Food review: Tom kha gai soup

Restaurant: Thai House Express (Larkin St., San Francisco)
Food description: Traditional Thai soup made with coconut milk, ginger, lime, lemon grass, red onions, scallions and boiled chicken
Food rating: 8.5 out of 10
Times ordered: 2

I had been told repeatedly that Thai House Express had some great grubbin and the people weren't lying. I am a tom kha gai fanatic and this is some TASTY soup! I dislike when this dish is prepared too sweet, and they didn't do that. I dislike when its too lemony (is that a word?) or too oniony (i repeat...), and they didn't do that. And sometimes it is prepared with overcooked chicken and this chicken was tender (read: 'teeeaander' in that southern sing-song voice). Also they didn't destroy the flavor with too much spiciness, I ordered it medium and it was - thank you! It's interesting how they can take such major opposing flavors and mix them together into a good soup. I've definitely had tom kha gai that wasn't good and these guys have their stuff together. This place also happens to be pretty cheap, although it doesn't deliver (boooooo!), and the neighborhood (its the loin) is... well... interesting right?

Food review: Thai chicken wings

Restaurant: Thai House Express (Larkin St., San Francisco)
Food description: Thai chicken wings deep fried with dipping sauce
Food rating: 4 out of 10
Times ordered: 1

I'm always up for trying wings at different places, but I would not order the wings from Thai House Express again. They were not my style at all-no breading, no crispiness, and no sauce (aside from the dipping sauce which I didn't like). The skin was really thick and fatty and I had to pick all of it off. Once I got to the meat, it didn't really have any flavor and overall it didn't really seem like they put any effort into this dish at all. At least there's other things on the menu worth trying, such as the tom kha gai soup or the Thai House beef. Stick with what you know here...

Food review: Pad see ew (chicken)

Restaurant: Thai House Express (Larkin St., San Francisco)
Food description: Thai pan-fried rice noodles with chicken, scallions, and sweet soy sauce
Food rating: 7 out of 10
Times ordered: 1

I'm definitely not the authority on Thai food, since I don't really like curry or overly sweet dishes. I've had pad see ew at several other places and I have to say the kind at Thai House Express is pretty good. One thing I hate is overly greasy dishes, and the pad see ew was definitely not drenched in oil (unlike the pad see ew from Osha) . It's a nice introductory dish if you're not very daring, but perhaps a little boring for those looking for a bolder flavor. There was only little bits of chicken and should have been more generous in the meat department. But as pad see ew goes, Thai House Express is a top choice.

Food review: Thai House beef

Restaurant: Thai House Express (Larkin St., San Francisco)
Food description: Grilled beef with sweet dipping sauce and white rice
Food rating: 7.5 out of 10
Times ordered: 1

This is a popular dish at Thai House Express, and for good reason. The beef in this dish is of a better quality than you'll find at most Thai restaurants. It's lightly marinated then grilled until almost blackened and served in slices. Slicing the beef too soon will release the juices and become dry, which unfortunately happened with this dish. It was still perfectly tender and quite tasty, just a bit too dry. The sauce was lacking though, and for a dish as plain as this, the sauce needed to come through. It was sweet but too bland, and didn't complement the meat at all. Something with a little more kick would've been better. Overall, a pretty good choice at Thai House Express.