SAN FRANCISCO — Crunchy hearts of palm and giant shrimp stir-fried with holy basil and the perfect ration of red chiles. A green papaya salad, freshly shredded and mashed with an extra portion of tiny Thai limes.

There was a downside to living in Bangkok for a decade as a New York Times correspondent and being surrounded by great Thai dishes like those: It really raised the bar for when I moved back to America.

Last year, a few weeks after my family and I arrived in the United States for a new posting and a new life, we went to a Thai restaurant in Manhattan where my son, then 9, casually rattled off an order of one of his favorites, pad see ew gai — stir-fried rice noodles with chicken, garlic, leafy greens and a mixture of dark and light soy sauce.

The Thai waiter, having not encountered many American children who speak Thai, was charmed. He doted on my son, and after he had delivered the food made a standard Thai inquiry: Is it delicious?