Sukho Thai
4519 Magazine St, New Orleans, LA 70115, USA
Uptown 3: Napoleon To Audubon
Backstory
The restaurants are named for a northern province of Thailand, and means “dawn of happiness.” The original Marigny location opened in 2004 in an old grocery store. Although a couple of other restaurants preceded Sukho Thai there, none of them have made dramatic changes in the space. The Marigny look (that the place has been there forever) is very much in place. Also permanent is the lack of a liquor license; bring your own. In 2010, the Uptown restaurant open in a bigger, more thoroughly renovated space.
Dining Room
Marigny: Tall ceilings, concrete floors, and big, windowed double doors make the place airier than the thick old walls might suggest. In nice weather, they open all the doors and you're practically part of the busy Marigny sidewalk traffic. The mostly non-Asian service staff is Marigny Mellow, too. The Uptown location fits into its neighborhood well, too, with more space and a sleeker design. And they have a full bar, wine and beer there, too.
Why It's Essential
One of the two or three best Thai restaurants in the area, Sukho Thai is especially adept at its cooking of seafood. The new Uptown location is a larger, handsomer restaurant, but the Marigny regulars cling tightly to the no-corkage bring-your-own-wine policy there.
Why It's Good
Sukho Thai's menu includes all the dishes you've come to like in other Thai places, and acquits its self well with them. But the menu doesn't stop there. They have a few unique items, and become adventuresome in their use of fish. It is also less shy than most Thai restaurants about cutting loose with the herbs and spices. Be ready for bigger flavors than you may be accustomed to.
Most Interesting Dishes
<em><strong>Starters</strong></em><br /> Veggie rolls<br /> »Fresh rolls<br /> »Shrimp-in-a-pouch (wonton)<br /> Chicken or shrimp satay<br /> Ahi katsu roll (fried tuna roll)<br /> »Panko softshell crab<br /> »Herbal mussels<br /> »Tom yum soup (shrimp or fish)<br /> »Tom kha soup (chicken, coconut milk)<br /> »Dancing shrimp salad<br /> Grilled beef salad<br /> »Minty chicken salad<br /> Green papaya salad<br /> »Seafood glass noodle salad<br /> House salad<br /> <em><strong>Entrees</strong></em><br /> »Broken net (hot and sour seafood soup)<br /> Garden soup<br /> »Pad thai*<br /> Dirty noodles*<br /> Drunken noodles*<br /> Thai fried jasmine rice*<br /> Pineapple fried rice*<br /> Seafood fried rice*<br /> Drunken fried rice*<br /> »Hot basil stir-fry with vegetables*<br /> »Cashew chicken<br /> »Peppery garlic stir-fry with vegetables*<br /> »Bathing rama stir-fry, spicy peanut sauce*<br /> »Waterfall beef or duck (seared, with herbs and salad greens)<br /> »Eggplant lover stir-fry*<br /> »Heavenly beef (soy reduction, coriander, cabbage)<br /> »Red, green, yellow, Panang, or kaffir lime curry*<br /> »Curried softshell crab<br /> »Peppery garlic seafood<br /> »Three-flavored whole fried fish<br /> »Seafood clay pot<br /> Basil scallops<br /> »Sizzling salmon, panang coconut curry<br /> »Lime steamed fish<br /> »Whiskey ginger fish<br /> Glass noodle shrimp bake<br /> Spicy tofu with green beans<br /> *--Available with choice of meats, fish, or shellfish Choices differ a bit from dish to dish, and some choices incur upcharge
Deficiencies
The noodle dishes here are not as good as the stir-fries and curries.
For Best Results
The Marigny restaurant is small and popular. Don't forget to bring a bottle of wine, if only to kill time while waiting, if that happens. Become more adventuresome with your order than you would be elsewhere. The routine dishes (pad thai, for example) are better had elsewhere. Like all Thai restaurants, this one offers the choice of mild, medium, hot, and Thai hot--but all of those are hotter than they would be in other places.
Bonus Ratings
1
Environment
1
Hipness
1
Local Color
1
Value