Prainam Thai opens in Port Washington
Spicy crispy duck curry is a signature dish at Prainam Thai in Port Washington. Credit: Newsday/And Berlin
The scene at Prainam Thai in Port Washington is markedly different from its acclaimed sister restaurant, a one-room takeout joint Tonnam Thai in Bohemia. There are servers here, for one thing, who mill about the place refilling drinks and offering recommendations like whole grilled squid with a Thai cilantro sauce. The room is flashier with sparkly walls and neon lighting, although still small and intimate. Even though it just opened in November, Prainam is already panning out to be an excellent date night spot.
Owners Vorragun "Brian" Vongdarunee and his wife, Kasamaporn "Masi" Chansaksri, partnered with real estate broker Oakar Reinstein to open their new venture. Vongdarunee is a classically trained chef from Bangkok who met Chansaksri, who owned a restaurant in Astoria, during a visit to Times Square. The two have been operating Tonnam Thai out of a former Chinese takeout spot in Bohemia since 2022 (it's on Newsday's 2024 Top 50 restaurants list).
Reinstein is originally from Myanmar and was used to traveling to Queens to get his Thai food fix. But he also goes boating every summer in Port Washington and thought it would be the perfect location for an upscale Thai restaurant. To staff it, he brought in servers from Queens and Manhattan who are familiar with regional Thai food. Vongdarunee is managing the kitchen at Prainam, while Chansaksri is focusing on Tonnam in Bohemia.
Inside Prainam Thai in Port Washington. Credit: Newsday/And Berlin
The new menu is several pages long and contains both crowd-pleasers and hard-to-find Thai dishes from Bangkok and beyond. This makes it good for larger groups with varying levels of familiarity with Thai food. Nobody will feel left out. Curry puffs ($14.56), a classic appetizer on Long Island Thai restaurant menus, are fabulously executed here with a crusty shell that breaks into pure mashed potato comfort. But the grilled squid ($21.84) will please more adventurous eaters, as it is beautifully presented rendered and sliced into plump strips.
Other highlights include crispy duck curry, a hallmark of the menu at Tonnam and equally pleasing here, with an ample portion of tender duck breast in a red curry. Even shrimp pad thai ($28.08) is a hit, tangier and richer in flavor than most restaurant versions.
"The Port Washington community cares very much about small business and restaurants in their town," Reinstein said. "Even on a cold slow day, people will purposefully eat out to support the local businesses. It’s very unique for that town. I’ve never seen that, it’s very touching."
Prainam Thai, 170 Main St., Port Washington, 516-517-8377, prainamny.com. Open noon to 3 p.m. and 4:30-9:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, noon to 9:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.
Andi Berlin is from Arizona and does not know where she is going. But when she gets there, she’ll find something beautiful and delicious that the world needs to taste.
