From the breathless Pok Pok reviews of the early aughts to Langbaan’s outstanding restaurant win at the 2024 James Beard Awards, Portland’s reputation as a national Thai food destination has been truly cemented. The scene isn’t just prolific but varied: Thai restaurants here can be hyper-regional or dish-specific, focusing on the Thai-Chinese food found in Bangkok’s Yaowarat district or the crispy, shallot-fried chicken sold on the southern coast. The average neighborhood takeout is a few notches above what you’d find in other parts of the country, too, thanks to the city’s insatiable thirst for khao soi and pad kee mao. Our Chef of the Year for 2019, Akkapong “Earl” Ninsom, could fill this entire list with his diverse range of restaurants that span the Isan region of northern Thailand to Hat Yai in the south.
Compelling options abound outside the city—Khamdee Thai Cookhouse and Lanna Thai in Beaverton, the Chef Thai Cuisine in Vancouver, Nine Dang Fine Thai in Hillsboro. Below, however, find the finest som tum, khao man gai, and mango sticky rice within city limits.
Ba Mee Thai Noodle House
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As you might guess, noodles are the star at this cheery restaurant on North Williams’s restaurant row. Ba Mee’s house-made egg noodles are tender yet chewy enough to hold their own in dishes throughout the long menu. Inspired by street dining in the busy cities of Thailand, they appear in crystal-clear bowls of broth as islands balancing slices of juicy roasted duck or chubby wontons. They come slick with BBQ or garlic sauce, hunks of roast pork with crackly skin perched on top—and can even sneak into other Thai soups, like coconut-rich khao soi or tangy tom yum, if you ask nicely (and pay the surcharge). —Alex Frane
Chick & Pig Thai
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