Fomo Thai

171 Bourke Street 
Melbourne, VIC 3000

http://fomothai.com.au/

It was the end of a long week, and we were going to head down to Prahran for some coconuts and rice paper rolls, but we ended up meeting so late that by the time we got out to Prahran and gotten ourselves a table, it would’ve been close to 8. So after half an hour of agonising restaurant browsing for a place that was exciting but not over the top expensive, we ended up at Fomo Thai. It’s a fresh and shiny face on the block, on-trend and more canteen than ethnic Thai, but the food looked authentic enough for us to give it a shot. 

Gai Yang Ha Dao ($15, Half)

I get super excited when a restaurant offers up a whole animal for us to eat, as was the case with the Gai Yang Ha Dao ($15, half), which in the interest of being reasonable, we got half of. Hot off the grill, the chicken was succulent and smoky, basted with a sweet and peppery marinade. It looked like half of a very small chicken but considering it was deboned, actually made for a very substantial serving. 

Yum Nua Yang Sa Date ($15)

I had ordered the Yum Nua Yang Sa Date ($15) with the intention of having a salad to complement, and lighten up, the chicken. What we didn’t expect was a plate of medium-rare grilled beef, with the vegetables serving as little more than a side note – not that we minded, of course! Whilst this definitely wasn’t a ‘real’ Thai grilled beef salad, the dressing sparkled with chilli and lemon, and I was more than happy to eat the juicy slices of beef with a serve of Jasmine Rice ($3.5pp)

Fomo Thai isn’t all that traditional, but I don’t think it aims to be. At any rate, it was a fun and enjoyable meal that packed some great flavours, in surroundings that were causal and relaxing. Given the location, I’d be more than happy to come back here for my Thai fix.

Rating: 13/20 – fear of missing out.

This rating reflects my personal experience at the time of visit.