The recent warm weather has the Missus craving Thai food again. It seems that our options with regards to Thai Restaurants, whether to change in ownership or a not so great recent visit has been whittled down a bit. After a bit of probing, I found that what the Missus has really been missing is the food from Sovereign Thai, which presents its own set of issues. First off, the location is "interesting" and also presents issues with parking and also trying to get there before Padres games on off days. Over the last 3-4 months, the Missus and I have been using the trolley more; to get to places in Old Town and Little Italy for our date nights. So why not stretch it a bit and take the Blue Line to Park and Market, then walk the two blocks or so to Sovereign, right?
As we were walking to the restaurant, after having to resist a couple of "folks with issues", we walked into Sovereign which was empty.
I also realized that the Missus had never dined in at Sovereign! I wanted to say "hi" to Jumi, whom I've known since the days of Thai Papaya but she wasn't in.
We placed our order, three of our "standards" and one new dish to try.
The first item out was the Spicy Stir Fried Pork Belly ($19) an item from the "Specials" list.
The skin of the pork belly was still crisp when this was served; the flesh buttery and tender. Not very spicy though and really salty, the Thai Basil was incinerated and had lost a lot of the anise flavor.
Rice ($5) was then provided.
The rice was not fragrant and hard, like it had been sitting for a while.
The Missus and I looked at each other and wondered if coming here was a mistake.
But things were soon back on track with one the Missus's favorites, the Eggplant with Basil ($13).
While this was also slightly high on the sodium scale for us, ginger helped to cut things back. The eggplant had been cooked perfectly, first at first touch, then uber-creamy! The cilantro and Thai basil add a nice, one-two punch of sweet anise and citrusy-peppery-pungent tones to the dish.
Of course I had to get the Northern Thai Spicy Sausage ($12) which is made inhouse.
With the wonderful herbaceous tones, the "snap" of the sausage, the light filling with sneaky spice, this is my favorite version of Issan Sausage.
The Missus's favorite dish from Sovereign is the Hat Yai Fried Chicken ($23).
While it holds up quite well doing takeout and is even pretty good the next day; having it fresh to the table really highlites the wonderful moistness of the meat and the crispness of the exterior of the bird. As always, we love the fried shallots, the hint of sweetness with wonderful savory tones.
Overall, this was a nice meal. Strangely, we were the only customers in the place during our whole meal.
As for using the trolley to return….well, I think going past America Plaza might be an issue for the Missus.
I guess I'll have to drive down for takeout again in the future. Too bad, because this is by far our favorite Thai restaurant in San Diego.
Sovereign Modern Thai Cuisine
1460 J Street
San Diego, CA 92101
Current Hours:
Mon – Tues 5pm – 9pm
Wed – Thurs 12pm – 3pm, 5pm – 9pm
Fri – Sat 12pm – 930pm
Sunday 12pm – 9pm