Siam Orchid is under new ownership as of late 2015 – Thyme Restaurant.
Our original Siam Orchid review is featured below:
Foodies love dining out in Palo Alto… and for good reason. The popular San Francisco Bay Area community is jam-packed with eclectic restaurants, fun coffee houses and hot bars. If your tastes include healthy traditional Thai food, head over to Siam Orchid – most of their ingredients are from local organic distributors. The small, light and airy Thai fusion restaurant is located on Hamilton Avenue (at the corner of Cowper), just off University Avenue.
Siam Orchid offers a wide selection of Thai appetizers, soups, fresh salads, lunch specials including rice and noodle plates, mouth-watching entrees and tasty curries.
A popular menu standout is the steamed wild caught Chilean Sea Bass in lime chili and garlic dressing (pictured below) – the moist, tender fish just melts in your mouth. It’s a rarity to see this on a restaurant menu these days so we always enjoy ordering it when we can.
Wild Alaskan Salmon, Jumbo Prawns, Fried Red Snapper, Deep-fried Catfish, Organic Tofu, and Roasted Duck are also offered on the menu, in addition to Vegetarian options.
And for curry lovers, there are over 12 different curry dishes featured on the menu. Our favorite is the Gaeng Thong Gai Curry, served in a pumpkin (pictured below). The mild red curry with organic sliced chicken breast in coconut milk, organic pumpkins, organic bell peppers and Thai basil is deliciously light and flavorful. Add a side of coconut rice and you’ve got the perfect complement to the dish.
Be sure to save room for one of their fabulous desserts, like the Fried Banana with Coconut Ice Cream. We usually split one between the two of us – it’s a great way to end the meal without feeling too guilty. 🙂
Overall, food is pricey (it’s organic), but the lunch specials (appetizer, entree and rice) are a better value. The servers are very nice. However, service can be slow during peak times.
So, if you’re looking for a new Thai restaurant to try in Palo Alto, you may want to check out Siam Orchid.
