Disclaimer: The visit to Tommy Thongchai was way before the MCO was implemented. Kindly check their Facebook page for their opening hours for dine-in or pick-up/delivery options at the end of this post.
A relatively new restaurant in Jaya One, Tommy Thongchai is a popular fusion Thai eatery and is always full at meal times. The interior looks very much like the laid back, casual restobars in Thailand, the kind that's usually swarming with tourists.
Our first visit was during lunch and a value-for-money lunch menu is available
with many choices of Thai dishes with rice, pasta, burgers, salads and main courses with a choice of ice lemon tea, lemongrass tea or black coffee priced between RM9.90 to RM25.90 per meal.
We ordered a Thongchai's Mango Salsa Nachos to share and it may be called nachos but it's made with deep-fried wantan skins. The toppings were a nice contrast in terms of flavor and texture but the 'nachos' get greasy if left for too long so eat them quickly. I'd suggest to share this among at least 3 people if you're ordering individual mains. It's a bit too much for 2.
The Krapao pork burger is inspired by Pad Kra Pao - a stir fry of minced pork and holy basil. I'm not a fan of basil but the combination of minced pork and basil as a burger patty was really good. The basil got rid of any potential gamey smell.
This is also the best ratio burger I've had in a while - the patty was the same width as the bread and there was enough bread, patty, egg and vegetables in every bite. The fries had a flavor sprinkle, a savory tomyam like flavor to it. The only item that I wasn't a fan of was their black coffee, it was dark roast but tasted pretty watered down.
During another visit for dinner, I ordered a pineapple fried rice and oh boy, it was a big portion. The fried rice had nice wok hei and was seasoned well. The crackers that were served had a peppery flavor, very unlike any I've had before. The pork belly skewers served were nicely grilled and the spicy garlicky chilli sauce served added to the flavor.
Their kitchen was still open at about 10.15pm when we were looking for a super late dinner one day. The pad kra pao was great value at RM9.90 with lots of minced pork - a basic but very satisfying dish. Even the rice was fragrant and of good quality. The pad mama was stir fried mama noodles, sweet and salty with good wok hei. It tasted even better with a spritz of lime juice.
This time, we ordered skewers to try and they were really well done - I did not expect smokey cabbage to taste as good as it did. The moo ping was delicious as well but my favorite was the chicken meatballs, crunchy on the outside but moist and flavorful on the inside.
For drinks, my favorite here is the iced lime tea. The tea is strong and there's probably a mix of lime cordial and lime juice in it so the lime flavor is strong too.
The Thai milk tea here is lighter than I would like. My favorite is just a few steps away at Streat Thai. It lacks richness in general and the milk flavor is a stronger than the tea.
I tried a peach beer during one of my visits. Sadly, the beer is really light and the peach hardly noticeable. Stick to one of the draft beers instead.
Overall, Tommy Thongchai has good food for good prices and I foresee them becoming one of my favorite Thai restaurants to visit. Gauging by the crowd, I believe we share the same sentiment.
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Tommy Thongchai
The Square, G.005, Jaya One,
46200 Petaling Jaya
Opens daily 11.30 am to 12 midnight