Sing Thai – Edinburgh Thai Restaurant

Review by List 2010, Sing Thai Restaurant

St Stephen Street is something of an Edinburgh wonderland. Lovely, old, tucked-away pubs, a local food market, a superb hair dresser, quixotic antique and speciality shops and an increasingly strong dining scene. More than that, there is a sense of belonging and cosy community that puts one immediately at ease. This feeling carries you up the small flight of stairs to the intimate and very good Sing Thai and where this sensation continues throughout the meal. Although small, the two-room venue is saved from feeling crowded by simple, light décor and large windows displaying the street below. The very cannily priced menu does the full range of Thai dishes plus some interesting extras. The selection of tender seafood in the chu chi talay is prepared with a delicate hand, the light curry and sweet basil drawing out their freshness. There is a particularly large and exciting range of yums and larbs for those requiring that sharp, hot, chillli hit, and stir-fries, include classics like a very well-executed pad kraprao. Even if you live across town, consider making it your local.

Review by Sophie Cooke “The Guardian”

Deep in fashionable Stockbridge, there’s finally a fashionable Thai restaurant that’s as authentic as it is beautiful, run by Kavel Kaur and her husband Akhadet Dechdechachan. Crystal goblets, vanilla walls, wood carvings and strappy tops fill a tiny space presided over by Kavel, possibly the loveliest maitre d’ in town. Mixed starters include tohd mun pla, moist chewy fritters of cod, while minced chicken on toast with sesame seeds (kanom pang na gai) soaks up the peanut and sweet chilli concoctions – slightly more glamorous than bread and dripping. But the mains are the stars of the show. A seafood pad khing is quite superb, the squid delicately firm, mussels huge and fresh, in a light gingered soup of Thai mushrooms and scallions that’s cleaner than the breeze off the Andaman Sea. Gaeng ped yang (roast duck in a mild red coconut curry) is another triumph, soft tangy flesh and crispy basil leaves melting in a bee-sting chilli tingle on the lips. An escapist’s dream.

Sing Thai Restaurant, 42 St Stephen’s Street,, Edinburgh (Tel: 0131-226 5877)

Sing Thai Restaurant – Review by “The List”

Among the vintage shops and pubs on St Stephen Street, this cosy restaurant does all it can to make diners feel welcome. Fairy lights lure in passers-by, fresh roses decorate the tables, and owner Akhadet Dechdechachan thoughtfully comes back to check that the red curry sauce wasn’t too hot for you. Running the place for four years with his wife Kavel Kaur, they have built up a good takeaway trade, as well as city centre diners seeking an intimate, hushed spot. A seafood appetiser including king prawns, scallops and squid is a good combination of chilli heat and seasoning, while giant pad thai noodle portions or massaman curries are satisfying and tasty. Ignore the laminated dessert menu of ice-creams, and go instead for the comforting bowl of bananas in hot coconut milk, or sticky toffee sauce-covered banana fritters for dessert. Although patches of décor could be ready for a tidy-up, and the bathrooms need a sideways shuffle to get in to, this friendly Stockbridge spot does a good job of sending you away a little more Zen than when you arrived.

High point: Hot sauces, warm atmosphere
Low point: Closed at lunchtime