Streat Thai at The School, Jaya One: Restaurant review

This review is brought to you in part by Streat Thai.

1. Streat Thai

Possibly the Klang Valley’s most distinctive destination for Thai street fare, Streat Thai is fuelled by the formidable skills and experience of more than a dozen chefs from across the Land of Smiles, meticulously hand-picked and brought to Malaysia from Bangkok, Chonburi, Chiang Rai, Korat and Pattaya to cook up a storm of fierce, fragrant flavours.

Customers can order at the table from stalls spearheaded by chefs who each specialise in a different gastronomic art-form – some exclusively prepare salads, while others tackle the task of stir-frying or deep-frying, alongside a select few who’ve mastered making noodles or dishing out desserts; two separate couples take charge of barbecued recipes and beverages. It’s a casual setting with warm service, catering for families and friends, dedicated to distilling the spirit of eating outdoors in Thailand.

Thai highlights

In a testament to the authenticity of Streat Thai’s offerings, you’ll often find Thai customers here, enjoying highlights from home like the traditional som tam – there are no fewer than six variations of the spicy, shredded green papaya salad; if you favour the most time-honoured rendition, try the one coated with the fermented pungency of anchovy sauce (RM7.90). Alternatively, the som tam with salted eggs is the safe, crowd-pleasing bet.

If you prefer your fibre fully cooked, order the pad krapow (RM14.90 for a medium portion), a beautifully balanced mix of mushrooms with egg tofu and fried holy basil, tasty soul food for vegetarians.

Noodles

Streat Thai nails its noodles too – the beef noodles (RM11.90) boast achingly tender braised slices of meat and beef balls in a lightly sweet broth, for a fairly priced meal with the power to nurse a wounded heart.

The menu also features an interpretation of khanom jeen with fish curry (RM9.90) – the noodles and accompaniments are served together in a bowl for convenience, instead of separately, but most crucially, the ensemble still conveys the essential dynamics of flavour and dimensions of texture.

Streat Thai brings in much of its spices, herbs and sauces from Thailand, ensuring that staples like green curry chicken (RM15.90) maintain their bona fides; this curry is the Thais’ more common, less creamy version, and again, it hits the right notes.

Protein fix

We were also pleasantly surprised by the BBQ Australian beef striploin, pretty much perfectly done, supplying a succulent bite and flavoursome chew that surpasses some full-blown steaks we’ve had in KL – RM19.90 for 150 grammes.

There’s no reason not to get your protein fix here; Streat Thai’s repertoire encompasses everything from savoury barbecued chicken with Thai nuances (RM19.90 for half a fowl) to tilapia fish, fleshy and flaky, with vegetables and herbs (RM42.90 for roughly 800 grams) to humongous poached freshwater prawns with a zesty seafood dipping sauce (market price), all meticulously cooked to order.

Future temptations

Streat Thai’s still-evolving menu is set to spring a supremely striking new temptation soon – a version of Thailand’s trending Tom Yum UFO, called Tom Yum Wow here (slated to be available May 1 onwards), a steaming-hot pot of instant noodles with fish, prawns, squid, fish balls, surimi crab sticks, enoki mushrooms, eggs and vegetables, ideal for sharing among three people (RM69.90).

Streat Thai even serves extra-large pad thai for communal indulging (a RM21.90 medium portion is sufficient for two), but if you’re a single diner, have no fear – order a plate of, say, tom yum fried rice, crowned with a crisp, runny-yolk egg.

Desserts and drinks

Wrap up your feast with a plate of crunchy fried fritters – banana, pumpkin, taro and sweet potatoes (RM0.80 per piece, with a minimum of a six-piece order), genuinely addictive – or coconut rice custard (RM1.50 for two pieces), washed down with an extensive drinks list that includes Thai milk tea or coffee, salak fruit milk tea, and other teas tinged with butterfly pea, pandan and lemongrass, lychee or lime.

Live music

If you want some entertainment with your meal, live bands play easy-listening music here – similar to Bangkok open-air restaurants – every Friday night. Streat Thai also caters to private parties, events and functions of up to 150 people. All in all, this turned out to be a satisfyingly memorable late lunch – many thanks to Streat Thai for having us here.