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I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving weekend and enjoyed time with loved ones.
Al and I had a jammed packed weekend of family festivities. So when things finally settled down last night, there was no way either of us were going to cook. Instead, Al decided this would be the perfect opportunity to introduce me to his new favorite restaurant, Karta Thai.
Karta Thai is located just south of our house in Northeast Minneapolis. It opened in March this year along the authentic ethnic restaurants on the Central Avenue.
Since we didn’t want to have to leave our dog again tonight, we opted for take-out rather than dine-in. I called in to place our order around 6:15 and our meal was ready in less than 15 minutes.
I popped open a bottle of wine (compliments of the house) while Al plated our meals.
I was craving something spicy so I ordered the Veggie Pad Panang Curry, $8. The panang curry is made with coconut milk, bell peppers, and basil. I took the first bite and my cheeks quickly warmed up. When I ordered over the phone, the woman didn’t ask me what level of heat I wanted so I was surprised that it was just right. The heavy spices were tasty and not overwhelming, and paired with the coconut milk, I was in heaven! The curry to rice ratio was 2-to-1 so there was no need to hold back on the curry.
Al said he had no need to look over the menu, he knew exactly what he wanted: the Red Curry with pork, $9. Homemade curry made with coconut milk, eggplant, bell peppers, bamboo shoots (yum!), lime leaves and basil. The flavors were deep, yet not heavy or overloaded. A well balanced dish.
I stopped myself at just one bowl so that I could enjoy dessert without having to unbutton my pants. I rarely indulge in sticky rice, but the mango was calling my name. And lucky for me, Al scarfed down his meal so quickly that he didn’t have room for dessert. All mine.
The rice had cooled down by the time I was ready for dessert. I realized this may have been a better “dining in” choice where the distance between the kitchen and my plate was measured in steps rather than blocks. Still, I ate every bite. The rice was dense and chewy and the creamy, buttery taste complimented the raw sweetness of the mango. $3 for this! Worth every penny.
We finished and were already talking about the next time we would be ordering Karta Thai to go. I think I could justify any occasion for Karta, especially when $20 gets you two generous entrées, dessert, and dinner in your sweatpants.
Atmosphere
If you decided to dine-in, you’ll find the atmosphere to be what you expect from a small, family-owned restauarant – plain, friendly, comfortable. My take-out atmosphere was great too – dog on my left, wine on my right.
Service
Great! Even over the phone, the server was very friendly and patient with me. And that t-shirt Alex has, the owner offered a business “shirt swap” with him last week over lunch. How awesome is that?!Presentation
Our presentation was a little sloppy since it was take out. But when you dine in, the plates are well composed. Check out their yelp page for some examples.Taste
I think they’ve got some of the best curry in Mpls. The flavor was bold but not overpowering, deep but not too overdone. You have to try it!Value for Dollars
Great deal! Two entrées and dessert, all for $21, plus lunch for the next day.
But don’t take my word for it…
Karta Thai
2411 Central Ave
Minneapolis, MN 55418
(612) 788-4000
kartathai.com
Karta Thai on Facebook
Karta Thai on Yelp
