Sep. 04, 2007 - Issue #620: DVAS

What does it feel like to be the other Thai Valley Grill?

A few years back, I had a tryst with a New York City phone company executive that visited Edmonton on a bi-monthly basis. We’d meet for dinner at Thai Valley Grill, and then head out to capture some of the city’s nightlife before going back to his hotel room for some “alone time.”

Back then, the restaurant was housed in a run-down Cloverdale building, but condos have long since displaced the few businesses that once lined that scenic stretch of 98th Avenue.

The owners moved the beloved restaurant to Whitemud Crossing, and it was there that I met up with a couple of out-of-town friends on Saturday night to reunite my taste buds with their mouth-watering Thai cuisine.

There are over 40 Thai restaurants in Edmonton, serving everything from vaguely Thai to authentic victuals. The menu at Thai Valley Grill doesn’t mess with other cuisines in an attempt to placate patrons who can’t handle the heat, instead serving up authentic fare with no apologies to those who aren’t worthy, but it does make one concession: each dish’s spiciness can be adjusted to the diner’s degree of tolerance.

With a dozen wooden tables crammed into the space once occupied by “Edmonton’s most romantic restaurant” (think small), a Saturday night reservation is a must. The three of us were seated around a table that barely had room for our wine glasses and plates, let alone the deluge of food that was about to strike.

We ordered a bottle of Casillero del Diablo Carménère ($25.95), a rich blended Chilean red that serves as their house wine. We set upon the menu with eager eyes, reading the descriptions with mounting excitement. I love a menu that doesn’t shy away from describing the dishes in detail and allows my culinary anticipation to run rampant. I chose a bowl of Tom Kha Kai to start ($5.95), a spicy coconut and chicken soup flavoured with lemongrass. My friends chose the prawn-laden Tom Yam Goong ($4.95) and the Fisherman’s Soup ($6.95).
All three bowls came heaped to the rim with delicious fresh ingredients, herbs and garnishes. My creamy coconut soup was chock full of hearty pieces of chicken, mushroom and galanga for seasoning, and it was spicy without being overpowering, lending a perfect blend of flavours.

Both of my friends’ bowls were generously laden with their namesake seafood: large tender prawns almost overwhelmed the Tom Yam Goong and bits of fish, squid and scallops swam in the zesty seafood broth of the Fisherman’s Soup.

We were barely a quarter of the way through our starters when the first of our main course dishes arrived. We were forced to make room on our tiny table for three platters and rice in addition to our soup bowls. I reluctantly decided to surrender my soup to the necessity for space, and I followed its return to the kitchen with tear-rimmed eyes.

My grief was short-lived as we scooped from the three generous platters of spicy delights before us. We had started our foray into Thai cuisine with a bowl of coconut rice ($2.50 per person) and an order of Gaeng Ped Moo, a red curry pork served with bamboo shoots, red and green peppers and flavoured with basil ($15.95). It was prepared medium-hot.

We’d also chosen the medium-hot Galanga Cashew Chicken, flavoured with the ginger-like spice and combined with pineapple, onions, red and green peppers and topped with cashew nuts ($15.95). Finally, we ordered a platter of mild Runm Mit Goong: tiger prawns with mixed vegetables and oyster chili sauce ($16.95).

When I was a kid, salting the boiling vegetable water was thought to be adequate spicing. In Thai cuisine, the food is both deftly spiced and served without apology for its robust aromas and pungent flavours.
I favoured the pork laced with rich red curry sauce and peanut undertones, but both my friends adored the milder prawns amid an array of broccoli, baby corn, sliced carrot, red and green pepper and onion. The galangal-seasoned chicken dish was generously burdened with cashews.

None of us saved room for creamy iced coffee or the array of tempting desserts. As a bowl of fried bananas and ice cream went by on its way to another table, I regretted my lack of planning. On the other hand, what would I have given up in order to reserve space for ice cream? I’d just have to come back another time and pace myself.
Though I hadn’t been to Thai Valley Grill since the days of my secret romance, it was well worth renewing my affair with the restaurant’s outstanding and authentic fare. The new location is a little further from home, and a little more upscale than I remembered, and the higher prices reflected the better ambiance. Still, these were small sacrifices to make for some of the city’s most incredible Thai cuisine. V


Mon - Sat until 10 pm
Thai Valley Grill
149, 4211 - 106 Street
413.9556

More info about Thai Valley Grill →

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