I want to love this restaurant because 1) it is a block from where I live; 2) it has an outdoor patio where I can bring my dog; 3) the inside is very nice; and 4) the servers are polite, nonobtrusive and competent. However, as I sit here in my apartment TRYING to enjoy my leftover Massala curry, it's very difficult. Normally, a curry is complex. The Sawadee Massala curry (it's spelled differently at different places) has only one flavor note: sugar. It is merely a sweet sauce. I have thrown a large pinch of salt onto my plate as well as a half teaspoon of garlic-chili sauce and it is now reasonably edible. Last night in the restaurant, my husband ordered a red curry and I ordered the Massala curry and we were both served bowls of large vegetables with a thin sauce. The vegetables were so large we wondered if they had lost their kitchen help and could not take the time to cut up a potato into more than 4 pieces. Okay, the point of a potato is to deliver the sauce, and a quarter of a large potato does not do the trick. Both dishes were ho-hum and we only ate because we were hungry. The main topic of our conversation was "When is Dennis Hummell going to re-open Bangkok Thai?" The restaurant was busy, so it appears that this restaurant appeals to some, but for those of us used to the kind of Thai food that Bangkok Thai served - curries that were complex in flavor, Pad Thais that have more flavor than just sweet, Sawadee will be disappointing. Dennis, where are you??
Pros: Nice location, outdoor patio
Cons: Ho-hum Thai food with little complexity or flavor
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