Not that I'm complaining, but I can't be the only one who's noticed the ultra dense concentration of thai restaurants in Seattle, right? Near where I work in LQA, there's at least 1 on every block, and approximately 6 in a half mile radius of the office.

Are there a lot of Thai transplants in the Seattle/WA area, or is the demand just especially high?

Sorry for the random q, I've just been curious and thinking maybe some of you guys would be able to shed some light on the mystery :)

Smart ass punk response :oP    People enjoy eating Thai food. You can say the same thing about Teriyaki joints, Starbucks and Shucks Auto Supply Stores.They are everywhere. It all works itself out.  Simple supply and demand. Its the basis of our economy.

It doesn't seem like alot to me, although I'm sure people who have eaten at alot more places may think otherwise.

Some of them are trying to "out crap" one another.

Someone has to handle the overflow from Noodle Boat and Chantanee.

I like good Thai food; tom yum, yum.  I think Vick "I" or "l" is possibly 'anti-Thai' and might even be involved in 'software development' on some level.  It's just a theory.

did you fail to notice that I said "not that I mind?" I love (good) Thai food, so it's nice to have choices - I was just curious if there's a cultural basis for the higher concentration of thai restaurants in this city, that's all ;)

Sorry.

I wish more of them were actually good.

American Thai food isn't really authentic Thai; it's more of an American creation, like American Chinese food. So it's doubtfully due to any real Thai influence.

So it's more likely due to an interest in Asian food, even if not authentic, and possibly in part generated by the large Seattle Asian-American population, which appears to be very forgiving of non-authentic foods (i.e., egg foo young, as observed in the fake ethnic/international food thread: yelp.com/topic/redmond-f…). Whatever generates this trend, I'm quite happy to have it as well (note: Vicki LIKES all the Thai options!), as I am as well VERY into all the yummy non-authentic American Chinese and Thai food we have all over this country!

i'm glad to see that I am the voice of the "large Seattle Asian-American population."  ;)

Yong, you're my go-to guy, because, "This place doesn't have Asians?!?!"

Wait, I don't think that's right...

*rows away*

*throws bacon-decorated X-mas tree in Eduardo's general direction*

*misses, after being rendered weak from laughing out loud*

*rows after Eduardo*

Wait, you're throwing bacon-laden items at me??? Trust me, it did NOT miss.

*derails thread further with distracting bacon chewing*

Note: Feel free to refrain from the Eduardo-Yong ethnic rowing hour (usually longer than an hour) by returning to my initial comment!

The Eduardo-Yong diaspora is my current field of study.  Yet, I'm at an impasse since Eduardo ate Dickey's.

Dickey's represents the lowest common denominator in fine Texas dining- such as it is.  If you can't hold out for an Au Bon Pain on the next layover (boursin chicken sandwich!)  I pity you.  

I do have a point;  why are there no Thai-Ways in major American airports?   Or, Pho Hoas?  All of the Thai cuisine is concentrated here (and, Thailand) instead of being equally distributed so as to include Nebraskans, et al.  Not fair.

This kid's gonna jump on the Eduardo-Yong canoe!
youtube.com/watch?v=2T_o…

not being thai myself, i'm not even going to begin to try and figure out which restaurants i've dined at are considered authentic or not, but i would agree that i don't really care as long as the ingredients are of good quality and the dishes are tasty.

out of curiosity, anyone have some iconic thai dishes they consider authentic?

If you are looking for something to closer to authentic Thai food, try the aforementioned Noodle Boat. (yelp.com/biz/noodle-boat…) Or don't, I don't want to have to wait for a table the next time I go.

i worked in Issaquah for a month actually and we ordered from Noodle Boat before, pretty yummy, but I didn't notice anything especially authentic or non-authentic about it (again, I can't discern the difference between american thai and real thai, except if you count the thai food I've eaten at my thai friend's parent's house, but that could just be mom food, which is always more real/different than restaurant cuisine)

Because Thai is the new Chinese.  Have you noticed there are hardly any Chinese restaurants anymore, except in the ID?  They've been replaced by Thai and Vietnamese joints.  And it's not just Seattle.  Portland, NYC, and DC have all suffered the same fate.

I personally don't really like Thai because I think coconut milk and peanut sauce, which is in practically ever Thai dish, are fucking disgusting, so I'd really like to see less Thai and more Chinese or Korean.

Didn't you know? Fremont used to be part of Thailand!

yelp.com/biz/kaosamai-se…

Janeane, the Chinese restaurants all moved to the Eastside, possibly due to the population demographics.

Szechuan Chef, Bamboo Garden, Spiced, Cafe Ori, Regent Bakery, Facing East, etc.

+1 Sean. At the present rate of proliferation, Asian restaurants in Bellevue will eventually expand to occupy every non-bathroom space in every four-story-or-fewer structure (including parking garages) by 2055. Tup Tim Thai is currently doing a business plan fr a new location in my spare bedroom.

(Rim Shot)

Thank you, I'll be here all week...

might as well get an intravenous MSG drip started!

Thai-Go is planning drive-up windows at those nudist barista coffee stands... (tomato shot)

an MSG drip? o.O

I noticed there are a lot more Vietnamese and Thai places here in Seattle in proportion to any other big city I've lived in around the United States. In some cities there are a lot of Italian restaurants, Korean or Chinese, or like in Union City, CA with a high number of Filipinos, Filipino restaurants, but you're right, I totally noticed that too and I wonder if there are more than the usual amount of Thai immigrants here.

A lot of Thai /Asian Food...but, worth it?  Not all.

msg is not bad for you.

only if you're one of the very very few who has some reaction to it, but yes MSG for the most part i think is not harmful. i was just poking fun @ the old myth that MSG is addictive / the "umami" of asian cuisine ;)

nytimes.com/2008/03/05/d…

True, i recently found out that only higher levels may be bad for you.

very very few people have a reaction to MSG, that is, if you consider 30%+ of the population very very few.

Oh please, don't get me started on this alleged MSG reaction.  These allegations are anecdotal, at best, and have no scientific documentation or basis for the VAST VAST majority of the population (99.999%).