Thai Rama (Phoenix Location)

It was just about two decades ago that LL Cool J proclaimed, "Don't call it a comeback / I been here for years / Rockin my peers and puttin suckas in fear." As West Coast gangsta rap began to gain mainstream appeal, the New Yorker boldly asserted that he'd been around longer than the newcomers and still had a major role to play. In the seemingly unrelated world of food, Thai Rama, more specifically the restaurant's original location on Camelback, might be entitled to say the same thing. Thai restaurants have proliferated recently in Central Phoenix with a half dozen now lined up along or near the Central Corridor. It's easy to get excited about a lot of the recent arrivals, but it's also worthwhile to remember that Thai Rama has been cooking solid Thai food for a quarter century and seems to have found some renewed vigor in light of the competition.

Thai Rama's central Phoenix location is a standalone building on a lonely stretch of west Camelback, roughly halfway between the 7th Avenue / Camelback and 19th Avenue / Camelback light rail stations. It's an area that should have a lot of appeal given its central location and access via public transit, but it's still a long way from realizing its potential. Until serious redevelopment occurs, Thai Rama is a stubborn survivor, drawing customers from throughout Central Phoenix. The space inside is nothing special, but it's not shabby either. It's pretty typical "ethnic" restaurant 101 decor with booths, tables, and the occasional high chair surrounded by wall decorations from Thailand. To extend the LL Cool J reference, think of this place as a Central Phoenix "Around the Way Girl" -- attractive and smart, but not pretentious or flashy.

Start out with some egg rolls if you want a basic starter. They're vegetarian, crisp, fresh, and not too greasy. They're also a little tame in flavor compared to some other choices. For a more intense alternative, try the tod mun, basically Thai fish cakes. These are made with a puree of white fish -- usually catfish - and then given abundant flavor with red curry paste redolent of coriander seeds, chiles, lemograss, galangal, kaffir lime, garlic, and more. It's probably the restaurant's strongest appetizer. Soups include the usual choices like tom ka gai, chicken in a coconut milk broth with herbs. There are also less typical noodle and wonton soups sometimes available.

The curries are strong entrees with typically complex Thai flavor mixes. The green curry packs noticeable heat even when requested mild, and the massaman curry really stands out here. While many Thai restaurants will instantly throw whatever protein is requested in whatever sauce the customer prefers, Thai Rama instead slow cooks beef or chicken in a sauce based on coconut and peanut flavors. The result is a deep, but not overpowering taste. The curry is less spicy than others on the the menu and instead offers a steady peppery bite. Among the noodle dishes, pad see ew is simple, but effective with wide noodles combined with broccoli, meat or tofu, and soy sauce. Rad na, a Chinese-Thai amalgam of broccoli, a protein, and wide noodles in gravy is the only dish that falls short, with the sauce so thick it borders on gelatinous.

The menu is extensive, but it's only a blueprint. Papaya salad, for example, is not listed, but is available on request. Ask for it medium hot, and your lips will tingle all night. Scale it back to medium or mild if that's more excitement than is needed. While there is a dedicated vegetarian section of the menu, many of the curries listed with beef, chicken, or pork can be made with tofu instead of the suggested meat. More interestingly, each night a whiteboard near the restaurant's entrance lists half a dozen specials, many of them frequently recurring, but all reasonably interesting. Seafood is often featured among the whiteboard items. Hoo mok talay is a flavorful mixed seafood curry, while dishes like crab fried rice and baked silver noodles with shrimp are tamer but still appealing dishes.

To drink, the best bet is beer. Like every Thai restaurant in town, Thai Rama sells the ubiquitous Singha, a pale lager. More interestingly, the restaurants also offers Phuket, a relatively new darker lager that has begun to cause Thailand to be taken more seriously in beer circles. The former is perfectly fine for extinguishing the fire that accompanies so many Thai dishes, but the latter has more flavor and stands on its own more effectively. There's a little wine as an afterthought, but it's nothing special. Of course, non-alcoholic choices include fountain sodas and the popular Thai iced tea with condenses milk. For dessert, order mango with sticky rice when the tropical fruit is in season. In recent years, Thai Rama has opened new locations in Chandler and Tempe. Yes, it's sort of a comeback, but then again the original Thai Rama has indeed "been here for years" and should be welcome to stay for years to come.

1221 W. Camelback Rd., Phoenix AZ 85013 | Map
(602) 285-1123