Buddha Cafe

Description

Harmony. That's the word that best describes good Thai food, where there's just enough sweet to balance the salty, sour and bitter. Where curry, fish sauce, coconut milk, nuts and vegetables provide different accents that all work together. Many of the dishes at Buddha Café, which opened recently near Morethe corner of Iris Avenue and 28th Street, meet this standard. They harmonize. Take the spicy squid salad ($8.95). Here the squid are mixed with mint leaves, red onions, carrots and cabbage, then tossed in a chili-lemon dressing. The mix is tart but not too sour, with a good tension between the flavors. Another pleaser is the cashew nut chicken ($9.95). Seasonings on this dish include soy sauce and a sweet chili sauce, and they work extremely well. And the chicken is tender and juicy, accompanied by heaps of bell peppers, carrots and mushrooms.