Na Rath Restaurant

A New Gem in Elmhurst Focused on the Hits of Thailand | Eater NY

In the tiny triangular nook at 86-08 Whitney Avenue in Elmhurst, Queens, Na Rath opened earlier this year and is run by Naratchira “Ryan” Kunchadechchirawat, who teamed with Chef Anurat “Bass” Chaiyakhet to recreate Thai food as it’s served in Thailand. I’m still thinking about the whole tilapia delicately steamed in a garlicky lime broth and served in a fish-shaped platter, and the buoyant shrimp cakes—made from mashed jumbo shrimp, battered and fried golden—that were so bouncy I had to check for whole shrimp inside. Chaiyakhet’s tom yum gets its saltiness from fish sauce and uses tiger prawns rather than substituted shrimp; the papaya salads include year-long fermented crabs for a salty funk, pad krapow is made with Thai basil, and sweet chile sauce is banned from his pad Thai. Other highlights are whole fried fish served with lettuce wraps, noodles, mint, and tamarind dipping sauce; shellfish hor mok steamed inside a coconut; and a Thai-Chinese fish maw soup in which dried fish maw is rehydrated, stewed with soy, sugar, and tapioca starch, and finished with light black vinegar and chile powder. The tiny six-table room often fills with boisterous Thai-American grandmothers, families, and young professionals, and the menu is offered a la carte or AYCE—about $55 per person depending on seafood add-ons—with a food-waste penalty equal to the full a la carte price of any unfinished dish; there is also sushi on the menu. - Caroline Shin