The Best Thai Restaurants In America

From food carts to family-owned establishments, Thai restaurants are some of the most popular eateries in the U.S. With its bold and complex flavors, Thai food is dynamic: Looking for sweet and savory? Or perhaps spicy and sour is more appealing to you? No matter your preference, Thai cuisine has you covered.

Thai cuisine in America is also incredibly diverse, with restaurants nationwide showcasing regional styles and highlighting previously hard-to-find (in the U.S. at least) dishes. This growth of Thai restaurants is both organic and deliberate, as the Thai government began heavily invested in promoting Thai restaurants around the world in the early 2000s (via Vice). Known as gastrodiplomacy, or culinary diplomacy, countries conduct this strategy of culinary promotion in hopes of increasing their export economies and tourism.

While the biggest population of Thai Americans are congregated in Los Angeles, according to a 2015 Pew Research analysis, excellent Thai food can be found throughout the United States. This list contains 20 excellent Thai restaurants across the nation, featuring must-try places that should be on everyone's bucket list.

This bustling restaurant, featured on Hulu's Taste the Nation and recommended by Eater, is a top Thai food destination in Las Vegas. Perhaps surprisingly, the city has one of the larger Thai populations in America, with about 5,000 Thai Americans living in the area. In fact, Nevada is quickly becoming home to an increasing population of Asian Americans. The result? A future where the authentic Thai food like Le Thai will be more popular than ever. 

Due to Le Thai's convenient downtown location, the restaurant is open late — 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, 10 p.m. on all other days. Because of this, you can also expect crowds here during peak hours. (The resturant also has a second Vegas location if you're looking for a more low-key dining option, which has limited hours.) The food, however, will be well-worth the effort. Highlights here include the three-color curry, an eye-popping combination of red, yellow, and green curry, all served with vegetables, rice, and choice of protein.

This unassuming spot is in a rather interesting location — a warehouse food court, says Atlas Obscura. But don't let this humble setting fool you, Kim Thai Food is serving some of the best Northeastern Thai food in the U.S. Home to the only official Thai Town in America, Los Angeles is a hot spot for Thai cuisine. Because Los Angeles has such a large population of Thai Americans, many Thai restaurants here cater to the Thai palate, forgoing the hyper sweet, frozen vegetable medleys that appears in some Americanized Thai restaurants. Kim Thai Food is great example, a no-frills spot that serves intensely flavored Northeastern style papaya salad pungent with dark, fermented fish sauce.

According to Atlas Obscura, another great dish at Kim's is the duck larb. A hearty combination of duck meat and organs, this mixture is then made into a salad when accentuated with herbs, chilies, lemongrass, and crunchy duck cracklings for texture.

Boasting reviews from both the LA Times and Michelin Guide, Luv2eat Thai Bistro makes some of the most authentic Phuket-style Southern Thai food in America. Like many Thai restaurants, the menu selection here is big, with plenty of choices for fans of the cuisine.

Southern Thai food is colorful, very spicy, and often accompanied by raw vegetables and herbs, which are essential for cutting through the heat. For a truly authentic order, the Michelin Guide recommends the tai pla (a fish organ curry), jungle curry with chicken feet, or any of their stellar noodle soups such as the zeed, a pork-based broth with three types of pork. And don't skip the creamy Phuket-style blue crab curry, says Eater Los Angeles. This dish will transport you to Phuket without the air travel. 

The recipient of two Michelin guide recommendations, Tycoon Thai is a step above your average restaurant. While the kitchen does a fantastic rendition of Thai favorites like pad see you, pad Thai, and various Thai curries (such as green or red), the menu's high point is its flair for unique specialty dishes from Northern Isan Thailand and Laos.

Because the Isan region borders Laos, the food of these two areas are heavily influenced by each other (via The Splendid Table). A key element is the rice: Unlike the jasmine rice of Central and Southern regions of Thailand, the staple of Northern Thai cuisine is glutinous sticky rice. To eat, simply make a small ball of sticky rice in your hands. Then, dip the rice into sauce or eat it straight, enjoying its natural sweetness. For a spicy and herbaceous taste of the region, try the Isan style tom zap, a pork rib soup bursting with chilies, lemongrass, and toasted rice powder.

In the last few decades, the Elmhurst neighborhood of Queens has become home to bustling Thai community with a range of Thai eateries spanning from dessert shops to noodle spots (via Eater). Located in the heart of the neighborhood, Ayada Thai is a culinary landmark, boasting glowing reviews from New York Times and Grub Street.

At Ayada Thai, chef and owner Duangjai Thammasat has curated a menu that doesn't hold your hand when it comes to spice and flavor. The food here spans across the country — from Southern Thai curries to Bangkok-style dishes. The various duck offerings at Ayada Thai (such as the crispy duck salad and duck pad see ew) are particularly delicious and should be included in every dinner order. The resturant even offers vegetarian duck options, if you're curious but usually avoid eating meat. Be sure to also try the raw shrimp salad! Served chilled, this spicy salad consists of raw shrimp with bitter melon, garlic, chili, and a lime dressing.

Situated in North Dallas, this Isan Thai restaurant is helmed by owners Shelly Nan and her mother, Bounmee Nanthaphak (via Food Network). The food here emphasizes quality and freshness, something that's particularly evident by the fact that much of the produce is grown by the family.

While every dish at Bambu Asian Cuisine is tasty, you'll want to make sure to try some of its meat offerings. The chefs have mastered the Isan grilling technique, churning out dishes that ratchet up the flame-grilled flavor. Perhaps the best dish that demonstrates this is the Crying Tiger Beef — grilled, well-marbled beef tossed with toasted rice, herbs, and citrus-chili sauce, served with a side of sticky rice. One taste and it's no surprise that this dish is such a hit in Texas beef country. To round out your feast, Bambu Asian Cuisine also has a great papaya salad and classic Thai soups like tom kha gai.

An intimate supper club, Langbaan is serving some of the most creative Isan Thai cuisine in the U.S. The name Langbaan translates to "back of the house," and this mentality is directly reflected in the unique dishes on the menu. The food here is refined yet approachable, taking inspiration from the humble food of Thai home cooking.

Langbaan's full tasting menu is priced at $105 per person. Its Winter 2021 seasonal menu was inspired by the food of Yaowarat, the bustling Bangkok Chinatown famous for its late-night eats and endless variety of street food stalls. But expect this menu to change, as Langbaan is constantly reenergizing its tasting menu depending on the seasons.

Langbaan is actually located within another Thai restaurant — Paadee, a casual eatery known for their Isan specialties. The resturant is planning on relocating in 2022 to its new restaurant — Phuket Cafe. In addition to housing the supper club, the more casual Phuket Cafe will serve food all day (via Eater Portland). 

This casual restaurant in Uptown Chicago is all about serving up excellent renditions of a Thai classic — khao rad gang. Translated as essentially "rice plate lunch," this style of Thai eating is perfect for a quick meal (via Food Network). To order, a plate of rice is topped with up to three curries or stews of your choice, which can include mhoo whan, panang curry, and classic green curry.

But Immm Rice & Beyond doesn't only serve khao rad gang. The menu also has a large selection of classic Thai dishes like papaya salads, stir-fries, and soups. For a Thai feast, order a rice plate and a bowl of khao soi noodles. This Northern Thai noodle soup is a creamy delight, with pickled and fresh vegetables to balance out the richness. You'll thank us later.

A local favorite since 1998, this small, family-owned restaurant in Wheaton, Maryland punches above its weight in flavor and scope. In classic Thai fashion, the food at Ruan Thai, is a careful balance of salty, sweet, spicy, and sour. The menu at Ruan Thai, wins over locals with dishes like whole deep-fried flounder, tom yum soup, and a few different curries, but it's the yum watercress that is perhaps the most intriguing. A powerful mixture of deep-fried greens with cashews, onions, and plenty of shrimp and squid, this textural and umami rich combination is a must-try.

A word of advice: be sure to get here early before the dinner rush. With only a few tables and limited parking, Ruan Thai is a popular place during peak hours. 

This hip and brash Thai restaurant with the curious name Ugly Baby, this Brooklyn resturant is serving some of the most authentic and innovative Thai cuisine in the U.S. With rave write-ups in Eater New York and New York Times, plus being named the third best new resturant in the U.S. by Bon Appétit for 2018, this Thai eatery is a fun place to try Southern Thai food at a very reasonable price. In the best of ways, Ugly Baby represents a new wave of Thai restaurants in the country, where the chefs aren't catering to a mainstream audience, choosing instead to make food that fits the Thai palate.

Some of the best dishes, according to critic Robert Sietsema of Eater New York, include gai golae (a dish similar to chicken satay, they state, but without the sauce), pla tod kamin (turmeric sea bream), kua kling (a "brutally spicy" curry). Over at the New York Times, Pete Wells was also impressed by the pla tod kamin, and named Ugly Baby's kang kua supparod as one of the city's "great Thai dishes."

A word of warning: Southern Thai cuisine is considered the spiciest food in Thailand, making any culinary journey to Ugly Baby a guaranteed experience in heat.