Just as I began blowing off the dining scene in San Diego’s tourist-infested Gaslamp Quarter did I recently find Rama. The 7,000-square-foot restaurant is a sanctum of Thai tranquility in a sea of “get ’em in, get ’em out” restaurants that can turn off appetites as fast as they rotate customers.

Alex Thao, who also owns Celadon in Hillcrest, is resistant to the slapdash approach. “We created an atmosphere here where people can stay for hours. Our waiters are taught to course out the meals, rather than turn tables all night.”

Rama actually feels like two restaurants. The front dining room commingles with a dimly lit bar/lounge festooned with dark woods, cube candles and well-placed Thai art. A bulky framed picture of Thailand’s fifth king – the restaurant’s namesake, which also marks hotels, gardens and bridges throughout the Asian country – delivers an imposing stateliness to the room.

Yet it isn’t until you wander down a long, slender hallway lined with candlelight and modern paintings that you realize there’s a lot more to Rama than meets the eye. “It’s gorgeous and completely different in the back!” exclaimed my dining companion upon returning from the ladies’ room.

The rear section opens up to a huge wall of layered stone kept moist by trickling water, which imparts a rainy springtime scent to the room. Pale sheers drop from the high ceiling to the mouth of each booth, giving diners a subtle sense of privacy as they ruminate over elaborately presented Thai specialties bursting with flavor and freshness. And with higher seating capacity, the ambience is more energized, while still capturing the same relaxing qualities as in the front.

Arriving with an intense hankering for Thai cuisine, we unleashed ourselves on the menu’s long list of appetizers. An order of Kratong Tong came with numerous fried pastry cups that we filled with the accompanying heap of curry-dusted chicken, potatoes, peas and carrots. Equally luscious and bountiful were the marinated Grilled Shrimp – five skewers with two large crustaceans hooked to each.

The Summer Rolls were a superior departure from traditional “spring” and “heaven” rolls. They’re constructed with fresh rice noodles that resembled soft sheets of pasta used for cannelloni. We loved the sautéed tofu and pickled cabbage in their centers, not to mention the cilantro and minced garlic sprinkled on top.

In the billions of times I’ve consumed Tom Kha soup in Thai restaurants, I went particularly nutty over Rama’s version, which gives equal play to the lemon grass, coconut milk and chili heat. Sweet tomatoes and straw mushrooms bulked up the heavenly broth.

Main courses are divided into four categories: rice and noodles, entrées, specialties and “from the sea,” which, compared to Celadon’s menu, features more catches of the season. My companion opted for Larb Pla, grilled striped bass spanning a banana boat plate and smothered with strands of firm green mango. Hidden throughout were minced garlic, mint, ground rice and a peppery chili-lime sauce. It was exotically delicious.

In my search for something really spicy, our waiter recommended the Crying Tiger, but the marinated Angus strips barely brought tears to our eyes. Though disappointingly mild, the meat was tangy and joyfully tender.

We couldn’t leave without conducting a litmus test on the Drunken Noodles, which passed over our tongues with flying colors. We ordered the dish with chicken, which didn’t carry that flat, boiled flavor common in so many other Thai places. Though I’d order it again in a heartbeat, there are too many unique offerings to pass up, including a full gamut of curries.

Throughout the course of our meal, we witnessed rivers of beautiful food flow past – things like rice-stuffed pineapples, poultry nestled in lotus-shaped leaves and jumbo plates of fish crowned in chili sauce. You’ll also find Duck Red Curry, Crab Fried Rice and occasional lobster specials.

Top-quality ingredients and an ethereal design sends Rama into a whole new stratosphere of Thai dining.