Tasty Thai Dishes Come With a Hug

Some restaurant owners are never there; others rarely leave. You can count Ann Bhasawan in the latter group.

The owner of The Thai Way in Redondo Beach oversees the dining room more then 70 hours a week. It is her warm welcome and attentive service, along with the tasty Thai dishes, that keep her local clientele returning.

In fact, the first time I went there--dining anonymously, of course--Ann gave me a warm hug as I was leaving. On my next visit, I noticed that I wasn’t the only one to get this special treatment. Lots of people get hugs at The Thai Way.

The Thai Way is quite an attractive place. The walls are ornamented with Asian paintings in black and gold frames, and there’s a vase of fresh flowers on each table. Romantically lit, with Art Deco lanterns and indirect spot lamps set in a dark blue ceiling, it’s a good place for a date.

The best dish from the kitchen of chef Woody Edravitum is the coconut seafood soup ($8.25), a Neptunian version of the famous Thai soup tom kha kai . An armada of large shrimp, scallops, halibut, calamari and one crab claw float in chicken broth, enriched with a coconut milk base and perfumed with lemon grass and ginger. The large portion is enough for two.

The Thai Way’s most popular appetizers are the bamboo-skewered flank steak beef sate ($5.95) and the plump chicken wings stuffed with a mixture of ground pork, chicken, glass noodles and onions.

The menu is heavy on seafood. There are nine shrimp dishes alone, including the Bangkok shrimp with cashews and roasted chilies ($6.95). Pompano delight ($11), served with a pungent ginger sauce, is available fileted or fried whole, complete with head and tail. Go for the whole version.

If you are with a group, order the pretty pineapple fried rice ($8.25), a large half-pineapple shell filled with rice, shrimp, crab and chicken.

The Thai Way is at 707 S. Pacific Coast Highway, Redondo Beach. (310) 316-0979. Open 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday , 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday.