Shallot Thai Restaurant

Where: Shallot Thai Restaurant (3 locations in the South Eastern suburbs of Melbourne, but we visit 181 Waverley Rd, Malvern East, VIC, 3145)
What: Regularly ordered dishes include the Pad See Ew (with beef), Pad Met Mamuang (with chicken or prawns), any of the Thai salads on offer and the green curry.
Rating: 15.5/20


There are some restaurants I feel I shouldn't really review, because I've become too close to them and feel I lack sufficient objectivity. Shallot is one of them. I have been dining here with family and friends since the restaurant opened and regularly collect Friday night take-away from the establishment. Nonetheless, on a recent "date night" with my beloved, I decided to take some photos and thought I might spread the "Shallot love" around a little. 


I have to admit that Thai food in Melbourne tends to be a little, well...."meh" (for lack of a better term). Besides the top notch eateries such as Longrain, the less expensive Thai restaurants seem to lack the requisite intensity of flavour that Thai food demands. I would argue that Shallot is different, provided one orders the right food (i.e. food that is not intentionally designed to appeal to Western (read: bland-loving) palates).  


On this particular night we decided to kick off with a couple of Singhas - I find these beers very refreshing and crisp, complementing the strong flavours of Thai food.

We then ordered our usual favourite - Pad See Ew with beef. The thick ribbons of noodes, crisp greens and thin slices of tender beef are sensational - really delicious!

As it was a warm night, we decided a salad was essential. The salads at Shallot are known for their traditional, punchy Thai combination of sweet, sour, salty, spicy and bitter. All contain various proteins with a hefty dose of red onion, coriander and greens. On this particular evening my beloved couldn't resist the special - deep fried soft shell crab. It didn't disappoint, despite the grainy, shadowy image (I only had my iPhone on me).

Yes, it's suburban and yes, it can be full of families, but Shallot does not disappoint food-wise. Meals are good value for money (especially the take-away options) and the quality and freshness of food is consistently excellent.