There are certain foods that stay with you long after a trip is over. For me, after spending several weeks in Thailand this summer, Thai food is definitely one of them.

So when work brought me to Brussels on a sunny Tuesday just a few weeks after returning home, I knew exactly what I was craving.

The only problem? Several of the restaurants I had saved were closed. Sometimes, though, the best finds are the ones you aren't looking for.

That's how we ended up at Sao Thai Cuisine, a Thai restaurant tucked into the Châtelain area of Ixelles, and one that transported us back to Thailand far more quickly than I expected.

Back in One of My Favorite Brussels Neighborhoods

I have a soft spot for Ixelles.

I lived in Brussels almost 15 years ago, and this was already one of my favorite parts of the city then. Every time I return, I love seeing how much the neighborhood has evolved while somehow retaining the energy that made it special in the first place.

Around Châtelain you'll find beautiful architecture, independent boutiques, cafés and restaurants spilling onto the pavement, the sort of neighborhood that encourages you to wander without much of a plan.

On this particular Tuesday, that plan led us to Sao Thai Cuisine.

The weather was far too beautiful to sit inside, so we took a table on the terrace. But I'm a sucker for a gorgeous restaurant interior, so naturally I had to have a look around.

Inside, the restaurant is warm and contemporary, with an open kitchen and several different dining spaces. And then there are the swings. Yes, swings. Some of the tables have swing-style seats instead of traditional chairs. As long as you haven't had one too many Mai Tais, I think they could be a lot of fun.

One Sip and We Were Back in Bangkok

Before we'd even ordered the food, Sao gave us our first surprise. On the drinks menu was one of our favorite discoveries from Thailand: a vibrant butterfly pea flower drink with lemon and sparkling water.

If you've never had butterfly pea tea before, its extraordinary blue color is part of the fun. Add citrus and the color can shift dramatically, but for us, the appeal that afternoon was much simpler. One sip and we were back in Bangkok.

After spending weeks eating our way through Thailand, that familiar combination of flavors brought back an almost ridiculous number of memories. It was a very promising start.

The Starters: Don't Skip the Som Tam

We started with two dishes, although the portions were generous enough that sharing was inevitable. I ordered the Som Tam, Thailand's famous green papaya salad.

This was the moment Sao really got my attention. Fresh, crunchy, citrusy, spicy and full of flavor, it was genuinely comparable to the papaya salads we'd eaten only weeks earlier in Thailand. And after eating quite a few of them on that trip, my expectations were high.

This wasn't simply a European restaurant's interpretation of a dish I had enjoyed on holiday. It tasted remarkably close to what I remembered.

My partner ordered the Cholada, steamed ravioli stuffed with chicken and beautifully colored with butterfly pea flower. Six arrived in the portion, which was excellent news for me because it meant there were enough to share.

Beautifully presented and delicate without being insubstantial, they were another strong start to the meal.

And Then Came the Curries

For my main course, I chose the chicken red curry. Was it as good as the curries I'd eaten in Thailand? Not quite. But that comparison is also slightly unfair when you've stepped off a plane from Thailand only a few weeks earlier.

Had I eaten this curry without such a recent point of comparison, I would simply have told you that it was delicious. Rich, fragrant and comforting, it was a very good curry; it just didn't transport me back quite as completely as the Som Tam had.

My partner's beef Massaman curry, however, came remarkably close. Massaman had become one of those dishes we couldn't stop ordering in Thailand: rich, aromatic, slightly sweet and incredibly comforting. Sao's version captured much of what we'd loved about it on our trip.

There's a reason for the sense of authenticity running through the menu. Sao Thai Cuisine has a full Thai kitchen staff lead by Chef Sao.

The restaurant describes its cooking as Thai bistronomy, but what mattered most to me was that the food didn't feel as though all of its personality had been toned down for a European audience.

Save Room for the Mango Sticky Rice

Or, if you're me, don't save room at all. By the time we'd finished lunch, I was completely full. But there was mango sticky rice on the menu, and after Thailand I have developed what might reasonably be described as an obsession with it. There was no chance I was leaving without some. So I ordered it to take away. This turned out to be an excellent decision.

The presentation alone was gorgeous, but it was the combination of ripe mango and sticky rice that did it for me. Sweet, creamy and deceptively simple, it's one of those desserts that makes you wonder why you haven't been eating it your entire life.

I may have taken it home, but it didn't last very long once it got there.

Is Sao Thai Cuisine Worth It?

Our lunch came to approximately €125 for two people, including drinks, starters, mains and dessert. So, no, we definitely weren't in Thailand anymore. But for Brussels, and particularly for a beautifully presented meal in Châtelain, I found the price reasonable for the overall experience. More importantly, the meal delivered what I had been craving.

Not every dish recreated what we'd eaten in Thailand perfectly, and I actually think that's worth saying. The chicken red curry was very good rather than transportive. But the Som Tam was exceptional, the Massaman came impressively close, and that first sip of butterfly pea flower tea gave us an immediate flashback to our trip.

Sometimes a restaurant doesn't have to recreate a destination perfectly. It just has to remind you why you loved being there. Sao Thai Cuisine did exactly that.

If you're looking for a Thai restaurant in Brussels for a leisurely lunch, date night, dinner with friends or a celebration, this is one I'd happily recommend. And whatever you do, order the mango sticky rice.

Sao Thai Cuisine

122 Rue Américaine

1050 Ixelles, Brussels

Belgium

Reservations, menus and current opening hours: saothaicuisine.be