By Joe Johnson (The Cascade) – Email
Print Edition: July 3, 2013
2328 Clearbrook Road, Abbotsford
(604) 746-3800
Hours: Tuesday to Friday, Sunday 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.; Tuesday to Sunday 4:30 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Prices: up to $10.50 for lunch and up to $15.50 for dinner
I’m a novice foodie. Anthony Bourdain, I am sadly not. So it was with trepidation that I ventured into restaurant reviewing. But as I would find out, it is certainly worth it to try new foods, and a new restaurant – Thai D’or.
Before actually visiting the restaurant I pulled their website up on my computer to find a menu and some photos of the lay of the land. But mostly I wanted to know what kind of price range I would be walking into. Luckily, it all looked fairly decent with 12 items on the lunch menu falling within the $9.50 to $10.50 range.
It was at the beginning of the three-and-a-half hour lunch period—roughly 11:30 a.m.—that I walked in with a friend. The first thing I noticed was the deceptively large space, much more than would be expected from an everyday drive past the sleepy Clearbrook Road exterior.
The black and red decor scheme was quite nice as was the classy yet down-to-earth atmosphere of the restaurant.
While it was moderately well attended, the waitress greeted us within mere seconds. Very friendly and conversational, she showed us to a table along the window.
Not being very well-versed in a variety of foods, I asked her for a recommendation. She pointed out something off the lunch menu, but also something from the main menu, where I then decided to explore their entire array of options. And I have to say, everything was competitively priced.
Ultimately, I made my own decision from the lunch menu – primarily because all items on that menu came with a spring roll. It was number nine, the gaeng kari, that I went for. What particularly stood out for this meal were the potatoes. It sounded interesting, albeit a little comfortable.
There were a few other pieces mixed in of course: pineapple, peppers and carrots. Also, unbeknownst to me were the differences between the multiple colours of curry that were strewn throughout the menu. There was a green curry, a red coconut curry, and a yellow curry; the yellow came with my meal. And while I could have had a choice of beef, pork or chicken, I paid the extra $3.50 for prawns. Finally, on their scale of spiciness, zero through five, I went right down the middle.
The Thai food I had previously experienced was mediocre. But as soon as the plates were served, and in relatively quick order, I sunk my spoon in and it was delicious.
It was rich and creamy, and not overwhelmingly greasy, but, at the same time, it was a very clean tasting dish. And the prawns were exceptional and meaty. Outside of a home barbecue, this was one of the better meals I’ve had in a long time. Never did the taste get tiring, something that I find often happens when there’s strong flavour on the plate. And if I were to grade the spiciness, they were right on the mark.
The one concern that I had when the plate was first served? The portion size. It wasn’t that small by any measure; I had just overly anticipated my own abilities, since I soon found it was considerably filling.
While we ate the waitress did a very good job at seeing how we were enjoying things. But what was also interesting was that the manager also stopped by for a brief moment. Nothing was overly abrasive; it actually made the restaurant a friendlier place.
As the end of our meals neared we ordered a cup of tea to chase things down.
Ultimately, speaking as somebody with little exploration with food, Thai D’or was a very pleasant experience for a good price.
