Thai Thai - Yummy Lamb

309 N. Washington Ave, Scranton 

(570) 963-7745

There's a new player in the world of Thai food in downtown Scranton.  A niche, once comfortably occupied by only Thai Rak Thai, has just doubled its occupancy.  During the last week in March, Thai Thai opened  a mere block and a half away.  The ownership of Thai Thai seems to be doing something right with other locations in Stroudsburg, Wilkes-Barre, Bethlehem and Emmaus.  They now add legitimate competition to TrT in the BYO market here in Scranton.  

In comparison to TrT, it is immediately evident that TT has a more formal vibe.  The lights are a little bit dimmer, the servers are more attentive and serious, and sure enough the prices a little higher.  A quick comparison shows about a dollar higher prices in the pad thai $12 , the drunken noodle $12, the curry dishes $14, and the lunch specials $8. 

I decided to be a little adventurous and diverge a little from my usual Thai orders (thai spring rolls and either a green curry or beef drunken needle).  I quickly found a partner to split an appy and went for the Hoy Jor (crab rolls) $8 and then after a good 10 minutes of indecision I flipped a mental coin and went with the Yummy Lamb $24. 

I was considering eating my napkin and was thrilled when the server brought out the crab roll.  This dim-sum-esque appy was full of crab, shrimp, and pork.  It was very warm but still had a nice crunch too it.  My napkin was saved by the relief offered from the tasty crab roll, but I was still very hungry. 

The lamb dish had a very impressive presentation.  Plenty of lamb covered with garlic over a bed of lettuce.  I thought serving the lamb over lettuce was a little unusual but it actually was a nice combo.  It also came with rice, but the lamb dish didn't offer too much sauce so I had to supplement with some of the sauce from my dinner-mate's Mahi Mahi Thai Curry (which was really delicious btw).  The Yummy Lamb portion was a very good size, the presentation very nice, and the flavoring seemed just right.  Unfortunately, they over cooked it.

When I order medium rare I expect there to be a good amount of pink in the meat.  This had none and was a little dry.  For a moment I considered sending it back, but the Flyers were about to start and there was still much studying to be done in the night.  Maybe I am being a little over critical, but this was not a 7 dollar hamburger.  As you can tell from reading the blog, I don't usually spend this much money on dinner and if I do splurge I sorta expect it to be perfect.  Even with the lamb a little overcooked it was still a really good dish and I left very content.  Next time I'll just have to do a little calibration on my own and ask for the meat rare.

A few quick other notes...The portions from others who ordered noodle or rice dishes seemed to be really good sized and might justify the extra dollar over TrT.  The servers were absolutely on their game with the water and wine glasses filled continually.  I forgot to ask if they had a CC minimum which is a cause of irritation at TrT.  They have a decent amount of side walk space in front and I asked if they were going to be offering outside seating.  Unfortunatly, no dice.  

Stay Hungry NEPA.  Love to hear other people's opinion of the new place.