text: It Was a Friday evening and I worked way too late so I decided to pick something up to go at a relatively new Thai restaurant close to where I live nnThai ESan does not look like much from the outside but once you walk inside you are transported to a different world Although I have never been to Thailand I could only imagine that this is the kind of restaurant one might find there Beautiful tapestries huge granite inlay tables and an ambiance that transports you to a different place and timenFor a Friday night at pm it was not that busy only three other tables two of which were single guys So I ordered the Pad Thai Noodles with shrimp only and was offered a seat while I waited The only server working asked me if I would like water or tea and since I thought that it would only be a few minutes I politely thanked her but declinedn minutes latern I finally had my togo order But please let me digressnnAfter minutes of waiting I got up and stood in front of the reception counter and looked into the kitchen There were only two persons working in the kitchen I assumed one to be the cook and a prep cook I had asked the only server who was running ragged mostly to the kitchen asking in Thai where the food was She told me the cooks were from Thailand nn It looked like a Laurel and Hardy comedy back there The prep cook kept wringing her hands and pulling her hair and dropping things The cook I assume kept yelling at the poor woman no wonder she was discombobulated nnOk let us talk about the food My Pad Thai was ok I had asked for a side of the chili sauce which they forgot to add as I like my food spicy These were really mild Also the noodles were gummy and stuck together I was wondering if they overcooked the noodles in their confusion to get the other diners food out which I observed also took way too much time nnI have read some rave reviews about this place So I do want to give it another try before giving my final decision I am willing to forego some hiccups with service and food as I appreciate the fact that this is an authentic restaurant with immigrants from Thailand and that it may take some time to get their act together to provide consistency in service and food I really do want them to succeed I will try again next month so as to give them some time to get their act together Hopefully I will have a better review next time Chow for now