Somtum Der

Awesome food, very different from any meal I’ve had related to Thai, with some excellent flavors. Order what looks good, dive in, and enjoy.
Had the Larb Moo and the Seafood with Suki sauce, both of which were awesome. Very well priced for shareable plates, and drinks were in line with East Village pricing as well. Definitely bringing others back for.

I’ve spent four months in northern Thailand where the food there is «Isaan style». Ever since coming back, I’ve been on a search for authentic Isaan style Thai food in nyc. Finally. Finally I have found a place.
The main dish is «somtam/​somtum» or papaya salad. I love how this place has so many different varieties. My favorite ones are the regular Thai papaya salad and the Isaan one with crab and fish paste. They also have big platters with the papaya salad in the middle, surrounded by different toppings. I’ve ordered it once but I didn’t like the toppings as much as just the papaya. It’s also quite pricey. The food here is VERY SPICY so be careful.
Another Thai staple dish is sticky rice. I ordered the grilled coconut sticky rice and oh my gosh, it was amazing. I also ordered grilled pork sticks (muu ping) which came with thin noodles. Also amazing! The soups here are all very good, my favorite being the pork cartilage soup. I also loved the spicy pork salad and fried chicken. Every bite was bringing back memories of my trip in Thailand.
I didn’t order any Pad Thai because let’s be real, all these other dishes are so much better. If you want real, delicious, Isaan style Thai food, definitely come here.

This was my first time eating Thai food outside of Pad Thai — i have a sensitive stomach and pallet so i eased my way into eating the sticky coconut rice and larb ped. Both were delicious, but i didn’t know if this was for me. The back and forth from spicy to sweet was difficult for me to eat. The food was well presented and in great proportions — the drink selection was also amazing. I would recommend this place to anyone who is a Thai fan — the ambiance was very welcoming and comfortable. The staff were very helpful and informative of items and ingredients in each meal.

NYC is never short of decent restaurants; yet there are not too many of them fortunate enough to be part of Michelin family — Somtum Der was one of those lucky ones that just got upgraded to the list. In my opinion, it well deserved the star!
They had a huge menu to choose from — I’m so glad that I consulted my friend so I knew exactly what to order. Marinated beef with Der style sticky rice — my favorite of the day. How can they mix the flavor of sweetness (rice) and spiciness (beef) so well that neither side overwhelmed? Papaya salad was another signature. Peanut and papaya made the best combo — just make sure to order mild spicy… Cannot skip dessert! My friend and I shared the black jelly ice and the coconut milk mochi, both were fantastic and had a strong Thai tilt!
Reservation was a must! By the time we started to eat, the place was already completely packed! There was no miss, from flavor to ambience.

I came here after a long hump day (Wednesday) with 3 of my friends. We were just getting out from the music venue downstairs. We came here on a whim and truthfully because we were literally right downstairs. Needless to say, Best thing about this place is the ambiance, duck sauce (sweet sauce) & ginger ale. There was a tall Caucasian manager maybe in a Powder blue shirt who we felt like was watching us like a hawk. Yes sir, we’re 4 black women in an Isan Thai restaurant. Anyway, the food was bad. Drinks were below mediocre and they treated us like we were elephants in a room.

The layers, textures and taste with the soups is nothing short of amazing! I was astonished by the pleasant and delicate spices that unfolded throughout the gastronomical journey. The menu offers tasty options for those who adhere to a non-​carnivorous nutritional regimen. Somtum was definitely the best Thai that I have EVER had the pleasure of experiencing; even the cocktails were in a class of their own.
Of note, we travelled from Washington, DC to NYC specifically to give the Michelin guide a run for its money. This cuisine was definitely worth the trip, as we made the decision to dine just hours shy of an impending blizzard!

The food was spectacular but the service well below par, especially for a newly Michelin starred restaurant.
I don’t usually complain about service but it took half an hour for me to get the drink I’d ordered — the Siam Sunbeam. My friends Lemongrass Juice took another half an hour too. But they’re inconsistent with their timing. Other drinks at the table came in under two minutes. They seemed tremendously understaffed and had a difficult time following what we ordered. Earlier when I’d called to update our reservation, the person on the line said he’d updated it but hadn’t actually. When arranging the table for our party of 7, it took the waiter 5 minutes just to understand instructions. Our food an inordinately long time to get to the table too.
The food, however, was spectacular. Papaya salad, seafood suki, the pork fried rice and the panna cotta were all amazing (and affordable)!
I don’t think this is anywhere near Michelin quality. I’m not sure how Thai places like Zabb Elee and this restaurant get starred despite having alrightish (and very affordable) food. I’d probably not be dying to go again. Nothing spectacular.

I must say I think this is the best Thai restaurant in NYC. The food is very nice and very spicy. Although it’s americanized a little bit, I think its taste is closest to real Thai food compare to other restaurants in NYC.
The most impressive dish for me is the shrimp sashimi (a must try). Even though it was very spicy, its taste was so nice. A little bit sour from the source, sweet from the shrimps and very very spicy from the chilli (we ordered medium spicy and I thought I had a burn in my mouth. But believe me, it was totally worth it!!!). I suggest you order lemon grass drink. It tastes nice and different and might help you with the spicy from the food.
I also love the panna cotta thai tea. I am a big fan of Thai tea, and this dessert melted my heart. Although I think it might be a little bit creamy for some people, the feel of the panna cotta melting in my mouth made me feel like I’m one of the happiest person in the world .
The decoration of the restaurant is very modern and cozy. The bathroom is clean and organized. The waiters were caring and helpful. I suggest you should make a reservation because it’s full very soon. The food camr quickly after 15 minutes of the order.
I would have given this restaurant 4.5 stars if Unilocal has 0.5 point. The only reason it couldn’t be 5 stars was because the waiter messed up our order a little bit and we had to waited for the last dish around 15 minutes.
I love this restaurant and I will definitely come back to try other dishes.

SD is one of the few CHEAP Michelin restaurants in NYC. I have had so many bad experiences with unauthentic Asian food in Manhattan before, but I once again lift up my expectation because of one Michelin star. After one dinner at the small restaurant in East Village, I have to raise my glass to their beautiful performance.
I love how Somtum Der moves its exact food quality from Bangkok to Manhattan. Most ISAN Thai flavors (from Northeastern Thailand) come out as too strong for Americans, so many restaurants decide to remove their signature fieriness. I’m glad that SD values culinary culture more than commodities.
If you think you know Thai food, I challenge you to go to Somtum Der. Isan food is incredibly SALTY, SOUR, AND HOT. You may shed your tears and burn your throat (seriously tho’). You may feel extremely unpleasant, but enjoy that, that is the GENUINE quality that no other restaurant dares to do. Grilled Sticky Rice is not salty, not sour, and not at all hot, so it is the most popular dish on Unilocal because of course, it is the most comfortable to eat.
You may dislike fish sauce, dislike Thai food, and dislike Somtum Der. But you cannot deny its authenticity.
And if you LOVE real food, you better reserve. SD is sold out every night.
Appetizers+Entrees: ⁵⁄₅ (heck yeah); Desserts: ⁴⁄₅ (too sweet and too big); Service: ⁴⁄₅ (they forgot my order twice)

Nice restaurant for some small plate action to share with friends. It would be tough to fill up on just one plate here, but if you bring a friend and share, I think it’s definitely worth it. If you like spicy I would consider this place a must try as they don’t try to just make food spicy, it’s also TASTY. I actually enjoyed the sweat dripping down my forehead because it tasted amazing.
The restaurant itself is pretty clean and modern looking, but the lights were a little wonky the last time I went. Nothing that wouldn’t make this a fun place to go on a date though. The beer selection was average and the prices of the multiple dishes really adds up quickly. That said, I’d definitely come back and try it with someone who enjoys spicy food.

Trendy/​casual restaurant, pretty roomy (for a Thai restaurant), and really tasty stuff. The food was delicious — every dish we ordered was a flavor bomb (in the best way possible). I’ve often heard that Thai food is difficult to make because it takes just the right balance of salty/​sweet/​sour/​spice, and when it’s done right it is addictive.
The papaya salad with salted egg was really good, not overly salty and refreshing. The veggie dish makes me feel better about the meat and carbs to come. We also had grilled marinated pork with a side of coconut rice, which was shaped onto a skewer and also grilled… amazing. The pad thai mun poo (crab) was kind of underwhelming, the crab doesn’t have a strong presence. Sadly I dined with only one friend and could only finish this amount of food — I recommend coming with a group of 4+ and order family style.

The noodles, seafood, vegetables and sauce of the Seafood Suki are delicious. I recommend it! Also, the fried rice with crab meat was very good. The traditional Dong Der Lao big platter looked great but, besides the Somtum and Pad Thai, it wasn’t that tasty. The Martini Der is good and that was the first time I’ve seen Singha Light. I’d definitely return.

If I lived closer, I would definitely come here more often/​get delivery! This is quite possibly one of the more yummy and authentic thai places in NYC :). Although I wasn’t completely wowed by the dishes (aka it wasn’t that unique or anything), I still thought everything was cooked well! This place also came highly recommended by my sister, so I had to come by to try some of the food.
The food came out pretty quick for us, and the first thing served was the thai prawn sashimi. Loved the presentation! I was the first one to try it, so I ate it as is… man, was this dish spicy! If you don’t want your tongue to be numb throughout the meal, I’d suggest scraping off at least some of the chilis and chili seeds off first! But still, I thought dish was sooo good!
Everyone raves about the deep fried chicken thigh, so I got two orders for the 4 of us. This was, in my opinion, super delicious, but my friends thought it was good but nothing special. Totally reminded me of the huge deep fried chicken steaks (炸雞排) from taiwan nightmarkets, or the popcorn chicken (鹽酥雞) — similar flavors. Came out super fresh with crispy skin and moist chicken thigh meat (the two things I absolutely appreciate with my food… that it comes out hot, and that there’s a crispy element somewhere haha).
We also got an order of the Tom Saab Kradook On, which is described as a spicy Isan pork cartilage soup. I actually didn’t know this would be a lemongrass soup, but I didn’t mind it! It was definitely more sour than most lemongrass soups I’ve had, but I loved the bits of cartilage in there.
From past Unilocal pictures, I noticed grilled Sticky Rice everywhere, so we got that too — nothing special… just sticky rice balls on a skewer. After the spicy prawn sashimi, I honestly couldn’t taste much of the coconut sweet flavors at first, but after a while, I liked the subtle sweetness.
For the main entrée rice/​noodle dishes, we ordered two things:
Khao Moo Tod Kratiam Prik Thai (Fried garlic pork with jasmine rice) — again, nothing special… tasted kind of like korean kalbi. Came with a fried egg on top.
Pad Ki Mao Pork and Basil (Spicy flat rice noodles, wok-​fried with ground pork and crispy basil leaves) — Loved this! The flat rice noodles were made sooooooooooooo well. It’s kind of like how you want pasta to be al dente. This is how I imagine rice noodles should always taste. It had a good chewy consistency (in a good way); I feel like most of the rice noodles I get in the city are slightly mushier than they should be (In Taiwan, we refer to this texture as «QQ» haha).
For dessert, I had to get the Black Jelly with Fresh Milk that my sister has been raving about. Did not disappoint! If shaved ice and grass jelly had a baby, this would be it haha. They probably crushed up the ice first, mixed it grass jelly (and red beans I think), and refroze it again. Then, probably a drizzle of condensed milk /​sweetened milk. YUMMMMM.
Prices are super affordable; Next time, I need to try their Tum Thai Kai Kem — Thai spicy papaya salad with salted egg!!!

This was my first time dining at a Thai restaurant that specializes in food from the Isan region. According to what I learned from the menu, Isan is an area in the northern region of Thailand with specialty dishes including sticky rice, hot soups and charred meat. The food skews on the spicier side as well.
It is small inside so reservations are recommended, especially for the weekend. It was hopping on Saturday night. We started with the spicy pork spring rolls — when they say spicy, they mean it! I enjoyed the crispy coating and mayo-​based sauce to help balance the spiciness of the meat. I ordered the garlic pork for my main and enjoyed it very much. This dish was not spicy. The meat was very tender and the garlic flavor was just right.

I highly recommend:
Green papaya salad with salted egg ($ 11)
Crab pad thai ($ 15)
Marinated grilled beef
Definitely expensive for Thai food, but very authentic flavors. Expect a wait unless you have a reservation. Better than your ordinary thai place, but i thought it was pricey for 1) where they’re located (i.e not close to a subway and hard to get to); 2) the small portions you’re getting. But service is fast and friendly and the restaurant is beautiful.

Nice spot. No wait ~9pm on a Saturday night. If you don’t have reservations at nearby bars (and encounter 2hr+ waits everywhere you try), this is a good option for some tasty cocktails (not quite artisanal but creative & sweet). There’s food as a bonus. Friendly service.
* Mangosteen — 4 stars
Very tasty, refreshing, and not too sweet! This does *not* actually taste like mango. There is a fruit called mangosteen that actually tastes more like a lychee.
* Lemongrass Martini — 3.5 stars
Light and refreshing. Not quite what my boyfriend was looking forward to, as he wanted something stronger. It was a bit weak even for me.
* Cocktail with Honey (forgot actual name!) — 4 stars
More boozy than all the other drinks, still tasty and pretty well balanced considering. You have to stir it to keep the honey from settling at the bottom!
* Per Pia Larb Moo (deep fried spicy pork spring roll $ 7) — 3 stars
Good crunch, a nice light appetizer, but this was pretty spicy! The filling was quite gooey, you can’t exactly taste chunks of meat, and flavor-​wise the spice kind of took over.
* Chef’s Signature Wok-​fried Seafood Suki (wok-​fried rice vermicelli w/​seafood, vegetables, & signature suki sauce $ 12) — 3 stars
Decent. I liked the vermicelli, but it clumped together quite a bit. Not too flavorful, seafood a tad overcooked.
* Pad Thai Mun Poo (special pad thai made w/​crabmeat and crab pasted w/​home-​styled sauce. $ 15) — 3.5 stars
This was good, and the crab meat was unique. Quite strong on the tangy flavors.

Expect to not feel your mouth for about a day after this meal. If you don’t like spicy food, this is NOT the place for you. If you like spicy food, this is the only place you want to go. Stop searching New York… I legit don’t even KNOW how they make things so perfect and so hot and so addicting, but they do.
Every dish here is delicious. They are complex and have layers and layers of flavor. I personally am a huge fan of their signature somtum’s and their crab phadthai.
My favorite somtum is the one with the salted duck egg. I highly suggest it because the flavors just explode in your mouth. The thin slices of young papaya, with their beautiful blend of spices, peanuts, basil, lime and lemongrass, and salty duck egg to even out the sweet and spice. It’s perfect. When eating the somtum, my mouth is on fire and my brain and stomach are begging for more. They don’t want me to stop. Ever.
The crab phadthai is my favorite main there. I know. Typical to order the Phad Thai at a Thai place, but this dish is nothing typical. The flavors are nicely complex and they put a lot of crab meat in that dish. It makes you think of what fishermen would eat after a long work day. Hearty, fresh, quickly made. It is comfort food at its finest. Of course, with a kick.
The prices are legit and the staff are patient and explain their dishes well. My fiancé and I have made this one of our go to places when we want some real thai food.

When a friend asked how does it compare to Kin Kao, it’s because Kin Kao is also Michelin Recommended, got written up in New York Times, and is located just off Union Square in San Francisco. It’s more inventive Thai than the normal stuff. Somtum Der has the same flair of inventiveness, but this being Manhattan, it’s less expensive than San Francisco (yes it’s true, I’ve seen it over and over again), and the food is prepared better (more competitive) and the setting slightly more creative (and more spread out, for that matter, because San Francisco real estate is even more insane at the moment).
So yes it’s better here. I think.
Papaya salad with salted egg reminds me a bit of Chinese southern food, where salted egg is more than just a condiment, it became essential in flavor enhancing creative cuisines, the other protein in the otherwise vegetarian dish.
Grilled Beef is nice and tender, came with rice balls on sticks. Very creative. Get that.
Best of all is the chicken soup. It was recommended by the server. I did not believe her at first, but I was glad that she insisted on me getting it, she’s Asian, I’m too, I figure she’s not pushing it onto me because I was white and therefore cannot withstand the exotica. The chicken soup is distinctive different, the use of dill reminded me of Laotian food. Which btw is my most favorite South East Asian Cuisine de jour (since circa 2013) and there are only three legit ones in the entire bay area, all in Oakland. I was puzzled but I had a slight suspicion that it is somewhat similar to Laotian food. And I would be right.
Here is the gist. Somtum Der originates from Bankok. It specializes in Isan (Northern Thai) cuisine. Which surprise, surprise, is a bit like Laotian. The main language is Isan, which is a dialect of the Lao language.
This is a Thai version of Laotian food. No wonder I’m stoked.
Had to catch Frank Stella at the Whitney, told the servers, and they served food quickly which meant, the service is excellent.
Not your typical thai, close to Laotian food, is the outpost for Bangkok’s most celebrated Isan (Northeastern Thai) restaurant, service is great. Restaurant is very pretty. Wifi available on premise. Ice coffee is strong.
Take F train and get off on 2^nd Ave, walk pass the long line on Katz’s deli, and you are not that far away from it. Do it. Do it.

Alright, Somtum Der won me over. Lunch is the way to go here. It’s less loud, less hot, and there is less crowding by your table. This is probably my new favorite lunch spot in NYC. It satisfies my craving for legit Thai food.
They do have some cheaper lunch deals/​combos, but since I only get to go to NYC every few months, I wanted to order what I was craving. First up was that delicious, highly addictive crispy catfish laab. It did not disappoint! I also ordered the grilled coconut sticky rice again. It’s great at mitigating the head of those spicy salads. Of course I had to get the som tum (papaya salad) with the rice paddy crab again because I love that heat and that funk.
The two new things I tried were the mushroom laab and the bamboo salad. The mushroom laab was not very spicy and I didn’t really care for the texture of it. It was a little gritty. Also, it was the most boring thing I’ve had here in terms of flavor. That being said, my husband enjoyed it. The bamboo salad was delicious. It’s listed like a soup, but it’s a room temperature salad. If you like bamboo, heat from peppers, and fresh herbs, and fish sauce, this is the salad for you. I also tried the rosella juice. It’s basically hibiscus juice and tastes like a sweet hibiscus tea. It’s was refreshing, but a little to sweet for my taste.
We made a reservation for lunch, but I don’t think it’s totally necessary like it was for dinner last time. There were people there, but plenty of empty tables the whole time. I left stuffed and happy. We passed on dessert this time, but I’m still curious about a few of the offerings. I’ll definitely be back.

Somtum Der was so damn good, I went there for lunch two days in a row the last time I hit the city. I’m a huge fan of Isan style Thai cuisine, and they did not disappoint.
The Good:
Food was excellent. Well prepared, well presented, and simply delicious. For me, the standout was the Pad Kee Mao with ground pork. It’s one of the best I’ve had. We also ordered Larb Tod (really delicious fried balls of spicy pork mince), Coconut milk marinated pork skewers (so tasty and tender with deep flavor), Grilled marinated beef with a chili sauce, and grilled sticky rice (so good, and infused with coconut flavor). Service was outstanding — very friendly and willing to discuss how things were prepared.
The Bad:
It’s not cheap. Really, it is kind of expensive. This is very simple fare and the costs were pretty high all things considered.
The Ugly:
I spilled my water. They have these tall, narrow glasses and my arm kept knocking into ‘em. Those glasses gotta go!
I strongly considered giving this place five stars. And I hope to give them the chance next time I stop in.