DINING OUT -- Mary Furr

Mai Thai, a small 10-table restaurant snug against the big Pic ‘N Save on

Magnolia Street in Fountain Valley, has some of the freshest Thai food

around.

Owner Kowit Phuthong goes every day to the Vietnamese market on Bolsa

Avenue and Magnolia Street to select the cilantro and lemon grass, basil

and mint, that make up the authentic, enticing dishes.

Thai cuisine has one rule, balance, to combine the four essences, hot and

sour, salty and sweet.

Typical are soups that begin the weekday lunch, great bargains at $5.25.

One recent day it was a wonderful cup of chicken coconut milk with the

tang of lemon grass and a sprig of cilantro floating on top; another, a

dark hot and sour broth with roasted curry, droopy straw mushrooms and a

hint of lime.

A familiar entree, cashew chicken, has added visual excitement with red

and green peppers, carrots and onions stir-fried with tender pieces of

chicken in a brown chili paste.

In Thai cooking, there is an emphasis on healthy eating.

The barbecue chicken is steamed until the tender meat is practically

falling off the bone, then browned under the broiler. A honey glaze adds

a slight sweetness. Again, a fine balance.

Curry is another Thai seasoning that can be fiery hot, with green or red

chilies or more moderate, as in pork prik king stir-fried in canola oil

with loads of bright al dente green beans. The curry paste adds a

smoldering taste of fire to the dish.

An appetizer new to me is wrapped shrimp (6.25), five fat shrimp brushed

with ground chicken for added flavor, wrapped with thread-like egg

noodles and deep fried. It’s wonderful. Crunchy balls of crisp string, a

must-have, are served with a sweet honey dip.

Don’t pass up the Thai ice coffee or tea ($1.25), served in tall glasses

with strong coffee or tea topped with an inch of sweet condensed cream on

top.

A refreshing dessert is a dish of eight plump lychee, the creamy white

flesh of a hard, red-shelled nut -- juicy, smooth and mildly sweet, found

in Southeast Asia and prized for more than 2,000 years as a choice

delicacy.

Mai Thai opened a month ago. It’s a modest restaurant with maroon napkins

fanned out in tall goblets on glass-topped green table cloths.

Soft music plays and musical instruments decorate the wall. A display

cabinet in the corner has ornately dressed dancers and a small riverboat

filled with fruits and vegetables found in Thailand.

Kowit and his wife, Num, whose family owned a restaurant in Thailand,

came to this country 11 years ago. He worked in the restaurant business

before opening Mai Thai, their first place.

They have created a menu with the balance of freshness and health and

just enough spice to set you on fire.

MARY FURR is the Independent restaurant critic. If you have comments or

suggestions for her, call (562) 493-5062.

Mai Thai Restaurant

Where: 17938 Magnolia St., Fountain Valley

Hours: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.

Phone: 963-4929

Fax 963-7820.