Since I always have a case of the Mondays, I thought the world needed a food post today. I will admit the title of my post sounds a bit shady, but believe me this place isn’t. My beloved basement eatery is Thai X-ing. And yes my adventurous denizen(s), you will want to go there.

The cutest of restaurants

So that’s the place. That’s Thai X-ing. It’s the tiny basement apartment of Taw Visittaboot, Thai X-ing’s owner and sole chef. Like anyone’s apartment, the dining area is filled with books on various topics, plants and tchockies. It has a little garden patio out front for  one or two tables. The entire place only seats 4 groups, so reservations are very necessary. The rest of the apartment is, well, the kitchen.

Feels oddly like...home

Thai X-ing offers a price-fix, four course menu, which varies according to seasonal offerings and honestly, whatever Taw feels like. Some courses are set, some have 2 options. Sunday is vegetarian night. The weekdays are cheaper. When I went they served a pumpkin curry which was DIVINE. I also had drunken noodles, a starter soup and a wonderful sticky rice dessert. Taw himself came out and said hi. He is tall, thin and amicable, with a hippy ponytail and tattoos. All the recipes he uses are passed down in the family. Oh, but it’s BYOB: no liquor license.

Taw action shot! (via Yelp again)

My overall opinion of Taw’s little joint? I loved it. The food was excellent, a gem in terms of Thai cuisine, offering some welcome variety from the standard DC Thai fare. Impoverished SPY actually got a four-course meal, which was a nice change of pace from crappy stir fry and lean cuisine. It cost $25 on a Wednesday, which was reasonable. Honestly, it was just nice to relax in a cozy space with your wine and your curry. Being reservation-only, there are no people lurking about. That being said, it is quite a tight space, so be warned. Oh, and I noticed some yelp complaints about service, so wanted to say that my experience ran quite excellently (for the record).

So, if you are looking for true DC neighborhood fare, Thai X-ing is about as neighborhood as it gets. You should go.