Opart Thai House

Sick of sandwiches and salad bars for lunch? If you can head south of the Loop for your midday meal, you can get a pretty tasty dose of Anglo-friendly Thai instead. All of the standards—from curries to noodles—are dependable, but we recommend starting with the delicate charred-squid salad and the miang sa-wan—a sweet, limey mess of dried pork, ginger and peanuts meant to be wrapped in lettuce leaves. To feed a fish craving, try the crispy catfish tossed with Thai eggplant and green beans in red-curry paste. And if your idea of curry involves tons of creamy coconut milk? The yellow gari with sweet potatoes and chicken is your fix.