Pure Thai Shophouse | Hell's Kitchen, New York
The new Pure Thai Shophouse is a blast of roadside realness among the generic noodle joints choking the streets of Hell's Kitchen.
For their latest venture, David and Vanida Bank (who also own UWS standouts Recipe and Land Thai) have re-created both the vibe and dishes typical of the street stands of Vanida's native Ratchaburi Province in western Thailand.
Pure Thai's namesake egg noodles (pictured; $9) are served dry with crab and spiked with yu choy leaves and slices of juicy roasted pork. Four additional noodle bowls ($8 to $9) come with rich pork broth ladled from a cauldron bubbling in the front kitchen. Slurp peacefully while sitting solo on low stools along the wall, or clink bottles of Chang beer with coworkers at a large communal table up front.
The restaurant's list of snacks is exceptional and a flip turn from the genre's typical offerings in the West. They include bean-paste-marinated pork ribs ($6) and a thin pancake ($6) made with shrimp mousse, sesame seeds and makrut (kaffir) lime curd.
If bua loy is available for dessert, order it. But be careful with this soup of coconut milk, taro root and pumpkin dumplings: The creamy finisher looks icy at first glance but it's not. Our scalded tongue paid the price.
Pure Thai Shophouse, 766 Ninth Ave. (between 51st and 52nd sts.); 212-581-0999 or purethaishophouse.com