Queens Eats: Sripraphai

Queens Eats	Sripraphai
	64-13 39th Avenue in Woodside, near the 61st St. subway * cash only * The unpronounceable Sripraphai used to be a dive. Which was part of the whole appeal, of course. The fluorescent lighting and formica table tops were pure Queens, and the menu of incredible Thai curries, noodles and chili-spiced salads was pure delight. The good news is: Sripraphai has changed, but the food (and prices) haven't. You can still chow down on three courses of authentic Thai eating for less than $20 a person, including tip and tax. But now you can enjoy it in slightly more atmospheric surroundings. In a frenetic 2-month renovation last year, Sripraphai added a new dining room, better lighting, and a fantastic garden in the back. The salads at Sripraphai are my favorite part of the menu, especially since it's an area generally neglected at Asian restaurants. Specifically, the green papaya (see separate section, in Snacks), the squid salad, and the grilled beef with chili and lime knock my socks off. All are bursting with cilantro, mint, sweet, sour, salty, and crunchy. I think of it as the Thai combo. And then it's on to the main course. The drunken noodles are delicious, as are the curries, which are soupier than most Americanized Thai food, not to mention insanely spicy. (My food machismo makes it difficult for me to do this, let alone admit to it, but I actually force myself to order things "mild" or "medium" here.) The green curry with duck is something I always find myself ordering, despite trying to branch out into unexplored regions of the menu. A lot of the dishes at Sripraphai are things you will never see at an ordinary Thai restaurant. The middle picture (left) is of a fried softshell crab sitting atop pumkin curry. On my last visit, I ordered something off the Specials menu that involved lumps of tilapia steamed in banana leaves with coconut milk, lime juice, shredded keffir lime leaves and lemon grass. It was divine, redolent with spice and almost floral. Moral of the story: Get thee to Woodside. Much delicious food awaits, in a surprisingly charming arena. Even if you don't eat there, you can buy tiny packages of Sripraphai's trademark sauces and whip something up at home (pictured above).
Stores	Snacks	Restaurants

64-13 39th Avenue in Woodside, near the 61st St. subway
* cash only *

The unpronounceable Sripraphai used to be a dive. Which was part of the whole appeal, of course. The fluorescent lighting and formica table tops were pure Queens, and the menu of incredible Thai curries, noodles and chili-spiced salads was pure delight.

The good news is: Sripraphai has changed, but the food (and prices) haven't. You can still chow down on three courses of authentic Thai eating for less than $20 a person, including tip and tax. But now you can enjoy it in slightly more atmospheric surroundings. In a frenetic 2-month renovation last year, Sripraphai added a new dining room, better lighting, and a fantastic garden in the back.

The salads at Sripraphai are my favorite part of the menu, especially since it's an area generally neglected at Asian restaurants. Specifically, the green papaya (see separate section, in Snacks), the squid salad, and the grilled beef with chili and lime knock my socks off. All are bursting with cilantro, mint, sweet, sour, salty, and crunchy. I think of it as the Thai combo.

And then it's on to the main course. The drunken noodles are delicious, as are the curries, which are soupier than most Americanized Thai food, not to mention insanely spicy. (My food machismo makes it difficult for me to do this, let alone admit to it, but I actually force myself to order things "mild" or "medium" here.) The green curry with duck is something I always find myself ordering, despite trying to branch out into unexplored regions of the menu.

A lot of the dishes at Sripraphai are things you will never see at an ordinary Thai restaurant. The middle picture (left) is of a fried softshell crab sitting atop pumkin curry. On my last visit, I ordered something off the Specials menu that involved lumps of tilapia steamed in banana leaves with coconut milk, lime juice, shredded keffir lime leaves and lemon grass. It was divine, redolent with spice and almost floral.

Moral of the story: Get thee to Woodside. Much delicious food awaits, in a surprisingly charming arena. Even if you don't eat there, you can buy tiny packages of Sripraphai's trademark sauces and whip something up at home (pictured above).