Kin Khao Thai, Gorey.

Review

Kin Khao is a Thai expression of welcome and an invitation to share food. Adam Lyons and his Thai wife Janya opened their restaurants after spending seventeen years in Australia and South-east Asia and their passion for food authenticity and attention for detail give truth to the name. This place is just a little bit special.

There are now a lot of Thai restaurants in Ireland. The food has become ubiquitous, not just to the restaurants but on the supermarket shelves. This is fine, I like Thai food, but always think there is a sameness in the menu and quality that I always imagine you wouldn’t find in Thailand.

It seems I was right. The menu in Kin Khao Thai is different.. You will find all the favourites, Green and red Curry, stir-fries with chillie and basil, but you will also find regional dishes from Janya’s family recipes. Wonderful things like Pla Tort Kratien – deep fried cod fillet with garlic and white pepper, or Ho Mok Gai – a steamed chicken curry with red curry paste, ground chicken, Chinese leaf, fresh basil and coconut all blended and steamed.

I had dinner there with Abigail Carthy Walsh. The restaurant is easy to find, its on the right hand side coming onto Gorey Main Street from the Arklow end. Like its sister in Athlone it is painted red outside, while inside there are pale walls with some very nice old black and white images of Thailand.

We were seated at the window and very prompt service ensured that were soon watered and reading the menus. We decided on the mixed combination platter for a starter, while Abigail chose the Peneang curry and I went for Crying Tiger from the Janya’s favourite section of the menu. What with driving and everything, two cokes completed the order. The combination starter was generous and included chicken satay skewers, spring rolls and wan ton wraps served with two chillie sauces. The satay sauce was wonderful and fresh, the wan tons were melt in the mouth and while I don’t normally care for spring rolls these were small delicate parcels packed with flavour.

The main courses kept the high standards going. Abigail’s curry was medium spiced with chicken and vegetables in a really fresh tangy sauce. My Crying Tiger was a sliced fillet of beef, cooked rare as requested, in tamarind on a hot sizzling platter, served with a hot chillie sauce on the side. Both of these dishes were a success and we enjoyed them with one steamed aromatic rice and a fried rice.

Kin Khao Thai really feels like a restaurant that is really trying. I can imagine Adam and Janya decided they could do a lot better than what some Irish Thai restaurants offer and they were right. In Kin Khao Thai the food was excellent, the service friendly and the bill a pleasant surprise. These two restaurants maybe serving the best Thai food in Ireland, you have to try them.