Best Thai food in Vancouver

From traditional Thai houses to sleek eateries dishing up authentic and contemporary eats, these are our picks on where to find the best Thai food in Vancouver (and just outside the city).

Kin Kao Thai Kitchen

Open for lunch, dinner and take-out, Kin Kao, a 25 seat restaurant on Commercial Drive, serves authentic modern Thai food. With sharp flavours and aromatic seasoning, Kin Kao dishes up a range of tempting plates, including green papaya salad, chicken satay, marinated pork ribs, Pad-See-Ew, stir-fried spicy pork belly, and a green curry, just to name a few.

Address: 903 Commercial Drive
Phone: 604-558-1125
Website: www.kinkao.ca

Urban Thai Bistro

This well-established Thai restaurant, located on Hamilton Street, has been serving traditional and modern Thai eats for over 15 years. Signature dishes include BBQ Thai-style chicken, roasted duck (either stir-fried with vegetables or served in a red curry coconut sauce), and ostrich (done in your choice of curry: red, yellow, green, or Panang). Thai classics also appear on the menu. Think red, green, or yellow curries; noodles, such as Pad See-Iw and Pad Thai; fried rice; and stir-fried options. It’s also worth nothing that Urban Thai’s sister restaurant Thai House, has a killer brunch deal come the weekend.

Address: 1119 Hamilton Street, Yaletown
Phone: 604-408-7788
Website: www.thaihouse.com/urban-thai-bistro

Maenam

Focusing on local, sustainable and organic ingredients, Maenam incorporates a gentle balance of hot, sour, sweet and salty into their dishes. Based on traditional Thai recipes with innovative twists, Maenam offers a selection of Thai specialties including handmade roti, a betal leaf wrap will grilled prawns, banana blossom salad, steamed mussels with lemongrass, green curry with local sturgeon, and more.

Address: 938 West 4th Avenue
Phone: 604-730-5579
Website: www.maenam.ca

Bob Likes Thai Food

With an emphasis on home-style Thai cooking, Bob Likes Thai Food offers diners Southern and Northern Thai-inspired meals. Both the lunch and dinner menu are full of interesting and delicious feeds like fish cakes with cucumber relish, a papaya salad, Panang beef, lychee wrapped bacon with pineapple, massaman beef curry, and a traditional Laos-Thai snack called Miang Kham (6 bites). Roughly translated to ‘eating many things in one bite’, diners who opt for the Miang Kham can expect a blend of tastes and textures, as the bite sized portions are filled with roasted coconut shavings, lime, shallot, peanut, ginger and fresh chili with Tamarind Palm Sugar sauce.

Address: 3755 Main Street and 1521 West Broadway
Website: www.boblikesthaifood.com

Pink Elephant Thai

While The Pink Elephant, in Coal Harbour, is affiliated with Yaletown’s Urban Thai Bistro, sharing a similar Thai inspired menu, it has its own distinct style and flare. Indeed the 88 seat restaurant is identifiable by its modern layout and hot pink furnishings. Although the décor is strikingly modern, the menu followes a more traditional route and includes a range of dishes like red curry (with coconut milk, bell peppers, bamboo shoots and fresh basil), Pad-Kee-Moa (stir-fried rice noodles with Thai chili, bell peppers, onions, green beans and fresh basil), and Om Kah (a hot and sour soup with mushrooms, lemongrass and coconut milk).

Address: 1152 Alberni Street
Phone: 604-646-8899
Website: www.thaihouse.com/pink-elephant-thai

Thai Basil

The Davie Village branch of this casual Thai eatery may not look like much from the outside, but the food is excellent. More of a grab-and-go type of place, Thai Basil serves consistently tasty and affordable Thai-inspired meals, including a range of salads, soups, curries, noodle dishes, and larger combination plates. Check the company’s website for additional details about other Vancouver branch locations.

Address: 1215 Thurlow Street
Phone: 604-685-6754
Website: www.thaibasilvancouver.ca

Longtail Kitchen

Thai-style comfort cooking is what patrons can expect when they turn up to this bright and cheery New Westminster spot. Taking its inspiration from Thai street market food, the menu at Longtail Kitchen showcases a variety of delicious, contemporary Thai eats, which include a varied selection of soups, salads, noodles and rice dishes. With perfectly cooked rice noodles and the seasoning spot on, the restaurant’s Pad Thai comes highly recommended.

Address: 116-810 Quayside Drive, New Westminster
Phone: 604-553-3855
Twitter: @longtailkitchen