Siam Orchid

As we stepped out of Siam Orchid’s aromatic embrace and the restaurant’s glass door swung closed behind us, my brother wrapped his jacket tightly across his chest and squinted his eyes in a way that always means he has something important on his mind.

"This is it—this will be our place," he said.

Finally. Almost six months after my thirty-something brother, his wife, and their toddler moved to the East Bay from San Francisco, he had found a Thai restaurant that he’s wanted to visit again.

It’s not that there aren’t respectable Thai establishments in his new home base of Oakland, but none had succeeded in fitting his particular set of criteria: He’s done with grunge. (When it comes to ethnic, he wanted a place where he and his wife could relax and enjoy a good drink in attractive surroundings.) The food had to be delicious and reasonably priced. And finally: He wanted his Thai restaurant to welcome his two-year-old son.

Siam Orchid, in Orinda, passed all his tests. Open for 15 years, the recently renovated restaurant boasts a spacious, airy dining room; an open exhibition kitchen; an all-window, street-facing facade; a long, fully stocked mahogany bar; and soft, elegant lighting.

The food is as bright, seasonal, and authentic as ever. The food alone would be reason enough to make this place your regular hangout. Owner Pepsi Phunmongkol, together with his wife, Lek, and brother, Nick, continue to keep Siam Orchid’s menu true to the culinary traditions of northern Thailand.

A ginger salad, one of the restaurant’s most beautiful appetizers, comes to the table on a brightly colored round ceramic dish (Phunmongkol selected and purchased all the restaurant’s dishes in Thailand). The salad arrives with the ingredients separated. There’s shredded ginger, sliced romaine, roasted coconut, cashews, dried peas, peanuts, and sliced onions. A distinctive, garlicky vinaigrette emits a sweet, addicting aroma when everything gets tossed together, and the taste is even better than the smell.

But it’s not just the less familiar that made Siam Orchid our family favorite. The restaurant also scored with what have become Thai standards.

Chicken satay, chicken breast cut in pieces and threaded onto skewers, is flavored and tenderized by a soak in Thai spices and coconut milk, then striped on the grill. Our conversation stopped as we admired its deep, rich tenderness. A zesty, red-onion-laced cucumber salad and a perfectly balanced peanut dipping sauce are welcome accompaniments.

We ordered the pad thai to placate my nephew, but my sister-in-law and I couldn’t help but steal bites. This version, tightly mingling wok-fried rice noodles, prawns, tofu, and egg, lacks even a hint of extra grease or too-common off-flavors caused by burnt or less-than-fresh oil. Once you try it, it’s hard not to crave more. Good thing the servers, a mostly female bunch clad in purple- and gold-embroidered cloth, were distracting my nephew with smiles and humor while his dinner was disappearing in front of him.

Really, we adults should have let the poor kid have his pad thai, if only to turn our attention to other delights. Red curry, a sumptuous bowl of paprika- and chili-tinged chicken breast, bamboo, and bell pepper, is good enough to eat as soup. Poured over a side of jasmine-scented rice, it’s a symphony of crisp, clear flavors. Peanut beef—strips of tenderloin smothered in peanut curry—is nicely balanced with an accompanying dollop of spinach and cabbage; the palate-cleansing vegetables work well with the meat’s richness.

About the only thing that made us consider going back to poaching the kid’s noodles was the garlic-pepper squid. The tender spirals of squid quickly sautéed with garlic, bell pepper, and mushrooms arrive imprinted with a checkerboard design (a pattern rolled into its pale, luminescent flesh) that’s a little too reminiscent of packaged, crinkle-cut frozen vegetables. The flavors are vibrant and tasty, but the texture is unnaturally springy.

Thankfully, there’s nothing unnatural about dessert. Two scoops of delectably creamy coconut ice cream topped with cashews are a refreshing finish to a feast. Another Thai classic, fried bananas, are another way to seal the deal.

Not that we weren’t already sold.

Siam Orchid, 23-F Orinda Way, Orinda. (925) 253-1975. Appetizers $8.95–$10.95, entrées $8.95–$15, desserts $5. Lunch Mon.– Fri., dinner nightly.