Grandma’s Philly | A Historic Reconciliation with Thai Cuisine

🌟After experiencing two disappointing Thai meals at Dara and Circle in Philadelphia, I felt a bit battered and bruised in my love affair with Thai food. It was like that painful cycle where they hurt me a thousand times, yet I still treat them like my first love. 🌟Last Monday, I woke up early and downed four cups of coffee on an empty stomach. I was busy in New Jersey until 2 p.m. without a bite to eat. Desperately craving Thai food, my friend and I drove for 40 minutes to a highly-rated 4.9 Thai restaurant in NJ called Sukho, only to find it closed. At that moment, I was on the verge of giving up on Thai food forever. But then I realized that having a grudge against curry, pad kra pao, and mango sticky rice was really just punishing myself. So, I decided to swallow my pride. 🍕Surprisingly, I had never been to Grandma’s Philly, which is right in Center City. It seemed like several friends had given it a lukewarm review. Even though I had been to neighboring spots like Principal Fung, Miss Saigon, and Woody’s countless times, I had never considered trying Grandma’s Philly. It was like the place had been hiding in plain sight. 🍕As soon as we were about to order, the waiter asked us about our spice preference. Right then, I knew I was in the right place. After a serious comparison, the waiter said that Level 5 was “spicier than spicy noodles.” I immediately ordered the Level 5 green papaya salad. For me, green papaya salad is the ultimate test of a Thai restaurant’s authenticity. The result? It was fantastic. 🥗 The balance of sour and spicy was perfect, not too sweet, refreshing, and mouthwatering. It was the kind of deliciousness that makes your eyes water from the heat, yet you can’t stop eating. The spiciness was real; I was even sweating. The waiter kindly came over to ask if we wanted to reduce the spice level for the next dishes. It was a considerate gesture. #Philadelphia #PhillyRestaurants #PhillyEats #PhillyFood #PhillyLife #PhillyStudyAbroad