NoodleHead

Noodlehead is in Shadyside, lots of food bloggers recommend it as one of the best Thai restaurants in Pittsburgh. It is cozy and affordable, a nice place to go with friends or family. Noodlehead uses wooden furniture and dim light to create a warm atmosphere. The distance between tables is considerable than usual so that you could enjoy a quiet and private space. The menu is simple: snacks and noodle soups only. The price of snacks is from $4 to $7. Some noodle soups are $6.50, and others are above $9.50. Food might contain nuts, shellfish, gluten, and soy products. Servers would check the potential allergies before ordering.

I think it’s a good restaurant to go with friends, but it’s somehow overrated. The price is fair concerning food quality, but it’s not that delicious. If you expect Noodlehead to be the best Thai restaurant you have ever been, I have to say you might feel disappointed. The food option is too narrow, and the “Western-Thai” flavor is weird in some way. There is no sophisticated balance of herbs and spices, and food tastes like fast food. All in all, Noodlehead is a nice place to hang out with friends and take pictures.

Food

We order Thai Fried Chicken with sweet chili sauce. Unlike the thick coating on Western-style fried chicken, the coating of Thai fried chicken is thin and crisp. Chicken pieces are placed in the marinade, and the inner of chicken pieces are sweet and juicy. The flour of rice and cornstarch is pasted on the surface, and the fried chicken is moist and tender[1]. The sweet chili sauce is made with red chile peppers, rice wine vinegar, and other spices[2]. The sauce relief the oily flavor on the coating.

My friend and I order Street Noodle 2 and Chiang Mai Curry in spicy level 3. I can barely feel spicy, and the chili is soft and mild. But, I see many comments saying the spicy level 3 is their limitation, pick the one within your tolerance. Street Noodle 2 is made by thin egg noodles, tempura shrimp, bok choy, bean sprouts, and cilantro[3]. I don’t like the coating of fried shrimp, but it’s a popular dish in TripAdvisor. Chiang Mai Curry is made by egg noodles, chicken, pickled mustard greens, crispy shallots, and yellow curry coconut milk sauce[3]. It tastes a bit dry.

Tips

• The spicy level is from 0 to 5, and I recommend level 3 and 4.
• The open hour is 12 pm to 10 pm. Noodlehead is a favorite restaurant, and there are always people waiting in lines. Please go there early. Last time I went there at 12:30, and we take the last table. No chair available in the queue area, and people have to stand on the street.
• Noodlehead is not open on Independence Day (July 4th), Thanksgiving day, and Christmas eve & day.
• Customers are allowed to bring in their drink. Servers don’t provide corkage, and they charge 50 cents per person as recycling fee. Cash only. There is an ATM on the back of the corner.
• Location: 242 South Highland Ave
• Official website: http://noodleheadpgh.com/

 Reference

[1] Chicken, Thai. 2015. “Thai Fried Chicken | Curious Nut”. Curious Nut. Accessed October 22 2018. http://www.curiousnut.com/thai-fried-chicken/.

[2]  “Sweet Chili Sauce”. 2018. En.Wikipedia.Org. Accessed October 22 2018. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sweet_chili_sauce.

[3]  “Noodlehead”. 2018. Noodleheadpgh.Com. http://noodleheadpgh.com/.