thai valley grill

3.5 for thai valley grill. when it comes to thai restaurants in edmonton, my opinions are pretty set. i know what i like, and i know what i like to order.
but i'm always open minded enough to try a new place as well.

this restaurant is located in a strip mall plaza, and it doesn't look like anything special from the outside. i doubt that i would have ever decided to go there on my own. but the inside is decently nice. it's a small room that contains a number of tables, a bar seperates the dining room from the kitchen... and there is plenty of bizzare art on the walls.

the place was fairly empty on a tuesday night, so we walked right in and sat down. we flipped through the menu mostly for no reason, because we already knew what we'd be ordering without even looking. i started with a thai iced tea. everyone should try this drink! it's a lot like thai iced coffee, except with tea (in other words, better). very addictive.
we decided to start with the salad rolls (9.95$) large prawns rolled with rice noodles, lettuce, mint, carrot and cucumber, served with lime chili sauce. they were also served with peanut sauce. they were good, but i wouldn't say that they were much different from any other place. i like the ones at phobulous better. what i did like about these ones, was that they were a bit smaller then typical salad rolls, but they gave you more. it seemed to give you more choice about how much you felt like eating.

up until this point the service had been fine, although a found the server to be a little weird. our entrees took forever. there was hardly anyone else in the restaurant, so there was really no reason for it. it was a little annoying.
finally it arrived. gaeng khiaw wan kai (15.95$) "tender boneless chicken with seasonal vegetables in a sweet greencurrywith coconut milk", kao mun coconut (2.50$) and pad thai (12.95$). translation: green curry, coconut rice and pad thai. same thing we order and share every time.

i'm a firm believer of trying new things, but when it comes to thai, i've already tried a lot and i just know what i like! everything was good. i almost got the feeling that the food might even be more authentic here then in other local places. the greencurrywas good, but a little boring. i don't think any place can compare to the greencurryat the king & i. the pad thai was tasty, but i'm used to more of a tomato base... which may or may not be "authentic." either way, i prefer it that way... even if it's wrong.
i liked the food, but i feel that i know where to find better.

my picks for best edmonton thai food:
1. the king & i
2. padthai
3. bua thai

this place can sometimes be very crowded. we ordered the thaicurryand fried rice which was very tasty. the thai ice tea was very refreshing as well. it's worth the money. a must go for thai food lovers!

a great place for authentic thai food. you'd never know this place was here if not for referrals or word of mouth. the moment you walk in the decor and setting makes it feel like you are in south east asia (minus the elephants and tropical weather). every detail says thailand. as for the food, we got pad thai and coconutcurrywith some appetizers. food came out quick, fresh and tasty. i personally would have preferred a little more spice/kick to it but the flavours were bursting out of every bite. the kids walked in all grumpy and not wanting thai food...but left with full bellies and wanting more. i kept eating and when i got up i realized i over did it. great place.

overall, one of the better thai places in edmonton and an excellent strip mall, ethnic food restaurant.

the service was great and the wait staff was quite accommodating of our 2 year old kid. they actually seemed happy to engage with him, which is always a plus.

the food was great as well. we had tom kha soup to start and we all liked it. we ordered a mild fried rice dish for our kid, who ate it with glee. for ourselves, we ordered greencurryand pad khee mao (spelled differently at the restaurant). both dishes were great as well. very happy to have found a nice, tasty, and relaxed local thai restaurant!

i came here for early dinner with my friend, we ordered the calamari and tom yum soup to start. the calamari was tasteless, but the dipping sauce that came with is pretty good. the tom yum soup was extremely salty, i couldn't finish it at all. we also ordered the yellowcurrywith tofu and greencurrywith fish. i liked the taste of yellowcurrybut not the food, the potato is crunchy, taste like the inside of the potato wasn't fully cooked. and the greencurrywas very salty. we both didn't really enjoy our meal here and not worth for the calories.

greencurryperfection. love this little hole in the wall, to bad they charge extra for takeout. love love the green curry, we've never had a bad meal here. everything on the menu is quite nice. get in early.

some guy. i had great expectations of this place. in the middle of nowhere tucked next to the library, the place is definately a tiny hole-in-the wall (always a good sign for a more authentic taste!). moreso, the waiter seemed to only have a passing acquaintance with english, which i also consider a very good sign. the food that we ordered, however, was something of a mixed bag. the calamari appetizer that we had was probably be best squid i have ever had in my life, with the squid being almost butter-tender and the batter being delightfully flaky. the sauce it came with was way too spicy for my fiancee, but perfect for me. if you have nothing else here, i suggest you try this!

the mains were a bit less pleasant, alas. the coconut rice was fragrant, but no better than numchok wilai, and the oyster-sauce beef is probably better at numchok wilai. i'm not sure how "authentic" it is, but it reeks of the starchy sauces you get in chinese buffets (which, btw, i like as much as the next man, but i was hoping for something else). i had a basa fish redcurrywhich was good, but not as good as i was expecting. the fish was well cooked and melted wonderously in the mouth, but he sauce simply didn't have the flavours i wanted. i'd go back here, and i think that it is definately worth a look if you are in the area of whitemud crossing.

not a good experience. the restaurant was comfortably cozy, but the food was disappointing. i ordered the greencurrywith beef and a thai iced tea. the rice had to be ordered separately, for close to $4.00 a bowl. instead of the usual rich and coconut flavored green curry, my dish looked and tasted like a watery stir-fry. the prices are higher than average, and they also completely forgot about the iced tea.

yum!. while the tom kha gai is so rich and delicious that you might be tempted not to order anything else, don't miss the redcurrywith pork. amazing!

prices are comparable with other thai restaurants in the city, but the portion sizes seemed larger to me which is great because i love thai leftovers for lunch!

the only downside to this place is that it's closed on sundays.

hmm pad thai. my family have been visiting this place regularly for the last year and can't get enough. the pad thai is the best i have found so far in edmonton. the greencurrydishes and bbq beef are also great.

very good thai food/very spicy. if you are a north american who loves spicy food and you usually order your food "spicy" at north american restaurants or americanized thai establishments, i would suggest you order the mild or medium at thai valley, because they dont mess around with the spice. it is packed with great flavour, that you wont be able to experience if you burn your tastebuds off with spice from their "spicy" versions. i am not kidding. my sister loves spice, nothing is ever "too spicy" for her. yet, we ordered the penangcurryfrom this restarant and she could not get past 5 spoonfuls. i recommend this restauarnts food, but be warned about the spice.

tom yam goon was super salty and thick. they brougt us a new one, but i'm pretty sure they just put hot water in it. had a greencurrywhich was good, but again, very salty. pad thai was very thick and saucy, and again, super salty. was disappointed because this place had good reviews. on the plus sid, the lemon infused water tasted extra sweet and delicious!

great take-out. i had the chicken satay, marinated in yellowcurryand thai spices. it had the perfect amount of flavour and spice, and the peanut dipping sauce was perfect!

the salad and rice was nothing to sing about but i am looking forward to more take-out!