Zaap Thai: The Authentic Thai Food Restaurant

Thailand is somewhere that my adventurous soul has always wanted to visit. I dream not only of the crystal clear waters of Railay and the luxurious spas, green rainforests and natures treks in Ko Samui, but also of the bustling cities that lie at the heart of Thailand, places like Bangkok or the party scenes of Phuket. It's not only the nature and the culture that draws me to Thailand though; it's also the food. I love Thai food (as you probably know I eat pad thai nearly every day of my life with no regrets) - it's the flavours, the spices and the fragrances, it's no wonder that it's such a popular cuisine. However, although I've eaten plenty of Thai food in my time, I'm still yet to wander down the streets and buy authentic Thai street food but fortunately for us, places like Zaap Thai are bringing it to us. 

Zaap Thai is located in the very centre of Newcastle right next to the Gate and when I walked through the door, it felt like I'd been transported away from the rainy streets of the North East and had landed myself right bang in the middle of a Thai street. From the minute you walk through the door there are neon hanging lights, signs, Thai accessories and so much more literally everywhere, with an open kitchen and the friendliest of staff. There's no booking at Zaap so you walk right in, get shown to your table and get stuck in. 

The attention to detail in the decor is quite frankly incredible and I think I could have spent all day just looking at every little piece of decoration, every light hanging from the ceiling and every picture hanging on the wall. There are tuks tuks to sit and eat in and even an actual bus (yes, a REAL life bus, how cool is that?!) at the back of the restaurant and the authentic Thai feels goes all the way back even through into the toilets. It's an Instagrammer's dream for sure. 

It was my birthday when I went (my actual birthday because I'm very aware my birthday celebrations went on for about ten days!) so of course, I had to go for cocktails and three courses of food! For starters it was the vegetable gyoza and the gai satay, followed by prawn thai red curry and of course, pad thai. I think I must have eaten pad thai in every restaurant that serves it in the north east but I just cannot help myself. Pad thai is basically running through my veins. Anyway it was absolutely delicious and went down very well with a cocktail and as it was my birthday, the dessert had to follow (I say this as if I wouldn't have ordered dessert regardless of the day...). I'd never actually tried Thai dessert before so I went for a real Thai classic with Tub Tim Krob; water chestnuts, coconut milk, shaved ice and syrup. It was nothing like I've ever tasted before but was actually really refreshing!

Our bill for two starters, two mains, two desserts and two drinks came to just over £40 which for the quality of the food, the decor and the location is brilliant and I'll definitely be going back to Zaap in the future, hopefully sooner rather later and it was the perfect place to spend a rainy 24th birthday!

You can check out the ZAAP Thai menu on their website and visit their Newcastle brand for authentic Thai food right next to the Gate in the city centre.

Amy x

COLLABORATIVE POST. ALL WORDS AND OPINIONS REMAIN MY OWN.