Pai, Nuit Regular’s feted Northern Thai spot hidden in the Entertainment District, was modeled after an open-air market, right down to the plastic bunting that waves merrily from the ceiling. Suffice it to say, their latest addition to the restaurant — Pai Market, a fast-casual dining room and food mart adjacent to their always-brimming dining room – seems like a natural extension. (We mean “extension” literally: The new 50-seat side room was previously part of another restaurant until Regular & co. busted down some walls and took it over.)
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The new Market dining room adds some much-needed real estate to Pai.
As you enter from the main dining room, a small counter greets guests, listing the day’s specials, available for quick grab-and-go or for dining in. Options might include a “northern platter” of turmeric-kaffir lime pork sausage, crispy-fried pork and steamed veggies hinted with lemongrass laap gai, a lime-inflused dish of minced chicken that’s a close cousin to prad gra prow or gaeng pak gad sai nua, a sumptuous beef curry dish.
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One of the dishes found on the Market menu is guay jap, which features braised pork, egg and rolled noodles swimming in a rich broth.
And if you’re thinking ahead to dinner, hit up probably the niftiest portion of Pai Market – an honest-to-goodness miniature food market, featuring carts well-stocked with kaffir lime leaves, stalks of lemongrass, baskets full of whole chilis and cans of coconut milk – for ingredients.
nataliam@nowtoronto.com | @nataliamanzocco
