Eating Out: Supatra Thai
As an aside, at every point in a blogger's life he or she has to find a sensical nickname for his or her spouse. Saying 'my husband' is a little tenuous so I'm going to begin calling my husband Mr. S from this day forward. Stay tuned for more of our fantastic adventures!
*****
Supatra Thai had a lot going for it when we stepped into the bright red tiled entry on bustling West 7th Street in St. Paul. For starters, Mr. S and I were going there before the Bob Seger concert at the Excel which we had been looking forward to in a major way. Secondly, I'm a Thai spicy food fanatic, as described in my previous post on Na's Thai Cafe. Lastly, a co-worker and trusted fellow food lover gave us the recommendation to visit so we knew it had to be good. It was a trifecta, a perfect storm of anticipation.
We walked into the joint and it was neat and clean, decidedly similar to most Thai restaurants in the cities. We were seated at a table for two in the very back of the restaurant. I ordered a glass of wine to drink while we chatted about our workdays and perused the menu. Sadly, the wine didn't arrive to our table for about twenty minutes.
Finally, the server high tailed it over, wine in hand, and we placed our order. I got the Pad Thai with Chicken ($10.95). Much like alfredo or a bolognese at an Italian restaurant, Pad Thai is a good barometer of the quality of food at a Thai restaurant. I always order it the first time around to see if the place is worth a second try. Mr. S got the Thai Stir-fry with Potato and Tofu ($10.95). He's been ordering tofu a lot. I think he might like it! We each ordered our dishes with medium spice and requesting a side of Sriracha to up the ante, if necessary.
When our food was delivered mine was not quite right, but was quickly corrected. Mr. S's was right on the money and smelled amazing. We dug in, excited about the positive olfactory impression and ready to entertain our taste buds. The potato and tofu in the stir fry were cooked to perfection. My noodles were just a teeny bit overdone, not quite gummy, but the spice was right on the mark and the chicken was juicy and flavorful.
We waited for our meal just shy of an hour. I think the server was hiding in the kitchen for about thirty minutes hoping not to have to face us. Maybe she forgot to put our order in, maybe they got behind in the kitchen. We'll never know. I'm sure it was a fluke, most diners were clearly regulars and very happy to wait for their Thai fix. Our server worked overtime to recover our service experience once our food was delivered and that goes a long way with me. I'm looking forward to being wowed by the food AND the service next time around!
After further online research I found out they offer cooking classes. I'll be enrolling! The owner, Supatra Johnson, is even author of a cookbook. I'll be buying it!
Rating: B+. Good food, spotty service experience.
Supatra Thai, 967 West 7th Street, Saint Paul
*****
Supatra Thai had a lot going for it when we stepped into the bright red tiled entry on bustling West 7th Street in St. Paul. For starters, Mr. S and I were going there before the Bob Seger concert at the Excel which we had been looking forward to in a major way. Secondly, I'm a Thai spicy food fanatic, as described in my previous post on Na's Thai Cafe. Lastly, a co-worker and trusted fellow food lover gave us the recommendation to visit so we knew it had to be good. It was a trifecta, a perfect storm of anticipation.
We walked into the joint and it was neat and clean, decidedly similar to most Thai restaurants in the cities. We were seated at a table for two in the very back of the restaurant. I ordered a glass of wine to drink while we chatted about our workdays and perused the menu. Sadly, the wine didn't arrive to our table for about twenty minutes.Finally, the server high tailed it over, wine in hand, and we placed our order. I got the Pad Thai with Chicken ($10.95). Much like alfredo or a bolognese at an Italian restaurant, Pad Thai is a good barometer of the quality of food at a Thai restaurant. I always order it the first time around to see if the place is worth a second try. Mr. S got the Thai Stir-fry with Potato and Tofu ($10.95). He's been ordering tofu a lot. I think he might like it! We each ordered our dishes with medium spice and requesting a side of Sriracha to up the ante, if necessary.
When our food was delivered mine was not quite right, but was quickly corrected. Mr. S's was right on the money and smelled amazing. We dug in, excited about the positive olfactory impression and ready to entertain our taste buds. The potato and tofu in the stir fry were cooked to perfection. My noodles were just a teeny bit overdone, not quite gummy, but the spice was right on the mark and the chicken was juicy and flavorful.We waited for our meal just shy of an hour. I think the server was hiding in the kitchen for about thirty minutes hoping not to have to face us. Maybe she forgot to put our order in, maybe they got behind in the kitchen. We'll never know. I'm sure it was a fluke, most diners were clearly regulars and very happy to wait for their Thai fix. Our server worked overtime to recover our service experience once our food was delivered and that goes a long way with me. I'm looking forward to being wowed by the food AND the service next time around!
After further online research I found out they offer cooking classes. I'll be enrolling! The owner, Supatra Johnson, is even author of a cookbook. I'll be buying it!
Rating: B+. Good food, spotty service experience.
Supatra Thai, 967 West 7th Street, Saint Paul
(651) 222-5859
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