Best of CU
Best Thai Food
Siam Terrace
Feb. 28, 2008 - by Lauren Olson – Buzz writer
Siam Terrace serves a Pad Thai with Chicken. (Patrick Fahrner, Buzz photographer)
Runners-Up
Basil Thai Cafe 410 E. Green St., C. 344-9130 and 701 S. Gregory St., U. 344-8662
Nitaya Thai 134 W. Church St., C. 359-5540
See complete Best of CU results
Tucked under a black awning on Main Street in Urbana is Siam Terrace, winner of the best Thai food. Owners Worapot and Ratana Darawankul, a husband and wife duo, have been with the restaurant for four years now, and its popularity has grown among University students and community families over the last year.
“It’s known not only for the food,” Ratana said. “It’s also the service and the ambience of the restaurant. It’s a little different from Thai restaurants on campus or in other places.”
The restaurant does have a relaxed ambience: A candle and flowers are set on each table with light music that plays in the background. The smell of Thai food is enticing as you enter, and with only about 20 tables, the setting is intimate. Alison Lanski, a graduate student at the University, said the waitstaff is always quick to bring out the food.
The most popular dish at Siam Terrace is pad thai, Ratana said, which is a mixture of thin rice noodles, eggs, crushed peanuts, bean sprouts and green onion. Lanski said she prefers the panang curry, a dish with sweet panang curry paste, green beans and kaffir lime leaves.
“It seems to be good, relatively authentic Thai food,” Lanski said. “It tastes good, and I like it.”
Sound Off
The views expressed are the sole responsibility of the visitors who submitted them and do no represent the opinions of the217, WPGU, buzz or Illini Media staff members.
says:
So we've gone to SIAM only a couple of times, and perhaps that's not really enough of a sample, but we've never had a really good experience there. And that's why we haven't racked up a lot of visits. The food seems over-priced and underwhelming. But THARA THAI on Bloomington Road in Champaign is a completely different matter. We've had some really great meals there, try their cucumber salad and their Mussamun Curry, and we've been there again and again. In second place I'd put NITAYA THAI which actually beats THARA for consistency. Their dishes often go way beyond the call of duty. I should add, we're not students, and we tend to stay away from Campustown.