New Thailand Cuisine Opens
One more reason to love Lebanon
Numbers are an interesting place to start this story. The United States has a population of just over 322 million, and 5,342 Thai restaurants. That’s one Thai eatery for every 60,277 Americans. Brooklyn boasts a population of 2.5 million with 89 Thai restaurants, or one per 28,089 Brooklynites.
The considerably smaller (population:13,623) but mighty City of Lebanon, NH? A total of 4 Thai restaurants, or one per 3,405 residents. Take that, Brooklyn.
New Thailand Cuisine, the fourth and newest of Lebanon’s Thai restaurants, (Pim’s Thai Orchid, Bangkok Thai Food Express, and the very first, Phnom Penh, which serves Thai food along with Cambodian and Vietnamese) just opened on November 11. It’s located down the street from Pim’s at 103 Hanover Street, in a small shopping plaza in the space formerly occupied by the Stone Arch Bakery.
Decor is pleasant and serene, the service friendly; options include dining in and takeout. On the restaurant’s second day, those dining in for lunch were understandably sparse in number but takeout orders were on their way to brisk. But no doubt you really want to know about the food . . .
The menu is replete with curries—massaman and spicier—and noodle dishes, soups, familiar appetizers like satay and rolls both spring and fresh, salads, and at least three kinds of dumplings. We began with steamed shumai (top) and the interestingly textured chive dumplings, then moved on to a lunch-sized portion of Pad Thai and a crispy duck salad (above). Every dish was beautifully presented, fresh, and delicious, including a complimentary cup of butternut squash soup. The duck salad, with a spicy Thai chili dressing, cashews, and thinly sliced apples, was a standout.
Open daily. For more information, menu, and hours, click here for New Thailand Cuisine’s website.
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And in case you are wondering . . . Susan B. Apel shuttered a lifelong career as a law professor to continue an interest (since kindergarten) in writing. Her freelance business, The Next Word, includes literary and feature writing; her work has appeared in a variety of lit mags and other publications including Art New England, The Woven Tale Press, The Arts Fuse, and Persimmon Tree. She connects with her neighbors through Artful, her blog about arts and culture in the Upper Valley. She’s in love with the written word.