The Best Thai Food in Portland OR
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The best Thai food in Portland OR, according to the experts: the James Beard Awards, The Infatuation, and The New York Times have all weighed in, and their honors are what rank this list. Langbaan comes out on top, and the good stuff runs deepest in Portland.
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Nong's Khao Man Gai and Yaowarat hold the next two places. The New York Times shows up on more of this list than any other guide, with AAA next.
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Rank 1. Langbaan
Thai
Tucked into a 30-seat room inside Phuket Cafe, Langbaan runs themed multi-course Thai dinners built around a specific region or historical period, a different framework each seating. The menu says five courses; chef Earl Nissom sends out more than twelve. It took the James Beard Award for Outstanding Restaurant in 2024. The sommelier is often on the floor to talk through the wine pairings, which, given the food, is a conversation worth having.
The awards
- James Beard Awards James Beard Awards: 2024 · Winner · Outstanding Restaurant
- The Infatuation The Infatuation: Infatuation’s Highest-Rated Restaurants In America
- The New York Times The New York Times: The 25 Best Restaurants in Portland, Ore., Right Now
- James Beard Awards 2024 · Winner · Outstanding Restaurant
- The Infatuation Infatuation’s Highest-Rated Restaurants In America
- The New York Times The 25 Best Restaurants in Portland, Ore., Right Now
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Nong's is a casual counter-service Thai spot that grew out of a one-dish food cart and still mostly sticks to the plan: poached chicken over rice cooked in the schmaltz, with a cup of clear broth on the side. The ginger sauce has the kind of following that has Portlanders keeping a bottle in the fridge door like a family heirloom. It's cheap, easy, and the city's default answer to a cold.
The awards
- Eater Eater: The All-Time Eater 38
- Portland Monthly Portland Monthly: The 50 Best Restaurants in Portland Right Now
- Eater Eater: The 38 Best Restaurants and Food Carts in Portland
- Eater The All-Time Eater 38
- Portland Monthly The 50 Best Restaurants in Portland Right Now
- Eater The 38 Best Restaurants and Food Carts in Portland
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Rank 3. Yaowarat
Thai
Paper lanterns and candles keep things moody at this night-market-style Chinese-Thai restaurant on SE Stark, inspired by Bangkok's Chinatown. The team behind Langbaan runs a freewheeling room where wide rice noodles and double-fried chive cakes share space with a kangaroo martini that landed on Esquire's list of the best martinis in America. The New York Times put it on their 2024 restaurant list, which is the kind of thing that happens when the food is this alive.
The awards
- Esquire Esquire: Kangaroo Martini · The Best Martinis in America
- The New York Times The New York Times: 2024 · The Restaurant List
- The New York Times The New York Times: The 25 Best Restaurants in Portland, Ore., Right Now
- Esquire Kangaroo Martini · The Best Martinis in America
- The New York Times 2024 · The Restaurant List
- The New York Times The 25 Best Restaurants in Portland, Ore., Right Now
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Rank 4. EEM
Texas BBQ Thai Food Hall
EEM is a Thai restaurant that also happens to run a Texas barbecue pit, which is the kind of sentence that sounds like a dare and somehow works. Brisket burnt ends land in coconut curry, and the BBQ fried rice arrives with plenty of heat. You eat at sidewalk huts or in the café-bar, pay prices that stay friendly, and tackle the tropical drinks with the urgency of people who parked six blocks away.
The awards
- AAA AAA: Approved
- The New York Times The New York Times: The Restaurant List
- Portland Monthly Portland Monthly: The 50 Best Restaurants in Portland Right Now
- AAA Approved
- The New York Times The Restaurant List
- Portland Monthly The 50 Best Restaurants in Portland Right Now
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The awards
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Rank 6. OK Chicken and Khao Soi
Northern Thai
Slushy machines churn Technicolor drinks behind the bar, which sets the tone for this Northern Thai restaurant occupying the storied space where Pok Pok once stood. Earl Ninsom runs the room and the kitchen turns out gai yang chicken with a chargrilled, fish-sauce funk and a khao soi that makes you keep reaching for the bowl. It landed on the New York Times Restaurant List in 2026.
The awards
- The New York Times The New York Times: 2026 · The Restaurant List
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The awards