Spice I Am

This stalwart of the Sydney Thai restaurant scene opened in 2004 and has since become one of the most popular Thai restaurants this side of Bangkok. The menu features all the Thai favourites we’ve come to love and is authentic as it gets; loaded with flavour and extreme spice. Conveniently, the restaurant has a BYO policy and a small corkage price, although, less conveniently, you will have to wait for a table almost always.

When you do get the chance to sit down, start with a serving of mieng kuay teaw (slithers of pork and vegetables wrapped in rice paper) or a piquant tom yum goong (a hot-and-sour prawn soup) to acclimatise your palate. For those who like chilli, Spice I Am’s kang som pla (fish curry) is a must-try, as is the restaurant’s basil crispy chicken, larb and green papaya salad. Cool your palate with a young coconut juice or some of the less fiery menu options – mussaman curry starring duck is a favourite.

In 2015, chef Sujet Saenkham – the original chef and founder of Spice I Am – compiled many of the restaurant’s hard-to-find, regional dishes into a cookbook for budding home chefs. And while it’s rewarding to recreate some of Saenkham’s dishes at home, there’s nothing quite like tucking into a luxurious bowl of boat noodles at this Thai Town fixture.