Indicators or Sanphan Thai Cuisine, 600 block of Pennsylvania Avenue SE

Sanphan Thai Cuisine, 600 block of Pennsylvania Avenue SE
Originally uploaded by rllayman

In the early 1990s, I swear I read an article in the Washington Post about changing neighborhoods that quoted an African-American male about how to tell when white people were moving into a neighborhood--because Mexican restaurants followed, and he said "we don't eat Mexican, we eat Chinese."

I think another indicator of neighborhood change (I don't like to use the word gentrification) is the opening up of Thai restaurants. Thai cuisine has supplanted "Chinese" as a preferred and still accessible cuisine of younger and monied demographics.

This restaurant used to be a Chinese "carryout," albeit with seats, offering ample portion sizes and reasonable prices, a couple buildings away from the Eastern Market subway station on Capitol Hill, DC.

A few months ago it converted to a Thai restaurant, with a more attractive and "upscale" interior design--the former restaurant looked more like a cafeteria--nicer tables, and higher prices.

It's not the kind of place you go to when you're hungry and looking for a cheap and filling meal.