Soothr

How To Get In and What To Order

How to get in: Located in the middle of the bustling East Village, Soothr has become known as one of the best Thai places in New York City and was on the Michelin Guide in 2021, 2022 and 2023. Rightfully so, this makes getting into Soothr a bit difficult as it is always packed! I’ve been around 7 times, but most recently I went with a group of 12 people for a birthday. I emailed them about a month in advance (for group of 7+ you need to email them for reservations) and they were able to accommodate our group as long as we did a prefix menu – $68/person for a family-style 3 course meal and a welcome champagne drink. If you are a group of 6 or less, your best bet is walking in and putting your name down; the wait is usually around an hour, and you can go to one of the many bars nearby while you wait. You can also get reservations on Resy about a month in advance for any time, or if you don’t mind eating late, you can always find reservations day of for 9pm and later. 

Vibes and drinks: The inside of Soothr can be best described as elevated casual dining. The restaurant is made up of two sections, a back patio that is covered during the winter and an indoor dining space. It is on the smaller side and is always packed, making it very lively. From my other articles, you might now realize that I am a martini kind of girl, however I did try a couple of their signature drinks (and then switched to martinis). The Pytoon is a lovely mix of gin, matcha, kahlua and honey. It almost feels like you are drinking a matcha latte – it is creamy, earthy and sweet and very well balanced. The Mukdah is whiskey based drink with egg whites and orange. This drink is very similar to an old fashioned and while it is tasty, it is nothing special compared to their other unique drinks. Surprisingly, the Fah-Kram was one of my favorite drinks. This was a mix of vodka, pineapple juice, blue curaçao and lemon. I thought this would be too sweet for my liking, but it was actually very refreshing with just the right amount of sweetness from the pineapple. 

Fah-Kram

Food: Onto my favorite part – the food! I can confidently say that there is no dish at Soothr that I haven’t fully enjoyed. I will start with my favorite dish there (and quite possibly one of my favorite dishes I’ve ever had) – the Chicken Khao Soi, which is a yellow curry with egg noodles, crispy chicken and crispy egg noodles on top. The chicken is so juicy inside and the skin is perfectly crispy, while the curry is full of so many warm flavors, I drank the whole thing even after I finished all the chicken and noodles. Everytime I get this dish (7 times and counting!) I am always shocked at how creamy and flavorful it is, and I love the balance of the velvety curry and the crispy noodles on top. 

Khao Soi

Another stellar dish is the Panang Nuer Toon. Tender beef and crispy okra in a red, Panang curry sauce. The beef in this dish was phenomenal! It was so soft and melted in my mouth with each bite. In contrast, the okra was nice and crispy and worked so well together. Again – the curry sauce is so flavorful and lime-y, it is hard not to drink it straight from the bowl. A dish that surprised me was the Crab Fried Rice. I didn’t have high expectations for this one, but I really loved it! They were generous with the jumbo lump crab and the rice itself was so light and well-seasoned. It came with a green and red spicy sauce on the side that was not necessary but added even more flavor.

Panang Nuer Toon

Next up is the Koong Karee. This is one of their signature dishes and it did not disappoint! It is sauteed shrimps in an egg curry sauce with red peppers, onion, celery and scallions. Another flavor bomb! The curry sauce was so rich and the shrimps were very juicy and fresh. The Chicken Ki-Mao noodles are similar to a Pad See Ew – thick rice noodles pan fried with vegetables, egg and chicken. If you like spicy – this is your dish! The sauce is salty and delicious, the noodles are nice and chewy, and the vegetables super crisp. It was a perfect balance of textures and flavors. 

Ki-Mao

Lastly, the Roasted Eggplant Salad – made up of eggplant, lemongrass, shallot, mint, chili powder, puffy rice and a fried poached egg – is so light and refreshing, I always end up getting it as a side to my mains. The eggplant is soft and tender, while the shallots and puffy rice are crispy and add a lot of texture. The herbs and tangy vinaigrette make this salad very light and it is a good addition to the creamy currys. 

Eggplant Salad

Leave room for dessert, because the Mango Sundae (sweet sticky rice, mango compote, sweet coconut cream and homemade mango gelato) is so good! This is definitely an indulgent dessert, but it is well worth it. Everyone I have been with has said they crave it all the time!

Overall: This is one of my favorite places in the city! The food is always reliable and it's a fun place to take people from out of town as they are always shocked by how flavorful and different the food is. I recommend either going with a larger group and emailing them to get a reservation or just walking in to put your name down and wait about an hour or less for your table.

Must-Orders: Chicken Khao Soi, Panang Nuer Toon, Koong Karee, Roasted Eggplant Salad and Mango Sundae!