We ate at Hot Grainz’s original location in the Sunrise Plaza on University Avenue for the first time early last summer, and I was ready, on the strength of that meal, to proclaim them the best Thai restaurant in the Twin Cities. Our follow-up meals there later in the summer confirmed that evaluation. We didn’t end up getting back there later last year or early this year. But that was because of the seating situation at that location: basically, it was very difficult to find a table in the tiny dining room on weekends; and coming, as we are, from 50 minutes away, takeout was not a great option either. This seemed to become an insurmountable problem when I heard earlier this year that they had moved to a takeout-only option. I hadn’t yet confirmed this for myself when I got the happy news—while we were travelling—that they had moved to a new, larger location on W. 7th Street with ample seating. We’d planned a meal there as our first lunch out after we got back but then ran into another unexpected discovery as we were about to get into the car: they’re not open for lunch on Sundays. We ended up going to Zao Bakery+Cafe instead that day (and had a very nice meal). We finally made it to the new location of Hot Grainz for lunch this past Saturday, and I can confirm that it is indeed, in our family’s opinion, the best Thai restaurant in the Twin Cities. Read on to see what we ate.

First things first: they’re located in that trendy complex with “artists’ lofts” etc. in the old Schmidt Brewery complex, a couple of minutes walk from Keg & Case (which we haven’t been to in ages—is it still good?). There’s no signage on the building itself but if you follow Google Maps it will get you there: there’s a banner on the steps up to the restaurant that has their name on it. Someone passing by might not spot at first glance that it’s a Thai restaurant but I doubt there’s much random foot traffic in that area anyway. There are a couple of small patio tables as you go up the stairs but I don’t think you can get table service there. Inside, is the aforementioned dining hall, several times the size of the original and done up in the same bright colour schemes. There are quite a few tables and there are also seats at the attractive counter. The counter also has consoles/kiosks for ordering but they were out of order on the day. We ordered instead on our phones after scanning a qr code at our table. I do wish they would put printed menus together to peruse as well: with a large menu it’s fairly unwieldy to keep track of everything while scrolling on a small phone screen.

We sat down at a table, got ourselves plates, cutlery, water and condiments from the counter, and got to work on the menu. We decided to do a sort of “greatest hits” order from our previous meals there. We started therefore with the Yum MaMuang (mango salad) and it was as good as it had been last year. Next to arrive was the Bah Mee Moo Daeng, a dried noodle dish with wontons, bbq pork etc. Last year we’d got this at the highest heat setting (the options rise from “no spice” to “two tablespoons”) and it had almost killed us. This time we got it at the second highest heat setting (“one tablespoon”) and were just about able to handle it. It was also excellent but next time we might take take the heat down another notch still. It paired well, however, with the mild Kha Kha Moo or braised pork hock with steamed rice, greens, and a bowl of mild broth. This had been one of our favourites at our first meal and it did not disappoint on this occasion either.

We were also not disappointed in the Naem or deep-fried sour pork rib. My memory of the version at the original Thai Cafe is now a little misty but I’d wager this is at least on par with that, if not better; I’d say it’s one of the best pork dishes in the Twin Cities. We chose the sticky rice option to eat it with. Also as excellent as previous: the Pad Pak Boong or stir-fried morning glory. We’d got it with shrimp on the previous occasion; this time we got it with pork and it may have been even better this way. For our last savoury dish we got something we hadn’t had before: Thai Fried Rice. We ordered this partly as a relief dish (we got it with beef) but it turned out to be rather excellent in its own right. Finally, we closed out the meal with an order of their Fried Bananas, which were also both excellent in their own right and—once they had cooled a little—a slight antidote to the heat that had preceded it.

Oh yes, the boys got a smoothie each: one pomegranate and one passionfruit. These are also crucial fire extinguishers. Of course, if you don’t have a high heat tolerance you can just get your food at a lower setting; and keep in mind that some dishes aren’t particularly hot at all—for example the Naem, which does not have any heat options when you order and also the Khao Kha Moo (or the similar Khao Mun Gai with chicken).

For a closer look at everything we ate, click on an image below to launch a larger slideshow. Scroll down for thoughts on service, and to see how much it all cost and what’s coming next on the food front.

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Despite the self-service on the utensils front and the qr code-based ordering, the food is brought out to the table by servers once it’s ready. Said servers were all very cheerful and offered to bring us out more water etc. Cost? With tax and 20% tip (I’ll leave it to you to decide if that’s too much for only a part-table service model) the total came to about $160. If you think Thai food should always be cheap then you will say that this was a bad value. But, for one thing, it was enough food for six people (we took a fair bit of leftovers home), which would make the effective per head cost closer to $26; for another, the food is just excellent. I would happily pay this much or more again here and be happier than I would be at a number of fancier restaurants that charge twice as much. Your mileage may vary. But if you like good Thai food and haven’t been to Hot Grainz yet, do go check them out soon for yourself.

Alright, what’s next on the food front? My next Twin Cities report should be of dinner at Tenant, where we are scheduled to eat this weekend. That will go up next Wednesday. Between now and then I’ll post 2-4 reports from Seoul and Delhi. Check back soon to see what those will be.