Thai Yum, Birkenhead

My sister, Daphne, and I were passing through Birkenhead yesterday when we decided to stop for an early dinner. Our first choice was a korean restaurant but it was close so we went to Thai Yum. Thai Yum is a favourite of my sister's but a first time for me. Having heard a lot about it from friends, I was quite looking forward to it.

First impressions? It was small and looks wise there wasn't really anything special about it. The owner of the store is a young mum who is incredibly lovely! She was all smiles and very easy to get along with. She made all her customers feel welcome with her outgoing nature. She served us tea in a really cute asian tea cup which I had never seen before. Since my sister and I have given up meat (except for fish) for the season of Lent, we opted for a tofu dish recommended by the owner. We also wanted a fish dish so again she recommended one which was made up of fish fillets and red curry sauce.

The thing I was most impressed with was the the owner went to the fish store right after we ordered to buy fresh fish! It was explained to me that their food is always fresh even if it means they have to go out and buy it. When the food arrived, it was amazing! The tofu dish was topped with broccoli, cauliflower, beans, etc and then topped with a sauce that did the dish all sorts of favours. I love healthy food and I loved that this dish was not too oily or saucy. However the fish dish, now that was perfect. For one thing, the portion was really generous which is quite surprising for a thai dish because thai restaurants are known to serve in small portions. The fish was covered in the most amazing red curry sauce. It was spicy but not too spicy and here is where the fresh fish came in... it was soft and tender and tasted divine! I loved it!

So till here, the service gets a big tick, the food gets a big tick. So far so good! The decor was really lovely too. They had red table clothes which really gave the place colour though the restaurant only had two two-sitter tables. I was also quite impressed though by this huge gong like structure that hung in the background. It was huge and had hints of colour engraved into stones all over it. The restaurant also had a flat screen television on the wall behind the counter that played a video of a man teaching how to carve a piece of fruit into a flower shape. This was great because they had a lot of people coming in for takeaways so while they waited for the food, they could watch the video and have a cup of tea.

This is probably one of my favourite thai restaurants and the best place I've been to. The price was normal for a thai restaurant and also very reasonable. I will certainly be going back there again and again. Absolutely! You must try it :)

If you plan to go to Thai Yum:

• Note that seating is limited so it won't be suitable for a big group
• Be hungry!
• Check out DUTCH DELIGHTS, a few stores down that serves the most amazing dutch desserts!

Overall rating: 4.5/5 Excellent service, atmosphere and food!

Thai Yum address and phone number:

23 Birkenhead Ave
Birkenhead
North Shore City

09 480 6799