Another anticipated restaurant opening last year was Jo’s Modern Thai in Oakland.

There was a good amount of hype for this restaurant especially since the area doesn’t have many “hip” restaurants. Jo’s Modern Thai is definitely a combination of Thai dishes with a slightly American twist. Everything on the menu sounded delicious and we ordered a wide range of meat and seafood dishes.

Talk of the Town (Havana Club, Coconut Cream, Pineapple, and Palm Sugar) and Thai Iced Tea.

Beef Short Rib with Cucumber and Herbs (8-8.5/10).

I loved this appetizer with slices of fresh cucumber topped with meaty short rib, jaew (Thai chili dipping sauce), and fresh herbs.

Squid Salad with Sesame Shrimp Cracker (8/10).

This squid salad was dressed in rice and chili powder, lots of aromatic herbs, and served with a crispy sesame shrimp cracker. It was refreshing

Jo’s Famous Party Wings (9/10).

I rarely pass up chicken wings since I love them and never make them at home. These were sooo yummy with crispy garlic pieces served with a spicy jaew sauce and a sweet and sour mayonnaise.

Shrimp Mousse Toast (8.5/10).

Another winner was this shrimp mousse toast on milk bread with mayonnaise, pickles, and cucumber plum sauce.

Lobster Pad Thai (8/10).

Their lobster pad thai was pretty traditional in terms of the flavor and condiments. Beware of the pile of chili powder as it’s quite spicy!

Drunken Noodle Brisket Pad Kee Mao (7.5-8/10).

This was the perfect example of the crossover between Thai and American cuisine. They actually used Smokin Woods BBQ’s brisket in their pad kee mao with Thai basil, garlic, onion, bell pepper, and green peppercorn.

Pork Jowl Curry and Butterfly Blue Pea Sticky Rice (8.5/10).

This red curry was intensely flavored with sweet and sour notes with tender pieces of pork jowl and ong choy. Of course we had to get some sticky rice to go along with it.

Shaved Ice (6.5-7/10) and Thai Tea Tres Leches (7.5/10).

Desserts were the weakest out of the entire meal. I preferred the Thai tea tres leches as the spongecake was nicely soaked in Thai tea and had a generous serving of whipped cream on top. My issue was with shaved ice because the shavings were way too coarse. I was imagining Japanese shaved ice where it’s extremely fluffy and melts in your mouth almost instantly. The flavors were delicious (pandan coconut cream, condensed milk, asian pear, lychee, cornflakes, and milk bread) but the texture made it difficult to enjoy.

Overall the food and atmosphere was a good experience and an exciting addition to the neighborhood so my rating is a 7.5-8/10.