Lime Thai Restaurant

Central Park now boasts its only Thai restaurant – and judging by the hordes of CBD workers, families and cool kids flocking to dine at the buzzing Lime Thai, it couldn't have come soon enough.

Those familiar with Pink Loft, the Gongti Thai eatery that closed downtown years ago, will recognise the hardworking Thai husband-and-wife team who run the show here. As a family-run restaurant (albeit with a Chinese owner), Lime Thai has a gracious, welcoming atmosphere and staff who serve diners with care and dedication.

Tarntip Noranual, who speaks Thai, English and Chinese, manages front-of-house, while her husband, Mac Boonrit, a former Southeast Asian hotel chef at the Grand Millennium Beijing, heads up the kitchen. Boonrit hails from the south of Thailand and has created a safe and foreigner-friendly menu that ticks off most Thai favourites without being too ambitious.

The decor, like the food, is comforting, with panelled wood, low lighting, simple wooden tables and a few Southeast Asian ornaments. Book ahead to secure one of the popular outdoor tables for a full summer-season experience.

The food is a hit overall, but misses with dishes that are overly sweetened; Thai food is often subverted to placate the assumption that non-Thai palates are chilli-shy. A tom yam noodle soup with prawns (48RMB) is lacklustre: the broth demands vibrancy, with sharp, sour citrus contrasting with a touch of sweetness. Instead, it tastes thin and has a pinch too much sugar.

Salads also suffer: the kitchen uses white and palm sugar mixed (rather than pure traditional palm sugar), pushing what should be a refreshing taste to excessively saccharine. A green papaya salad (32RMB), created by crushing whole peanuts, sliced green papaya, lemon juice, fish sauce, sugar, coriander and fresh chilli in a wooden pestle, could do with more of a fiery kick.

On the other hand, make sure to try the grilled honey pork neck (58RMB), a delicious take on an underused cut of meat. It's served marinated and pan-fried alongside spicy sweet-and-sour pickles. The stir-fried chicken with chilli and basil leaf (48RMB, also available with beef or pork) packs a punch, just as it's meant to.

A coconut jelly (12RMB), made from agar-agar mixed with coconut milk, is firm and light and, together with an addictive dish of sticky rice with mango (20RMB), ends the meal on a high. Choose from a modestly priced wine list or one of the many reasonably priced cocktails (from 38RMB) to accompany your meal.

Lime Thai may err on the side of caution with its cuisine; but with friendly staff and a popular weekday set lunch (58RMB for two courses served with a main and a soft drink), it's sure to succeed. Clarissa Sebag-Montefiore

Details

Open 11.30am-9.30pm daily.

朝阳区朝外大街6号新城国际15号楼103号

Telephone 6597 0887

English address 103, Building 15, Chaoyangmenwai Dajie, Central Park, Chaoyang district

Chinese address 朝阳区朝外大街6号新城国际15号楼103号

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