thai paradise

★★★ ★ (4 stars)

recently a couple of the thai place restaurant locations have closed (bummer economy!).  in fact, the two closest to me - the north and downtown location were victims.  i wasn't aware of this, and had happily made the trip to downtown kc for some serious thai indulgence.  after realizing it had closed had closed, we headed over to thai paradise on grand boulevard.  we had eaten there once before, and i'm happy to report, it's as delicious as i remember.

we started with the crispy fried tofu.  although the tofu chunks were a little too big, they were still nicely crunchy.  we ordered the spice tray to kick our sauce up a bit. although the tray isn't as robust as the thai place spice tray, they do have jalapenos marinated in soy - seriously awesome.  for our entree, we both ended up getting the tofu cashew, but there are plenty of other options.  and, they don't use fish sauce, so veg folks can order safely.  the helping was very large, definitely enough for leftovers (and chock full of cashews).

the staff was super friendly and definitely were knowledgeable on the vegan/fish sauce issue.  it's not a glamorous place, but the tables all ornamental hand carved wood - gorgeous.  the tables are all small, so it can be a nice little date restaurant.  i would definitely put this as my second favourite thai place in kansas city, and who knows - now that it is the closest one to me, maybe it will become number one.

website:
thai paradise



location:
1513 grand boulevard
kansas city, mo
816.221.5727