| Address | 4828 Cordell Ave., Bethesda, MD 20814 |
|---|---|
| Phone | (301) 654-4676 |
| Fax | (301) 654-0611 |
This was a really dreadful experience. The fresh spring rolls had a weird bitter flavor, and the pad se eu was dry and flavorless -- the egg in it had somehow hardened to the consistency of shredded plastic bag. The new Sala Thai that has opened in the District, by Petworth Metro, is awesome. But this location is not good at all. Avoid.
The live jazz was a very pleasant complement to a very so-so meal. I recall better meals here in the past -- the food seemed neither particularly fresh, nor particularly complex (I had a blah, mushy Panang Gai). Service is nice, if a bit absent-minded.
This Thai restaurant staple at the Bethesda location is fine if you are really craving Thai, but I'd head to Thai chili a few blocks over, which has better food. I was disappointed with this location, but have returned a few times, if nothing due to its proximity and location to downtown Bethesda.
This was the worst dining experience I've had in quite some time. We were seated upstairs which, unlike the trendy-looking first floor, looked like nothing more than someone's basement rec room--wood paneling, folding chairs, etc. This would have been fine but for what followed. First, we noticed what I'm sure is a major health code violation in that the water was being acquired by dipping the entire pitchers (formerly sitting on tables) into a large orange cooler of ice, and the resulting dirty sludge was then poured into glasses. Yum. To avoid drinking this water, we ordered mixed drinks, which arrived as glasses of sugar syrup, lacking any discernible fruit juice or alcohol, but at least we hadn't watched them come out of an old cooler. We ordered mussels as an appetizer and, well, you know how you're not supposed to cook mussels if they've already opened (meaning they're already dead and, hence, spoiled)? We're 99% sure these mussels were open before cooking (except for the third of them that they served us still closed). The rancid taste of these things will be with me for a long, long time. We were unable to flag down our waitress for a good 30 minutes, at which time we explained that the mussels had gone bad, but she simply didn't understand why we didn't want them. After much discussion, we managed to get them taken away (and off the bill), but at no time did anyone apologize or in any way indicate that it was, you know, maybe a bad thing that they had served us rotten food. My main course was fine, nothing special, but my husband's noodle dish was swimming in grease. We spent the rest of the evening lying on the sofa, feeling ill. Um, I wouldn't really recommend this place.
Sala Thai had been recommended to me by a few people, however I was not particularly impressed with the overall experience.
While we were seated the moment we walked in, it took 10 minutes to place an order. The appetizers took about 15-20 minutes to come out and about another 20 minutes for the entrees to arrive. While the food was hot and the ingredients fresh, it was nothing to brag about. The cuisine at Jandara, Busara, and Tara Thai is much more flavorful.
One of the bigger disappointments was the peanut sauce, which lacked the flavor and spice one would expect. Also, the pad see ew was a bit dry and is usually served with more sauce.
I imagine that on jazz nights the atmosphere is great, but on non-entertainment nights the restaurant is almost too quiet. In addition, the use of space is poor as you feel a little too close to the table on the other side of a half wall.
Nothing was bad about this restaurant but at the same time I found nothing outstanding about it either.
Sala Thai does all the Thai standards, plus an impressive variety of vegetarian versions or originals, as well as, or better than, most other mid-priced Thai places in the D.C. area. But the real reason to visit this local chain's Bethesda location is its support of jazz, with free live performances – no cover, no minimum – three nights a week.
