Nara Thai – ION Orchard
When you think of Bangkok, you think of Thai street food. When you transport those dishes to an upscale setting, you get Nara Thai. Situated in the plush and busy ION Orchard mall , the queue that lines up outside this restaurant during dinner time is mind-boggling. As I stood in the queue, I could see the restaurant was quite popular among expats and visiting tourists. Being awarded by TripAdvisor has worked to their advantage in their ability to garner tourist crowds. With a classy and contemporary setting, the atmosphere in this chic restaurant will instantly put you at ease. Nevertheless, what caught my attention was that they have a separate vegetarian menu (like Bali Thai) on display at the restaurant. I wish they had shared that information on their website as well.
The Orders
Served straight from the wok, the ‘Fried Spring Rolls’ crackled when you bit into them. The crunchy bites led to the revelation of a tasty filling. The starter was so good that the plate was empty in no time.
Another famous Thai salad is the ‘Green Mango Salad’ that is a must try if you like the kick of spices. The salad at Nara Thai was milder with a manageable spice level, hence you might be a tad disappointed. The salt from the roasted cashews definitely helped in cutting through the tangy mango.
For the mains, we went for the ‘Vegetable Hor Fun’ which came in a substantial portion. The broth was highly spicy and the chillies added more heat with every bite. This dish is not for the faint-hearted but if you enjoy spicy food, go for it!
After having had ‘Thai Green Curry’ at a lot of places by now, the dish just looked decent. According to a friend, the dish had a slight sweet note to it. It had a decent amount of vegetables in the dish but the portion size could have been larger. For pure vegetarians, please note that the paste does contain fish sauce. Hence this dish is not part of their vegetarian menu.
For the drinks, we ordered the ‘Thai Milk Iced Tea’ and Mango Smoothie which were very good. Refreshing and flavorful, they acted as fitting beverages to the meal.
Apart from this I also tried the ‘Veg Fried Rice’ which was decent. They also have the ‘Blue Jasmine Rice’ which was no different from white rice as such except that it has a certain flavour – and is blue in colour. Try it just for the ‘different’ element or if you are curious 🙂 For their convenient location and for their variety of offerings in Thai cuisine, Nara Thai is worth a visit.
| In a Nutshell | Deelightful Rating |
| Cuisine Type: Thai | ★★★ |
| Nearest MRT: Orchard | |
| Address: 2 Orchard Turn, ION Orchard #B3-21, Singapore 238801 | |
| Timings: Mon-Sun: 11.30am – 10pm | |
| Website: http://narathai.com.sg/ |