Osha Thai - SOMA

149 2nd St. (between Minna & Natoma)
(415) 278-9991
www.oshathai.com

I love Osha Thai. Not because it's the most amazing food ever, but because for what you get, it's a steal. But location does matter, for example, this location and the one in Nob Hill are awesome...the Marina location, not so much.

K and I wanted to grab a bite after work and decided to meet in the middle so I suggested Osha - he'd never been. First of all, the number of dishes on the menu was staggering, causing a near panic attack from someone as chronically indecisive as myself. Eventually, we decided to start with the Salmon Sashimi Salad and then share the Volcanic Beef and the Pad Thai with crab as our main dishes.

The Salmon Sashimi Salad is a must-have. This dish isn't really a salad at all, but rather two lettuce cups topped with abundant mounds of fresh salmon sashimi, garnished with fresh mango, lemongrass, Kaffir lime leaf, red onion, green onion, cilantro and sesame oil with spicy lime dressing. This salad is really fresh and the portion so large that I was pretty full after eating my share.

Next, we had the Volcanic Beef and the Pad Thai. I've always been impressed with the Volcanic Beef and as usual, the "lava sauce" was the perfect blend of sweet and savory, though I'll agree with K (who's a health nut) that there were a few pieces in there that were just a little fatty. The Pad Thai was also very good and served with a good amount of crab, if only they could combat the clumping of the noodles that makes an even distribution of ingredients challenging. The draw of this pad thai over any other is the fact that you can get crab in it.

Overall, I think the extra couple bucks you pay for the trendy, fun atmosphere, and okay, mediocre service are still great bang for buck. It's a great place for a date, and a full stomach, and I will definitely be back. As I have, again and again.

The Verdict: Worth It