Tangthai Cuisine of Thailand - Vancouver, BC

Ooooh, this place has a coupon - Mr. Piglet. So I, Ms. Piglet, end up buying the coupon but he ends up going with Burro. Where's the justice in that???? In that case, he's going to have to write the review!

Words: Mr. Piglet
Photos: Burro


Hello people on the internet, this is the first official post by Mr. Piglet.  I must be honest, blogging is not my forte ("Neither is your grammar" - Ms. Piglet).  I've been hacked!  Normally I'm relegated to the behind the scenes stuff, i.e. cleaning up plates and getting the bill.  Anyways enough rambling, time to set the scene.


Burro and I are forced to make a difficult decision: should we get something to eat first or start playing FIFA 12? Knowing full well there's no such thing as one game of FIFA, common sense prevails and we decide to eat first.  Where to go? I look into my knap-sack and find a coupon for Tang Thai.  It's not like I'm on a first date or anything like that so there's no shame in a couple of guys using a coupon for some Thai food.  Lets see how this meal gets on:

Looking in from the outside I'm a little concerned at the lack of patrons for a Friday night.  Having second thoughts that this is a trap, we man up and decide to keep calm and carry on.  Once inside we notice there is ample seating and only one table full consisting of 4 supposed hipsters.  The decor is awfully Thai-ish, consisting of sculptures of Buddha and pictures of Thai things.  Seeing that I'm not very well traveled I imagine this is what Thailand looks like.  Now on to the food:

Pandan Chicken - $7.95

Thai style chicken wrapped in pandan leaves

First up is the Pandan Chicken which to sum it up is four rather greasy pieces of chicken wrapped in foliage.  Although the chicken was fairly crunchy and tasty (with a top notch sweet dipping sauce) its hard to look past how greasy these little bites were.  I imagine that this was one of the things that would pass the Homer Simpson grease test.

Satay Chicken and/or Beef - 4 for $6.95

Chicken or beef satay served with peanut sauce and cucumber

Our second starter comes out not long after the first.  The chicken is tender and has excellent flavor.  The beef however is rather chewy, not as chewy as a Firestone tire but its not far off.  The skewers are a bit on the small side.


Piglet tip o' the day: Chicken >Beef.

Pad Thai Goong Sod - $10.95 add shrimp $12.95

Rice noodles with eggs, chicken, shrimps, sliced tofu, preserved radish, chives, bean sprouts and tomato sauce, served with a side of fresh sprout and crushed peanuts

Feeling like a high roller (yes I know we are using a coupon) we decide to get the Pad Thai Goong Sod with shrimp.  When the dish arrives we do a quick number crunch and count a whopping total of 3 shrimps.  Is there a trade-embargo on shrimp that I don't know about?  The rest of the dish was just 'alright'.  Certainly not the best Pad Thai I've ever had but not the worst.  The noodles were stuck together like a ball of yarn, which doesn't really effect the taste but it does for sharing (and sharing is caring after all).


Piglet tip #2: Hold the Shrimp and use the $2 at the penny slots at the EdgeWater Casino.

Panang Kai - $12.95

Panang curry with chicken, coconuts milk, bell peppers, and mushrooms topped with peanut sauce and lime leaves

The star of meal was no doubt the Panang Kai.  The chicken was extremely soft and tender.  I found the dish a bit on the spicy side but Burro said it was just right.  Best to keep a glass of water close by.  Like all curries they are best served with rice and Tang Thai has two kinds to choose from:

Jasmine Rice - $1.95 / Coconut Rice - $2.50

Unable to make a decision on whether to get Jasmine Rice or Coconut rice we decide both.  The jasmine rice is what it is but the Coconut Rice was fantastic.  Just the right amount of sweet and goes great with Panang Kai curry.


Piglet Tip numero trois: Open your coin purse and fork up the 55 cents for the Coconut Rice because your worth it.

Deep Fried Banana - $5.50

Served with vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, chocolate and mango sauces

Two guys, one banana?  The dish consisted of a mountain of vanilla ice cream and whipped cream surrounded but a single banana cut in three.  The banana warm and delectable (how can you argue with deep frying a banana?) but the dish was a bit small ice/whipped cream to banana ratio was a little bit of a miss-match (Go Banana!).  This dish could have used i dunno... maybe 2 bananas?  Did Donkey Kong come by for lunch and clear out the place out before we got there?  Nobody knows...


Pros:

• Street parking available (pay) with free 2hr parking not too far by
• Patio for sun tanning enthusiasts and non-vampires
• Water refilled consistently (good for those spicy curries)
• Friendly honest service

Cons:

• Average thai food
• Smaller portion sizes
• Not much dinner buzz

Overall: Tang Thai looks like it's Thai, has Thai servers, serves Thai food but it's not really authentic if the cooks are not Thai but the food isn't bad.  Nothing was inedible or repulsive but at the same time, it wasn't anything special either.  Can you find better Thai food elsewhere in the Lower Mainland?  Of course.  Nothing compels us to come back and without the coupon, we probably wouldn't have chosen to eat here.  It is what it is.

Piglet randoms:

"Hey Everybody, Here’s some fun facts: The population of Thighland is 63 million people, It is twice the size of Wyoming,  It's chief exports are textiles, footwear and rice."

- The Hangover 2 -