Our Charm Modern Thai Groupon was waiting patiently for us to redeem. Or was it Living Social, or Indulge Living? There are just too many of those group deal sites to keep track of. I find that we purchase deals, but end up forgetting about them until after they have expired. I don’t know…waste of money or are they worth it?
Anyway, we dined at Charm for an early dinner one evening. Located on Hamilton Street, in Yaletown, Charm is a more trendy and contemporary Thai restaurant, compared to the regular casual Thai joints around the lower mainland.
Duck Sticks ($9.00) – Fried duck confit spring rolls served with a wok roasted chili sauce. Extra crunchy, slender sticks, consisting of a definitive duck flavor, and resting on a bed of carrots. Presentation was lovely.
Pad Thai ($12.00) – Pad Thai, prepared the traditional Thai way with tamarind juice, bean sprouts, peanuts, tofu, and choice of chicken or prawns. This dish provided a large portion of rice noodles (almost too many), and were slightly soft. It would be a challenge for one person to consume the entire bowl, so I’d suggest definitely ordering this to share. Prawns were crunchy, and there were a good amount. After eating the most amazing Pad Thai ever, recently in Thailand (take a look at the dish in all its glory here), it’s difficult not to make comparisons. Flavours were not as developed or as intense as the Pad Thai on Thai soil, so the dish was a little underwhelming. But, compared to most of the ketchup-based “Pad Thai” found around Vancouver (cough cough, Papaya Hut I’m calling you out for ketchup atrocities), this dish was much superior. And yes, I think it’s acceptable to make comparisons with food eaten in Thailand, because the food at Charm is actually prepared by Thai chefs.
Green Curry ($12.00) – Chicken (or choice of beef or tofu), green and red peppers, Thai basil, served with steamed rice. The rice was delicious and tasted like it had been infused with coconut milk. The dish did not consist of a lot of pieces of chicken breast, nor did it contain very many green or red peppers. There were however, an excessive amount of bamboo shoots – more than any other ingredient in the dish. I don’t mind bamboo shoots, but the amount was a little overwhelming. The consistency of the curry itself was quite thin, more like that of a soup. But overall, the curry was creamy, coconutty and bursting with bright, aromatic Thai curry flavours.
Service experienced was basic. We ended up having to wait at the front entrance for our bill because our server was off dealing with an issue with some other customers. It wasn’t that big of a deal, but it would have been a more pleasant experience if we could have been able to settle the bill at our table. The hostess, however, was friendly while we were waiting.
Overall, the restaurant has a lovely decor and atmosphere. If you’re looking for a more upscale Thai food restaurant, then you might enjoy Charm Modern Thai & Bar.
