Thaithae Randwick — Restaurant in Sydney

I had the Pla Neung Maow steamed whole barramundi (lemon, spices, and chili), and picked up my order. My photos show how it was packed for transport home, and what it looked like on a plate. The fish was packed in a big silver tray, on cabbage, surrounded by enough plastic wrap to ensure it wouldn't leak or get smashed or broken up. I'm showing it for scale on the large dinner plate it was just a bit too big for, so you can get an idea of portion size. There is also a steamed ginger whole barramundi on the menu which I have not yet tried.

The fish was stuffed with a generous amount of (flash-fried?) spices that seemed to include small rings of lemongrass (or was it spring onion?), kaffir lime, and coriander, that I can still taste on my tongue 30 minutes later. I wouldn't call it hot, but I'd call it spicy in a nice way. Not shown here is that it was also packed with a small deli container full of some sort of clear sauce or broth containing spices like chili and coriander. It was very tasty but I couldn't quite figure out what I was supposed to do with it, because there was more than enough to be used as just a dipping sauce for the fish. I admit it, I poured the rest of it over my (ordered separately) portion of rice and thought it was pretty great, because that's the sort of thing I like to eat. But I'm not sure that's an authentic thing to do. For all I know, maybe it should have been eaten as a soup, because the Internet refers to this dish as sometimes being served with "lime soup". I have no idea. It wasn't described on the menu, but I'm glad it was there.

I also had the Tom Yum soup with prawns, which is one of my standard benchmark dishes for Thai restaurants. There were 4 king prawn cutlets (win!) for a reasonable charge. The soup itself had a nice balance of flavours and is probably the best Tom Yum soup I've tried in any Randwick Thai restaurant that's still around. Given that, it was disappointing that those amazing, reasonably-priced king prawns were overcooked. This MAY have been due to the time between cooking and eating (I ate the soup AFTER the fish) causing it to overcook as the prawns sat in the hot soup, and might not have been under the restaurant's control, but I don't know. I'll try to eat it more quickly after picking it up next time, to see if that makes a difference. If "continuing to cook" is the problem, maybe pulling the prawns out of the soup for transport might work?

I'll definitely be back to try some more of their menu. They have some...

If you’re in the mood for Thai food that’s heavy on sugar and salt, and if you don’t mind slightly “tight” table space then Thai Thae is worth a visit.

Starters: We kicked off with the Honey Pork Skewers. The portion was small but adequate, and they were undeniably tasty and sweet. I suppose I shouldn’t complain, given that they are honey skewers, but it felt like the bees responsible for the honey might have been a bit too enthusiastic! Possibly a few extra spoons of sugar in the sauce by the T.T. chef.

Mains: Next, we tried the Massaman Beef Curry. The beef was tender and the serving generous, plus very tasty, but the dish had an overwhelming “red sea” of saltiness. We both enjoy a sprinkle of salt on everything, but we were surprised by how parched we felt. Both of us found ourselves downing water for the next eight hours and searching for blood pressure tabs!

We also shared the Roast Duck Salad, which was a solid dish with another generous portion. The salad itself was good, but the dressing leaned too sweet for our taste.

While there were enjoyable elements, I’ve certainly experienced better Thai cuisine.

If you’re after a casual meal that doesn’t break the bank, Thai Thae could fit the bill.

Balancing sugar and salt can definitely be tricky

Thai Thae has some excellent reviews....alas, maybe we chose the wrong night

BTW -...

[A Rose with Poisonous Thorns]

Normally I take my time to write a proper review with trying multiple dishes and immersing myself in the full experience but today I am writing because I had lunch there for the first time and had food poisoning (diarrhoea).

This also effected me during work & I know this is the food that got me sick because my last meal before then was at 5.30am.

The place is alluring with a colourful orange vibe. They utilise the space well. The menu and the customer service were good. The food looks delectable in the photos especially the duck which I was planning to try in the future, but not anymore (period).

I had the Kuakai Noodles - so maybe it was the chicken or prawn that wasn’t fresh (more likely the prawn).

Excluding the food poisoning, what turned me off from my dining experience was the music; 2000’s rnb. Normally it wouldn’t bother me too much but this time, it was vexing. Why can you create such a beautiful environment but pair it with neyo and usher? It’s so random like pairing the simpsons theme with a galactic war.

Overall, the reviews in general from others are good, and well deserved as they clearly are putting in effort. But my experience was different which means this place is not consistent.

*sorry I have no media as I came here not intending to...