With all the noise about SF thai places, especially the one that got the Michelin star, I happened to be hungry Saturday near what I think of as “the circle” ( the traffic circle between South Beach and the north end of the mission ).
Saap Ver may be worth a stop. They have a somewhat pleasant new-style atmosphere, lots of ephemera on the walls, interesting signs, “street food” atmosphere. A few of the usual suspect beers, more than just singha in a bottle although Singha does go well.
I had only one dish, which is why I can’t recommend the place fully. Som Tum, but I got it “plate style” with the “beef jerkey”. I’m not a specialist in Som Tum, but they had used plenty of fish sauce, and there was what felt like a reasonable amount of spice.
The “jerky” was somewhat underwhelming. There’s another place, escaping my mind at the moment, where I’ve always really like it. This was less flavorful, like it was made out of leaner meat.
Peculiar, I searched for Saap Ver. I always prefer, unless I have a lot to say, to add to another discussion.
If I’m the guy who took one for the team, I will raise the “um, maybe” flag. It’s not a terrible place, and might even be a good place, if one eats through the menu. It certainly helps the authenticity that there are actual thai people serving actual thai food, and from the one dish I had, weren’t dumbing it down — lots of good fish sauce flavor.
On the other hand, the “beef jerky” part of the program wasn’t great.
