Restaurant review Thai without fear Top Spice

Let me confess here that bottles of hot sauce can sit in my cabinet for years unopened. A tiny bit of red pepper is my limit. When I ask a server if a dish is spicy and they say, "not very" that translates to being too hot for me. As a result I eat the absolute lowest threshold of mild Buffalo wings and tend to avoid Thai food.

But Top Spice, 3007 North Druid Hills Rd., in Atlanta has not only helped me over my fear of Thai - I've learned to actually enjoy  the dishes with one pepper on the menu. (Okay, it's true they're classified as mild, but I could taste and savor the peppers. Baby steps towards cranking up the heat.)

Don't get me wrong - Thai for wimps is not the specialty of the restaurant. Freshly-prepared, well-seasoned Thai and Malaysian food served with a flourish is the specialty. The decor is luxurious but minimalist, service is excellent and the menu promises the "hottest stuff" in town. So those of you that eat Thai because it sets your mouth on fire needn't hesitate. But the crispness of the vegetables, the comfort-food smoothness of the sauces and the excellent service will make Thai lovers out of even the mildest of you out there. There's also a location at 2997 Cobb Parkway in Atlanta.