Thai Orchid's No. 21, pad gooy hard, is a delightful combination of mixed seafood, chilies and oyster sauce served in a fried noodle basket.

THAI ORCHID Location: 4223 Providence Road in Strawberry Hill Shopping Center Phone: 704-364-1134 Details: Nonsmoking, takeout available, lunch menu changes weekly, wine and beer served, reservations accepted for large parties, off-premises catering available. Price range: $3.95- $15.95; whole fish is market priced Hours: Lunch served Monday-Friday, 11:30 a.m.- 2:30 p.m.; dinner served Monday-Thursday, 5-9:30 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 5-10:30 p.m.; closed Sundays.

Recently released food market research reports predict that 2005 will be the year of Asian cuisine. As Asian food climbs the charts past last year’s trendy tapas dishes of Spain and Latin America, Charlotte is blessed with many tasty choices.

Different from Chinese, Japanese, Mayalasian and Vietnamese cuisine, Thai fare is always full of interesting, exciting flavors. Unlike the dishes of other Asian countries where one dish may be spicy and the other sweet or salty, each Thai dish includes sweet, salty, spicy and sour flavors. One of my favorite Thai places in Charlotte is Thai Orchid, located in the Strawberry Hill Shopping Center.

A people kind of place
Thai Orchid has undergone few changes since its inception 11 years ago. The dining area is small and worth the wait, if there is one. Owners Nudi Brand Lilienthal and Ed Waters have been friends for nearly 30 years, long before they went into business together. Their friendship and people-pleasing attitude infect the entire staff.

Contrary to what many customers think, Waters and Lilienthal are not married and never have been, at least not to each other. Like Waters and Lilienthal, members of the staff are quick to recognize and greet guests, making first-time visitors and regulars alike feel at home. The interiors are modestly decorated in this familystyle restaurant and dress is casual. In the evenings, female staff wear simple but stunning traditional Thai attire made of Thai silk. Tables are set with flatware rather than chopsticks because people in Thailand eat with forks, knives and spoons.

By the numbers
For years, Thai Orchid’s menu remained virtually unchanged. “We have added brown rice, in consideration of customers who are on whole-grain diets,” Waters said. “Other than that and some new daily specials, it’s just the same as it’s always been.”

The menu is extensive and everything I’ve tried over the past 11 years has been delicious. Every dish, down to each individual bowl of soup, is made from scratch and prepared to order, guaranteeing that flavors are fresh and at their finest.

Favorites at Thai Orchid include No. 1 – mee krob. This appetizer is the restaurant’s top seller. Crispy rice noodles are topped with a stir-fry of finely chopped shrimp and chicken or vegetables and accompanied by crispy lettuce leaves. The idea is to place some of the noodles and stir-fry in the lettuce leaf, top it with a dab of chili sauce and roll it up as you would a burrito. The appetizer list also includes spring rolls, steamed dumplings and chicken satay, but my two favorites of the bunch of starters are No. 5 – tofu tod, and No. 6 – pla muk tod.

The tofu is deep-fried until crispy outside and then is served with a dipping sauce of cucumber, chili and peanuts. No. 6 is a dish of marinated squid, also deep fried (think calamari) and, like the tofu, served with a special dipping sauce. The two, together with a bowl of No. 16 – tom yum, a slightly sour and spicy soup with fresh Thai herbs, tomatoes and mushrooms, would make more than a meal.

As entrées go, they’re all good here; it just depends on what you’re in the mood for. Lilienthal’s favorite is No. 44 – pla lard prik kaeng. The dish is a whole red snapper, fried and topped with red curry sauce and mint. The fish is served upright, garnished with orange and bell pepper. The sides of the fish have been filleted in sections to make it easier to serve and to eat. It’s plenty for two or three people to share.

Chef Pho Vongsa’s favorite entrée doesn’t have a number. It’s a special available any night of the week. Kreung keang seafood is a slightly spicy blend of mixed shrimp, scallops and more in a flavorful brown sauce.

Waters’ favorite entrée, No. 32 – pad bai-krapraw – is a stir-fry of meat, seafood or veggies with the wonderful flavor of fresh chili, Thai basil and kefir lime. If you like noodle dishes, No. 52 – pad Thai is always good. All of the curry dishes, Nos. 29-31, are outstanding.

Too hot to handle
When people ask for dishes to be hotter or spicier – or maybe not so hot – Vongsa, who has been at Thai Orchid since the beginning, is happy to cook to order.

“We can make any dish as spicy as people would like,” Waters said. “But we try to warn them that hot Thai food is really hot.” Over the years Waters recalls having had to deal with many emergencies of folks who may have overestimated their tolerance for heat and spice.

“If you eat something too spicy and try to wash it down with water, wine or beer, it won’t work. Those beverages just make it seem hotter. We always give them about half of a wine glass of half-and-half, and that does the trick,” Waters said.

To keep medical care of their patrons to a minimum, the staff suggests people order dishes mild or medium-hot and then spice it up gradually. To that end, dinner comes with a spice tray, which includes a delicious homemade Thai chili sauce, sliced jalapeños, dried red pepper flakes, a hot chili-infused vinegar and a bottle of nam pla, a Thai condiment made of soy sauce and anchovies.

Wet but not washed up
The small, charming patio which once overlooked the shopping center’s inner courtyard has become a glassed-in dining room. A private party on the patio several years ago initiated the interest in remodeling.

“The restaurant was packed,” Waters remembered, “and we had a private wedding party outside on the patio. A big summer thunderstorm rolled up out of nowhere and came pouring down by the bucketful.” Thai Orchid’s staff quickly ushered the waterlogged wedding party inside. With no seating available in the dining room, they seated the party at a large, stainless steel prep table in the kitchen.

“Right after that we made plans with our landlords to glass in the patio area,” Waters explained. Now that section of the dining room, which seats 20, can be used year round.

Thai Orchid has recently added entertainment on Monday and Tuesday nights. Lilienthal demonstrates traditional Thai classic and folk dance at two short performances at 7 and 8 p.m. For the next few months Lilienthal’s niece, Anne Poomma, who is visiting for the summer from Thailand, will join her.

Nudi Brand Lilienthal's niece, Anne Poomma, demonstrates traditional Thai classic and folk dance at Thai Orchid.

Well-known Charlotte restaurant critic, food writer, cooking instructor and connoisseur of food and wine, Heidi Edidin writes "The Charlotte Weekly: Culinary Corner," a restaurant review or food feature that appears weekly. Contact Heidi with questions and restaurant, food or story ideas by email at heidi@thecharlotteweekly.com.

CW photos by Rebecca Koenig.

This article first appeared in "The Charlotte Weekly" on April 1, 2005. "The Charlotte Weekly" is a free, locally owned, independent newspaper that's "About the Community, For the Community," available every Thursday in North and South Charlotte and Uptown.

Copyright 2005 by The Charlotte Weekly and WSOCTV.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.