The best Thai restaurants in Chicago for pad Thai, sticky rice and more

Andy Aroonrasameruang left his longtime perch at TAC Quick Thai Kitchen to open Andy's Thai Kitchen, where he crafts his own funky pork-and-rice sausages, spoons his spicy eggplant-studded green curry over omelettes, turns out a silky tom kha soup, pairs Chinese broccoli with crispy bites of fried pork belly and throws together a simultaneously fiery and cool minced chicken salad. This is what Thai food should taste like.

Most of the cuisine you'll eat in Thailand is street food. But at Arun's, chef Arun Sampanthavivat takes a fine-dining approach to dishes we're used to seeing in takeout containers. His pre-fixe menu comprises ever-changing, beautifully plated bites, like tamarind pork and crab dip with a trio vegetable salad. The southern style pork belly curry is quintessential Arun's—inventive, flavorful takes on beloved Thai staples. 

Siblings Nova and Kami Sasi are the creative force behind this small Pilsen restaurant that offers Northern Thai street snacks and home-style cooking. Definitely start your meal with tod man pla, crispy fish cakes served with sweet chili, cucumber, cilantro and ground peanuts. And don’t expect to see pad Thai on the menu, but do order Grandma’s Pork Belly. Thin slices of marinated pork are fried and accompanied by a sweet-and-spicy Jaew dipping sauce. It’ll leave you wishing you could have dinner with the Sasi matriarch every night. Drinkers should bring six-pack because it’s BYOB.

Nestled among the many pho shops in the West Argyle Street Historic District is this Thai treasure. The kitchen whips up the types of foods found at stalls and carts in the streets of Thailand so while there’s the requisite pad see eiw, we recommend exploring the entire chalkboard menu. Som tum puu plah rah takes the classic green papaya salad and dials up the funkiness with the addition of preserved crab and fish. Moo grob—fried pork belly—is another can’t-miss. Stop in between 11:30am-3pm to snag a terrific lunch deal: Up to three proteins plus rice will run you $12 or less.

Drawing inspiration from the streets of Bangkok, this small Roscoe Village restaurant dishes out exceptional southern Thai-style fried chicken, which is served with chili honey. There’s also a selection of housemade curries—the green curry with chicken is our go-to—as well as stir fried noodles and rice plates. Of course, you’ll want to complement such savory bites with a tropical cocktail like the My Thai slushy and the Maverick (scotch, lemon and tamarind honey).

As its name suggests, J.J.’s specializes in craveworthy street food from chef-owner Jiranya Thosatheppitak. The 28-seat, BYOB-friendly West Town storefront fills up fast most nights of the week, but their carryout game is strong. Save more delicate dishes, especially when it comes to rice dishes like khao mun gai tod, breaded fried chicken draped over ginger-garlic rice with sweet chili sauce on the side. Dine in for more delicate plates, such as the tender pla muk yang, grilled squid doused in spicy seafood sauce.

The curated menu appeases the masses that flood the simple, minimalist room at this top-notch Thai joint. But the true standouts can be found on the translated Thai language menu, with never-fail flavor explosions such as tart and smoky pork-and-rice sausage, minced chicken with crispy basil and preserved eggs, and warm sweet-and-sour beef jerky. Don’t disregard the "secret" menu—lowkey rotations have included Thai beef jerky and roasted duck with a memorable coconut red curry.

What we love most about this colorful and bustling storefront is that it keeps our interest with new concoctions every couple of weeks. Check the tiny chalkboard for specials, but supplement with tried-and-true favorites such as stir-fried sole fish with ginger; the best gang hung lay (pork in sweet, garlicky, ginger-laden curry) in town; and kow soy, an egg noodle dish served in a Northern Thai-styled coconut soup. Vegetarian options abound.

This Lakeview newcomer puts the spotlight on dishes from Thailand’s northeast Isan region. Start with the laab moo tod—fried pork meatballs—and one of the papaya salads (you can’t go wrong with the funky tum tuk tuk, full of fermented anchovies, salted crab, crispy chicken skin, pork rinds and pork sausage). For entrees, the whole fried snapper smothered in spicy-sweet-sour sauce is non-negotiable. You’ll want to cool off your palate at the end with some homemade coconut ice cream served with palm seed, sweet corn and peanuts. The cherry on top? The restaurant has a BYOB policy.

If you don’t like to be overwhelmed with choices, head to this elevated spot in Edgewater, where chef-owner Patty Neumson offers nightly prix fixe menus ranging from five-to-seven courses. The dishes change seasonally to highlight the freshest produce, but you can usually expect to find favorites like a light and spicy papaya salad and a complex coconut curry with veggies. There are both plant-based and non-plant-based menus so nobody has to be left out, and the prices are very reasonable, topping out at $85 for seven courses.

Take one step inside this Thai gem hiding under the Brown Line tracks and you’re hit with a full-color poster provided by LTHForum endorsing the authentic eats lurking on the “classics” menu. Sure, you’ll find the sour Isaan-style sausage and sweet beef jerky that other real-deal Thai joints traffic in, but take advantage of the less common items as well. Our picks include ground pork simmered in curried coconut milk then plopped over a sunny-side-up egg, meatballs floating in sour broth that smacks of star anise, and a beautiful mess of bamboo slivers slicked with green chili paste.

This hidden gem in Lincoln Square serves traditional Thai food—like fiery tua prik khing, a stir fry of proteins and green beans in red curry—in a no-frills setting. The noodle menu here is exhaustive, with 11 dishes spanning the familiar (pad Thai) to the exciting (pad woon sen, which is glass noodles with chicken, eggs and veggies). Sticky rice stuffed with banana is the best way to end the meal.

Decades old and still bustling (at a new location in West Town), this Thai stalwart thumbs its nose at the chowhounds running around town for ant eggs and crispy caterpillars. No need for secret menus here—a broad range of staples is done well and at a good price. Couples swap forkfuls of khao soi (a heap of egg noodles with chicken in coconut curry soup), naem sod (minced chicken tossed in a limey dressing with peanuts and raw ginger) and a filling and flavorful rendition of pad ped pla dook (hunks of crispy catfish sautéed in red curry paste with green beans and eggplant).

If you stick to the basics in this simple but pleasant dining room, you’ll miss out on the best bites. Get adventurous with hoy tod, a delightful mussels omelet served with hot sauce. The kanom jeep (steamed shrimp dumplings) are downright addictive—and priced at $4.95 an order, it's an easy habit to maintain. Curry fans should try the duck, where the meat bathes in spicy red curry that's crafted with coconut milk and teeming with tomatoes, lychees, pineapples and bell peppers.

This small Ravenswood spot is one of the better-kept Thai secrets in town. A charming mural painted on the wall of Southeast Asian dishes greets guests when they walk in, while the kitchen delivers reliable standbys like fried rice studded with crab meat and hot-and-sour tom yum soup. The best reason to visit, though, is for the late-night alternative menu. Order a bowl of congee—rice porridge—and complement it with crispy pork belly, fish balls, sour pork sausage and more.

With hundreds of tin robots, wind-up toys and other kitschy knick-knacks covering every inch of wall space in this tiny Wrigleyville restaurant, your short wait for lunch here will be spent giggling about Pez dispensers you had as a kid. Entrées typically zoom out of the kitchen, especially on busy weekend nights. Start with the spring rolls, which are light and crisp enough that you’ll have plenty of room for a heaping plate of the bamee noodles, topped with barbecue pork, crab meat, bean sprouts, peanuts and a fried wonton.

EaThai is all about the specials. Rotating and inventive dishes like rad na mee krob, stir-fried noodles in a Thai gravy sauce, delectable khanom chan, a layered tapioca dessert with hints of vanilla and hazelnut, and an ube and sweet coconut milk delicacy known as song sahai. Specials usually alternate every month, so keep an eye out for some inspiration to break out of your usual pad Thai and crab rangoon order.

Named for a popular district of Bangkok, Silom delivers standouts like ginger-scented tilapia, deep-fried soft shell crab and roasted basil duck. As you're contemplating the menu, you'll realize that repeat trips are necessary to even scratch the surface of Silom's offerings. End the meal on a sweet note with the playful banana wonton, served with whipped cream and vanilla ice cream.

Located in the bustle of downtown, this Thai restaurant delivers in many ways—flavor, affordability, speed and comfort. It also has our favorite Thai iced tea in the city; the drink is rich and full of flavor with swirls of sweetened condensed milk. For starters, dip gyoza into a spicy sweet and sour sauce, then move on to a rich entree of panang or massaman curry. Another personal favorite is the chicken rice soup, a Thai-style chicken noodle soup with rice and a dash of sesame on top. Don't forget to save room for banana in sweet sticky rice.

Heat from the chili peppers got you sweating? Then cool off after your meal with the perfect sweet treat: refreshing rolled ice cream. Originating over in Thailand, the frozen dessert is made right in front of customers, similar to the experience at Cold Stone Creamery. Staff pour a milk-based mixture onto a frozen pan and form the resulting cream into rolls. It’s served in a cup with toppings such as fruits, cookies, candies, syrups and more.

For solid noodle dishes in Boystown, you'll do well at Joy's. Grab options like a coconut curry with chewy ramen noodles or a classic pad see eiw with crisp broccoli florets. At lunch, you get to pick from sides like egg rolls and cucumber salad and sit in the sunny window, on the cheap.

If you're craving quaint classics, Dena Kitchen churns out Thai staples for any taste. There's the lad nar wide noodles, bamee BBQ pork and a tasty duck curry to scratch that traditional Thai food itch. However, venture off into Dena's handpicked specials list for unique bursts of flavor, like the deep-fried fish fillet in a red curry or the "Seafood Tornado," a mixture of stir-fried seafood with jalapeño, white onion, pineapple and tomato.