Pai Northern Thai Kitchen

In the mid-2000s, there was a lack of "authentic" Thai food in Toronto.[1] Jeff Regular and Thai-born Nuit Regular set out to fill this gap, and opened Sukhothai in 2008.[1] The chefs continued to open Thai restaurants in Toronto, including Sabai Sabai Kitchen and Bar and Khao San Road.[2] According to Eater Toronto, Khao San Road "may have single-handedly relaunched Thai cuisine into the trend-sphere of the city."[2]

Nuit and Jeff opened Pai's first location in 18 Duncan St. (in Downtown Toronto). The grand opening occurred on July 5, 2014,[2] although it was open since May 30.[3] The restaurant was named after Pai, Thailand.[4][5] Pai is also run by Gusto 54, owned by restauranteur Janet Zuccarini.[6][7] In 2017, Nuit said they served 1,500 customers on a given busy day.[8] In early 2020, Pai opened their first ghost kitchen—a restaurant which only provides takeout and delivery—to satisfy their high demand for takeout and delivery.[9] Pai's first ghost kitchen is located within Kitchen Hub Etobicoke: a "virtual food hall" that hosts multiple ghost kitchens in the same location.[10][9] Pai's second eat-in location, PAI Uptown, was opened in late 2020 at 2335 Yonge St. (in the Yonge–Eglinton neighbourhood).[11][12] Jeff stated the restaurant shares similarities with the downtown location, but with "its own quirky personality".[12] In 2022, Pai opened two more ghost kitchens at Kitchen Hub locations: Kitchen Hub Castlefield in March[13] and Kitchen Hub Liberty Village in September.[10]

Locations

Locations of Pai Northern Thai Kitchen. Kitchen Hub Locations denoted in Blue ()

Locations of Pai Northern Thai Kitchen[14]

Address	Neighbourhood	Coordinates	Year opened	Notes
18 Duncan St.	Downtown Toronto	43.6478°N 79.3886°W / 43.6478; -79.3886	2014	—
935 The Queensway	The Queensway–Humber Bay	43.6237°N 79.5123°W / 43.6237; -79.5123	2020	Ghost kitchen with takeout and delivery only. Part of Kitchen Hub Etobicoke.[9]
2335 Yonge St.	Yonge–Eglinton	43.7085°N 79.3985°W / 43.7085; -79.3985	2020	—
1121 Castlefield Av.	Yorkdale-Glen Park	43.7002°N 79.4535°W / 43.7002; -79.4535	2022	Ghost kitchen with takeout and delivery only. Part of Kitchen Hub Castlefield.[13]
1108 King St. W	Liberty Village	43.6399°N 79.4231°W / 43.6399; -79.4231	2022	Ghost kitchen with takeout and delivery only. Part of Kitchen Hub Liberty Village.[10]
All locations in Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Pai intends to combine traditional Thai cooking with international influences and overall focuses on northern Thai cuisine.[15] According to Jeff, Pai focuses more on northern Thai cuisine than their other restaurants.[2] Michelin Guide described Pai's menu as "extensive," with "fresh, tasty dishes and vibrant curries".[16] As of 2021, Pai's most popular dish is their pad thai; other popular dishes include their khao soi and pad gra prow.[15] According to Nuit, she "really helped popularize and put on the food map" these aforementioned dishes in Toronto.[15]

Food critic reviews

Review scores
Source	Rating
Amy Pataki, 2014 (Toronto Star)	[3]
Chris Nuttall-Smith, 2014 (The Globe and Mail)	[17]

Amy Pataki of the Toronto Star reviewed the restaurant in 2014 and gave it three-and-a-half out of four stars.[3] According to Pataki, at Pai, "fun is as much the guiding principle as the excellent Thai food".[3] Pataki praised the hunglay curry, tom yum goong, papaya salad, and fried morning glory.[3]

Chris Nuttall-Smith of The Globe and Mail reviewed the restaurant in 2014 and discussed authenticity in Toronto's Thai food.[17] While Nuttall-Smith said that Pai's Thai food is some of Toronto's best, they criticized it for its sweetness and lack of bitterness for being northern Thai.[17] Nuttall-Smith gave the restaurant no stars (not recommended) and concluded "for Toronto, Pai is very, very good. But I dream of a day when a Thai restaurant in the city is worthy of praise without that 'for Toronto' bit."[17]

According to Filipe Dimas of blogTO, Pai is one of "Toronto's favourite Thai restaurants";[18] similarly, Kayla Gladysz of Daily Hive called it "one of the city’s top spots for Thai cuisine".[19] Megan Ogilvie of the Toronto Star wrote that the restaurant is "credited with revitalizing Toronto’s Thai dining scene".[8] According to Donna Paris of the Toronto Star, Nuit "has changed the way people think about Thai food" in Toronto.[1] Notable patrons have included Jason Momoa,[18] The Umbrella Academy cast,[20] James Harden,[21][19] and J. Cole.[22]