There are only two terrific Thai restaurants in town. Champa Thai is one of them. Located on 9th and Waialae, Champa has three restaurants on this island. The original in Pearl Kai, Kaimuki and one in Kailua. It’s family owned and run. Very friendly folks.

If I had a choice I would go to the Pearl Kai version because it serves Singha Beer which is the best beverage with Thai food. The Kaimuki location is BYOD.

A lot of local folks shun Thai food for a variety of reason. The most common phrase of denial is about the food being too "spicy." I’m assuming they mean, too hot. Heat levels can be adjusted. The ram, for example, always adjust his heat level down to "whimpy," which means "mild." Just raise the heat level to moderate and the ram is out of commission. Sweat pours down the side of my face, the wait help ask if I needed medical attention and I become a problem for the restaurant. Several times, ambulances have come to check me out, giving me a shot of liquid nitrogen to bring the flames under control. Just kidding.

The second excuse people give is the "coconut" factor. The prevalence of coco milk, especially in the curry dishes, apparently turn a lot of folks off. This probably means that their first experience with Thai curry was probably something called Evil Jungle Prince, a curry, served by another chain of Thai restaurants that was extra heavy on the coco milk. The curry at Champa only hint coconut and do not overwhelm.

The ram wants the full range of Thai flavors so he orders the Cabbage Salad - raw cabbage, carrots, onions, cucumbers, boiled egg and one cooked shrimp - served with a sweet fish sauce. Next comes the Nom Sod or larb, which is ground up chicken or pork with fish sauce and lime. This is a sour salad. and served cold. Cabbage leaves are served with the larb not for wrapping purposes but to cleanse the old palate. Chicken Satay (skewered chicken pieces served with a peanut sauce), Pad Thai noodles (stir fried noodles with egg, peanuts, chicken and raw bean sprouts), Massaman Curry (a yellow curry with coconut milk, peanuts and potato) and Spicy Basil Eggplant with Chicken round off the experience. You get a good idea of how good a Thai restaurant is by ordering these staples. Other good dishes include the Stuff Chicken Wings and the Rad Nar with fat noodles. Last, but not least, you will need a bowl of Jasmine rice. Important.

Reasonably priced, delicious, sharply flavored food, very friendly service in a pleasant and comfortable environment. What more could you ask for?

Singha makes its living from the tourist trade. It’s right across the Wailana Coffee House in Waikiki. It’s a beautiful "sunken," circular restaurant where you can eat inside or outside. The restaurant is decorated with many different kinds of orchids. I mean tons of orchids. Scattered throughout the tables with high back chairs are wooden and bronze Buddhas. It’s like being in Siam.

The food is superb but pricey, so the ram can only go there once a year. At seven, every night the nubile Royal Thai Dancers perform in their gaudy costumes with long fingernails. Sometimes the music they dance to sounds like a fingernail dragged across a blackboard. This can be slightly irritating for someone. Thankfully, all of this screeching is short-lived. The dancers are beautiful and skillful and add to the flavor of the restaurant. Some of dancers carry, what look like real weapons. Because they operate in a very confined space, diners must be careful not to get in the way of the spear thrusts.

Singha has the best green papaya salad. Make that a must order. Other wonders that are served here include the Chicken Sate, the Seafood Pad Thai Noodles, the Shrimp and Pineapple Yellow Curry and the Spicy Siamese Fighting Fish which is a deep fried whole fish served with a chili and lime sauce. Be warned that the Fighting Fish is not an inexpensive entree. Singha, today, does a lot of fusion dishes, mixing Thai with Hawaiian, Japanese and other ethnic influences. I would stick with pure Thai dishes on the first visit.

And, there is no question that you should end your Thai gastronomic adventure with the fresh mango sorbetto. An absolute winner.

Yes, it isn’t cheap. The Waikiki address normally means high rent, so they can’t help themselves. So borrow money, re-mortgage the house, but go there.