THE GOSSIPING GOURMET: Thai food that’s fit for royalty

What a surprise it was to rediscover the Royal Thai! Laguna’s first Thai restaurant has been around for 22 years, and it has seen a few ups and downs; but right now, it’s taken a delicious upturn. Quite a few years ago we both had several unsatisfactory meals there and stopped going. Apparently, there have been some changes in the kitchen, and they are changes for the better.

The decor has had a mini face-lift as well. There is new teak outdoor furniture, new paint and new carpeting since our last visit. The large patio area is centered round a bubbling fountain and is bedecked with foliage.

The interior has rich, brown wood slatted walls with decorative pierced arches on both sides of the room and three cozy booths along one wall. The flashing Budweiser sign in the window creates a distinctive ambience.

Actually, what really does create the ambience is the extraordinarily sweet, attentive and genuinely friendly staff. Because we so love Thai food, there was really nothing on the extensive menu that we didn’t want to try, so we enlisted the help of our charming waitress, Maam. (Her father thought she would get respect with this name.)

After much discussion about the varieties of Thai food, we got a mini-course on regional differences. In the North, curries and entree soups with salty sour and bitter flavors dominate. Sweetness is held to a minimum and spicy chili dips are added for heat.

The cuisine of the Northeast (Isaan) region, noted for its marinated grilled chicken and green papaya salad, has migrated to all parts of the country as the very poor population relocated throughout Thailand in search of a better lifestyle. Economics may also be a factor in the inclusion of insects in their cuisine. Fried giant water bugs are very popular.

Around Bangkok, the central area, which is the seat of the royal court, people are wealthier. This is the cuisine with which Westerners are most familiar. Sweet balances hot, sour and spicy. Fluffy white rice predominates over sticky rice, and noodles are a mainstay in soups and stir-frys.

Down south, food is particularly spicy and colorful, influenced by the Muslim population and its proximity to Malaysia. Being on the coast, seafood reigns and vegetables are abundant.

The Royal Thai serves cuisine primarily from the central region. Some of the classic appetizers are Thai spring rolls, larb (minced chicken spiced with lime juice, chili and fresh mint), chicken or beef satays with peanut sauce, barbecue spare ribs and tod mun (spicy fish cakes). Royal Thais are like small pancakes and the mixture of ground fish with a little bit of chopped green beans wasn’t very spicy. (In Thailand, green chilies would take the place of beans.)

It hardly mattered because the wonderful accompanying chopped salad of cucumbers, peanuts and carrots mounded over a sweet hot sauce was loaded with flavor and heat. The fish cakes provided the vehicle for getting this delicious concoction into your mouth.

We have always liked their Siam forest salad “” a simple green salad with tofu, cucumbers and tomatoes “” because the peanut dressing is excellent.

Soup lovers can make a meal out of the large size Po tak (a hot and sour seafood soup) or the Soup Royale (a mild soup brimming with chicken, shrimp, vegetables and glass noodles). Tom Kha, spicy coconut milk soup, can be ordered with chicken or shrimp.

Main courses are broken up in to four categories: specialties, entrees, seafood, or noodles and rice.

The entrees are presented with a description of their various preparations, and you may choose meat, chicken, seafood or vegetarian style.

From the specialties menu we ordered one of the three duck preparations, choo-chee duck, the nonfried option. This is half a roasted duck with a dipping sauce. Too often duck is overcooked, but this was extremely moist and tender with a hint of dark spices permeating the flesh. The delicious sauce was really a Thai-style coconut milk curry with many layers of flavor and a bit of heat. The bird was fanned out on a bountiful bed of particularly good, lightly cooked spinach with a cluster of broccoli on the side.

From the seafood menu, we chose lady Thai prawns No. 1. Two giant freshwater crustaceans from the Chao Praya River were split, grilled and accompanied by a tamarind and curry sauce. Bigger than large shrimp, these were more like “lobsterettes,” so tender and flavorful on their own they really didn’t need a sauce but who are we to complain, when presented with the tasty bath in which they swam. Although quite similar to the choo-chee, it was lighter and sweeter.

From the entrees, we went with Maam’s favorite style of curry: panang, a smooth, light red sauce with carrots and bell peppers. We later discovered that this is the preferred curry for beef because of its depth. However, looking for variety, we ordered it with oyster mushrooms and vegetables. Although we loved the deep, rich, dark spice flavors of the sauce, we were disappointed in the dearth of vegetables, albeit the oyster mushrooms were excellent. We wished there were more of them. All these dishes come with jasmine rice but their unusually delicate brown rice is only $1 extra and worth it.

Noodle dishes abound, from the classic paht Thai: rice noodles stir-fried with chicken, ground peanuts and bean sprouts; to the light pad woonsen, glass noodles with vegetables, egg, ground pork and your choice of beef, chicken or shrimp. Royal Thai noodles are crispy egg noodles topped with a sauce of onions and bamboo shoots with your selection of protein.

Desserts are mainly ice cream but there is cheesecake and flambéed banana with ice cream. The traditional Thai dessert of fresh mango served with sweet sticky rice and coconut milk is seasonal. In very hot weather, fresh lychee fruit served over crushed ice makes a refreshing finish to your meal.

If you haven’t been there for a while, give it a try. You will be royally welcomed and dine well.

ELLE HARROW AND TERRY MARKOWITZ owned a la Carte for 20 years and can be reached at themarkos755@yahoo.com.