Time for an update. It’s been eighteen months since I penned this article espousing the culinary charms of Pornpimon Prathummas – chef and owner of Kin Sen Noodle House (2819 S 2300 E) at the time. Prathummas has been at the helm of a variety of excellent spots through the years, and in recent months, has relocated to the all-new Kin Sen Thai (3011 E 3300 S, Millcreek).
The move slightly Southward comes with an evolution of the menu – fusing the best of Kin Sen, with another old name – Kao Thai (formerly my favorite Thai eatery in SLC). Explaining the new location, Prathummas tells me she’s working hard to build a singular menu, one that’s completely unique in Utah. On that will also a highlight a number of Thai street foods.
Scrolling through the new roster, Kao Mok Kai (pictured top) is where I start, a completely new dish for me. The magic of the composition is borne of the dish baking, chicken atop rice. A chicken leg quarter, resplendent in golden-yellow turmeric, crowns a pile of Jasmine rice tinged with a savory garlic blast. Fatty richness from the chicken courses down through the grain for a finish that delivers a slightly caramelized bite to the rice. Heavenly.
A flutter of fried shallot provides some sweet balance; on the side an incendiary sauce with just the right side of powerful fish sauce. After an inordinate amount of time oohing (and pontificating to my long-suffering wife,, “Hey can we eat now”) I spend the next thirty minutes riffing through websites on how to replicate this at home.
Kao Kha Moo comes next. Lusciously tender pork – the obvious product of many an hour’s braise – comes replete with a nice strap of jiggly fat across the top. As with all slow cooking, the pork has a soulfullly rewarding depth of flavor, glazed with hoi sin caramel sweetness. Pickled greens provide contrasting acidity and texture, while soft eggs deliver a river of creamy yolk with a few prods. Simplicity executed with aplomb.
Other harder-to-find dishes litter the menu at Kin Sen Thai, the likes of Kao Soi, Yentafo, Boat Noodles, Kao Man Kai, and Thai Sukiyaki to name just five. Those are supported by more commonplace dishes which are also executed with noticeable detail; a recent order of panang curry billowed with arresting lime leaf.
There’s more than a little to love here. As I mentioned earlier, Prathummas has serious talent (her CV counts more than a decade working alongside a certain Valter Nassi). Those skills fused with her restless energy to keep pushing boundaries, well, keep an eye on this menu.
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Hi, I’m Stuart, nice to meet you! I’m the founder, writer and wrangler at Gastronomic SLC. I’m a multiple-award winning journalist and have written in myopic detail about the Salt Lake City dining scene for the better part of seventeen years.
I’ve worked extensively with multiple local publications from Visit Salt Lake to Salt Lake Magazine, not least helped to consult on national TV. Pause those credits, yep, that’s me! I’m also a former restaurant critic of more than five years, working for the Salt Lake Tribune. I’m largely fueled by a critical obsession with rice, alliteration and the use of big words I don’t understand. What they’re saying about me: “Not inaccurate”, “I thought he was older”, “I don’t share his feelings”.
Want to know more? This is why I am the way I am.
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