Lamaii — Restaurant in Spring Valley

After reading reviews and finding Lamaii on Eater Las Vegas' list of essential restaurants, I booked reservations via Resy a month before our travel. The photos of several Northern Thai dishes from their business page caught my eyes for their unique presentations and authentic ingredients.

Located near Arville Street and Spring Mountain Road, we found Lamaii sharing the parking lot with the Macy's Home & Furniture Store, Robata En, and Sparrow + Wolf. We arrived for an early dinner (6 PM) as we were concerned about Nevada's relaxed COVID-19 health safety guidelines and crowd controls. Upon entry, I confirmed our reservation and time with the hostess, and she promptly led us back to a table for two in the near-empty restaurant. She gave us the menus, which surprisingly, was only 1 page (back and front) of food and beverage items but about 4-6 pages of ciders, beers, wines, and spirits. There was an emphasis on wines because of the owner's prestigious sommelier background.

The early evening was cooling down to 100-degrees so my husband started with a large bottle of Thai Chang beer and I ordered a Summery cocktail called "PiMM's Me". Meanwhile, we perused the menu and selected 3 dishes which our server asked for our spice level preferences. Um, given that this was our first dine here, we chose MILD, just-in-case.

FOOD: -Khao (Kao) Soi: Thin egg noodles with braised beef in Northern curry. We enjoy this Thai soup noodle dish but, because we had ordered two other dishes with noodles, we asked to leave out the boiled egg noodles but leave its crispy noodle garnish. We chose to eat this dish with steamed white rice. I know, I know... it may be gauche of us to have done so but, we felt we'd be eating too much noodles. $18

-Pad Kee Mao (Drunken Noodles): Wide rice noodles fried with basil leaves and peppers. Drunken noodles is our favorite and this version was amped up with the addition of crispy duck. The crispy duck skin and its meaty and flavorful succulence complemented the flat wide rice noodles. $24

-Pad Sen Lobster: Stir-fried soba noodles in garlic sauce topped with crispy lobster. The garlic sauced noodles didn't overpower the delicate lobster meat. The fried lobster seemed to have a light battered seasoned crust. $25

The Thai cuisine was delicious, service was on point and the prices were reasonable for the portions. Their wine list was more extensive and stellar than its food menu which we vowed to return for in...

[Above all, will I be back?] I came here due to the upscale interior and nice ambience and good reviews but the food was not impressive and lack of service for the price point. Alcohol list (wine, sake, beer, etc.) was longer than the food list lol As a Vegas local, I don't think I will be back unless they improve their food or if they have happy hour for drinks.

Food I've been to Thailand many times so I know what to expect from Thai foods. Nothing special or extraordinary for Pad See Ew although it was the only food I had here.

Pad See Ew (Soy sauce stir-fried noodles) This was just a typical thai food not with a modern twist. The seasoning was good (correct flavor for the food) but too salty. Wish it was less salty. The chicken meat was way too big to swallow at one time so I had to cut them in half and smelly (You know the smell when the cooked chicken is in the fridge for a while). Not satisfied. I don't think I will order this again.

Ambience It is a fancy, trendy and modern Thai themed place with beautiful metal pendant lamps and a lot of wood materials. There are about 20 tables and good to take photos as the one side of the walls has huge glass windows (see my pictures). It was not busy on Tuesday afternoon.

Service The wait staff was friendly. But it was uncomfortable when the server was looking at how much tip I gave him. Also I didn't like that you can only write the amount of the tip instead of being able to % for customized tip. I didn't want to take time to calculate in front of the staff waiting for me to pay so I had to choose the % they set up. This has became common these days.

Hygiene The glasses, cups, utensils, the table and floor were clean.

Price (See my pictures of Menu as of June 2023) Small plates like Goong Caviche is $15, Basil Eggplant is $11 Drunken noodles with steak is $26, Duck Basil Fried Rice is $28.

Restroom It was clean and well maintained. Gender separated. Only one toilet in the bathroom so spacious.

Location It is in the shopping plaza with Macy's Home and Furniture store, next to Nalsso AYCE Korean BBQ restaurant in Chinatown. Less than 15 minutes from the strip.

Parking There is a plenty of parking as it is in a big plaza.

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Many will remember Bank Atcharawan from his Sommelier days at Lotus of Siam, or later cooking at Chada Thai & Wine and Chada Street, but in early 2019 the restaurateur behind The Patio made a return to his roots with Lamaii and has since opened another in Henderson.

Having departed both Chadas in early 2018, the Restaurants soon to shutter with both spaces since reconcepted, Lamaii seeks to elevate classic Thai Food through pairings and packaging, Atcharawan’s love of Wine a frequent topic on social media while Lamaii’s décor features a blend of gold, grey and wood that is undeniably chic.

Unfortunately not visited prior to COVID-19 closures, but impressive as take-out, it was Wednesday evening that four guests sat down to Dinner including many of the Restaurant’s top-selling items at “medium” spiciness.

Translated as “delicately,” a word some may not associate with Thai Cuisine, Lamaii’s menu runs the gamut from “Small Plates” to Soups, Mains and Dessert, the Shrimp Cakes paired well to fruity Cream while crispy Pork Belly outpaces two-bite Taro Rolls that don’t do much without the Sweet Plum Sauce.

Focusing on items best-shared, a large bowl of Rice added to sop up Sauces, Seafood is well-represented on Lamaii’s menu thanks to fried Lobster atop Soba in Garlic plus Mango Crispy Catfish though “Gang Pu” is a bit polarizing thanks to both the Crab Soup’s spiciness and ice cold Noodles that make each bite tepid at best.

More impressive with Meat, Pad Thai a top-notch iteration with tender Noodles, crisp Bean Sprouts and just enough sweetness to tame a bold combination of Onions and Fish Sauce, Panang Crispy Duck is irreproachable in terms of taste and texture while Gang Rawaeng makes fast friends with tender Beef and Turmeric Curry that is both delicious and deep.

Mostly traditional for Dessert those who recall The Patio for Desserts & Drinks instead of Wine will be happy to know Atcharawan’s Honey Toast has survived, a golden Block with Vanilla Ice Cream and Berries easily shareable by two but good enough that a second order will probably be...