Spices Thai Cafe - Carmel Valley

Rating: 7 / 10
Date visited: July 5, 209
Party of two
Lunch

Thai is a a difficult cuisine to excel at. The flavors are delicate and layering them to a delicious creation is a challenge for the chefs. Back in Thailand, the street vendors probably do it in seconds, but here in America, I have had not had much luck in finding a restaurant that demonstrates effectively the dichotomy of simple ingredients and complex flavors. Spices Thai Cafe of Carmel Valley does it better than most.

We went to the restaurant for lunch - a very very late lunch - at 3:30PM! Yes, we were dealing with chores all day that Sunday - farmers market, Costco, Target, Trader Joes, etc., then driving around our area checking out the malls and what stores are out there, car wash, followed by a visit to the library (truly satisfying!). Anyway, this was why we were so late, and as you can imagine - very very hungry.

This time we had read the reviews for the restaurant, Penang chicken was highly recommended. My husband ordered the large Tom Yum Kai and I ordered the Penang Chicken with brown rice (got to eat a bit healthy, though I am not sure how healthier brown rice is versus white rice). We told the waiter that we can handle 'Thai hot". He suggested that he will make the dishes 8/10 hot. Good!

The soup came in the steel Tom Yum hot pot. (Good sign!) They changed our place settings to soup bowls. The individual soup bowls were however quite small, we could do with a bit bigger bowls. The soup was, what can I say, OK. The ingredients were right there, lemon grass swimming in the soup, kaffir lime leaves and galangal emanating the sweet aroma of a well made tom yum, the fresh mushrooms swimming in the broth - good. Two things that did not cut it for us. One, the chicken was overcooked and flaky and without flavor. The flavor of the soup did not go inside the chicken. Two, in order to make it 8/10 spicy, the chef added a big dollop of red chili paste, I think. Now, that is not how you make Thai food spicy. Dry red chili is not the predominant 'spicing' agent in Thai cooking! Well, our lips were burning with the heat from the chili, but we liked the soup - cleared out our sinuses all right. Next time I go there, I will order the soup without the 8/10 spice and see if they make it right.

Penang chicken was good. It could do with a little less coconut milk/cream, but it was OK. I think I was being too discerning here. Flavors were balanced well, and the chicken did feel infused with the flavor of the curry and the vegetables crisp. Good job!

Ambiance was great, very nice layout, light music, neat decor, and not too gaudy like some other restaurants. I liked the showcase with Thai patterned china and silver bowls, very pretty. Service was good and prompt. Several people came to ask if we were happy with the meal, but not too often that we get irritated.

We will go there again. May be with some friends next time and for dinner. May be after a good dinner there, I can give it more than 7/10.

Address: 3810 Valley Center Dr., San Diego CA 92130
Website: http://www.spicesthaisandiego.com/
Ph: 858 259 0889
Timing: M - F (L - 11 AM - 3PM, D - 5PM - 10PM), S - S (11AM - 10PM)
Liquor served