DineOut

THAI HOU SEK @ 1 UTAMA

It was a cool evening when we were shopping at 1 Utama. As I mentioned before, on cool rainy days like this, I usually crave for something hot and soupy like steamboat/bakuteh or something spicy. Walking towards Aeon for some grocery shopping, the yellow shiny neon-lit signboard of Thai Hou Sek caught our eyes. To be honest, this isn't the first time we've passed by this shop, but the long queues usually put us off. Since the queue wasn't that bad on this very day, we decided to have our dinner here.

Thai Hou Sek serves cuisine that is inspired by the street food that you would find at Yaowarat Road in Bangkok. It is a Thai-Chinese (the name literally translates to 'Too delicious' in Cantonese, except they used 泰, which means Thai, instead of 太, which means too - both sound the same) restaurant serving comfort porklicious meals. Thai Hou Sek has been designed to reflect the rustic charm of Yaowarat in a modern setting. The ambient lighting creates the mood like you are having a meal at night on the streets of Bangkok.

Look for the neon-lit signboard amid 1U's bustle.

From floor to ceiling, decos and furnitures made of roughly finished wood, to create the rustic effect.

The lightings are rather dimmed.

The neon-lit elephant emblem is pretty eye-catching!

Love this quote :D

We ordered the Seafood Tomyam soup, Babi-Q Pork Neck, Omelette, and two of their Signature drinks: Thai Hou Yum and Master's Recipe.

Left: Thai Hou Yum (RM10). Right: Master's Recipe (RM10).

Thai Hou Yum (Translates to 'Too good to drink' in Canto) is a mixture of Jasmine Tea + Assam Boi + Lime. It's a little sour, sweet and salty (from the salt on the rim of the glass). I thought the Master's Recipe (Apple + Mint + Assam Boi + Lime) tasted pretty similar, except for the subtle mint aftertaste. Both were quite refreshing, but I preferred the Thai Hou Yum.

Seafood Tomyam soup (RM24)

The seafood tomyam was too sour for my liking and I felt the soup lacked oomph. It wasn't spicy enough. The portion was generous, prawns were fresh but they used frozen packaged squid instead of fresh ones.

Babi-Q Pork Neck (RM18)

The Thai-style grilled pork neck is one of the must-have dishes when we go to a Thai restaurant. If it's on the menu, we'll order it for sure. These ones at Thai Hou Sek did not turn out as tender and juicy as we expected, but the sauce was good though. I personally think the best BBQ pork neck is still at Awet Thai!

Omelette (RM16)

For the omelette, we requested them not to add the basil coz I don't eat it. This was a disappointment - kinda soggy and tasteless. Whatever happened to the fluffy and crispy omelette, as written in the menu...

Overall, food portion was good, service was friendly and fast. It's a little pricey for some Thai street food, but I guess it's mall-appropriate. In terms of taste, I still prefer Streat Thai (You can read the review here).

Food: 5/10
Service: 7/10
Ambience: 7/10

Add:
Lot S132, 2nd Floor,
1 Utama Shopping Center,
No.1, Lebuh Bandar Utama,
Petaling Jaya, Selangor.

Opening Hours:
11am - 10pm.

Tel:
03-7731 7933

Cheryl

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