Restaurant Review: Lotus of Siam, Las Vegas, NV

Located in a dingy strip mall a couple of miles away from the Strip in Las Vegas, NV, Lotus of Siam looks more like a cheap dive than one of the finest Thai restaurants in the country. However, according to publications like Gourmet magazine and the LA Times, Lotus of Siam is the best Thai restaurant in the United States, despite its humble surroundings. One taste of the food, and you'll understand why.

I first heard about Lotus of Siam when I was planning our recent trip to Las Vegas and looking for good restaurants off the Strip. I love Thai food in general, and I was very interested to find out that Lotus of Siam offers both a traditional Thai menu and a special menu featuring dishes from Northern Thailand, which are quite rare in the United States. They also have an extensive wine list with a focus on Riesling (my favorite wine), which pairs with spicy food and Asian flavors perfectly. One look at all of the exotic specialties on their menu and I knew I had to go to Lotus of Siam.

Although we were only two, we ordered 6 dishes at Lotus of Siam, including stuffed chicken wings, crispy rice with sour sausage, khao soi (a coconut curry noodle dish), green chili dip, kang hung lay (a pork and garlic stew) and sauteed pork belly with Chinese broccoli. Lucky for us, the portions at Lotus of Siam are quite moderate, so this was not a ridiculous amount of food for 2 people - each of these dishes was the size of an appetizer in a normal American restaurant. There was much more to choose from, though - with 2 menus, the options are basically limitless.

So, how was the food? Well, in a word, amazing! The stuffed chicken wings weren't all that exciting, and the green chili dip was so hot I could barely eat it (and I love spicy), but everything else was unbelievable. The crispy rice was a unique preparation I'd never seen before - it was as if each individual grain of rice had been deep fried, then seasoned with lime juice and herbs. Kang hung lay was rich and delicious with wonderful sweet garlicky flavor - it reminded me of Indian cuisine in some ways, with its deeply flavorful sauce. The khao soi was the hit of the day, though - hand pulled noodles and tender chicken soaking in tangy, spicy, luscious coconut milk - I could eat this every day. I probably would, if I lived in Las Vegas.

We went to Lotus of Siam at lunchtime, which proved to be an excellent decision. It's a small restaurant, and dinner reservations are hard to come by. However, if you go at lunch, be sure to get there early, because they don't take reservations at lunch and Lotus of Siam fills up in a hurry. They offer an inexpensive and tasty-looking buffet at lunch (no doubt to compete with all of the local hotel buffets), but the proprietor seemed thrilled that we were ordering from the regular menu and was extremely attentive throughout our meal. If you're in Las Vegas, Lotus of Siam is worth a trip - and for lovers of Thai cuisine, Lotus of Siam is worth a special trip to Las Vegas!

Address: 953 E. Sahara Ave.
Website: www.saipinchutima.com/
Phone: 702-735-3033
Hours: Lunch M-F 11:30-2:30pm; Dinner 7 days 5:30-10pm
Price Range: Appetizers $6-10, entrees $10-25