Spice Thai, Castle Street, reviewed

What: Spice Thai

Where: Castle Street

Type of food/beverage: Thai street food

When: Sun-Thurs 11am-10pm // Fri and Sat 11am-10.30pm

Independent or chain: Sovereign

Decor

Despite Castle Street’s long standing monolithic buildings, Spice Thai is actually the size of a cupboard. One of those broom closets that is shockingly well organized and everything has its place.

Downstairs, there are about ten neat tables and a serving bar, where takeaways are served alongside restaurant plates. Upstairs, meanwhile, makes efficient use of the space to provide enough cover for a comfortable buzz, but not so much that you’re sitting on the knee of the canteen next to the table next to you.

It’s an unassuming layout designed for economical dining, with many of the loud bells and whistles of the themed decor and proudly assembled crockery removed for a no-fuss Thai meal.

The main event

With less time than usual on my hands, I was after a quick, spicy meal and ordered accordingly. As I’ve mentioned before, I also like new places to see if those classics do well. If so, the rest usually follows.

The first was shrimp tom yum soup, which after an afternoon of battling the city’s waterfront and wind tunnel streets is the kind of thing you crave hours in advance. It arrived piping hot and the mound of oil on top of it formed attractive colors and aromas. A deep and dangerous shade of red hinted to me that it would blow my head off. Unfortunately, no.

Although it still hit almost all the right notes, it was a decisive punch between the eyes that I missed a bit. Of course, this can easily be remedied by adding more chili, and then you’d have a high-quality tom yum with plump prawns and a fresh, refreshing broth.

I know pad thai is a staple these days, almost on a par with cheeseburgers and pizzas, but just like those staples, you know if they’re well executed, you can expand the menu another time. Everyone knows how they like pad thai after a while, and not everyone does it the same way. Some make it citrusy with lots of lime, others add an avalanche of peanuts, and some put the tamarind front and center in the flavors. Spice Thai did the latter, giving the dish a sweetness that borders on turning this savory staple into a dessert of dessert noodle dishes. Spice Thai brought it right to the brink, but crucially didn’t tip it over the edge. I also have to say that I love tofu in pad thai form, but here they seemed to be hiding.

Doomsday

In the arena of straightforward Thai restaurants that could do what many other popular spots have done and become a brand, Spice Thai is on to something. For example, Giggling Squid has seemingly, at least in the south, conquered the market for more expensive Thai food in a rather fancy setting.

Spice Thai could do the opposite in the North; the same food, but in a more modest, uncomplicated environment where the food is the focus. You know, like in Thailand and not in Tunbridge Wells.

It shouldn’t be afraid to pile on the chili along with all the other ingredients that this beautiful kitchen uses. We can take it.

Spice Thai, 40 Castle St, Liverpool L2 7LA