Thai Restaurants in Tamalpais-Homestead Valley

Tub Tim Thai Restaurant serves up classic Thai dishes with spice levels both subtle and robust. Yellow, red, and green curries swaddle pieces of tofu, prawns, and various meats, and sweet chili sauce gives barbecued chicken and pork a piquant kick. Chefs expertly serve up dishes such as pad thai and fried rice in classical proportions determined by Aristotle's renowned rules for splitting dinner.

The first thing guests see when they enter My Thai Restaurant is a woman sitting in prayer as water rains down on her, surrounded by foliage. The fountain carving, along with gold- and burgundy-striped walls, infuses the eatery with what the San Rafael Patch dubs a “trendy, modern, and comfortable” atmosphere.

The menu includes both traditional and eclectic dishes, including curries, noodles, fried rice, and barbecue dishes. To contrast orders of panang curry with chicken and barbecue roasted duck, the kitchen also churns out more than a dozen seafood-specific dishes, including the popular "healthy bowl" with grilled salmon, mixed grains, shredded green mango, avocado, pickled ginger, and dried cherries and blueberries.

Travel has long helped rejuvenate the mind. Proving that point, Koh Samui & The Monkey's owner's extensive journeys have served as inspiration for a menu that plays with flavors and spices, along with the ideas of traditional and modern. Mieng kum plates a pillar of traditional Thai cuisine with spinach leaves, which act as a wrap for chicken or tofu. Concerning the aromatic pumpkin curry, the San Francisco Chronicle's restaurant critic Michael Bauer praised it in his review, writing that "the pumpkin curry, crushed scallops and fried bananas are exceptional."

The artistry in each dish extends from the recipe to the presentation. Beautiful, colorful dishes first entice the eye as they're presented on crisp white tablecloths, on which candles cast the flickering shadows that keep the dying art of hand-puppet theater alive. The drink menu shakes and stirs with similar creative flair, mixing hip, top-shelf cocktails such as the pineapple-spiked Monkey in Paris.

A menu with inventive twists on tofu, duck, and pork dishes, many infused with surprising fruit accents, aided Be My Guest Thai Bistro in snagging a nod from Best of Citysearch 2008. Skilled chefs ramp up pan-fried rice and noodles with mango, avocado, and fresh pineapple, and pans crackle happily beneath seafood such as salmon and shrimp. To send mouthwatering dispatches to distant bellies, the eatery’s online ordering database aids delivery service, and a slew of sake cocktails clink together to offer joyous rice blasts without the hassle of sneaking into a king's wedding.

Noodle Bar and Grill plies each patron with a heaping helping of noodles, bathed in zesty Asian sauces or steeped in curry sauce. Named for both its wide range of noodles and the fact that diners recline on pool noodles, Noodle Bar and Grill pairs bowls of thick egg noodles or thin vermicelli noodles with tender portions of chicken, duck, or filet mignon. The savvy servers can gift feasters with soups, salads, desserts, and sides inside the restaurant or deliver them to doorsteps in nearby neighborhoods.

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