THE GOSSIPING GOURMET:Thai Bros. casual setting is a Laguna favorite

Those alphabetical brothers A and B Itti run the two best Thai joints in town: A, at Laguna-Thai-By-the-Sea and B, at Thai Bros. We have chosen to review them in alphabetical order (for A, see the Coastline Pilot April 28, 2006, issue) so now it’s B’s turn.

If their cousin C, who lives in Bangkok, ever opens a restaurant in Laguna, you can be sure we’ll review him next.

Located in the former home of Benny the Bum’s diner and even earlier, Shirley’s Bagels, Lagunatics have been eating in this spot since the ‘70s but never as well as now at Thai Bros.

It could be something from the “Appethaizer” list, this title presaging the appearance of the occasional fusion dish on the menu, such as the deep fried triangles, which are stuffed flour tortillas with shrimp, fish and avocado, or the fried wontons stuffed with cream cheese and avocados.

More traditional are the “cutie pies,” thin crispy pastry cups filled with delicate curried chicken; or the satés, grilled beef or chicken on a skewer that you can dip into their delicious peanut sauce.

We passed up our usual favorites for a nightly special: steamed chicken dumplings, which were the only disappointment of the evening. The bland ground chicken filling had neither seasoning nor vegetables to give it flavor or texture even though the dipping sauce was so good, we saved it to use later in the meal.

The two most famous Thai soups are Tom Yum, a spicy broth with lemon grass and shrimp and Tom Kha, a coconut milk soup with chicken and cabbage.

Elle, who has visited Thailand many times, insists that (on this particular evening) the Tom Kha was the best she had ever tasted. There was a perfect marriage of flavors.

The soup was light with the richness of the coconut milk balanced by a refreshing jolt of lime. There was a perfect mouth feel and just the right amount of heat, highlighted by a few fresh crunchy vegetables.

We chose two entrées from the “Specialties of the House” menu section. The fried duck had virtually no fat and the skin was wonderfully crunchy, even more so than Peking duck, but the flavorful twice-cooked meat was a bit dry. It was served on a bed of vegetables with a zippy, tomatoey dipping sauce.

The dipping sauce added a pungent accent and the vegetables were simply but perfectly cooked. The Thai respect vegetables and treat them with veneration.

Egg noodles with shrimp and vegetables in spicy Thai basil sauce certainly lives up to its name. In the words of Miss Hilton, “That’s hot,” but it was just right for our palates. The heat in no way masked the layers of flavor in the delicious and complex sauce. The slender noodles had the wonderful chewy texture of freshly made pasta with a bit of crispiness from the pan.

Stir-fried with vegetables and shrimp, we found the dish irresistible. Even though we were quite full, we just couldn’t stop eating.

The regular menu features a selection of rice and noodle dishes, then a section of meats and poultry, followed by a choice of fish and seafood and five vegetarian dishes. There is also a number of curries.

Thai curries are not like Indian curries. They have their own unique flavors: red, yellow and green being the most well-known, and all are fairly spicy. Chicken and potatoes are featured in their yellow curry; pork, bamboo shoot and eggplant are in the red; and shrimp and vegetables in the green.

From the menu’s large selection, some of our favorites include: the classic Pad Thai noodles consisting of rice noodles with egg, sliced baked tofu and shrimp in a sweet and savory sauce tossed with green onion and sprouts, then topped with ground peanuts.

Perfect Harmony is sliced chicken breast on a bed of stir-fried spinach drenched in their mouth-watering peanut sauce.

Three of the entrée sized salads sport a spicy lime dressing that we find addictive. It is light and hot with just a touch of sweetness. You can have it on yum gai with chicken and nuts, yum nue with marinated grilled beef or yum yai with seafood and glass noodles.

Terry’s vegetarian brother loves their ginger tofu with mushrooms, onions, celery and carrots.

B’s favorite is Pavillion rice, their special fried rice that includes just about everything in the kitchen: egg, onion, tomato, chicken, shrimp, pork and Chinese sausage.

Thai desserts, like other Asian desserts, are almost always an afterthought; usually ice cream, pudding or fruit. No pastry chef beating butter cream in this kitchen.

However, when champagne mangoes are in season as they are now, the classic Thai dessert of sliced mango and sticky rice is a not-to-be-missed treat.

This casual and inexpensive eatery with its consistent quality has made it a Laguna favorite.

Eating Thai in this town is as easy as ABC.