Dance Night Date Discovery - Suppanee House Of Thai Becomes Our New Favorite!

Supannee House

January 28, 2016

After our weekly dance class, we've made it a Friday night tradition to dine somewhere we've never been, and our most recent choice blew us away. Supannee House of Thai in Point Loma is a family run establishment, offering a curated draft list of San Diego craft beers and delicious dishes made with farm-fresh produce, locally sourced seafood, and love, served by a charming and gracious waitstaff. Supannee quickly became our new favorite Thai restaurant in San Diego!

Supannee House (yes, that is her real name) grew up in Bangkok, Thailand with nine brothers and sisters. She met her husband Alec House while working as a server at a local Thai restaurant. Their tableside talks soon blossomed into a serious relationship, and eventually, marriage and family. After launching a successful catering business with the help of her older sister, Chef Sangwan 'Wan' Chant, Supannee and Alec decided to open their own brick-and-mortar restaurant. With help from her family, including Chef Wan running the kitchen, Supannee opened her namesake eatery in a quaint shopping plaza adjacent to Point Loma's Shelter Island in early 2011.

As we entered, we were greeted with smiles and quickly sat at the bar where we noticed a tap list featuring some of our local favorites, a variety that is quite rare for a Thai restaurant. The interior was warm and cozy, bustling for dinner service on a Friday night. We ordered a couple pints of Green Flash Le Freak ($6) and commented to one another how amazing all the food smelled as we watched dishes coming out of the kitchen.

The menu is replete with mouth-watering options, including many unique specials. Being that it was our first visit, we played it safe with our order and stuck with some of our usual favorites. We began with shrimp summer rolls ($7.50) not quite expecting the work of art that arrived to our table. Thin rice paper rolls filled with shrimp, crisp lettuce leaves, beautiful, garden-fresh flowers, mint and cilantro, shredded red cabbage, carrots and cucumbers came served with a spicy peanut sauce and sweet & sour plum sauce. [Insider tip: ask for the Screaming Tiger sauce as an additional dipping option. You will not be disappointed.] We knew at first sight and bite that we were in for a treat.

When our aromatic green papaya salad with shrimp was presented, we dove in and immediately declared it to be the most flavorful and tastiest version we had ever eaten, boasting deeply layered flavors, accentuated by fish sauce, spice and garlic. At the time, we hadn't realized that the woman we were dining next to at the bar was the owner.

"We use very fresh produce that comes from our own gardens," said Supannee. "We even grew those edible flowers that were in your summer rolls."

Supanee sources many of her vegetables and herbs from two of her own expansive gardens that she personally oversees - one in Point Loma and the other in El Cajon. Her harvest includes lemon grass, Thai basil, three varieties of eggplant, galanga root, a variety of peppers and chilies, lettuces, Chinese broccoli, green beans, bitter melon, wing beans, long beans, heirloom Italian squashes, heirloom tomatoes, avocados, limes, Kaffir limes, cilantro and more. The freshness of her produce is evident when you taste her cuisine.

We complimented her food and her establishment and began what turned out to be an amazing conversation with our new friend. We talked of her family, the inspiration behind her menu, the laborious processes behind some of he dishes, including curries that Chef Wan makes from scratch using vegetables and herbs, not powders. Supannee beamed with pride and excitement as she spoke. The friendly conversation was long and winding and delightful. 

We continued eating, sweating along the way due to the welcomed spiciness of our dishes. My chicken panang curry ($11) was fantastic, rich and filled with flavor, but the drunken fried rice ($11 with chicken) really knocked my socks off. Thai jasmine rice is stir-fried with minced garlic, plenty of Thai chili, carrot, broccoli, Chinese broccoli, mushroom, onion, green and red peppers and Thai basil, a meal in and of itself. Our waitress and the gentlemen next to us both enjoyed poking fun at me as my face turned redder and more glistening with every bite.

Pad kee mao, also called "Drunken Noodles," is one of Lady SanDiegoVille's favorite dishes in the whole wide world. She likes it very spicy, with extra vegetables, no meat, no tofu. She's eaten the dish at countless restaurants around San Diego and the rest of the country. Suffice it to say, Supannee's version ($10) won her favor. "I'll never go anywhere else for Thai!" she exclaimed with her mouth full.

As we sat there, we noticed that Supannee and many of the servers knew patrons by name, and vice versa. We witnessed friendly interactions, questions about family and recent vacations, as though we entered into Supannee's home, rather than her restaurant. I'd move in in a second.

We cannot wait to return to Supannee House of Thai to explore the elaborate menu, which includes many enticing seafood specials that use fish caught each morning, sourced fresh from local Shelter Island fisherman. Experience Supannee House of Thai for yourself at 2907 Shelter Island Drive, #110. The restaurant also offers customizable catering and convenient online ordering for take-out. For more information, visit sdthai.com or call 619-795-8424 (THAI).