Dan R.
Yelp
In recent years, the Rockville/Potomac/Gaithersburg/Germantown areas have seen the addition of new Thai restaurants. And that is great news for those of us who love Thai food and/or lived in Thailand at one point and thus know what really good Thai cuisine is. The latest on the list is Bai Kao Thai, which had a soft opening on March 11th. Located in a strip on Travilah Rd. in Potomac, this is definitely out of the way compared to other Thai restaurants in or near the 270 corridor. But a first visit confirms that it was well worth the drive.
Bai Kao Thai is still in soft opening mode, as its menu notes. We find 9 familiar Thai food standards, 5 starters, and four items under Soup and Salad. I found the Som Tum (Papaya Salad in Tangy Thai Limve Dressing) to be excellent -- not quite as hot as found at other Thai restaurants but superb flavor -- so good, I remarked that I would love to be able to order it as a main dish. Larb Kai (Minced Chicken With Spicy Fresh Lime Juice....) was also excellent. For main dishes, my son and I ordered the Pad Thai as a crucial test. It did not disappoint. Using the wider noodles, in contrast to some area Thai restaurants who have chosen to use a capellini style noodle, this dish hit all the right notes -- it had a deeper taste to it, and that was apparently because the chef used less fish sauce than I am used to on this dish. There was no egg, and I would recommend that they add some more green onion. But overall this Pad Thai rendition was superb. Pad Nam Prik Pao, with a protein of your choice (chicken, pork, tofu, vegetables, beef or shrimp) was excellent -- a bit more sweet than expected but definitely worth a try. Bai Kao Thai again has not yet gone into high gear.
The restaurant is very nice, with a brighter front seating area -- the inside is kind of dark and there is a bar, something one does not always find. Service was superb -- and once they became aware that we were experienced Thai food fans, we were able to speak with the chef. Among the things we discussed was Khao Soi, which does not yet appear on the menu. The best versions of Khao Soi at area Thai restaurants, have bone-in chicken and are wonderfully flavorful. We also discussed Pad Kaprow, which I prefer with minced chicken, something that can be found at area competitors such as Bangkok Garden, and Siriwan Thai. As we we leaving, we met two other persons arriving apparently for their first time at Bai Kao Thai.
In conclusion, Bai Kao Thai is a superb new entry to the list of Thai restaurants in the area. They're clearly ramping up slowly so a flood of new customers may place some pressure on them, but a number of 5 Star reviews almost guarantees that they will get much more busy sooner than later. Among my recommendations -- every Thai restaurant needs to offer Thai Iced Coffee, something they need to add. The Bai Kao Salad Bowls on the back of the menu are an interesting twist, though not sure how popular those will be for veteran Thai food addicts. The current soft opening menu list of 9 items is a good start and one would hope they can expand on this as the months go by. There's a lot of competition now in this area, with such excellent places as Bangkok Garden, The Thai Cuisine, Siriwan Thai, Amina Thai, and Sisters currently dominating. Almost forgot Thai House in Gaithersburg, and the new Thai Cottage. But Bai Kao Thai definitely deserves your time and I can only wish them luck and encouragement.