Tastes and Treasures of Thai L’Elephant

Most Thai restaurants must appeal to a largely American clientele, which leads many of them to compromise their traditional tastes by adding sweetness and toning down the long, slow buildup of chili heat that is a Thai cuisine characteristic. At Thai L’Elephant, a sophisticated, darling restaurant found nestled in the Kimberton Square Shopping Center, the compromises are not always obvious.

The owners Nui Kullanna and Sakesun Supasri say their restaurant can tone down the heat for the supposedly tender American palate, but if inexperienced, your palate will revel in the kitchen’s sure-handed spicing. If you truly desire to sample the authenticity of curries, you may maximize your star-rating spice requests to the highest level (seven stars is the spiciest).

“Our main thing is to serve authentic Thai food from a friendly staff in a place that is comfortable and inviting,” said Supasri, who was raised in Thailand around a household who operated their own traditional restaurant and of course, requested that he’d assist in dinnertime preparations beginning at the ripe age of six.

Supasri and Kullanna, age 33 and age 30, like brother and sister to one another, worked throughout the restaurant business for many years, both gaining experience doing all that encompasses such an occupation, from serving tables to cooking entrees. However, about three years ago, Kullanna heard that the original owners of Thai L’Elephant were looking to sell.

Embracing the opportunity, the duo dared to open their own eatery, continuing the already coined name of Thai L’Elephant, which tackles their mission of a Thai restaurant that has a French flair (thus the use of L’) and continuing with the word “elephant” helps promote good luck, which is what Kullanna reveals the animal symbolizes in the Thai culture.

With two years in the making, the two entrepreneurs balance sweet, sour, salty and hot in a praise-worthy, blissful harmony. By perfectly allowing the traditional Thai spices of lemon grass, galangal, basil, mint, cilantro, chili and kaffir lime leaves to sing clearly, identifiable voices form careful, calibrated roles in a broader symphony of flavors.

Thai L’Elephant executes all of its made-to-order, from scratch entrees with utmost skill in conventional and unconventional ways.

Dutifully performing the requisite paces for a Thai restaurant, they offer beautifully prepared dishes that anyone could dream for, including a multi-day marinated chicken satay and crispy basil leaf peppercorn catfish.

Offering an assortment of ideally cooked seafood in many varieties, including their beloved Phucket Fantasy platter — a combination of delicate seafood paired with a gorgeous lobster tail that’s dosed with a garlic chili basil sauce.

Through each dish, Supasri’s cooking reaches victorious borders by capturing the sheer beauty of his cuisine while still offering his own individual flair. Of course, you have your pad Thai and your curries, that I can confidently promise you that none of them will disappoint you, they may even surprise you, because of their subtleties and skillfulness that are often lacking from the tastes at lesser Thai restaurants. They also have specialty dishes that continue to amaze me including a platter of marinated cornish hen with coconut milk and Thai spices, a crispy tilapia tossed in a green mango and apple salsa, and diver scallops and jumbo shrimp swirled in a sea of champagne cream sauce.

Dessert doesn’t fall short either, with the restaurant crafting a homemade coconut ice cream in-house, concocted from everything coconut, including the fruit’s meat, its milk and cream, and its flakes. Light, delicate and smooth, the icy dessert comes served on a mosaic of mango, raspberry, orange and chocolate sauces, and leaves you craving for another, upon another, creamy bite.

Thai L’Elephant translates authentic cuisine in utmost perfection, but also allows for a strikingly beautiful dining experience that many similar restaurants continue to trail miles and miles behind. Some neighborhood folks have already seemed to figure this out, but now the rest of us can as well.

Thai L’Elephant

277 Schuylkill Rd.,  Phoenixville

(610) 935-8613

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