Stylish Thai Restaurant Daughter Wants to Be Denver’s New Date Night Destination

The owners of Golden’s Citizen Thai restaurant have brought their upscale version of Thai cuisine to LoHi with Daughter Thai Kitchen & Bar, which opened earlier this week.

Katie Ezzeddine, a friend of Daughter co-owner Ounjit Hardacre who is helping Hardacre with promoting the restaurant, described Daughter as a more elegant version of Citizen Thai that is aiming to present Thai cuisine in a more stylish and sophisticated way than most Denverites are used to. That means a focus on plate presentation as well as culinary quality.

“When people think about most Thai restaurants they think the food is always the same and no one thinks of having a date in them,” said Ezzeddine. “Here, Ounjit and her husband wanted to create the kind of restaurant where people can enjoy great food in a good ambience and have a fun place to hang out.”

The space, which is located on the ground floor of the new Riverview office building at 1700 Platte Street, is sleek and artful with hanging light fixtures, white curtains, and a wall mural depicting Thai temples.

Ezzeddine describes the menu as less traditional Thai than a sort of Thai fusion and says there are several dishes that are unlikely to be found on most Thai menus in America. Among them is the quail tod, which consists of deep-fried quail prepared with pepper sauce, fried garlic, and leeks. Other dishes, such as the lamb massaman, put a more unique spin on classic Thai favorites.

“It’s a traditional Massaman curry dish but with a little bit more lychee, which makes it more flavorful and a little bit sweet,” said Ezzeddine.

The menu is divided into small plates, Thai street food (which includes pad thai and pineapple fried rice), and entrees. In keeping with the restaurant’s upscale aspirations, street food dishes range from $15 to $19 while entrees are between $18 and $32. There is also a lunch menu with dishes ranging from $13 to $18.

Daughter’s bar has both Asian and American beers on tap and offers Asian-inspired cocktails as well as a limited wine list.

• Daughter Thai Kitchen & Bar [Official]
• Riverview [Official]
• Citizen Thai [Official]