A few years ago, a friend called and asked if I wanted to meet for Thai. Having spent much of the previous five years searching for a decent Thai joint within 25 miles of my house, I expressed a bit of skepticism (this was well before Thai Tina&rsquo;s made such a notable splash in Fort Worth). My friend assured me she knew of just the place, right near North East Mall. </p><p>Since then, Sweet Basil Thai &mdash; sandwiched between a jewelry store and a cellphone shop in a nondescript strip just behind Dillard&rsquo;s &mdash; has become my go-to stop for Thai. The concoctions aren&rsquo;t especially exotic. But for well-cooked food made with notably fresh ingredients, Sweet Basil consistently delivers; it&rsquo;s one of the few Tarrant County restaurants that I can honestly say has never let me down. </p><p>Early on a recent Wednesday night, Sweet Basil Thai was surprisingly crowded, with an appealing mix of young couples and large families. The space is simple, but elegantly appointed: Deep orange walls, Asian-style decorations throughout. Simple and elegant is a good way to describe the menu, too. It hits on all the Thai staples (a variety of curries, pad Thai) and throws in a few house specialties, as well. </p><p>We started with the Thai egg rolls ($5.50), a commonplace sounding dish that Sweet Basil executes with unexpected vigor. Four thin, perfectly fried egg rolls are sliced diagonally, and placed atop a bed of raw, shredded cabbage and carrots. The ground chicken, glass noodle and cooked cabbage filling is moist and savory, with just a hint of spice. The egg-roll shell, so often dripping with grease to the point of inedibility in Asian restaurants, is crispy and not even remotely greasy. The sweet-and-sour dipping sauce is straightforward but lends a superb tang to the rolls. </p><p>Since I come from the school of "No Amount of Garlic Is Ever Enough," I opted for the Fried Garlic with pork ($9.95) for my entree. The pork is tossed in a dark-brown sauce, flaked with tiny bits of cooked garlic. A medley of carrots, baby corn and broccoli fills the rest of the plate. I could perhaps gripe that the accompanying bowl of white rice is a little on the bland side (and that it costs a buck extra to get brown rice). But this dish offered a fine display of strong, but never overpowering flavors, and the pork was tender and well-seasoned. Complaints seem beside the point. </p><p>Since no Thai restaurant can pass Go without delivering a sufficient Pad Thai, my companion ordered the classic famous noodle-and-peanut sauce dish. The noodles came out soft, but not mushy &mdash; our preferred pad Thai texture. The nest of scrambled egg atop the mound of noodles was especially delectable. We had a couple of minor quibbles &mdash; the mixture might have used a tad more peanut sauce and sprouts and green onions &mdash; but this was still a satisfying dish that we&rsquo;d eat again. </p><p>Overall, the service was efficient, if hardly stellar. Our waiter dropped off the check without asking if we wanted dessert, and then disappeared for a stretch when we wanted to pay and leave. But since we were trying to keep within the 2 for $30 mandate, we were planning on skipping dessert anyway. (Had we indulged ourselves, the mango sticky rice &mdash; on special the night we were there &mdash; certainly sounded tempting.) </p><p>And while we only tried these three dishes, I can report from other visits that the Sweet Basil Noodles (spicy flat noodles, with vegetables and basil) and Pad-See-Ew (flat noodles wok-fried with Chinese broccoli and eggs) are also quite good. The final damage, for dinner, was just less than $30 before tip; and if you go at lunch, when there are any number of dishes on special for $7.50, you can easily knock $10 off that total. </p><p><hr class="infobox-hr-separator" /> <div class="infobox"> <strong><span class="subhead">Sweet Basil Thai Cuisine</span></strong></p><p>977 Melbourne Road, Hurst</p><p>817-268-2899</p><p></div>