - nice depth of flavors and cooked well. The service was mediocre. It took a long time to get water, and my order was wrong but they were nice. I thought the prices were a bit expensive for lunch ($7.95-9.95). Their regular menu is fairly large with classic Thai dishes like Pad Thai (9.95), but then they offer some non-traditional items like Lamb Chops ($18.95), Mussels ($12.95) and Catfish ($13.95). They also have a Vegetarian (fake-meat) menu with items like 'You Think It's Duck Curry ($12.95). I've heard the Mango & Sticky Rice ($5.95) is killer, so I'll need to get that next time.

19847 Century Blvd
Germantown, MD 20874
301-528-1400
www.sabaisimplythai.com

Mon-Thur: 11am–3pm 4:30–10pm
Fri: 11:00am–10:30pm
Sat: 11:30am–10:30pm
Sun: 12pm–9:30pm