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Siam Bistro
1268 Wellington Street, Ottawa, Ontario
Type: Thai
Rating: 8 out of 10

Siam Bistro was gutted by a fire in 2006 and subsequently renovated with a spanking new interior. While the old incarnation was a bit tired looking, the new digs are contemporary and comfortable with an obvious emphasis on maximum seating space. On busy nights it can become a bit of a chore to navigate between tables if you're sitting on bench seats along the walls.

Gladly, the food is great. Sitting in the restaurant on any given evening you'll see a rotating door of people arriving for take-out orders. This is a pretty strong indicator that the food is good given then number of places to eat in the Wellington and Scott Street area. One complaint I've heard is that the food can be oily, but I suspect that's a trait of a particular cook rather than recipe. I've only encountered it once during my three visits, and even then it was only the Pad Thai.

I'm particularly fond of the soups. I also like the fact that the kitchen is willing to 'spice up' any dish upon request. Particular favourites are (in no specific order):

• Satay
• Tom Kha Gai (hot and sour chicken soup)
• Pad Ped Nor Mai Gai (red chicken curry)
• Pad Thai
• Gang Kour Sapparot (red curry shrimp -- great presentation; served in pineapple)

Price is average to high with most entree dishes at or around $11.00. A full meal for two with soup, appetizer, and a couple of entrees will push the $70 range, but the quality will make you a believer. I used to work very close to this place and would probably be a regular if getting there wasn't such a chore.