ottawa foodies

I tried something new today: chicken and vegetables in spicy red curry sauce on rice. Thumbs up!

Am i the only person visiting this restaurant? It can't be. It's always packed at lunch time and has a decent crowd in the evening.

This is combo #2. $15.50. Pretty tasty. Shrimp curry, fried noodles, Thai salad, rice, and chicken dumpling.

I usually order the lunch combo because it has a bit of everything you might want but this day, I opted for the shrimp and eggplant stir fry on rice. It is always a good choice! Less Valerie's than a curry but still very tasty.

Lunch special #1 consists of 1 tasty spring roll, green curry chicken, chicken and cashew nuts, garlic vegetables and rice for $15.95. A good choice when having a hard time deciding.

The regular lunch menu offers good options too, from rice dishes to fried noodles (pad thai, pad Kee mow) to Thai noodle soups/bowls. I have been here for lunch fairly often over the last 4 years and have been very satisfied on almost every single meal.

Their Panang Chicken. Less peanuty than Phnom Penh or Royal Thai. The sauce is a bit thinner but well balanced and tasty. One of the best in town. It is hard to order anything other than this.

Here are some pics. One of the beef dishes. Sorry, I don't remember the name of number but it came with a side of peanut sauce. The portion could have been a little bigger for the price but it was well done and with the right combination of vegetables.

I think I like Phnom Penh on Hazeldean a lot more but within the downtown core, this is my favourite Thai place.

I got takeout from Som Tum tonight and was pretty impressed. Everything was very fresh and flavourful. I had the fresh rolls, which were tasty, and enhanced by the side of chili sauce I ordered. Tom Yum Goong was extra spicy as requested. Som Tum (papaya salad) was delicious, and also extra spicy as requested.

I'll definitely return. Much better quality- and taste-wise than many of the other Thai options in Ottawa.

Great for lunch! I absolutely agree with Sgt. Yum Yum and BigMouth (below) about lunch combo #2 -- a nice variety of Thai dishes that make for a big, yet light, lunch.

Went to Som Tum for lunch today. It was my second visit. It is a busy lunch spot, and the tables are fit closely together. The first time I had Pad Thai, and this time I had Mama Pad. Both times, my lunch was excellent!

I went back to Som Tum for lunch today and was excited to finally order the #2 special for myself!

The special comes with big, juicy shrimp in curry sauce, a spicy mango salad, a noodle concoction and a fried dumpling.

Overall, I enjoyed everything, the mango salad and the dumpling being my favourites. The mango salad had peanuts and just enough heat to keep you interested. The other dishes weren't quite spicy enough for me, but still tasty. I also ordered the lychee ice cream for dessert but had to send it back as it was freezer-burned.

Everything was served up to us quite quickly and we all made it back to the office relatively on time.