Category: Food Reviews

Mass Foodies is dedicated to consuming everything that the commonwealth has to offer. The food review portion of Mass Foodies is written by independent group of wandering consumers from different backgrounds. Foodies come together once a month at a predetermined restaurant, order off of the menu, and share their experience Learn more »

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Basil n’ Spice Ginger Chicken

Ginger Chicken from Basil n' Spice on Shrewsbury Street in Worcester, MA

Ginger Chicken from Basil n' Spice on Shrewsbury Street in Worcester, MA

Upon entering Basil n’ Spice, I loved the décor and layout. It felt intimate and welcoming. Plus, I was excited to have some Thai cuisine.

To start, I ordered the Island Thai Tea, which is classic Thai iced tea with a kick of rum. Delicious!

For an appetizer, we ordered the chicken wings. They were cooked just how I like them–super crispy. The flavors were slightly lacking but since they were cooked so well I still enjoyed them.

I selected Ginger Chicken for my meal. That includes red and green bell peppers, onion, carrot, snow peas, mushrooms, baby corn and scallion with a ginger sauce. The flavors were spot on and the serving size was enough to share if you had multiple dishes. I did, however, use the sauce in my partners dish to dip my chicken several times. He had the incredible Duck Choo Chee.

The service at Basil n’ Spice was top-notch. We had several attentive staff members serving us. One of the owners even pitched in.

Overall I liked Basil n’ Spice. I would try it again. The next time I go I will do two things differently. I will order the Chicken Choo Chee. It might require a special order because it wasn’t listed with chicken, but that sauce was just so fantastic. I would also go for a cocktail and sit at the great bar rather than a table.

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Chicken Teriyaki at Basil n’ Spice

Chicken Teriyaki with jasmine rice from Basil n' Spice on Shrewsbury Street in Worcester, MA

Chicken Teriyaki with jasmine rice from Basil n' Spice on Shrewsbury Street in Worcester, MA

Our October Foodies gathering was at Basil n’ Spice on Shrewsbury Street, a relatively new restaurant on the Worcester dining scene. Thai cuisine is a favorite of mine so I was looking forward to it.

It is in a location once occupied by an Indian restaurant. They did a contemporary-casual makeover to the dining room including a new eat-in bar area, freshly painted walls, and updated lighting. The room accommodates large parties and small intimate tables for quiet dinners.

The proprietor promptly greeted us saying, “Get ready for a meal full of authentic flavors.”

The menu is extensive with many popular Thai dishes such as Choo Chee and Pad Thai as well as the soups, curried dishes, rice options and several sauces.

My dining companion and I began our meal with Shrimp Fresh Rolls. The rolls combined crisp lettuce, cucumber, carrot and basil with shrimp all wrapped in rice paper and served with a peanut hoisin sauce, which worked well.

As interesting as the menu options looked, I ordered a classic: the Chicken Teriyaki with jasmine rice. It was a generous portion of freshly sautéed chicken cooked with a salty-sweet teriyaki sauce. I opted to add some additional spice. The heat was the perfect complement to teriyaki flavor.

The service team at Basil n’ Spice was outstanding starting with the owner who greeted us, sat us at our table and also took our order. In addition, she answered many questions we asked about the menu. She even told us she cooked some of the meals we enjoyed. Plus at least three or four other servers were there to help clear dishes, serve food, refill water glasses, and take drink orders.

Overall Basil n’ Spice was excellent. The atmosphere, food, and service make it a restaurant I highly recommend. I definitely will return to try some more adventurous dishes.