[Aloysius]

[ QUOTE ]
GoT,

I stand by my Thai picks. Other picks might showcase a restaurant's talents better or be tastier dishes overall, but I think the quality of those dishes is a better reflection of how everything else is likely to come out of the kitchen than just about anything else.

[/ QUOTE ]

I tend to agree with this for Thai as general rule of thumb. Pad Thai is a classic (more so than Pad Kee Mow, which I actually like way more) - so if they screw that up it's a much better indicator of overall quality I'd say, as it's the food that's most frequently coming out of the kitchen.

That being said, I've had amazing Pad Thai at places that have so-so everything else. This is one reason I tend not to utilize this "benchmarking" tactic at restaurants for my first visit, as it's very possible that the benchmark dish just happens to be one of the restaurants strong suits.

Absent recs from a friend or reading a review, I just go with what I like on the menu and hope it works out. If this happens to be a benchmark dish that's even better.

For mid-tier to finer dining, I usually go in to the meal with some knowledge of the restaurants strengths and best dishes, so again, no first-time visit benchmarking necessary.

-Al