Couple of little tidbits before we get into the review today:
10th Blogiversary Giveaway
I’ve got a big giveaway going on for my 10th Blogiversary – if you haven’t entered yet, head over to this link to try and win one of three prizes for restaurant gift cards!
Vote For Me!
One other item! I’m currently entered in the Del Real Foods blogger recipe contest for the Quesatacos with Cilantro Garlic Sauce that I featured recently on the blog. I’d appreciate your vote for my recipe! You can vote for me at this link once a day until June 9th. You do need a Facebook account to enter. Thanks so much for your vote!
Now onto today’s review.
Lunch at Chaba Thai Kitchen
I have lunch in Kearny Mesa every once in awhile since my chiropractor’s office is in that area. Recently I tried out a new-to-me Thai restaurant called Chaba Thai Kitchen. They’ve got a slew of different options plus some great (and cheap!) lunch specials.
Chaba Thai Kitchen is a little restaurant tucked into a strip mall off Clairemont Mesa Blvd.
It’s a pretty tiny restaurant.
I think there are only 11 or 12 tables plus a bar area that you can sit at. It’s a tight squeeze in here!
[soup]
Complimentary soup comes with your meal at Chaba Thai. There are bits of chicken in the bottom. I really liked the flavor of this soup – the broth is nice and rich. I like the cilantro leaves with the soup as well which give it a burst of fresh flavor. I like this a lot better than that sour soup you get at a lot of Thai restaurant.
[crispy basil chicken / $11.95]
On my first visit I forgoed the cheaper lunch specials menu to try something “a la carte” – the Crispy Basil Chicken. This dish comes with crispy crunchy pieces of chicken stir fried with bell peppers, onions, and basil leaves and topped with a chili garlic sauce. It comes with a side of Thai Jasmine Rice.
I adored this dish! I got it at a “level 1” spicy because I’m a wuss and it was just the right amount of heat for me. Just a touch! The pieces of chicken had a wonderful coating on them which complimented the juicy pieces of chicken. The basil leaves were also a little crispy which I loved. The soft onions and bell peppers were really tasty with the delicious chili garlic sauce. Very flavorful! This dish really hit the spot for me that day.
[yellow curry with chicken lunch special / $6.95]
On my second visit, I decided to try one of the lunch specials. I recently discovered that I LOVE yellow curry so I decided to try the version here at Chaba Thai. Again… I ordered a “level 1” spicy and that was more than enough spice for me. It had a little kick already so I can’t imagine what a “2” would be like… goodness. The yellow curry is made with coconut milk. It’s creamy and just a little bit sweet which I thought paired really nice with the little bit of heat. There were large chunks of potatoes (maybe a little too large, but that’s what forks are for), chunks of carrots, and pieces of tender white meat chicken.
The yellow curry was really flavorful and I really enjoyed it here. With the lunch special you get two little appetizers. One is a cream cheese wonton and the other was filled with some kind of ground meat mixture. Both were crispy and good. It also comes with a scoop of rice. I had asked for brown rice (which is $1 more) but it wasn’t available that day. No matter. I put a few spoonfuls of rice into the delicious yellow curry broth for some extra yumminess for my belly.
Chaba Thai Kitchen
8010 Clairemont Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92111
(858) 503-7777
Hours: 11AM-9PM; Closed Sundays
This place used to be Aria Kabon (an Afghanistani eatery) then changed to Gyro ‘n Kabob which closed in 2013 and became Chaba Thai/
I like that they put a lot of basil leaves in that basil chicken dish. I would have gotten a ‘1’ spice level also. I can’t handle the higher levels. I find myself not enjoying the food as much and then fearing the aftermath, ha ha. I’ll have to try Chaba Thai then.
By the way, don’t even bother with Pho Fusion in that same strip mall (their food isn’t that great).
Thanks, CC! You always seem to know the history of places 🙂 Thanks for the tip about Pho Fusion. I never gave it a second glance, really. I already forgot what else was in that plaza – some kind of Cajun/Crab place maybe? I really liked Chaba Thai though so I’d probably prefer to just go there.
*Aria Kabob
Spicy Level 1. Really.
j/k. Not really. I think my sis order a spicy level 0 for her kids when they get Thai food. I’ve heard about Chaba but haven’t had a chance to try them out. The basil chicken looks pretty good!
HAHA. Faye! Not everyone is the Queen of Spicy like YOU. 😀
Basil Chicken, so good, om nom nom. It was hard to resist ordering it again on my second visit.