DISH OF THE WEEK: Sukhothai Noodles from A PLUS THAI

Every week, I document another dish that impressed and satiated me during my food adventures around New York City

I’ve always loved Thai food. When I first discovered it n college, I became somewhat obsessed with Pad Thai and attempted to try it at every Thai restaurant I could find. Back then it wasn’t as difficult because the cuisine was relatively new to American diners.

Since then, of course, it would be impossible to get to every Thai restaurant in just about any city in the US. I’m very excited that the cuisine has become more prevalent and better understood. And now I eat much more than just Pad Thai.

In fact, I am currently hosting a series of virtual programs with the tour company I work with Turnstile Tours (in partnership with Thai Select USA) about Thai cuisine in America. And so I’ve done even more research than usual and we have selected a number of national and local restaurants to feature.

Part of the research involves going to some local Thai restaurants and sampling as much food as possible. Which is how I ended up at A Plus Thai in a quieter area of Midtown.

Chef Aura Piyada and her aunt Sanun Nakapat will be featured on our episode about Northern and Southern Thai Cooking and so I had to try one of their specialities, which is Sukhothai Noodle Soup. This is a warming spicy soup that comes from the Northern part of Thailand and is not nearly as available in New York as it should be.

The springy rice noodles were floating in a glowing red broth that had all the notes you’d expect from Thai cuisine. The heat was not overwhelming but rather balanced perfectly with funky, sour, and sweet notes. It was an irresistible broth that bled flavor into the noodles. Some crunchy texture was nicely revealed from fried garlic, roasted peanuts, and a wonton crisp.

I have come along way since my early days of Pad Thai obsession and thankfully, so has Thai food in this country. Price: $13