Sommai “Bee” Inboon zips from Siam Orchid’s kitchen to the tables with the sureness of a career server, her arms stacked with plates of shimmering noodles and steaming pots of soup. A diner’s appreciative grin cracks her focused expression into a big smile. Inboon, who hails from the inland town of Ratchaburi in Western Thailand, has owned the low-key Thai spot since 2014 and, in the ensuing decade, made the menu her own, building on traditional dishes and flavors with her own takes on local favorites. It’s been a collaborative effort between her and husband Wutthichai Thongnoum, whom she met in San Francisco while working at different restaurants.
Ask about her favorites and Inboon is happy to share, likely steering you toward starting with the Mieng-kham appetizer. A bamboo tray arrives with a stack of spinach leaves on which to add pinches of fresh ginger, lime, toasted coconut, peanuts, minced purple shallots, chiles and sweet peanut sauce. It’s a chance to revel in pure flavor and texture, lighting up every part of the palate. A meatier option is the crispy pork belly, marinated and juicy under a light crust, the fat countered with a light, tangy chili sauce, wonderful with a bite of sticky rice.
Chu-chi offers complexity with chunks of tilapia fried crisp and tossed with curry sauce enlivened by galangal, kaffir lime leaf, tart and spicy green peppercorns, sweet bell peppers and eggplant. The Basil Ta-Lay shows off more fried fish, perfectly seared scallops, shrimp, tender squid and mussels with bell peppers and onion, Thai basil and chiles. There’s a balance of heat in both these seafood specialties, but the kitchen is happy to dial it up on request.
Sometimes, Inboon says, laughing, a customer will ask to “make it 20” on a scale of 1-10. But if they can’t stand the heat, it’s still going on the bill. (This may be a good time to mention the drink menu offers fragrant lemongrass iced tea and milky teas alike.)
Those looking for the sweet taste of tamarind might try the Goong-Todd Sauce Ma-kham, lightly battered and fried shrimp and mushrooms tossed with crispy garlic, onion and roasted chiles in a bright tamarind sauce. The Khao-soi, a dish with plenty of variation in Thailand, is her take on Northern style curry noodles, creamy with coconut sauce, a handful of crunchy noodles on top. The pickled ginger in place of the usual garnish is a nice surprise for which you can thank Thongnoum’s taste.
A longer than usual roster of desserts is another happy turn of events. Peruse the variations on steamed egg custards, black sticky rice with juicy hunks of jackfruit and coconut cream — and jump on the seasonal kabocha filled with egg custard if it’s available, as Inboon only offers it while pumpkins are at their peak. “I just choose the good season,” she says.
This article appears in Humboldt Insider Fall/Winter 2024.
