"Best Thai restaurant in North America"

Of the many restaurants available to me in Las Vegas, the one at #2 on my list was Lotus of Siam.

Look at these reviews.

"The single best Thai restaurant in North America"
- Jonathan Gold, Gourmet Magazine

"The greatest Thai meal I've every eaten outside of Thailand."
- The Rosengarten Report, David Rosengarten

"Lotus of Siam is the best Thai Restaurant I've tried in this country"
- Heidi Knapp Rinella, Las Vegas Review Journal

"There's nothing as good- -or as lip-numblingly hot- -in L.A."
- S. Irene Virbila, Los Angeles Times food critic

"It was the smartest gamble we'd made all day."
- Budget Living, Liza Schoenfein and Mark Jannot

"I can't think of any other Thai restaurant I'd rather go to."
- Las Vegas Life, Max Jacobson

"Sticky Rice with Mango and Coconut Cream at Lotus of Siam,
is at once sumptuous and seductive-and biochemically, a perfect,
cooling finish to spicy Thai cooking."
- Las Vegas Weekly, Max Jacobson

"Don't skip dessert, or you'll regret it deeply"
- Chow, Ellis Weiner

"This famous hole-in-wall introduced me to extraordinary Thai dishes."
- Food&Wine, Dana Cowin

"The most addictive place to eat in the city."
- USA Today, Jerry Shriver

Look at the pages devoted to it on chowhounds.

Mr. Insomniac was spending the day at his conference, so I decided to plan a special sojourn out to Lotus of Siam. After careful examination of the interweb knew that I should stay away from the buffet and order off the menu and to get some barbeque and one of the northern thai dishes. Oh and to get sticky rice with mango and coconut cream for dessert.

Yes, a lot of food, but I wasn't planning on eating all of it... after all, I had to save room for my #1 meal at L'Atelier de JR. And our room had a fridge, microwave, plates and silverware, so I could always eat the leftovers. Okay. Bring it on.

I hop in my car and drive away from the strip. Like 20 minutes away. The restaurant is located in a dusty strip mall - the store front isn't visible from the main road and I passed by the restaurant a couple of times before I finally found it.

Definitely off the beaten path. I smile smugly to myself. Take that, buffet eaters. I'm about to get authentic. The *real* Vegas.




I finally find it. Very unassuming store front. Excellent. Only the truly informed probably even know about this place, I thought.

I head to the door, taste buds a-tingling.

But wait, what's this?



Rage.

Rage against the glass door.