No frills, affordable Thai food
March 29, 2007 | 12:00am
Thai Pad is the name of the restaurant, and no, that’s not a typo. It really is Thai Pad, a creative pun on the popular noodle dish pad thai. Thai Pad is a humble, no-frills joint on the ground floor of Marvin Plaza along the corner of Chino Roces Ave. and Rufino St. in Makati City.
It comes with a glorious culinary history  19 years in the restaurant business. The affable Rose Garcia says that the very same group that owned and operated the famous chain of Suko Thai restaurants is now behind Thai Pad. Suko Thai closed its doors late last year because the sweeping ’90s trend of huge restaurants with separate function rooms has seen the last of its days due to a more pragmatic society. Rose says the rent in the malls has become prohibitive, so the owners elected to close and open a more manageable incarnation, which is now Thai Pad, still in its infancy at barely four months old. It boasts an arsenal of original Suko Thai recipes collected over the years from their first Thai chefs.
Thai Pad is a recipe-based enterprise, so you are certain of the consistency of the dishes in taste and ingredients. They have retained their cooks from Suko Thai, so there is more or less 19 years of culinary experience in the preparation of every dish you order. The restaurant staff is always on their toes and can well-anticipate your needs because Rose is very hands-on. She oversees the operations every day, Monday to Saturday, from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
The facade of Thai Pad looks more like an office than an eatery. Warm colors, such as purple Thai silk upholstered chairs, furniture in dark varnish, Thai wall hangings and murals, all herald the promise of a pleasant dining experience.
Lunch hour bustles with diners from nearby offices. The price points of dishes serve as an additional lure aside from its offerings of truly authentic Thai tastes. Although the size of the crowd can be unnerving at first glance, the turnover is swift and, boy, the food is most definitely worth every second of waiting involved. The lunch crowd normally sticks to the very popular one-dish rice meals, which come with a salad and a sweet chili dip, such as: bagoong rice special (P95), fish cakes (P110), chicken pandan (P95), Thai spring rolls (P88), and crab rolls (P95). The servings are hefty and, for the price, are true winners!
I had the tom yum soup for starters and, without reservation, I claim Thai Pad’s version to be the best I’ve had in Manila. The perfect harmony of tartness and coconut creaminess, along with the taste of lemon grass and magarut lime leaf, is captured in every bowl of tom yum. After having tried the delicious soup, I ordered the bagoong rice special, which is a complete meal in itself given that the chunks of sweet meat are more than generous in portion. I also had catfish mango salad (P81), curried beef stew (P105), stir-fried kangkong (P77) and tofu garlic pepper (P77), which was a standout. Of course, their pad thai (P95) is to die for, otherwise they wouldn’t have the nerve to name their restaurant such.
Dinner time would be a safer bet for the leisurely diner when the atmosphere is more relaxed. The clientele changes in the evening. The customers are now mostly village residents who come in cars and augment their fare with orders of dessert and the refreshing Thai iced coffee. Ample parking is available right across at the Blue Racket Badminton Place.
The must-try meal-enders are the Thai halo-halo, a steal at P55. The alternating textures of chewy and crunchy condiments against the creaminess of the milk and the biting cold of the ice shavings are a perfect punctuation for a wonderful dinner. One must not leave without trying the takoh rice cake, which at P16 is a crime not to sample. It is a melt-in-the-mouth medley of delicate glutinous rice and coconut cream, which is surprisingly very light.
The good news is that Thai Pad also caters for unbelievably low prices. A menu of seven viands  a choice of one appetizer and one salad, spring rolls, chicken in pandan, pad thai noodles, bagoong fried rice, and takoh rice cakes  will just cost P290 per head. A minimum number of 20 diners is required for their full-service catering.
Thai Pad is at Marvin Plaza Bldg., ground floor, 2153 Chino Roces Ave. corner V. A. Rufino St., Makati City. Call 815-1329 for inquiries. It is open Monday to Saturday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
It comes with a glorious culinary history  19 years in the restaurant business. The affable Rose Garcia says that the very same group that owned and operated the famous chain of Suko Thai restaurants is now behind Thai Pad. Suko Thai closed its doors late last year because the sweeping ’90s trend of huge restaurants with separate function rooms has seen the last of its days due to a more pragmatic society. Rose says the rent in the malls has become prohibitive, so the owners elected to close and open a more manageable incarnation, which is now Thai Pad, still in its infancy at barely four months old. It boasts an arsenal of original Suko Thai recipes collected over the years from their first Thai chefs.
Thai Pad is a recipe-based enterprise, so you are certain of the consistency of the dishes in taste and ingredients. They have retained their cooks from Suko Thai, so there is more or less 19 years of culinary experience in the preparation of every dish you order. The restaurant staff is always on their toes and can well-anticipate your needs because Rose is very hands-on. She oversees the operations every day, Monday to Saturday, from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
The facade of Thai Pad looks more like an office than an eatery. Warm colors, such as purple Thai silk upholstered chairs, furniture in dark varnish, Thai wall hangings and murals, all herald the promise of a pleasant dining experience.
Lunch hour bustles with diners from nearby offices. The price points of dishes serve as an additional lure aside from its offerings of truly authentic Thai tastes. Although the size of the crowd can be unnerving at first glance, the turnover is swift and, boy, the food is most definitely worth every second of waiting involved. The lunch crowd normally sticks to the very popular one-dish rice meals, which come with a salad and a sweet chili dip, such as: bagoong rice special (P95), fish cakes (P110), chicken pandan (P95), Thai spring rolls (P88), and crab rolls (P95). The servings are hefty and, for the price, are true winners!
I had the tom yum soup for starters and, without reservation, I claim Thai Pad’s version to be the best I’ve had in Manila. The perfect harmony of tartness and coconut creaminess, along with the taste of lemon grass and magarut lime leaf, is captured in every bowl of tom yum. After having tried the delicious soup, I ordered the bagoong rice special, which is a complete meal in itself given that the chunks of sweet meat are more than generous in portion. I also had catfish mango salad (P81), curried beef stew (P105), stir-fried kangkong (P77) and tofu garlic pepper (P77), which was a standout. Of course, their pad thai (P95) is to die for, otherwise they wouldn’t have the nerve to name their restaurant such.
Dinner time would be a safer bet for the leisurely diner when the atmosphere is more relaxed. The clientele changes in the evening. The customers are now mostly village residents who come in cars and augment their fare with orders of dessert and the refreshing Thai iced coffee. Ample parking is available right across at the Blue Racket Badminton Place.
The must-try meal-enders are the Thai halo-halo, a steal at P55. The alternating textures of chewy and crunchy condiments against the creaminess of the milk and the biting cold of the ice shavings are a perfect punctuation for a wonderful dinner. One must not leave without trying the takoh rice cake, which at P16 is a crime not to sample. It is a melt-in-the-mouth medley of delicate glutinous rice and coconut cream, which is surprisingly very light.
The good news is that Thai Pad also caters for unbelievably low prices. A menu of seven viands  a choice of one appetizer and one salad, spring rolls, chicken in pandan, pad thai noodles, bagoong fried rice, and takoh rice cakes  will just cost P290 per head. A minimum number of 20 diners is required for their full-service catering.
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