Sweet Spot Near Campus: The Ever-Popular Sweet Basil Express

January 23, 2010 - 10:06 PM

Collin and I went to dinner tonight at Sweet Basil Express on about 13th and Alder. It may very well have been the 100th time we've gone to our favorite, and most affordable, Thai restaurant near campus.

I have been going to Sweet Basil since I transferred to the University of Oregon at the beginning of my sophomore year. And tonight, I saw a group of what appeared to be freshmen, straight off their ten minute walk from the dorms to what, I'm sure, will become one of their most memorable locales of college too.

Sweet Basil has an excellent location. It is almost opposite the Duck Store on the same block, so it is practically on-campus, and right around the corner from the most popular Starbucks in town.

When you walk in, there is a tiny corridor lining the kitchen separated by a counter and short plastic windows that leads you to the cash register, where you order your food and receive a number so they can find you when your food is up.

Then, if you're like me and can't go more than two hours without a diet cola, you head straight through a group of small two-person tables to a thin crevice to pour yourself a fountain drink. Just beyond this point are two bathrooms opposite a noisy dish room.

After wiggling your way out of the soda space, you collect your utensils and sit in another, slightly wider corridor filled with several four-person tables. The walls are vibrant and covered in Thai art and posters that portray daily life in Thailand.

Sometimes, the employees blast top-40 hip-hop music so loudly that we can't hold a conversation, but it seems that many of the patrons don't mind-we are college students afterall.

If you are in a rush, you can call-in early and arrive just in time to get your food hot out of the wok, and if you would prefer to eat at home, the restaurant does take-out too.

Before I had much experience with Thai food, I ordered nothing but Pad Thai. But living with veggie-loving roommate prompted me to taste what would become the sole menu item I will consume titled I Love Veggies (with Chicken). This comes with my Asian-food favorite: bok choy, along with mushrooms, onions, green peppers and broccoli, all in a garlic sauce over white rice. But Collin always gets other noodle dishes that are absolutely fantastic as well.

Finally, Sweet Basil will top off your dining experience with their homemade coconut mango ice cream. The name does not do it justice. The combination of fruit chunks and frozen creamy coconut is to die for.

I know that even after this spring, when I graduate, I will crave the slightly crisp bite into my garlicy bok choy followed by a satisfying sip of Diet Pepsi. And if my kids are like me, they will follow in their parents' and get their degrees at the University of Oregon only to find that Sweet Basil is still serving a sweet Thai treat to almost every student at Oregon.