Samila Thai

Samila Thai
5336 Geary Blvd, (17th/18th Ave), 415 752-4310
Sun-Thurs 11:15am-9:45pm, Fri-Sat to 10:15pm, lunch to 4pm, dinner from 4pm.

Samila Thai holds its own in a city full of Thai restaurants. It has a pleasant decor, high ceilings, with Thai art on the walls. It seats 35. The menu is enormous, with a large number of vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes. The printed menu is one of the most artistic around, with a color photo of each dish. In fact, the photos make the dishes look so good that it can be diffiiult to make a choice!. Prices are modest compared to other Thai restaurants, and the quality is high.

Lunch combination. $5.50, is served with a spring roll, soup, rice, and two items from 15 choices, including satay of chicken or beef served with peanut sauce and cucumber salad, fish cake with mushrooms and ground peanuts in spicy plum sauce, eggplant with tofu and bell pepper in a herbal sauce, BBQ chicken with spicy plum sauce, red curry chicken in coconut milk with spicy plum sauce.

Appetizers include vegi rolls (5) with spicy plum sauce $4.75, fried tofu with peanut sauce $4.75, vegetarian papaya salad in tamarind dressing, or house salad with peanut dressing $5.95, garlic pork salad with cucumber in herbal sauce $5.95, prawn salad with spicy lime sauce, combination of prawns, mussels, calamari on cabbage $5.95.

Soups include vegetarian – spicy assorted vegetables in coconut milk with mushroom, tomato, lemon grass, and galanga $5.95, spicy chicken in coconut milk with mushroom, tomato, lemon grass, and galanga $6.25, with prawns or combination seafood $7.50, spicy and sour prawn soup with mushroom, onion, tomato, and Thai herbs $6.95, combination seafood with Thai herbs $7.50.

Entrees – all $6.50 a la carte, or a smaller portion over rice $4.95 – green curry with chicken, beef, or pork, and coconut milk, potato, and carrot; spicy red curry with chicken, beef or pork, and bamboo shoots, bell pepper, and basil; charbroiled chicken marinated in honey served with spicy plum sauce; spicy green bean with chicken, beef, or pork, plus onion and bell pepper, in spicy garlic-chili sauce; chicken and prawns in sweet and sour sauce with cucumber, onion, pineapple, and tomato.

Seafood – all $5.50 over rice at lunch -- includes sauteed calamari with garlic and black pepper $7.95, spicy red curry with prawns, red snapper or combination in coconut milk with bamboo shoots, bell pepper, and basil $7.95; garlic pepper prawns $7.95, spicy green curry with prawns, red snapper, or combination with green chili paste cooked in coconut milk, served with spinach, bell pepper, green beans and eggplant $7.95, combination seafood with bell pepper and green bean $8.95; steamed mussels with lemon grass and fresh lime leaves, served with spicy lemon sauce $7.95, sweet and sour fish, trout or red snapper, with green onion, tomato, and pineapple $7.95.

Vegetarian (14 dishes, all $5.95 a la carte and $4.95 over rice at lunch) includes assorted vegetables in spicy red curry, coconut milk, tofu, and bell pepper; spicy green bean and mushrooms; sauteed vegetables with crispy tofu; sauteed young eggplant, tofu and bell pepper; mushrooms, bamboo shoots and bell pepper; soft tofu in sweet and sour sauce with cucumber, tomato, and pineapple.

Noodles (13 dishes – at lunch over rice $4.95-5.50, ala carte $6.25) include Pad Thai with chicken, beef, or prawns, with rice noodles, bean sprouts, egg, crispy tofu, and ground peanuts; pan-fried rice noodles with vegetables , bean sprouts, egg, tofu, and peanuts; green curry pasta with chicken, beef, pork, or vegetables, cooked in coconut milk with green beans, eggplant, and bell pepper.

Rice dishes ($4.95-5.50 over rice at lunch, $5.95-6.95 a la carte) include fried rice with chicken, beef or pork, with green onion, tomato, and egg; spicy seafood fried rice with onion and bell pepper; vegi fried rice with green onion, tomato, and egg.

Desserts include fried banana with honey $1.75, coconut ice cream $1.75, deep-fried banana with coconut ice cream $3.25.

Beverages include hot tea or coffee $1.00, soft drinks $1.00, Thai ice tea or coffee $1.75, Thai beer or Heineken $2.95, house wine, chablis or burgundy, $2.50 glass, $4.95 half carafe, $8.95 carafe