Min’s Kitchen serves up fresh and tasty

In La Ca”ada Flintridge, the family-run Thai restaurant Min’s Kitchen has graced Foothill Boulevard for decades.

A recent facelift provided newly sponge-painted walls and a lighter appearance to the small dining room. The honey-colored wood tables and chairs add an elegant touch to the décor. Nearly everyone who comes in the door seems to be greeted as an old friend, so it is apparent that Min’s has a loyal local following.

Servers are hospitable and they’re patient with menu questions, but things can get a bit slow, as there are frequently two servers for the entire restaurant, and one or both are fielding a brisk take-out business as well as tending tables.

Soups are my favorite starting point, especially on Thai menus. The War Won Ton ($9.95) has it all, with a fragrant, chicken broth, featuring feathery strands of greens, carrot flowers, pink shrimp, pinker barbecued pork slices and silky little won ton bundles. It looks and tastes like spring, and I like to think it’s healthful.

Tok Yom Gung (small $6.95, large $9.95) is a traditional hot and sour soup with shrimp. As with many menu items, your server will ask about your preference for the level of heat in the soup. Our request for medium spice resulted in a pewter caldron of very spicy looking, but perfectly balanced, reddish broth that was sweet, spicy and sour all at once ? exactly the way the dish should be done.

Another good starter is the house salad ($8.95). Unlike the usual house salad, which barely makes a dent in a good appetite, this house salad could be a meal, with poached and shredded chicken, tender shrimp, cucumbers and crisp chilled greens in a light peanut dressing.

Some dishes to share? Shrimp and Snow Peas ($9.95) is beautiful on the platter. The pea pods could not be brighter or more perfect, and the sauce bathing the shrimp and vegetables is light and flavorful. Barbecued Chicken ($8.95) sports attractive grill marks on the skin and juicy, well-cooked meat, with a sweet and spicy chile sauce to dip into.

I’m a ginger-maniac, so the Pad Khing Sod ($8.85), with a choice of beef, chicken or pork sauteed with straw mushrooms, onions and celery in a gingery sauce, is a treat. I like it extra gingery, over steamed brown rice. If a taste for Thai (or take out) seizes you, Min’s Kitchen will satisfy your craving with freshly prepared dishes and flavor to spare.