527 University Ave, San Diego, CA, 92103 (also in Del Mar) Phone: 619.291.7525
Worth visiting in a 15 mile radius.
Hillcrest, San Diego’s main LGBT-friendly neighborhood, is a buzzing place where you’ll find many boutique shops, the city’s annual Pride Parade, and a multitude of cuisines showcased on University Avenue, its main thoroughfare. However, it wasn’t always that way. The neighborhood used to be run down and avoided by tourists before it rapidly gentrified in the 1980s and 90s. Taste of Thai can claim a part of that resurgence, opening in 1989 in what is now the heart of the area. It serves great Thai food in a modern dining room and has an expansive menu that also includes a number of vegetarian options.
The tom yum soup was the highlight of the meal. A great vegetarian dish (you can also order it with shrimp), it has lemongrass, mushrooms, chili, green pepper, and lime juice. The broth was what made this dish so excellent, with the strong lemongrass creating the base of the flavor, the lime juice adding a touch of sour, and the chili pepper ending it with a kick of spice. I have never been a great mushroom eater, but the shiitakes in the soup added a nice crunch.
The ginger-steamed pla pao (a type of white fish) was a close runner-up to tom yum soup for dish of the night. As a result of the steaming, the flesh was so soft it slid right down my throat. It served as a nice partner for the delicious bean glaze and various fresh vegetables. The skin was rich and a satisfying fatty ending to an otherwise quite healthful dish.
The spicy noodles with chicken and peanut were a good fried addition to our meal. While the chicken was a tad dry, the spicy sauce and chunks of peanuts made up for it and the noodles were excellent. The pork fried rice sang with buttery goodness, and the pork and peas were well proportioned; not scanty, and not overwhelming.
Prices at Taste of Thai are moderate, and service is polite. Taste of Thai is a restaurant that is great in all facets located in a fun neighborhood of San Diego, so if you’re in the area, you should give it a try.
Bluebell Reviews 
Hi Saltz,
I noticed your, “I have never been a great mushroom eater,” and wondered if you’d ever had morels? I assume they grow there but I don’t know for sure and they are never available fresh commercially to my knowledge at least. They are absolutely the best I have ever eaten, very different from anything available commercially. I’m a little surprised to see a kit to grow your own at home (they’ll only come up in the proper spring conditions for a few weeks). I have no idea if it’s any good or not but I would spring to buy your family a kit if you’re interested in giving it a try. If they are plentiful in the local woods, at least in exceptional years, that would be pointless but if not, it might be worth a try.
Papi
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