It’s the season for umbrella cocktails. A fun spot to get one right now is at a Southern Thai restaurant in Hell’s Kitchen.

Chalong is a standout seafood Thai spot that, in the three or four times I’ve been, is always packed — to the degree that if you’re 10 minutes late for a reservation, they’ll give your table away. It features a tight menu of inventive dishes, many of which just barely restrain heat. (In short, this is Manhattan Thai, not Elmhurst, but it’s still great.) Tight portions won’t leave you hungry or too full. Prices are fair, too, in a moment when the average cost of an entree feels high, especially in Manhattan.

The place opened in 2023 from Nate Limwong, who grew up on the southern coast of Thailand, who has trained in New York, Thailand, and Australia.

The drinks: The illustrated cocktail menu depicts a map of Thailand with drinks sketched around the coastline, with names like After School with pea vodka in a coupe, or the Red Forest with Bombay Sapphire gin and beets. My drink, a Leonardo on the Beach with coconut rum, PX, matcha, pandan, and kinako, is served over pebble ice — a refreshing, green tannic drink garnished with a thick layer of coconut shavings, and, of course, there’s an umbrella. Cocktails are $18, compared to $20 and up in many places these days.

The cocktail list stands in contrast to the lean drink options otherwise: one beer, two whites, two reds ($17 for either by the glass), and one orange – by the bottle only.

The vibe: This casual spot shows the work of pros behind it: The service is warm but not too chatty. The tunes verge on clubby, but they’re not intrusive. And the timing of the dishes is pitch perfect.

Chalong

Chalong.

The food: For a name that means celebrate, the food is appropriately fun. There’s baerng golae ($16), a coconut crisp with shrimp and curry for a sweet and savory snack that you eat like a taco. The steamed rice dumplings ($15) present like noodle-wrapped cocoons stuffed with radish and peanuts with a salted coconut aroma.

Among the mains, the crab curry offers some heat, a bowl centered with a soft-shell crab in a velvety coconut veloute-like broth ($28). And a wok of green is a welcome contrast, topped with peanuts, and dotted with chiles. Picanha kraw praw ($28) appears a touch boring, with sirloin, habanero, garlic, and holy basil, but it’s not just peppers and meat, with layered seasoning and enough heat to warrant another beer. On another visit I was won over by the whole fried fish, pla tod ($36), with a sweet fish sauce, garlic, and scallions.

Tips: I’d suggest a starter, a vegetable, and two dishes to share for two. That order plus my cocktail on a recent visit ran about $100 including tax and before tip. Chalong’s flavors, service, and price will lure me back again— next time, for the head-on shrimp fried rice.

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Prices taken at time of publishing.

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