Thai Basil

I had lunch last week at the popular Thai Basil restaurant on J Street in midtown.  Like the other Thai restaurants I've written about, Thai Basil is able to make many of their dishes vegan because they allow you to pick the form of protein you want added to your meal.  However, their curry dishes cannot be made vegan because their curries contain fish sauce.  Still, there are numerous other choices available for vegans.

I ordered one of their rice plates, the Gra-Tiam-Prik-Tai, which consisted of carrots and snow peas pan-fried in a mild Thai garlic pepper sauce, with tofu added as my protein selection.  It was served with white rice and a salad of romaine, tomatoes, and cucumbers.  A sweet chili sauce, which was actually quite spicy, was served in a bowl on the side.  Since it was lunchtime, I was able to order a small plate, which was just the right amount of food.  I thought it was a very satisfying meal. 

Thai Basil offers several different rice plates, all with a different combination of vegetables or sauce.  They also have salads that appear to be vegan, such as the Lap-Jay, which is a Thai spicy salad served with grilled tofu, the som tum, which is a green papaya salad, and the mixed green salad.

The Thai Basil location I visited is at 2431 J Street, but there are also Thai Basil restaurants in Elk Grove and Roseville.  More information about their locations, hours, and menus is available at http://www.thaibasilrestaurant.com/.