How to start a Thai dinner: our guide to the starters
10 July 2026 · 2 min read · Rim Thang Thai, Glenelg
In Thailand, dinner rarely starts with silence. Something small lands on the table early — fried, golden, made for sharing — while the wok gets going on the mains. That's the job of a good starter: it feeds the conversation before it feeds anyone properly.
We keep six starters on the menu at 39 Jetty Rd. Here's what each one is, and a suggestion if you can't choose.
The line-up
Our homemade dumplings ($16.90) are the ones the sign out front brags about — pork, chicken or mixed, folded with ginger, spring onion and brown onion, finished with sesame and served with soy sauce. They're the starter tables order twice.
The rest of the fried bench:
- Spring rolls $12.90 — vegetarian or chicken, filled with glass noodle, cabbage, carrot and mushroom, with sweet chilli for dunking.
- Fish cakes $13.90 — four pieces, springy and aromatic with galangal, lemongrass, chilli and kaffir lime leaf.
- Curry puffs $9.90 — four vegetarian pastries of potato, onion and carrot; the cheapest way to make a whole table happy.
- Prawn cakes $15.90 — four pieces, deep-fried until golden brown, served with sweet chilli sauce.
Can't decide? The Mixed Entrée
The Mixed Entrée ($24.90) puts two pieces each of spring roll, fish cake, curry puff and prawn cake on one plate — eight pieces covering four different starters. It's the right call on a first visit, or for a table of two who want to try everything without ordering half the menu.
The dumplings are the only starter not on the plate. Take that as our way of saying they deserve an order of their own.
A couple of practical notes while you're choosing: the curry puffs are vegetarian, and the spring rolls come in a vegetarian option too, though they do contain egg wash — worth knowing if you're ordering for someone who avoids egg. Ask us on the night and we'll point you right.
And if you're settling in rather than rushing, a cold Chang or Singha alongside the fried plates is a fine way to open the evening — Thai lagers were made for exactly this job.
How many to order
For two people, one starter and two mains is a comfortable dinner — the Mixed Entrée plus a curry and a noodle dish is a common table here. For four or more, put two or three starters in the middle and let everyone reach in; that's how it works in Thailand anyway, where nobody guards their own plate. If it's a bigger night, book ahead through the reservation form and we'll have the table ready — dinner runs from 5PM, seven nights.
Timing matters too. Starters come out fast because they don't need the wok, so they hold the table while your curries and stir-fries are being cooked to order. A curry puff in hand makes the wait part of the night rather than a gap in it.
See the full list in the starters section of our menu. Every one of them holds up well if you're getting takeaway — fried starters are built to travel.