Kin Long Beach: Reimagining Thai Classics with a Modern Twist

The Background

Kin Long Beach is a popular Thai restauarant located in Long Beach, CA. It has a more modern take on classic Thai dishes on a fairly expansive menu with a number of interesting options.

The Experience

I got here right when the restaurant opened up at 5 pm. There was already a number of people milling around waiting for the restaurant to open. Somewhat surprising given the early dinner time. But a positive sign for a good restaurant!

As I stated, the menu here is a good size, broken up nicely for easy consumption. The service was on point. The servers came by a few times to check in and make sure I had everything I needed. They did a great job of running through the menu as well.

It took some time to figure out exactly what I wanted but settled on the Bang Bang Shrimp for a starter and the Spicy Pad Thai as my main dish.

They coat breaded rock shrimp with a special house sauce to make the Bang Bang Shrimp.

The outer breading has a bit of crunch to it and isn’t heavily breaded. The shrimp is cooked perfectly. The sauce is creamy and savory with a little sweetness. There’s a surprising yet welcoming spicy kick to the sauce as well which was enjoyable.

Next up was the Spicy Pad Thai. It comprises flat rice noodles, chicken, egg, bean sprouts, green onions, onions, bell peppers, ground peanuts, and spicy tamarind sauce. The Spicy Pad Thai is different from the Pad Thai due to the tamarind sauce being spicy. All the other fixings are the same.

I always enjoy Pad Thai due to the unique flavor. Particularly, the perfect mixture of sweet, tangy, and savory. Also, the nutty flavor from the ground peanuts mixes in so flawlessy with all the other flavors, so good! Altogether they combine to create a classic Thai dish. Add in some spice and this was a very tasty Pad Thai! The spice level wasn’t overbearing. Especially for a dish like this, it seemed fitting. It was just right.

Something that was certainly enjoyable was the abundance of different textures. From the bouncy rice noodles, crunch from the bean sprouts, bellpeppers, and green onion, every bite brought fantastic flavor and texture. All the ingredients tasted fresh and I thought the quality was terrific.

The Verdict

Kin Long Beach brings quality Thai food to the Long Beach area. Sporting a large menu with plenty of options, there’s a lot to like from this cozy Thai restaurant. The Bang Bang Shrimp was solid and the low key spicy sauce really enhanced the dish overall. The added spice to the normal Pad Thai really upped the enjoyment to an already delicious dish. Without a doubt the restaurant is worth checking out if you’re craving Thai food and in the Long Beach area!