Bahn Thai — Restaurant in Fairbanks

The food was good, the setting and atmosphere were fantastic, but the staff and service are what really made this place outstanding. Our meal here was the highlight of all the meals we had here, including in comparison to Latitude 65 (overpriced, under-delivered) and the restaurant at Chena Hot Springs (food quality was meh).

Our family of 13 visited from SF, and we were craving Asian food after eating only American food for the past couple days --but I promise that's not a bias factor. This was actually my "back up" restaurant; my first option was closed and this place was also close to downtown. So I didn't know what to expect coming in.

Well, I walk in and the place is amazingly decorated. Whoever owns this place clearly put a ton of thought, time, and effort to make their guests feel welcome. I went ahead of the group in case there was a wait and asked for seating for 8 pple. Our server quickly got the menus placed and water poured for ALL the guests even before they had walked in. But to my surprise, a couple more family members had decided to tag along than I expected so I awkwardly had to ask for us to be moved to a bigger table. I totally expected the server to be at least a little annoyed (she had just poured 8 water glasses and laid out 8 menus!), but she was so so nice and understanding. She even chatted us up and we learned she is Thai-Chinese!

We got settled and picked out a bunch of dishes. Everything was delicious and flavorful, esp the crab rangoon appetizer that she recommended. Their dishes do favor the sweeter side, esp their drinks. But I have a sweet tooth so it was perfect for me.

I wish I could come back again but we're back in SF at this point. I would've loved to chat further with our lovely servers who were the absolutely best and learn more about them and how they came to Alaska. Thanks for giving us fond memories along...

Don't do the Tom Kha! (coconut milk soup)

People who are familiar with this dish know it is creamy coconut milk soup with veggies and protein, like chicken, fish or prawns usually.. if you like this classic dish do not order it here, you will not get Tom Kha

I am convinced the Bahn cook hates Tom Kha, it taste nothing like the dish... one thing is interesting is they like to cut their ginger in thin slices that look identical to slices of chicken so it's a kind of roulette of which one your about to eat... also you'll have to attend with large hunks of lemon grass and lime leaves.. these inedible particulates make up about half of the soup.. this takes quite some time to pick out and makes eating it frankly annoying.

So... we have ginger, lemon grass, and lime leaves... this I just don't understand... there seems no rhyme or reason here because they don't not compliment each other in the least.. when you put these three ingredients together it just taste like vinegar.. that's all..

The end result tasted like some depression era vinegar chicken soup..

Sour is the absolute last flavor you want in Tom Kha, the coconut milk taste is very easily over powered you have to be very carful with spices.. basically it needs a lot of chili, you can add a touch of yellow curry if anything.. you cant even add garlic becaue it will over power the coconut flavor, and use very little salt or you won't be able to taste the natural sweetness of the coconut.

The egg rolls...

BEST THAI FOOD IN ALASKA!! The food was so good we got Pad See Eww , Tom Yum soup, and Spicy Catfish (came with a huge serving of rice enough for the three of us)! The Pad See Eww was so yummy the sauce and the noodles were perfect and chewy and fresh in all the dishes the veggies were perfectly cooked and coated in the delicious sauce like they made veggies taste good that impressive!! The Spicy Catfish is as so good MY FAVORITE, we got this in medium spicy (we got everything medium spicy) so delicate the catfish melt in your mouth and was paired perfectly with the sauce they cook it in!! Lastly the Tom Yum soup was amazing and had a great flavor served warm was the perfect dish to tie everything together!! Also the place was decorated so well and very clean and loved all the artwork in the restaurant! It seems like a local favorite because it was busy people were coming in continuously and to go orders flying out! 10/10 would recommend this place! AND omg the dishes that the food was served in was SO NICE the catfish in a FISH SHAPED BOWL like WOW...