If you are looking to feast your eyes as well as your palate, then Thai Time is your go-to choice for Restaurant Week 2015. With everything from decor to dining, this establishment is phenomenal. Now is a great time to check this restaurant out, whether you’re a regular Thai Timer or a first-time indulger.
To accurately describe the Thai Time experience, you need to start with the visual. You start your meal off by taking in some fresh air on the restaurant’s patio that is accompanied by a beautiful view of the Chenango River. After that, you can move on to the menu.
This week, Thai Time is offering a three-course lunch for $12 and a three-course dinner for $23. While both are enticing, I recommend the dinner option. Yes, it’s more expensive, but with the large portions, you’ll definitely have leftovers to stash in your dorm fridge. For my dinner appetizer, I tried the Thai crispy rolls and the martini seafood salad. Served with a side of sauce, the crispy rolls are warm and crunchy enough to make you salivate before even taking the first bite. Inside, they are soft, rich and filled with cabbage, potatoes and carrots.
For those looking for a bit of kick with an incredible aesthetic, order the martini seafood salad. It’s a dish that looks as good as it sounds and tastes as good as it looks. Served in a martini glass, it’s filled with lettuce, shrimp, pineapple and a special martini sauce, with fresh slices of avocado topping it all off. For those who love spicy, the salad is just spicy enough. I have a small spice tolerance, so the cool avocado and sweet pineapple diversified the flavor of the dish.
It’s important to take your time when you’re deciding on your entrée. You could order your usual pad thai, or you could take a chance and get adventurous by ordering something like massaman curry. Thai Time offers a large selection, including a list of curry, noodles, stir-fry, fried rice and pho.
Of course, this isn’t all.
In the curry section alone, your options include red, pineapple and green curry, among others. I tried something new and went for the pineapple curry. Served in a coconut milk-based sauce with rice on the side, the dish was a combination of sweet and spicy; the pineapple and curry are served with a meat of your choice – or two. Kudos to Thai Time for their delicious shrimp. For those looking for a pasta-based dish, try the drunken noodles. The dish consists of wide noodles and your choice of meat in a flavorful sauce. It’s delicious, albeit somewhat spicy (again, my low tolerance), and there is enough to take home for an actual drunken snack.
The desserts are just as enticing as the other menu items. If you love chocolate and don’t order the lava cake, you are making a mistake. Served with a side of cold vanilla ice cream, this rich dish with a warm chocolate center is everything you want it to be and more. For those who love all things dairy, try the cheesecake egg roll. It consists of a creamy filling inside a traditional egg roll shell, and is served with vanilla ice cream and drizzled in raspberry sauce. Don’t overthink the desserts here. Just order with friends and try everything.
For those who don’t have room for any more food, your dessert can be replaced with a glass of house wine or a domestic beer, so you can pick your post-meal poison.
Come for the food and stay for the aesthetic. Actually, stay for both; this place is great.
Thai Time is located on 96 Front St.