Definitely Cross the Street for "Thai X-ing"

C Says...

I had heard rumors, urban legends, and/or stories about an amazing Thai restaurant tucked away between LeDroit Park and Shaw for about a year now. A mysterious place that you'd walk right by if you blinked. A place that served what was in season and what the chef felt like cooking. A place that required reservations and required that if you wanted beer or wine with your dinner, that you brought it yourself. Clearly, this is the kind of place that was right up my alley...no, it's not located in an alley.

Thai X-ing is in a word, unbelievable and one of the best meals I've had since Black Salt. This is a place that showcases the food, and rightly so. There is no ambiance to speak of (or air conditioning for that matter) aside from your fellow diners exclaiming how great the food is.

We were served a quasi prix fixe menu of six dishes for the whopping price of $30 each. I wasn't really sure how many items we'd be getting, so I probably could have slowed down the pace a little bit instead of shoveling food into my mouth, but it was so good. Like, really, really good. The first two dishes were a great yin yang of spicy vs. refreshing followed by mussels and cucumber soup. Then came the pumpkin curry, chicken that literally fell off the bone, drunken noodle, and finally mango sticky rice. I quite literally wanted to bathe in the pumpkin curry -- I mean who knew pumpkins held this magical power?

This Thai food was unlike any other I'd ever had, and what I one day hope to have in Thailand. So get to Thai X-ing NOW, but don't forget to make a reservation, bring your own booze, and tuck in for a wonderful meal.

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J Says...

The Other J had raved about his experience (with a previous partner, humph) at Thai X-ing so I was definitely excited when C announced it as her choice. And knowing it was BYOB, I saved the evening with a bottle of red...Snap Dragon, natch...as C forget hers at work (must have made for a great day after in the office!).

The food is, quite frankly, a blur for me...a cornucopia of smells, flavors and temperatures. And at the rate by which the food was coming out, I had little time to just savor the options and stem my head sweating. Most of the dishes C described above were heavenly, though I was not a fan of the cucumber soup. And I barely remember the mango sticky rice dessert, as C engulfed it like a Venus flytrap to a, well, fly. In all we had 6 courses and were completely full after the hour-plus straight of eating.

Now, if you are looking for romantic settings or ambiance of any kind, you should walk on by Thai X-ing. The seating is cramped, the kitchen is cooking you as it cooks your food, and the ability for drifters to come in off the street is unnerving (no, really, a homeless guy tapped me on the shoulder asking for a cigarette in the middle of my meal). But in terms of quality..and quantity..of food, absolutely call and make the reservation. What a hidden gem...literally.


Thai X-ing - 515 Florida Ave NW, 202.332.4322, www.thaix-ing.com