Restaurant review: Tuck into Thai cuisine at Padthai Hot Pot and Grill in Aberdeen

By Julia Bryce

June 9 2022, 5:00 pm

A range of dishes.

The Aberdeen Market was, at one point, the beating heart of Aberdeen’s indie street food offering.

The vendors found within were hidden gems, lying within a building that had, in its heyday, boasted food businesses like butchers, fishmongers and fruit and veg wholesalers.

As I write this review, the venue now lies in ruin after being bulldozed to make way for a new modern venue, however, while the building may be gone, those who once called it home have risen from the ashes and have managed to find their businesses new homes.

One of those businesses is Padthai Hot Pot and Grill.

Now located on Union Street in Aberdeen having opened just a few months ago, I was keen to pay a visit having missed out when it was based in Aberdeen Market.

A much overdue catch up meant that my colleague Ellie accompanied me on the night.

We were meeting for 6pm sharp at the restaurant on a Thursday evening.

The first thing you’ll notice when walking through the well branded entrance is that the restaurant is on the first and second floor of the building.

The front face is quite deceiving and this Tardis-like venue really does go on and on.

A spiraling staircase with deep red walls led up to the dining room, where, through two doors, we were met by a staff member.

After confirming my booking at the bar, I was taken around the corner and shown to my table in the main dining area which nods to Thai culture with beautiful decorations and detailing.

The restaurant is bright with large windows allowing the light to flood in. The bold colours immediately put a smile on your face and help accentuate its size. Then again, it seats 100 people on the first floor and around 40 on the second, so it is large anyway.

The food

I love when restaurant’s give you complimentary prawn crackers and because we were so ravenous we tucked in immediately. Journalism is a hungry job.

Ellie wasn’t too long behind me and joined the table. I’d taken the comfy booth seat, but there was no love lost as I’d held off scoffing the freebies.

She is a big fan of crispy seaweed (£5.80) so that was a must she declared before we’d even looked at the menu.

I suggested we got it with our starters, which ended up being the See Krong Moo (pork spare ribs) and sticky prawns.

Every dishes was numbered on the menu which made ordering very simple for both us and the staff.

There had been a slight mix up with the drinks and my Diet Irn-Bru ended up being Diet Coke, but if you’re familiar with my reviews you’ll know it is usually my go-to anyway.

Both starters came with a small side salad of freshly shredded red cabbage, carrot and lettuce.

The marinated ribs (£6.90) cooked in Thai spices and soy sauce had been grilled over charcoal and came topped with a sticky barbecue sauce which was finger licking good.

Sprinkled with sesame seeds, their only downfall would be that they were lacking plenty of meat. However, they were succulent and not too chewy, plus, it was a reasonable portion given that we had two each.

The prawns (£6.90), which could also come as chicken, were topped with a sweet and sour cause and also had sesame seeds on top. This sauce was thicker than the barbecue one and was just as tasty. The prawns were a little on the smaller side than expected but were juicy and it was easy to remove the tails as the full prawn had been fried in batter.

There were no complaints about the seaweed (which is actually cabbage) as it was crispy, salty and crunchy – everything it should have been.

Service had been consistent throughout so far and the room had started to fill up a bit more with additional diners taking their seas.

There were plenty of options on the menu and while the hot pot experience did look fun, we wanted something less messy and fussy so opted for options from the main menu.

Ellie opted for the chicken in satay sauce (£12.45) and egg fried rice (£3.70) and I went for the duck curry, fully expecting her to share the rice.

I had toyed with the idea of Thai red, Masaman, Panang and various other curries but settled on the roast duck one with peppers, chillies, tomatoes, pineapple, sweet basil leaves and coconut milk, all of which had been cooked in curry paste.

The duck was excellently cooked and there was plenty of it. The fruity, sweeter curry sauce it came in was delicious, too, and there was a subtle heat thanks to the fresh chillies. I scooped up every morsel and devoured the lot, adding a bit of the fried rice to soak the sauce up.

Ellie was left feeling a little disappointed with her main. While it stated on the menu the chicken was in satay sauce, the sauce had been poured on top and wasn’t infused into the chicken which meant it lacked flavour. The meat was cooked well, but she felt the dish could have been so much more had it been cooked in spices or the sauce.

Slices of tomato and cucumber lined the sides of the dish with pieces of chicken breast down the middle of the plate. The whole thing sat on top of a bed of lettuce.

While service had started off well, as the night progressed attentiveness started to teeter off. Empty plates were left in front of us for around 30 minutes plus and it took a while for me to pay the bill in the end.

The team were incredibly polite and friendly throughout, however, it wasn’t busy enough to warrant waiting that long for dirty plates to have been cleared from the table.

Ellie didn’t manage to finish hers so took the leftovers for lunch the next day. If I’d have thought more strategically I could have done the same, but it was just too good not to lap up.

The verdict

Padthai Hot Pot and Grill offers a delicious taste of Thai cuisine in a relaxed, welcoming environment.

The team really were sweet and while service did slip in the end, it didn’t negatively affect my time.

The food was delicious and the flavour was very much there for all of the dishes I tried. I’m going to be more adventurous next time and order something I’ve never tried before.

When you have the confidence a venue can nail the classics, that’s when things get even more exciting…