Like most Thai menus in the city, Kin Khao’s menu is divided into small categories: appetizers, meat and fish dishes, a few curries and vegetables, and a short list of noodle and rice platters. But while the typical Thai menu is expansive and pages in length, Kin Khao’s is succinct and completely pad thai-less. Instead there are totally scratch-made curries, tamarind and fish sauce wings, and vegetables topped with a funky sauce of cured pork and dried shrimp.

I’m happy to order from such a small and exciting menu, but given its brevity, the dishes should be solid. They aren’t quite there yet.

Kin Khao’s Pretty Hot Wings are glazed with a sriracha and tamarind sauce. Photo: Kate Williams

Those chicken wings? As their name implies, they are indeed “pretty hot,” battered, deep fried, and slicked with a spicy and sour glaze, flush with the unmistakable sheen of Sriracha. The wings are served whole, wing tips and all. It makes for an attractive presentation, but a challenge when it comes to the actual eating part. I simply could not find a way to get through a wing without popping a joint and splattering sauce across the table. Still, the wings themselves are generously meaty and finger-licking good. Don’t be afraid of them; just be sure to ask for extra napkins.

You will likely need to ask for extra napkins and anything else more than once, as the service is as hit-or-miss as the food. Techamuanvivit will likely pop by your table as a friendly gesture; it’s nice, but I wish the servers were as friendly and helpful as she.

Less successful than the wings was the kanah pad XO sauce—sautéed Chinese broccoli with that aforementioned shrimp and pork sauce. The sauce itself is appropriately potent, and the greens earthy, slightly bitter, and refreshing (especially after those wings), but the resulting dish lacks cohesion and brightness. A generous squeeze of lime or sprinkle of rice vinegar would work wonders.

The Chinese broccoli comes sautéed and dressed with sweet and salty XO sauce. Photo: Kate Williams

The rabbit curry’s rich curry is a success in its subtlety. Quietly redolent of coconut, chiles, and lemongrass, it is a fine backdrop to gently braised rabbit and Thai eggplant. The leg meat served on the bone is tender, but the saddle verges on dry. Far more memorable are the rabbit meatballs, succulent and softly pink in the middle, with a mysterious sweetness that begs for another bite. I could only find a couple small pieces of eggplant buried beneath the rabbit; a few more bites of the vegetable would have been welcome.

Clearly Kin Khao still needs some time to come into its own. But Techamuanvivit has the right vision for the restaurant, and I’d be happy to keep on stopping by until it captures my excitement just like the fledgling chicken shack in Portland.

Information:
Kin Khao
Address: Map
55 Cyril Magnin (entrance at the corner of Mason and Ellis)
San Francisco, CA 94102
(415) 8362-7456
Hours: Mon-Sun 5:30pm-11pm (dinner), 11pm-1am (late night menu)

Michael GainesMichael Gaines

Kin Khao: Pim Techamuanvivit's fun, authentic Thai restaurant shows promise