Kinn Thai, Westfield Garden City, Upper Mount Gravatt, Brisbane

March 14, 2016

Kinn Thai lies on Westfield Garden City's forecourt along with many other restaurants bringing you an ambience of relaxation, beach-like design while also allowing you to have your night outs, dates and catch ups. Kinn is the only Thai restaurant amongst the others and no wonder why it can get so packed on weekends and yes, even on weeknights. Do book a table but if you're lucky, just walk in and a few minutes wait will get your table ready. "Kinn" actually means "Eat" in Thai which is a very unique interpretation for a restaurant name to have but when you think about it and as stated on their website, '..like eating is with family and friends to relax and share'.

'Pad Thai' ($16 for Chicken/Beef) is another classic noodle dish we always order whenever we go to a Thai restaurant. Pad Thai, I would have to say is best with Chicken or Seafood. Presented nicely with a quarter of a lime wedge as well as crumbed peanuts on the side allowing you to mix as much or as little as you would like.

Traditional Thai stir fried rice noodles with bean sprouts, egg and crushed peanuts and of course, the meat of your choice. A simple but yet artistic and full of flavour dish carries out the spices and herbs used. Remember to squeeze a bit of lime wedge and mix it with the crushed peanuts to give it a bit of a zing and extra crunchiness. If you do not like peanuts or have any allergies, do remember to inform the waiter beforehand while you order so you would not have to spoon aside the crushed peanuts off the plate.

The lighting went a bit weird afterwards so it went really bright yellow as you can see from the photo below. But here's a close up of Pad Thai. The bean sprouts and red onions allows the dish to have its crunchiness along with the crushed peanuts which makes it an exciting dish. The flavour was spot on however I would've liked it if it was more distinct but nevertheless, the whole combination of the chicken, egg and bean sprouts worked really well.

'Green Curry' ($16) can be done with your choice of chicken or beef only. The Green curry is a classic that you have to try everytime you go to a Thai restaurant, well, for me anyway. Flavoured with green chilli paste, green beans, bamboo shoots, eggplant, kaffir lime leaves and Thai basil. Do note that this dish is a bit spicy and even if you ask for it to be milder, it seems that they weren't able to as it still came out spicy. Yes, we asked the waiter if we could have it mild or less spicy if possible as we... well, me.. am not a fan of spicy food. A bit of spicyness I can handle, but more than that then I would need a jug of cold icy water by my side.

At the first instance, I noticed the oil floating on top of the green curry which was not a nice thing to see. As soon as we mixed it all up together, it wasn't as noticeable. However, when eating it by itself, without rice I mean, you are able to feel how oily the dish is. When mixed in with the rice though, it was quite strong in terms of the green chilli paste but yet had subtle bits and pieces which would make the dish seems more elegant but delicious at the same time.

The green beans and the bamboo shoots was great and was sufficient in amount. I would have loved to have had more Thai basil leaves in the dish as it leaves off that nice aroma. The portion is enough for one or even to share, but may not be when you are really hungry at the time while eating this dish. I prefer the Green curry the best out of the rest of the Thai curries available but that is just my personal preference.