Shaw Towers: Ah Loy Thai

Ah Loy Thai has always been one of those places that I always walk by and tell myself "I've gotta come here sometime". Most of these "places" usually end up folding before the "sometime" arrives and I have to live with the regret of procrastination (or the believing of the illusion of permanence). Fortunately, I managed to eat at Ah Loy Thai before anything happened to it.

The place itself is easy to find (just opposite Tom's Palette Ice Cream), simple and spacious. It is usually known to be very crowded during weekends but during week days (I was there on a Monday evening), it is actually pretty easy to get a seat.

The Food

For every first visit to any Thai restaurants, there are 3 standard dishes that I would definitely order - Chai Yen (aka Thai Ice Tea), Salad (Mango, Papaya or Glass Noodles) and Tom Yum Soup. My "alternative" dishes (ie Main dishes) will be Phad Thai or Green Curry.

So here's the lowdown on the "compulsory" dishes.

Usually (in Thailand especially), the Thai Iced Tea has to be stirred, allowing the ice to slightly melt, before drinking. This is due to the fact that the Thai Iced Tea is usually very concentrated and will be too sweet for immediate consumption (unless you have a very sweet tooth). This would explain the generous portions of ice in the drink.

The Thai Iced Tea here is already "adjusted" to the post-stirring taste and is fit for immediate consumption. So at first gulp, the drink will be refreshing and well balanced. However, after the ice melted, it will pretty much dilute the drink into (given the amount of ice) almost a bland tasting iced water. My advice - order it in the middle of the meal.

We ordered the Glass Noodles Salad. The dish was pretty disappointing. On the bright side, there was a pretty generous portion of noodles and prawns, making a decent meal for people on a diet (or with really small appetite). However, it lacked the "kick" usually provided by the sour-y taste of the salad or the spicy-ness found inside.

My take on their Tom Yum Soup is pretty much the same as the salad. It was neither too spicy nor too sour (lacking the kick), yet it gave us a pretty generous portion of prawns and mushrooms. If you like something on a moderate taste scale, the salad and tom yum soup here will be good for you.

Now, for the rest of the dishes

The Phad Thai here is actually pretty good. Although it leaned towards the blend side (to some it might taste "healthier"), add a little bit of Nam Pla (Fish Sauce) and chill powder and you are good to go. What I love most about this dish is the little fried omelette pieces. It's a pity they don't have an entire omelette dish in their menu.

We decided to order the Fried Kai Lan (Spicy) and Fried Basil Leaves with Pork. Definitely not their forte. The vegetables were a little too hard for my liking. However the sauce is quite good and goes well with the pork.

This dish might look unimpressive at first, but it's better than it looks. The rice is actually quite flavorful and coupled with the omelette pieces, raisins and prawns, it makes a wonderful dish. The portions is pretty big, so you might want to share if you are a small eater.

Price

For a Thai restaurant, the price is pretty reasonable (slightly cheaper than Golden Mile). Our Tom Yam soup (that fed 2) was $8.50, Phad Thai and Pineapple Rice was $7 and the Vegetables were $5.50 and $6.80. Thai Iced Tea was $2.20 per cup. The total bill came up to around $23 pax. On top of that, the portions were pretty good (for the rice and noodles), so sharing is definitely an option.

Overall, the Thai food here is what I called "adjusted" Thai food. The tastes (especially the spicy-ness) have been toned down by quite a bit to fit the tourists' and local tastebuds. It certainly lacked the kick that Thai food in Golden Mile have to offer, but it is still  tasty and flavorful and does not fail in its authenticity. Good Thai food!

100 Beach Road

#01-39/40 Shaw Towers

Tel: 9165 1543