Red Thread Transports Your Palate to the Mystique of the Silk Road

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Red Thread Transports Your Palate to the Mystique of the Silk Road

That magical moment when you awaken in the morning and the first thing you think of is last night … her, or him … or the new restaurant you met last night. That transcendent meal experience. You wish you were still there or could go back right now.

I have been anticipating the opening of Red Thread for so long. To sum up my Messenger chats to their FB page over the last few months, “Are you open yet?” “No.” “Are you open yet?” “No.” “Are you open yet?” “No.” and on and on. There’s no such thing as getting a restaurant opened quickly in St. Pete, but it was worth the wait.

Red Thread has actually been open for a couple of months now, but originally the menu was limited and not finalized, and it will still evolve beyond this writing. Everything has been well thought out from the ambience / decor to the service, and especially the cuisine.

There is much to think about with the cuisine as they have taken on a gargantuan, admirable, and exciting task. Most restaurants are based on a region’s or country’s national food. Red Thread is inspired by the ancient Silk Road – from Asia and India to Persia, the Middle East, and the Mediterranean. That’s over 40 countries and territories. I love that.

Don’t worry. What could be a 50 page menu is a succinct two pages with 15 items, plus the drink menu. Currently, the majority of the menu represents the western end of the Silk Road being Middle Eastern and Mediterranean. Those two regions do have a significant overlap as well. The eastern end of the Silk Road is represented with an entree that has a wonderful curry sauce, and with some other touches throughout.

I would love to be the chef here as there are so many possibilities. Speaking of the chef, a friend of mine, Chef Joshua Bury (formerly of Oaks on 4th and The Karol Hotel) recently took over the kitchen to get things more fine-tuned, and running smoothly. He has already made some changes to the menu and plating presentations, and there will be more to come as things evolve and he continues to add his touch.

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Keeping in mind that the ownership here is the same as the cocktail lounge, Saigon Blonde, just around the corner – the beverage offerings are irresistible and delightfully tasty and unique.

The decor is exotic and otherworldly with a slant towards Persian and a feel of restaurant and lounge in one.

Our server, Bill, is from New York and you could tell by the superior, thoughtful, and informative service he offered. He anticipated things before we could even ask him. I came armed with questions and he answered them all.

I’m normally a killjoy when it comes to drink menus, and just order my usual dry gin martini. Not this time.

I am not a fan of the ever-so-popular “Dirty Martini”.

<begin rant> I refer to the dirty martini as the martini for people who don’t like martinis – let’s cover up this gin with a bunch of olive brine – or worse yet, let’s make it with vodka and still call it a martini. </end rant>

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Grand Fossil Sauvignon Blanc - Loire, France and Pink Medi-Tini
Grand Fossil Sauvignon Blanc – Loire, France and Pink Medi-Tini

I mention that because the first beverage I had was the Pink Medi-Tini – “A take on a dirty martini with briny pickled turnip, dry crisp finish.” I love this cocktail so much that I had two of them. Instead of the overwhelming takeover of olive brine, the pickled turnip juice was bright, crisp and vinegary. To me, it was like drinking a salad with a high quality red wine vinegar. For the gin scaredy cats, they do offer the choice of vodka as well.

Lori started with a nice Grand Fossil Sauvignon Blanc from the Loire Valley.

Break Bread
Break Bread

Our first food item was the Break Bread – hummus, fennel, artichoke, and muhammara. This has a fun double entendre as we are sharing a meal (breaking bread), but we are also literally breaking the large crispy pita into smaller pieces to use as crackers to eat the two spreads with. This is a large starter that can easily be shared by four if you are planning on getting a few things.

A couple of enjoyable creative twists are the hummus with some beet juice added, hence the pink color, and the muhammara having not just roasted red peppers, but also some roasted tomatoes as well. That’s how renowned Israeli-British chef and restaurateur Yotam Ottolenghi does his – with added tomatoes that you usually do not find in most recipes. This was some of the best hummus and muhamarra we’ve ever had. The muhamarra was a bit spicy, sweet and earthy. The fried artichoke hearts were a nice contrasting touch. This entire dish is just bursting with flavor.

Kafta En Croute
Kafta En Croute

The Kafta En Croute was recommended by our friend, Ronicca Whaley, owner of Shiso Crispy. Kafta is a Middle Eastern dish of seasoned ground meat that’s usually formed around a skewer and grilled, and sometimes into patties or meatballs. The more elegant approach here has the mince meat of beef and lamb made into patties and wrapped in phyllo dough. Close your eyes and the exotic, mouthwatering spices and seasonings will have you dreaming that you are in Lebanon or Israel. The tahini labneh base is so good that it could be a dish by itself.

Spiced Trail
Spiced Trail

Since spiced shrimp was up next, our server Bill recommended the Spiced Trail cocktail. This was an excellent recommendation. This libation is described as, “Tequila meets clarified tomato lifted by bright lime, fresh cucumber, tangy sumac, salt and spicy green pepper. It’s like a walk in your garden on a spring day.” I highly endorse this beverage as well.

Spiced Shrimp
Spiced Shrimp

The Spiced Shrimp was good, but it was our least favorite. The dish has harissa butter, roasted garlic, chili oil, and focaccia, which sounds quite promising. The shrimp themselves were cooked perfectly, and the focaccia was light and airy with a little char-crunch that was ideal. We felt the dish could use more seasoning, and spice. Perhaps a chili powder spice mix dusting on the shrimp to finish as well. Don’t write this one off though as I’m hoping this feedback will help improve the dish.

Beef Short Rib
Beef Short Rib

Another dish that our friend Ronicca recommended was the Beef Short Rib. This includes “curry, melon kimchi, and cardamom chèvre”. If you look at the menu photos below you will see cured yolk listed, but that has been removed from the dish, and new menus are being printed soon. Berbere seasoned puffed rice has been added.

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Berbere is an Ethiopian spice blend that is new to me. Wikipedia says that it is spicy, but the puffed rice seemed mild to me. It does offer a great textural contrast to the other parts of the dish though.

The melon kimchi is from watermelon rind, and chèvre is made from goat cheese – in case you didn’t know.

The actual curry is Massaman, which is a mild and slightly sweet curry with many of the typical warming spices found in Indian curries. Most sources say that Massaman’s origin is Thailand, but I have also read that it has influences from India and Persia. When I asked Red Thread Manager, Lucien Chalfoun about this conflicting information, he described that it is common to have disputes on food origins as borders shift over time.

The beef short rib itself was fall apart tender and juicy. The entire dish was wonderfully flavorful and kept interesting with the contrasting flavors and textures.

Pork Chop
Pork Chop

The Pork Chop was actually our favorite item, but it was quite close as all of the dishes aside from the shrimp were really amazing.  The pork chop had port beurre rouge, gruyère, and a crispy gold potato. Everything was seasoned to perfection with the pork chop being moist, juicy and tender. Potatoes are always a joy in any form, but when you make them crunchy and crispy it puts them over the top, and the port beurre rouge is my new favorite sauce.

Arabian Tiramisu
Arabian Tiramisu

If you were one of the earliest visitors to Red Thread there was a different version of the Arabian Tiramisu on the menu which later came off. This is the newest version, which is not shown on the pictured menu below, but it will be on when the new menus are printed.

The Arabian Tiramisu was quite enjoyable and well balanced with varying textures, and not too sweet. From the bottom up we have Arabic coffee soaked lady fingers, mascarpone crème, Heath bar tuile, cardamom coffee syrup, and cocoa powder.

This paired perfectly with the Coffee Date beverage.

Coffee Date
Coffee Date

The drink is made with cardamom infused vodka, robust dark coffee, velvet chocolate, black salt and the sweet earthiness of dates. This is another excellent drink. I would take this over an espresso martini any day.

On Thursday, Friday, and Saturday you can enjoy after dinner drinks on the spacious and beautiful outdoor patio and enjoy the live DJs spinning the decks.

Here are some more shots of the restaurant. Below the restaurant photos are photos of the menu.

Red Thread
  • Readers Rating
  • Rated 5 stars
    5 / 5 (15 )
$-$$
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  • Red Thread
  • (727) 202-7566
  • Mediterranean, Middle Eastern, Far East
    • Tue - Thu 5:00pm - 1:00am
    • Fri - Sat 5:00pm - 2:00am
    • Sun - 5:00pm - 1:00am
  • View menu
  • Take Reservations: Yes!
  • 300 1st Ave N, St. Petersburg, FL 33701, US

A culinary journey exploring the rich tapestry of the ancient Silk Road. Red Thread celebrates the diverse flavors of countries along this historic path, from Asia and India to Persia, the Middle East, and the Mediterranean.

DISCLAIMER: Kevin, Lori, Abby, Haley, Lindsey & Mahika do not dine anonymously (this would be impossible) and we sometimes get free food (though never expected). However, we dine with the locals and we support our own. You will always get honesty in a respectful manner. We do not include any large national or regional chains in our ratings and reviews. We focus on independent locally owned eateries exclusively.

PLEASE NOTE: Reviews reflect a certain moment in time. Some restaurants stay extremely consistent over many years, and some change for the better or worse. Some things that may change are: chefs, recipes, food suppliers, ingredients, philosophies, ownership, etc. We always hope that you have the same good, or great experience we had.
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