Spicy Basil — Restaurant in London

A Thai-mendous Surprise in Kilburn!

If one were to judge a book by its cover, or in this case, a restaurant by its façade, you might be tempted to give this hidden gem in Kilburn, London a pass. But I'm here to tell you, my fellow food pilgrims, throw caution to the wind, brave the deceptively average exterior, and prepare your taste buds for a trip to Thailand, all without leaving the rain-splattered streets of dear old Blighty!

Upon arrival, after a day that could only be described as the human equivalent of a sloth running a marathon, I was ready to dive face-first into whatever this restaurant had to offer. A friendly warning: don't actually dive face-first into your food here. The spring rolls are pointy, and the satay is skewered.

I started my culinary odyssey with the Vegetable Spring Rolls, a staple of Thai cuisine, and let me tell you, these crispy delights are enough to turn a carnivore into a veggie-lover. Think Snow White in a fairytale forest, but replace the singing birds with spring rolls, and you've got the idea.

Next up, the Chicken Satay - skewered and peanut sauce-drenched bites of heaven. To be honest, the chicken was so tender, I started questioning the merits of my day job. Could I make it as a professional satay taster? Is that a thing? Someone let me know.

Now, the Green Thai Curry. This dish was like the Meryl Streep of Thai cuisine. Classic, nuanced, and absolutely enthralling. Like a warm hug from an old friend, it left a comfort in my stomach and a kick of spice on my tongue that had me grinning like a Cheshire cat in a dairy.

The Egg Fried Rice was no wallflower either. It was more than a sidekick, a Robin to Batman if you will, where Batman is a Green Thai Curry, and Gotham is my very satisfied belly.

I'll admit, from the outside, this place might seem like the culinary equivalent of a 'meh' emoji, but let me tell you, the food they are serving up inside is pure 'fire' emoji.

The prices? As surprising as finding a golden ticket in your chocolate bar! Pure Wonka-levels of disbelief as I realized I could eat like a king without having to sell my kingdom.

In summary, if you're wandering around Kilburn wondering where to fill your food hole, this Thai restaurant is just the ticket. So grab your brolly, brave the British drizzle, and enjoy a Thai culinary trip that's as exciting as a London bus ride with a caffeinated squirrel...

Spicy Basil, Authentic Thai Food and somewhat of an authentic Thai atmosphere too. Situated on the main road of Kilburn, this absolute sunshine of a restaurant is a lovely place to sit down for a meal, whether it being a meal in-between shopping, work, day out or whatever the occasion, words can't describe the abundance of joy one would feel after eating at this location. The interior of this place will have one teleported from modern day London to what one that hasn't been to Thailand would presume to be a modern day Thai restaurant in Thailand. The service, the look of the menu, the way the tables and chairs are assorted really adds to that touch of Thai authenticity, the art of the theme in this location really works well with what the restaurant represents. From the moment one walks in, the waft of the food being cooked is like a hot summer's zephyr after being through a harsh winter solstice, the aroma of the food, the hustle and bustle of the chefs in the kitchen really adds to that busy city Thai life, the only other ingredient missing from that would be the blaring horns off of vehicles stuck in traffic. I had ordered the beef with garlic chilli and basil with fried rice and for the price the size of the portion is exceptional; to the point where one would be contemplating their next visit. The ingredients used were fresh, the dish hot as well as the service of the food quite quick. From the first spoonful I was lost in the temptation of scoffing my meal down quickly, though it was hard to resist doing so I'm glad I did, the burst of flavour, the abundance of texture, from the crunch of the vegetables, to the soft fried rice packed with flavour straight to the well cooked beef; every spoonful had me lost in temptation that was vibrating in the air of me quickly scoffing my meal down. Once I had paid for my meal I really wanted to give the chefs my compliments as well as a chefs kiss however it had seemed like they were busy and so had asked the front of house to do so on my behalf... All in all an absolutely gorgeous place (if you understand the art gone into this restaurant) with a more gorgeous amount/dishes of food being pushed...

Probably the best Thai restaurant I have ever been to in London in terms of authenticity! It's cash only so please please don't make the mistake we did without reading reviews prior to going and ended up walking round trying to find a cash machine once we got there and saw the sign on the door.

It's a very small restaurant so do try to avoid busy lunch and dinner hours even though we got there around half 1 on a Sunday and it wasn't as busy as we had expected. It did get filled up very quickly though as soon as we sat down and people kept coming in and going.

We ordered the prawn spring rolls and chicken and prawn dumplings for starters and would really recommend the dumplings. The sweet soy sauce with the generous portion of pork and prawn filling went so well together, the soy sauce went really nicely with white rice too. We then had the pad Thai with king prawns and beef green curry that came with a very generous portion of white rice. Wow, that green curry completely blew my mind away, I was simply speechless as I had the first bite...it was so creamy, thick, rich and flavourful that I couldn't stop eating it with the rice - an absolutely heavenly pairing. Pad Thai was also really great, big portion of noodles with generous amount of king prawns that were plump. The sauce was well done with a good balance of tamarind and fish sauce but I wish there were a bit more eggs. Spring rolls were average so I wouldn't recommend ordering them.

Overall, for the price of £32.30 for 2 people this was an amazing lunch in zone 2 of London. I really can't recommend this place more. Not only because of the food, but also the family-run vibes it gave and how quick the service was. From ordering to serving it only took them 5 minutes and everything was prepared fresh in front of you! I am so glad I discovered this place and will be coming back regularly to try everything else...