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After a trip to a Sprint store for a phone needing repair, we headed further west down Lake Michigan Drive to see if we could spot a new to us local restaurant to try. Lo and behold, there was Aroy Thai.
We spotted a car at the drive-through and almost bailed. What kind of Thai restaurant would have a drive-through? This location was obviously the previous home of some kind of fast food chain. But we decided to check it out.
Ten booths line two of the walls and four tables for four fill the middle. The kitchen must be very small and here is the view of the counter and cashier (you need to walk up to payout). These people are adapting around the fast food format. Decor is sparse and cheesy art hangs on the walls. But the place is clean and the service was attentive and friendly.
We started with crispy rolls: chicken, onions, vermicelli, and carrots wrapped in rice paper and served with sweet chili sauce. Altogether good but slightly salty.
We toyed with trying one of the three soups but decided against it. But we were served the soup of the day with our order ~ a chicken and rice concoction. It was very yellow and greasy with just a slight chicken representation.
Five spice levels are listed but as we discussed the mild vs. medium with our server she advised that I could get a mild plus. Perfect. Shades of Bangkok Taste Cuisine.
As per my usual Thai order, I had to go with Pad Thai with Tofu. The ingredients are all the same everywhere but here the dish was slightly salty. It was the noodles, and yes, I have an aversion to salt, which masks every other flavor. The mild+ was not as hot as promised and it was a huge jump from mild+ to medium, which was Matt's order, Peanut Curry Noodles.
The steamed noodles were sticky, the abundance of carrots were a delight, and it was hot, as advertised. Don't complain about spice levels here because they have not Americanized them down.
We both took food home and on the way out checked out the drive-in. It turns out it was from a previous restaurant and the car we saw there when we arrived was obviously not in the know.
The car seen here is parked :-) Check them out if you're in the Allendale area because it's not bad but not great.
We'll try other dishes there if we make our way back because it seems to be a great addition to a location saturated by national chains. And just so you know "Aroy" means delicious.
Matt had been here before with a group of friends but we had not been there together so today it was our lunch choice.
Walk into this place and you are greeted by a large, airy room, holding about 15 tables. If this was done in One Trick Pony style, the room would have been stuffed with double or triple the tables. As it is, each table has some privacy, and if they develop a crowd-waiting problem, they have plenty of room for expansion. Decor is minimal and tasteful with most pictures depicting food. This one is in the ladies’ room.
We took a seat in this alcove, holding 4 more tables. At one point a cute little Thai woman stepped out from behind the screen (that leads to the kitchen) and waved at us and said hi as she headed to the ladies’ room. Everything about this place is friendly.
And the menu is quite reasonable for a Thai restaurant, just two large pages, and we started with pork spring rolls. Ah, make that one pork spring roll. (1) is indicated behind it on the menu but we were ordering under time pressure and missed it. Our fault but another server might have mentioned it. Served with wonderful plum sauce that I can still taste as I write this, the roll was deep fried pork wrapped with ground pork, vermicelli, black mushrooms, and carrots in a spring roll wrapper. The pork flavor was a little strong for me but fine for Matt.
We both ordered Pad Thai, mine with tofu, Matt’s with pork, that is described as “the most famous Thai dish.” How could we resist? Stir-fried rice noodles with egg, bean sprouts, and green onions topped with crushed peanuts and lemon ~ amazing. The little taste of lemon juice overall, the lovely noodles, and the egg that was actually noticeable made this an incredible dish, served in a beautiful bowl.
There are five spice levels ~ no spice, mild, medium, hot, extra hot. Matt went medium because he had been here before and can take food a little spicier than I can so I was dilly dallying between mild and medium and our server pipes up with the fact that I could order mild+. Alrighty. Done. We were both happy and be warned that the medium spice level is quite hot.
The portions are large and we each took a box home. Service is exemplary and friendly, the atmosphere is pleasant, and the food is remarkable. This is now our favorite Thai restaurant in Grand Rapids (sorry Erb Thai).
We couldn’t find a website but they are on facebook, although it’s a pretty inactive account. And like most Thai restaurants in Grand Rapids (Little Bangkok, Forest Hills, the exception), they don't have a liquor license but are working on it.
