Bites Nearby: Thai Ginger Bistro in Petaluma

Each week, GraceAnn Walden picks a restaurant in Petaluma or Novato that is worth checking out. Here's this week's choice:

Thai Ginger Bistro

125 Petaluma Blvd. North, Suite D, Petaluma; 707-347-9743

(has another location )

Overview: People say to me all the time, “What a great job you have – reviewing restaurants.” Oh, dear, they never think about the times I set out with high hopes and an empty tummy only to find that the place I’m going to try turns out to be tres mediocre. Of course, if the food is inedible, I don’t eat much of anything and leave.

The other day, I wanted to go to Petaluma Pie. I found it nestled in a nice mini park-square off the boulevard.  Surrounding it were a nice play of shops from a cute boutique to two tattoo parlors and a combination smoke shop and seller of sensual products, whatever that means. Petaluma Pie was closed. 

Looking around, I saw across the lawn Thai Ginger Bistro. It was a tiny place with two occupied tables outside. I asked the waiter if he could add another table outside because it was sunny and pleasant. He did.

The Décor: Inside the tiny restaurant is decorated with modern art and has crimson walls adding to the charm.

The Drinks: I only tried the Thai iced tea, which is always flavored with milk. For some weird reason, it was served with a slice of lemon on the rim. Can we say  curdle city? The tea, sans lemon, was delicious.

Appetizers: I tried the small chicken-coconut soup, tom kha gai, which featured strips of chicken, carrot slices cut into flowers, a bit of tomato and spears of cabbage. The flavoring in this popular soup is galangal, a type of ginger, and Kaffir lime leaves. The flavors in the soup were melded perfectly.

Entrees: I opted for the pork stir-fried in sweet chili sauce with cashews. I’ve never heard of this dish, but I indulged my love of cashews, pork and mild chili. I studied Thai cooking with Jennifer Brennan, the author of “The Original Thai Cookbook,” and later taught Thai food cooking. But in further researching the dish, I found it on several Thai restaurant menus online.

It contained strips of pork, peppers, flower-shaped carrots, celery, mushrooms all stir-fried with sweet chili sauce. The dish was paired with a cone of jasmine rice and some undistinguished lettuce dotted with shreds of carrot.

The only complaint I have is that the dish was a bit oily. Otherwise it was pleasant, as was the setting.

The restaurant couldn’t fix my other complaint. The male customer at the only other table on my side of the patio started his meal by loudly slurping his soup. I’ve been to noodle houses ... I can survive that. But throughout his meal, at regular intervals, he loudly snuffled.  I had the urge to rise up and yell, “Blow your nose, dude.”

Instead, I tried my favorite dessert.

Desserts: The mango and sticky rice was beautifully presented.

Service: Helpful and pleasant.

Cost: Appetizers $6.95-$12.95; entrees mostly $12.95; salads $5.95-$12.95; soups $4.50 and noodles $12.95.  At lunch most dishes are a $1 less.

Disabled accessible: Yes.

Noise level: Negligible.