I was very excited when I saw that there was a new Thai restaurant in the shopping center at Rockrimmon and Vindicator in NW Colorado Springs. This space, next to the liquor store near Safeway, used to be a Chinese restaurant that, frankly, wasn't very good. This shopping center has Salsa Brava and Slayton's, so it isn't lacking in good food, but we love Thai food, and it's a welcome alternative for the area.

I stopped in to grab a menu and asked them how long they had been open - only ten days. When I got home I called in an order and my husband picked it up. He had to wait for the order as they were quite busy. We live no more than a mile from the restaurant, so we were eating within a few minutes. Still, two of the items were ice cold. Thankfully, everything tasted good after warming it in the microwave. Here's the scoop:

We had theSpring Rolls (2 for $4.95). These were wonderful - very, very fresh. They had rice noodles and carrots, and although the menu states that they have shrimp in them, mine had chicken inside, and no shrimp. Still, they were great. My only other complaint about them is that the rice paper wrapping was so thin that it had a large hole in the side, which made it hard to keep together while eating. The sauce was great too - if you order this be sure to ask for extra sauce as one small cup wasn't enough for both rolls.

We also ordered the Narai Appetizer Plate ($8.25), which includes crunchy egg rolls, chicken satay, shu-mai, and crab rangoons served with various sauces. This all came very cold and had to be reheated. Everything was good, not great, but good. The chicken satay only had the peanut sauce already on them - it didn't come with sauce for dipping, which I thought was strange. The eggrolls were very crunchy - maybe a little overcooked. The rangoons were fried and very crispy, but good. The shu-mai was tasty.

We ordered orange chicken ($9.50) for the kids. This was one of the items that arrived cold. It was almost like it just came out of the fridge - it was that cold. After reheating it, two out of three kids lovedit.My husbandand I tried it too --it was quite sweet, but not overwhelming, with a thin sauce and orange slices in the container. Quite yummy. Eat it quick though, as it gets soggy very fast. This isn't one to keep for leftovers. (They don't really give you enough for leftovers anyway!)

Next was Pad Thai ($8.95). This was warm enough. It was a classic Pad Thai, with noodles, eggs, bean sprouts, ground peanuts, and onions. We ordered it with chicken, but you can also get beef, pork or tofu, or shrimp or squid for an additional $2.50. I ordered it at medium heat, with the choices being mild, medium, hot, or Thai hot. This was so spicy I could hardly eat it. My husband also said it was extremely spicy, and he loves very spicy food.

Finally, my husband wanted curry, so I asked the person on the phone which one was best, as there are several on the menu. She suggested the Panang Curry with chicken ($8.95). This was the hottest (temperature-wise) of the bunch. I ordered it "hot" for spiciness. It was very spicy. Strangely, I didn't think this was quite as spicy as the Pad Thai, however, which was only ordered "medium." Perhaps she mixed these up, or else they haven't quite got the different levels worked out. My husband said this dish was wonderful. He had recently been to Japan and said it reminded him very much of a curry dish he had there. He loved it.

I hope that with time,NaRaiwill workout the kinks. I assume some of the dishes were ready before others, which would account for the variations in temperature. Also, the portions were small. This isn't like a typical Asian restaurant with the cardboard containers full of large portions. Thesewere littleplastic containers, and I'd say they were really only meant for one person, especially the orange chicken. Unless everyone only wants a taste, these aren't suitable for sharing. Also, we received only one container of steamed rice for all the entrees we ordered.

Most dishes have a lunch option at $2.00 less than the dinner prices. The majority of NaRai's entrees are "hot and spicy," as indicated by little chile peppers on the menu. There are several soups, salads, appetizers, and desserts, along with the curries, entrees, seafood, noodle, and Thai fried rice categories. They also have a kid's menu including fried rice, fried egg noodles, and Thai chicken strips. I'm sure we'll try NaRai again, after giving it some time to find it's rhythm. I'm optimistic!