Blue Elephant Thai Restaurant in Shunyi has been serving authentic Thai cuisine and a few Vietnamese favorites since the start of 2014. The food is fresh and the flavors vibrant. The main menu has chili ratings so you know which dishes are milder and more suited to younger diners. Appetizers include prawn cakes, spring rolls, chicken wrapped in pandan leaf, and their specialty dish, tom yum soup. The restaurant is popular with the Shunyi lunchtime crowd, offering a great value set menu.
Mains include traditional Thai curries, lime and sesame chicken, sweet and sour shrimp with pineapple, and pad thai noodles. With a great range of traditional desserts, Thai teas, fresh juices and shakes, there’s something for all the family to enjoy. A separate kids’ menu features pineapple fried rice with seasonal vegetables, yellow curry chicken with rice and baguette, mango chicken with vegetable and rice, or chicken satay with fries and fruit salad. Kid’s meals cost RMB 48-58 and include a glass of juice.
Our enthusiastic young diner, Sami Kamal (age 6), is a student at Dulwich College Beijing. Living in Beijing since the summer of 2014, Sami is vegetarian and her favorite foods are the Persian dishes her dad cooks. Sami is excited to try a few of Blue Elephant’s dishes, including vegetable yellow curry with steamed rice (RMB 42), Chiang Rai vegetable spring rolls (RMB 32), coconut sago pudding (RMB 32), and a fresh orange juice (RMB 25). Sami thought the curry was “delicious,” packed with broccoli, cauliflower, and other vegetables, with a hint of spice. The spring rolls were a big hit – nice and crispy on the outside. Dessert was sweet, light, and very refreshing.
Blue Elephant is spread over three floors. The main restaurant on the ground floor has seating for 70 diners, with a lovely outdoor dining patio. The second floor has two private dining rooms and the third floor is taking up by a large rooftop terrace. Thai artifacts, traditional furniture and plenty of plants give the restaurant an authentic and relaxed atmosphere. The main restaurant is non-smoking, but smoking is allowed in the private dining rooms and outside areas. Highchairs and kid’s plastic utensils are available. The toilets are western-style and very clean, with soap and paper provided. Blue Elephant also provides catering, take-out, and delivery services.
Blue Elephant Thai Restaurant
Daily 10am-10pm. 883 Pinnacle Plaza, Tianzhu Town, Shunyi
District (8046 0862, 186 1171 8030) 顺义区天竺镇荣祥广场883号
This article originally appeared on page 32 of the beijingkids June 2015 issue. Click here to read the issue for free on Issuu.com. To find out how you can get your own copy, email distribution@truerun.com.
