Migration
After HoursAlom Dee brings spicy Thai fare to Landstuhl
Stars and Stripes
February 16, 2017
Chunks of fried tofu accentuated the vegetarian red curry dish at Alom Dee, a Thai restaurant and Japanese sushi bar in Landstuhl, Germany. (Jennifer Svan/Stars and Stripes)
Chunks of fried tofu accentuated the vegetarian red curry dish at Alom Dee, a Thai restaurant and Japanese sushi bar in Landstuhl, Germany. (Jennifer Svan/Stars and Stripes)
The vegetarian red curry dish at Alom Dee Thai restaurant and Japanese sushi bar in Landstuhl, Germany, was served with rice and was chock full of fresh vegetables and fried tofu. (Jennifer Svan/Stars and Stripes)
The Tom Kah vegetarian soup at Alom Dee restaurant in Landstuhl, Germany, had a creamy, spicy broth, but the mushrooms were too big. (Jennifer Svan/Stars and Stripes)
A big cup of warm green tea hit the spot on a dreary winter day recently at Alom Dee, a Thai restaurant and Japanese sushi bar, in Landstuhl, Germany. (Jennifer Svan/Stars and Stripes)
Alom Dee in Landstuhl, Germany, serves a wide variety Thai food and Japanese sushi. (Jennifer Svan/Stars and Stripes)
LANDSTUHL, Germany — Alom Dee, a Thai restaurant and sushi bar, doesn’t look like much from the outside.
Or the inside.
Good thing the bare interior and worn wooden tables of the cafe in Landstuhl, Germany, aren’t on the menu.
Just about everything else is, though. The expansive menu is the size of a small book. For indecisive diners, turning page after page as the numbered menu items reach to No. 169 and beyond can create sweaty pores long before the chili peppers unleash their heat.
I avoided menu confusion by deciding ahead of time what to get: Red chicken curry (spelled in some variations gaeng phed gai), my favorite Thai dish.
I wanted to compare it to the other red curry dishes I’ve tried around Kaiserslautern, to see how Alom Dee’s version stacked up. I had already found a red chicken curry across town that I craved some days like an Asian-food addict moored in the Land of Schnitzel needing a spice fix. But a friend said to try Alom Dee, that it had the best Thai food around.
When the waitress took my order, however, I slipped up: At the last second, I ordered vegetarian red curry; the 10.70-euro price was easier to digest than 13.80 for the chicken.
Almost everything was great about the dish — there was a wide variety of fresh, crisp vegetables, including bite-sized pieces of zucchini, broccoli, white cabbage, mushrooms, eggplant, green snap peas and red pepper. The portion was generous enough to match the price. Less appealing were the chunks of tofu substituted for the chicken — a nice vegetarian touch, but the fried bean curd didn’t absorb the red curry flavors as well as meat.
The heat was the best part of the Alom Dee experience. I started off with the Tom kha soup, vegetarian style, again. My nose was running before my bowl was dry. A few bites into the red curry that followed, my lips felt numb. It was bliss.
I still can’t say, however, that Alom Dee is tops in the Kaiserslautern area’s limited Thai food scene. The big slices of mushrooms — they looked like white mushrooms — didn’t add much to the soup. And not being a panda, I couldn’t eat the tough chunks of lemongrass and ginger floating in the spicy, coconut-milk broth.
But with such an expansive menu, Alom Dee seems like a good bet to try some lesser-known Thai dishes. It’s probably best to go when you’re not rushed, as the food took a little while to arrive during what was a busy weekday lunch hour. The servers were friendly and attentive, not what I was led to expect after reading some reviews on TripAdvisor. On weekends, reservations are suggested, since the place can fill up fast.
Location: Bruchwiesenstrasse 10, 66849, Landstuhl, GermanyHours: Monday to Sunday, 11:30 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.Prices: Mid-range; expect to pay about 10 euros or more for main course.English menu: YesDress: Casual.Information: Call (+49) (0)6371-6111562.Website:www.alom-dee.com (menu is online)