Thai Sep, Montreal

Thai Sep has been a long time favourite of local fans of Thai and Lao cuisine in Montreal. I went there, for the first time in 2016. Then, since it’s not on my way, I went back sporadically.

In an effort to post more about some of the Ethnic food that I know the best (3 decades of familiarity and long time thorough practice, in the case of Thai cuisine), I decided to publish this review on Thai Sep, a review that covers some of the dishes I had there on the last 3 most recent visits at Thai Sep:

 

–Thai fish cake. They do it a certain “old fashion” / ‘rustic” way that some Thai people of previous generations are familiar with (that is one thing that I respect with Thai Sep. They do not try to follow trends, make things fancier and try to please the instagram crowd. Instead, they cook their food the way it has always been. That is it). I will not rate this as my rating would mean nothing to the newer generations of diners (most are not familiar with what needs to be expected from this specific type of classic Thai fish cake, therefore a rating will confuse them further. It’s an acquired taste, I’d guess, which means that if you are curious about it, then go ahead and try it.). Thai fish cakes, no matter their variations (whether it’s this specific classic rendition or most of their other variations), have never made the list of my favourite fish cakes in the world, but this was properly done as per the requirements of that specific aforementioned classic Thai style.

 

–Kaeng Massaman. Thai curries must be the easiest thing for a Thai Mom, Lol. I have no doubt about that. You cannot go wrong with their curries, indeed. This one has the textbook features of what it’s supposed to feel/smell/taste like: rich, and mildly spicy. Properly made and tasting fine, with here, more emphasis on the Thai ingredients than on the Indian ones (massaman being a mix of Thai and Indian influences), the chicken cooked in the curry, which is better because the curry and its protein are fused, as it’s supposed to  (something you see less and less at some other restaurants because they are afraid of not making money with their curry, so they just add the protein you want in the curry only when you order it…in other words, the protein is never cooked in the curry. Just added to the curry, I prefer the way of Thai Sep, which means cooking the chicken in the curry). This version was  sweeter than most of the other versions that I am used to, which did not came as surprise as the restaurant industry have decided, for years now, that the “collective palate” in Montreal needs food that’s sweeter…Anyways, this was properly executed and tasted fine . 6.5/10

Other dishes I  had tried across the 3 most recents meals there:

–Green Papaya salad: Both their Thai and Lao versions are properly executed. As authentic as your papaya salad will get, too, in Montreal. The Lao version (tham mak hoong) packed with a fine base of  the classic Lao padaek condiment (made from fermented fish)  flavouring, exactly as it’s supposed to be in original rendition. Nice umami coming from their Lao version. The Thai version (som tom – or “Papa Pok Pok” as Thai people familiarly call it )’s sour/sweet/salty/spicy notes bold on the palate and yet nicely balanced (the key to a successful version of this classic of Thai cuisine), the crispiness of the papaya in evidence, the vivid varied textures adding to the enjoyment of the salad. 7/10 for the Lao version, 6.5/10 for the Thai version.

–Tom Yum Soup: It’s rare that you will find a bad version of this classic hot and sour Thai soup at a Thai restaurant in Montreal. And if you have cooked it yourself (I did), it’s hard to miss it (after all, its list of ingredients — galangal/lime juice/kaffir lime leaves/chili peppers/fish sauce/lemongrass  — literally screams ” unfailing deliciousness”, Lol ) . That said, as with anything else, some versions are just  better than others. This was packed with a decent concentration of eventful flavors.  Fine  6.5/10

Naem khao – A Lao salad (that’s also popular in Northern Thailand) made of peanuts/scallions/shallots/fish sauce/lime juice/rice balls (deep-fried)/mint/pork sausage. You know or you do not, and in their case, they know how to make a proper   Naem khao (a festive complex spicy/salty/tart/sweet/chewy/crispy journey on the palate) thanks to a decent homemade sausage (fine  intensity of meaty flavor/superb seasoning), properly rendered deep-fried lightly curried rice balls, meat that is properly fermented, ingredients that combined well. Good. 7/10

Green Thai curry – Fine condensed intensity of flavors coming from the curry paste / coconut milk.
The core of the flavor of this dish starts from that duo of elements  (the rest of the ingredients — Thai basil/fish sauce/kaffir lime leaves, etc.  — revolving around them ). It fails or succeeds on the back of those 2 components. Here, the curry paste / coconut milk duo  was used to  good effect as you came to expect from time and tested recipes like these. Fine. 6.5/10

Courteous, efficient service (the son serves in the small dining room, while the mother takes care of the cooking).

 

 

Bottom line-  As I cannot stress enough, when a restaurant offers food at such low price (the case of Thai Sep):  be REALISTIC! You cannot have the best of both worlds, you cannot have the best of Thai food in Montreal at such low cost. Thinking otherwise would be pure BS, pure fantasy. Thai Sep cooks honest food, “homey” /”artisan Chef” style (it is refreshing to see a Mom cooking alone in her kitchen in a world where many  kitchen brigades look like a confusing parade of cooks who are replicating recipes mechanically) and sells it to you at a price that your pocket will like. You pay cash, though. And it is a BYOW.