Pad thai in Albany? Try the Queens cuisine instead

Photo by Takeaway via Wikimedia Commons

By David Brand

Gov. Andrew Cuomo shocked the state Sunday (and again Monday) when he shared a bizarre coronavirus-related anecdote: A couple from Queens, home of the world’s most diverse and delectable dishes, drove all the way to Albany to grab some Thai food.

Extended isolation makes us do some pretty wacky things, like jigsaw puzzles and Zoom happy hours. But if you’re hankering for a plate of chicken pad thai, there’s no need to take a three-hour trip on the Thruway. There are plenty of spots in Queens ready to take your order. They’ll deliver, too.

“We’re open and it’s good,” said Paul Poonya, the manager at Ayada, a Thai restaurant in Elmhurst. 

Poonya said he had heard about the odd Capital cuisine quest earlier in the day, but he advised Queens residents to stick around the borough for the premier plates of panang.

 “We want to help people,” Poonya said. “If you cannot cook at home, you can order the food with us.”

Ayada isn’t the only spot serving up lamb laab and glass noodles. A simple Google search yields dozens of results for open Thai restaurants in Queens. 

The Eagle’s “Local’s Guide to Woodside,” submitted by local resident Laura Shepard, specifically recommends I Am Thai on 43rd Avenue. In February, another Woodside Thai restaurant, SriPraPhai, was selected as of one of just two New York City semifinalists for the prestigious James Beard Award for Outstanding Restaurant

Instead of cruising north, Queens foodies can also pick up some take-out from Kitchen 79 in Jackson Heights — the preferred Thai restaurant of Eagle reporter Victoria Merlino.

Siam Tedonte, a server and host at the popular 79th Street spot, said Queens has the city’s most authentic Thai cuisine. And he would know — he’s from Thailand.

“Some of our menu, other restaurants don’t have,” Tedonte said. “It’s the real Thai spices.” 

Queens cuisine is the real deal, he added.

“The Thai restaurants in Queens are real Thai. It’s different from Manhattan, the Bronx and Brooklyn.”