Wok Box - Wok this way?

Wok Box Fresh Asian Kitchen



Wok Box is a new place off of Broadway just north of the south loop.  It is in the Olde English Village strip mall area and isn't much to look at from the outside, although they have done a good job with a face lift of the strip mall area.

The spread:  I was very excited to give Wok Box a try.  They are small chain that has a lot of things going for it.  They have an expansive menu focusing on Asian and Indian cuisine.  Of note, they prominently display vegan and gluten free products.  They have a noodle box with noodles and various topping of meats and sauces (kung pao, spicy korean, etc), a rice box (Indian butter chicken, mongolian beef, etc), curry box (rice and curry of a couple different styles), Banh mi (vietnamese sandwich, although the Tyler location may not have these), Pho (vietnamese style noodle soup), and various appetizers (samosas, egg roll, spring roll, etc).  They also offer a nice selection of craft beers. 

The verdict:  I was very excited to try this place out, particularly because Tyler doesn't have an Indian restaurant anymore, and I was pumped to get some good Indian food.  The place seemed hip, with a well staffed kitchen and the food came out fast.  I got some samosas, Indian butter chicken and spicy Thai chicken curry (and a craft beer).  Well, the first thing I was disappointed with was the portion size for the price.  The chicken was bland and unseasoned.  They apparently use the same chicken for all the chicken dishes, so it was a little monotonous. The indian sauce was scanty and not authentic (although it was "Indian" style, the flavor profile was a bit bland and single note), the curry had very little heat and again didn't taste authentic (watered down for the masses).  The samosas were fairly good, but again the spices were a little bland.  Overall, I was disappointed with the lack of aggressive seasoning/spices that I am accustomed to in authentic Indian/Thai cuisine.  I think they have a lot of things going for them, but it just didn't scratch that Indian food itch.

Edible Tyler Roses:  2.5 out of 5, middle of the road, non-authentic Indian/Asian food.

Basil Thai Cafe - best thai food in town?

Basil Thai Cafe
http://basilthaicafe.com/

Pad Thai

Thai egg rolls

Basil Thai is a little mom and pop place just off of the loop and 5th street.  It is located in a non-descript strip mall that is mostly hidden from the street.  The restaurant decor is a little lacking, oh there are various thai/asian themed decorations along the wall, but the floor is laminate, the tables and chairs are cheap and you place your order at the counter to be brought out to you. 

The spread: The menu is definitely Thai cuisine.  You can choose from various appetizers to include egg rolls, thai egg rolls, pot stickers, Tom Yum Goong (traditional spicy soup), etc.  The entrees range from fried rice (to include spicy Thai variety), Pad Thai, a variety of noodle dishes, curry dishes, spicy basil meat dishes and a few other Thai stir fry dishes.  You can choose chicken, shrimp and beef in many of the different dishes.  They also have some sweet dessert dishes.  I have tried the regular egg rolls, Thai egg rolls, Kra Paw (spicy stir fry), fried rice and yellow curry.

The verdict: The highlight of the night was the pan fried dumpling (pot stickers), they were crispy on the outside, chewy on the inside and were accompanied by a delicious dipping sauce.  Both the Thai egg rolls and regular egg rolls were good and cooked well, they just lacked any bold flavors to stick out on their own.  The fried rice was also very good.  Unfortunately, the dishes I was the most excited about were the most disappointing.  First of all, the chicken used in the Kra paw, the curry, the Pad Thai and the fried rice was all the same - precooked white chicken meat.  The Pad Thai was just ok, they had a little too much sweetness in their sauce for me and there was no spice to it (as indicated on the menu).  There were two stars indicating a "stimulating kick" on the curry and Kra paw, but both barely registered on the ole heat meter for me.  I would put the heat level somewhere between mild Pace picante sauce and medium.  I was expecting some real heat.  The curry was just okay, and just tasted a little watered down.  The Kra paw was also just ok, it was almost as though they were dumbing down the spices for the Tyler palate. 

Edible Tyler Roses: 3.5 out of 5, Because this is the only Thai place in town, I recommend checking it out, but it is mediocre Thai food (still the best in Tyler) and one of the few places you can get almost 'authentic' ethnic food.