Nara Thai, one of the Royal Thai Embassy’s Thai SELECT certified restaurants in Manila, finally opens in Molito Mall, Alabang! The only authentic Thai restaurant in the south, the Alabang branch is bigger and has better ambiance compared to their flagship branch in SM Mega Fashion Hall. We have been invited to the opening last March and celebrated Easter with the family in Molito.
Here are some tips together with our recommended Nara Thai favorites.
NARA THAI MOLITO
Nara Thai, voted as Bangkok’s Best Restaurant, continues to be one of the best authentic Thai restaurants in Manila as certified by a Thai SELECT seal awarded by the Royal Thai Embassy. Founded in 2003, the restaurant’s name is a tribute to one of its founders, Narawadee Srikarnchana. The Philippine franchise was launched in 2018 by Filipina entrepreneur Sheila Romero and continues to be resilient with their time-tested recipes and new innovations.
Related blog post: NARA THAI // Bangkok’s Best Thai Restaurant in Manila!
NARA THAI ALABANG
Molito Complex Madrigal Ave., Alabang, Muntinlupa (beside EACH Cafe)
Voted as Bangkok’s Best Thai Restaurant ✨
📞: +63 917 139 8434
FB: Nara Thai Philippines
IG: @narathaiph
Visit https://narathaiph.com/
Make sure to reserve the table with sofa lounge chairs that’s good for a big family. You can have seats at both ends of the table so that 7 people can fit. Loved the high ceiling feel.
You can have a more intimate table on the 2nd floor, and you can reserve it for your private functions.
Mike provided us with fast attentive service, and he was able to give good recommendations.
Nara Thai Molito Menu: Appetizer, Salad, Meat, Soup | Curry, Salad, Rice, Side Dish, Desserts
AUTHENTIC THAI FOOD
Ordering from the menu can be quite daunting at the start because they use the authentic Thai names of the dishes. Sometimes you’ll default to the “usual” Thai dishes if you don’t know the specialties. The serving sizes here are all a la carte.
APPETIZERS
At the end of the meal, the kids were raving about the Pad Thai, which was the fastest to serve. Make sure to mix the lemon and the different elements to balance the flavor. Otherwise, the taste profile would be on the sweeter side.
Tip: Make sure to ask the server to mix the dishes for you because they know how to do it properly.
I loved their catfish salad made from pure catfish meat which was fried to a good crisp. Only thing though, it took some time to prepare this so they were only able to serve it with the fried rice (and not as appetizer).
SOUP
Nara Thai’s Tom Yum was quite good — a bit spicy with just the right sourness and served in a golden bowl to preserve the heat. One bowl is just perfect for 7 people and instead of ordering two servings, I recommend to order other soup dishes.
It was hard to beat my mom’s expectation of Tom Yum because she was still looking for the Tom Yum of a Thai resto in Malate before. She still thinks that is the best.
But when my mom tasted this soup, she kept raving about it. This is my new favorite Thai soup — a spicy coconut soup that tasted like milky sinigang, the creaminess at odds with the sourness. Ang sarap!
They also have a vegetarian version with tofu and straw mushrooms for a healthier taste.
MAIN DISHES
Have you tried Nara Thai’s Massaman curry? You’ll love the rich taste of the curry and the generous chunks of beef.
Tip: Make sure to order white rice to savor the flavor of the curry. Does not go well with fried rice.
This pandemic innovation is now our favorite. The creamy yellow curry was served with a generous serving of Crab meat on top with chili and greens. Ang sarap rin! The grandparents loved it.
This duck dish was smothered with a sweet thick sauce. Best to eat with a bit of chili and basil to balance. Not a lot of people know they serve duck, a great celebratory dish for family feasts.
My mom and son loved the soft shell crab — crispy and sweet and the crab was not malansa.
FRIED RICE
Filipinos love Bagoong rice, which you will really crave for sometimes. The key is to mix it properly. Went well with the saucy dishes.
Ordered another set of rice for variety. The pineapple rice was good but too sweet. I would rather order a salty fried rice or just plain white rice.
DESSERTS
My mom and dad still love this dessert. The kids were into the manga, of course, and the suman with the sweet coconut sauce.
The best dessert here is the Bua Loy, like halo halo Thai version a la ginataang bilo bilo. Ang sarap! You can finish a whole bowl of this because the rice dumplings are not too big.
Get the all-time favorite takoh to satisfy your sweet Thai cravings.
Note: Loved the attention to details at Nara Thai — their banana leaves even have a burnt branding.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Overall, this was the perfect celebration feast for the family that both grandparents and kids loved! Everybody loves Thai food because of its sweet sour taste profile. Some of the dishes in Nara are spicy though so make sure to only mix the chili for those who like it or you can have the spiciness of the dish lowered. Also, the dishes are biased towards sweetness to appeal to the Filipino palate, so make sure to specify not to make it too sweet.
You can order the usual Filipino Thai favorites — Tom Yum, Pad Thai, Bagoong Rice and Mango Sticky Rice. But the magic of Nara Thai is in its Thai soup dishes like Chicken Coconut Soup; specialty dishes like Duck and Soft Shell crab; our curry favorites, Massaman Beef Curry and Crab Yellow Curry; and unique Bua Loy dessert. Budget about ₱1,000/head for your next Thai feast.
Make sure to reserve in advance. Know what to order already so you can order quickly. Our Easter lunch was perfect because we had mass at 9:00am and the resto opened at 11:00am.
NARA THAI ALABANG
Molito Complex Madrigal Ave., Alabang, Muntinlupa (beside EACH Cafe)
Voted as Bangkok’s Best Thai Restaurant ✨
📞: +63 917 139 8434
FB: Nara Thai Philippines
IG: @narathaiph
Visit https://narathaiph.com/
Related blog post: NARA THAI // Bangkok’s Best Thai Restaurant in Manila!
Live an Awesome Life with Christ,
Founder & Digital Creator, Our Awesome Planet
Disclosure: We paid for our meals and we also got invited for the opening of Nara Thai Molito. I wrote this article with my biases, opinions, and insights.
P.S. Don’t miss the Affogato at EACH for dessert — soft serve milk ice cream with coffee. Or get the fake affogato version with chocolate instead.
