Worth the schlep to Elmhurst. When folks talk about "the best Thai in Queens", they're usually thinking about another spot. I'm here to set the record straight: Ayada's the best Thai I've had in the neighborhood, and then some. Start with their BBQ pork appetizer, served with a tangy Jaew sauce ($10; credit accepted). Its tender meat melts in your mouth. Get the pad kee mao - who doesn't like noodles that are drunk?[1] - and ask for a fried egg (just a few bucks extra). Further honorable mentions include their curry duck and papaya salad. Come with friends, order a ton, and dine family style[2]. Last I was here with a large group, their staff handled us with ease during the chaos of dinner hour. Ayada's open till 11pm most nights[3]. [1] They've got a bar. And you can get shots. Just don't go overboard. [2] Mind how many people you bring. This isn't the biggest place, and I hear they're capping party sizes now. Though if you've got room, message me an invite? [3] Check hours before going. Still hungry after eating and it's late? There's at least one Thai bar nearby open even later... read more

Ayada Thai - Raw shrimp appetizer, with garlic cloves and bittermelon - Thai Near Me - Elmhurst, New York

One of my favorite places for Thai food. They serve different meals with very attractive prices. Definitely try the place, you'll not regret!! read more

Recently went again for dine-in: panang curry and red curry and didn't like them, but the pad kee mao drunken noodles still looked legit.

The food is of what I would expect if your looking for authentic! Be daring and order something you've never had before! The staff is a perfect reflection of how all walks of life should be, KIND! The atmosphere was nothing but positive with smiles everywhere and it's clean! I can't say a bad thing about this place! I've spent 19 days in Thailand and as a Chef here, I did a 5 day crash course in Thai cooking when I was there. Ayada moves to my top pick in New York City! read more

I'll keep this review short and sweet. Food is fresh af and the portions are huge!!! The service was amazing and everything was so so so delicious! I would definitely say Ayada Thai is on my top 3 favorite Thai places. If you're looking for a Thai place in elmhurst, I would highly suggest coming here. I also look forward to coming here again in the future :) read more

Ayada Thai - Mango seafood salad - Thai Near Me - Elmhurst, New York

Last night was indeed an interesting experience as I came here with two other people. We made it family style by sharing a slew of very intriguing yet distinctive dishes that is supposedly authentic to the heart of Thai cuisine. Since we all love spicy food, we demanded that they bring on the challenge and with gloves in hands, they did. Proven to be liars, we weep and sniffed our way through our meal with momentary silence of pain that initially felt like an inferno. As the heat from our taste buds subsided, it then adjusted itself for us to finally appreciate the complexity and sweetness of each dish. Between all of our dishes, the Raw Shrimp Salad ($9) definitely reigned supreme among it's contender as the most avant-garde (relatively speaking) dish of the evening. It was sweet, garlicky, light with the right amount of heat, fish sauce and acidity. The Pork Leg Entrée ($9) was also interesting as it seems to be braised over a long period of time. The meat tasted jellowy and rich while the flavors were mild. The restaurant was definitely small but with the glowing ambiance from the red candles and roses it felt quaint, cozy with a welcoming vibe. Best of all, this restaurant is also a BYOB (no cork fee) so if you're looking for a chilled, relaxing evening that will broaden your culinary horizon, then this is the place to be. read more

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Extremely great authentic thai food! Some of my favorites are the Larb Salad, Pad See Ew, and the BBQ Pork Tenders. Super good portion sizes and definitely worth the drive from Brooklyn! read more

Duck Panang curry was very tasty. We ended up dipping our crispy chicken from the drunken noodles into the curry sauce for added taste. The interior of this restaurant was half for dine-in seating and half for take-outs. Maybe because they are so busy with the takeouts, it was hard to get the server's attention right away. The tables were also sticky. Not just a spot here or there, but the entire surface of the table was sticky. Not sure why read more

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Mmm .. so good but id you like it spicy and hot ask for thai style. Emphasis on thai st but beware ots truly authentic when you say it love itt here read more

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Food rating: 4.5 Made an impromptu trip back to Ayada with bf and another friend. Again, the food was awesome. Docked 1/2 a point for saltiness. Salt is not flavor, yo!! The flavors of all the dishes are spot on.. so good & yummy!! We ordered some of the dishes we got last time and ordered some new dishes. The new dishes we ordered were the following: 1) Papaya Salad - good, as expected 2) Their famous "Raw Shrimp" - this was good. YUM! http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/fRO4Fwe5uRAajMcTwLbVkA?select=uvV0WbeLSgS7AmcJrIb_ug 4) Red Snapper steamed with Garlic Chili, and Lime Juice - fish was very fresh. MUST GET. Fish cheeks - YUM! http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/fRO4Fwe5uRAajMcTwLbVkA?select=qME4gq8GXnM55QJXViXaXg 5) Saute Prik-King Curry Paste - the menu description says that it's served with pork, but when we got the dish, it was with chicken instead. I still think it would have tasted better with pork; dish was good, but wasn't memorable. http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/fRO4Fwe5uRAajMcTwLbVkA?select=Jckw_X7UbF0PUSaMipCeog 6) Pineapple Fried Rice - good as expected http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/fRO4Fwe5uRAajMcTwLbVkA?select=TXWhe_OspljPT8Lh5Evu8w 7) Taro Custard - good as expected http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/fRO4Fwe5uRAajMcTwLbVkA?select=BadccaE353sLqeRIHlvj-A We tried to order the Bamboo Salad, but they ran out. Boo. This will be on my list to try again next time as this was recommended by our waitress last time. We re-ordered: 1) Tom Zap - still good as expected 2) Black Eggs with Basil Sauce - still good as expected Part of the Dining Room: http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/fRO4Fwe5uRAajMcTwLbVkA?select=ORm9rGq7DmuS67xzC7BiAg If you haven't tried Ayada Thai yet, WHY NOT? Forget the long lines as Sripraphai!! read more

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The staff or Manager Guy is very rude, inconsiderate and racist. That's not the way to treat a customer.

It's places like Ayada Thai and SriPraPhai that are causing me to LIKE Thai more and more and MORE. You must try the BBQ pork appetizer (A-1). It was unbelievable. I have no words. My dad, brother, and I inhaled it. Even my mom tried a piece and she RARELY, if ever eats pork. For soups, we shared the tom kha (chicken with coconut milk) and tom yum (with shrimp). Both delicious. Well I didn't try the tom yum because I'm allergic to seafood but my family loved it! The tom kha was sweeter than expected, and definitely sweeter than any other coconut milk based soup I've tried at other Thai restaurants. They had to have added sugar. But still good nonetheless! For mains, we got the red snapper, pad kra praw (chicken with chili and spicy basil sauce), and Thai fried rice with vegetables. For spice level, we requested medium for the chicken. Medium is usually good for me but damn it was spicy! In a good way though because this is real Thai food that we're eating. I don't believe in complaining about spice level or sending food back ever so there I was - eating, sweating, and chugging water. By the way, service was excellent and my water glass was never empty. They were all very kind and attentive. Parents and brother thoroughly enjoyed the snapper, which they ordered to be spicy. It was huge and they were very happy with the flavor and spice level. The fried rice complemented both the chicken and fish perfectly. Now if you're still reading, please read this part carefully - I think it's important. A reoccurring theme that I've noticed at most Thai restaurants is FAST service. Like, your food comes out very fast compared to other types of restaurants. So what we normally do is order apps/soups first, and once they come out, THEN order mains. At Ayada, our food came out the FASTEST that I've ever seen at any restaurant ever. So unless you want to be rushed and have ALL your food at once, order apps/soups first and afterwards order mains. We did this and still, mains came out while we were eating our appetizer. When this happens, you naturally rush (in my opinion) and don't get to enjoy what you're eating as much. This scenario may seem trivial but I think it makes a difference if you care about your overall dining experience. Anyways, I recommend Ayada Thai. read more

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Not sure what change but the past two times I have ordered the fried fish the portions have significantly decreased. The first time their was maybe 6-9 pieces of fried fish, it was around 3 of us to even finish the plate but the past two times it's roughly 4-5 pieces of fried fish. For a dish to be over $30 that was disappointing. I'm not sure if they just gave us half of the fish? Besides this issue the food tasted great and the service was great. read more

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My go to spot for take out while at work. You can easily veganize their menu substitute the animal product with tofu and ask to have no egg and fish sauce. I would get the fried rice and some noodles. I also order some thai iced tea without the milk. Still very yummy even without the milk. Cant wait to be back. read more

I've dined in here before and I thought the food was decent but I recently got takeout and I was very underwhelmed with the food. Prices are higher than average here also. I got tofu as my protein for my drunken noodles and that was an additional $2 (same price as chicken, beef, etc.) We got 2 appetizers, 2 small soups, and 2 entrees and total came out to $80... my drunken noodles were not saucy at all and in fact was very bland. The tofu chunks were huge as well. I prefer it in small diced pieces. My bf got the massaman curry and the way it was prepared was very weird. The 'curry' was very thin and watery like and there were no veggies in the curry. It was just the curry and chicken, nothing else. We got the fried tofu and fried chicken as appetizers.. nothing special. We also got the tom yum soup and tom kha soups and for the small size, they were $8 each. They werent bad but I don't think they're worth $8. Overall, I think theres better thai places in the area that aren't as expensive either read more

While I've never been to the actual restaurant to dine in, I can say, I am extremely satisfied with the dish it self. I ordered pad thai and pad see ew on 3 different occasions. All with tofu and or vegetables as our protein. The noodles are flavorful and cooked to perfection. The exterior of the tofu is nicely stir-fry while the inside is super tender and juicy. I totally recommend it! I haven't found a thai place around me that makes the noodle dishes as good as this place. I am so glad I gave it a try! :) read more

New York City has as many Thai restaurants as it has bars. And just like there a few great bars for each one that serves watered down drinks and skunk beer, there are a few great Thai spots. Ayada is on that short list for great Thai spots. Tucked away in Elmhurst, Ayada sits in a neighborhood that might as well be called "Thai town" and serves what I feel is the best Thai food in NYC. I love ordering my food "Thai spicy" for that extra kick, but love that the flavors are carefully combined so that even I can still taste the fresh basil that's mixed into my food. My staple meal at Ayada is the drunken noodle with beef. It's always been flawless. My mealtime mate for this dinner ordered a cashew chicken curry which she said was delicious. A great appetizer to indulge in is the chicken wings. read more

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Hit or miss. Sometimes it's super good and sometimes it's not. Almost like they switch chefs all the time. A bit on the pricey side but they are the best food on woodside Avenue. read more

My first visit to Ayada Tai! Friends had been raving about this restaurant! We went to celebrate a friend's birthday. The food was fresh and sooooo tasty- be careful with the spice when you order the dish. The environment was lovely, relaxing, the music was unobtrusive, but pleasant. We laughed, had fun and enjoyed it so much that we're hoping to go back again next week. If you like Tai food you will not be disappointed. read more

Ayada Thai - Birthday celebration with desert "mango with the BEST sticky rice." They came out with the desert and a gong. Was so festive and different. - Thai Near Me - Elmhurst, New York

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Found Ayada on Yelp after being disappointed at a another restaurant. Ayada is split in two for the front of the house, the right side which has a small bar and seating area and the left side which was probably the addition. Walking in we were immediately greeted by a waitress who asked us how many we had and then asked us to wait a minute. Almost immediately a woman, who I assume is the manager/owner came over to put us on the list. She had us sit at the bar as we waited for a table. It was approximately 7:25. About 10 minutes later the manager came back and gave us menus and told us to look at what we wanted to order so we could order immediately once the table was ready. Then another 10 minutes goes by and another couple comes in and asks for a table. What was interesting is they were brought over to the other side immediately. The bartender asks if we wanted to just eat at the bar since it would be faster and they were not sure when the table would be ready. Then the manager came in to tell us that our table was ready. We are escorted over to the left side, where the couple that had just come in was already seated. This definitely annoyed me quite a bit. We were brought two glasses of water and menus. Then we noticed my gf's plate was filled with black specs, I assumed they were coffee grounds. They were also all over our table. I had to ask the waitress to bring us a new plate and silverware and also ask the manager to clean the table. Which was cleaned awkwardly with us sitting there and her getting some of that stuff on us. We end up ordering a Nam-Tok Noodle Soup and Panang Curry. We asked for spicy for the Panang Curry. The waitress asked if we're okay with Thai level spicy. The food came out very quickly and the "Thai level spicy" was spicy, but definitely not even close to the spiciest Thai food that I have had. The Nam-Tok Noodle Soup was tasty but had a really thick layer of oil floating on top. After finishing our meal the waitress brought the check, then came back for it in about a minute or two, while we were still finishing our drinks. I let her know that she could not take the check yet, cause we were still finishing our drinks. Feel like the food is good, but the tables are way too close together, so close I could see the pores on my neighbors face The service is also pretty mediocre. Would definitely like to try some of the other dishes here, but would most likely get takeout. read more

Ayada Thai - Thai Near Me - Elmhurst, New York

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Delicious! So good!! I love Keke! She is so sweet and the whole place is nice! I always order the sunken noodles. So delicious!! I love the shrimp and crab one! I'm excited to try all their other foods! read more

Ayada is a small restaurant that seats about 40 people more or less. My party of 3 came on a Wednesday night and every table was packed. Luckily, my friend was able to get a table even though I hadn't arrived yet. Of course, got the Thai Iced Tea. It came in cute mason mugs. For appetizer we got the E-Sarn Sausage and Crispy Chinese Watercress Salad. I highly recommend getting both! The E-Sarn Sausage comes with a bunch of sides like onion, ginger, peanuts, etc. We ate the sausage by itself only to find out that we were suppose to combine all the sides and eat it at once. What a difference it made for the dish! The Crispy Chinese Watercress Salad was a huge surprise. First it is HUGE. Second I was expecting a salad, and this dish blew my mind. Crispy and tons of flavor. Like everyone said.. their "mild" is actually pretty spicy. I got the pork panang curry. It was sweet and "mildly" spicy. I didn't find it particularly awesome. Maybe next time I need to get the duck panang (NYT rated). A lot of the nearby tables got the huge fish dish. Even those sitting alone. Definitely something I need to come back and try. read more

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Wonderful Thai Restaurant. Great food and service! Cozy location. Our go-to Thai place in Elmhurst.

My all time favorite Thai place! I have been here more than I can count. Whenever I crave Thai food I come here. Authentic and yummy. Their daily specials can get expensive, but for regular Thai food (curry, noodles) they are fantastic. read more

I order from Ayada all the time so I would never expect this from them. I ordered a medium rare rib eye steak... This is well overcooked. They also did not give me the sauce that comes with the steak. The steak is served cut, so they obviously saw it was overcooked and still served it to me. Unacceptable. read more

Ayada Thai - Thai Near Me - Elmhurst, New York

Thai food are spicy but here is not too much spicy. The Salads are fresh and the cripsy pork are still cripsy when it's soaked with curry soap. A good place read more

Pretty good Thai with major competition right around it. Came here by myself with the intention of getting a few dishes to try, eating what I could, and taking the rest home for dinner. Well, I ended up being unable to stop and just gorged myself and finished everything in one sitting. I hope the waiter was impressed. I felt awful afterwards, but it was worth it. I started with a cup of the Tom Yum Shrimp Soup ($5). I was not at all prepared for the onslaught of flavor I was about to receive. Often, tom yum soup is just really salty and sour, but here, there was great balance between the coconut milk and the fish sauce. The lemongrass and kafir lime shined through. There was lots of mushroom and the shrimp was cooked really well. It's definitely not a premade soup with shrimp just sitting around. Next up was the pad see ew with beef ($9). It was a great version of the dish. The rice noodles were cooked really well and some pieces had a really nice char to it. The beef was tender and the Chinese broccoli still had a nice crisp to it. The flavor was wonderful, with a perfect mix of savory and a hint of sweetness. One taste and you know this was cooked in a super hot wok, the way it should be. My last dish was the panang curry with pork. This was the dish I was most excited for and was not let down. The flavor of the panang curry was so complex, with just the right amount of coconut milk. The pork was tender. It was such a great dish to just pour over rice and eat until your stomach hurt. I had to go take a really long roundabout walk on my way home to walk off the food, but it was so worth it. read more

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I love the service and I never forget my beer is almost done at the time they come and asking me do you want another one and also water and then their duck curry is my favorite one I recommend duck curry and then coconut tomyum soup see you again guys read more

This is one of my most favorite Thai restaurants. They're authentic Thai food. The food is always presentable and delicious. They are well portioned and fairly priced. I order from them frequently. My favorite is the pad kra pow beef or pork. read more

Great, authentic Thai food!! This place has been my family's go-to-spot for delicious grub for years. It's been the perfect alternative to that original-Elmhurst, now-defunct, exquisite-Thai institution..... JAI YA!!!! read more

Cozy little spot with outstanding food. Hostess was great met us outside and we were seated right away. Tables seem to flow in and out pretty quickly. We got a nice two top by the bar and we were happy. Food came out quick and was extremely flavorful. For apps we got spring rolls that were perfect, wings were pretty good but the sweet tangy sauce put them over the top and we also got a classic papaya salad medium which was on point. We split the two mains, first one that came out was a crispy pork drunk man noodle. Huge crispy piece of pork belly were amazing, noodles were cooked perfectly and flavored beautifully. The dish was a 10 out of 10 if your judging at home. Second dish was minced chicken with Chinese eggplant, chinese broccoli and other veggies. The dish was also a 10 out of 10 perfect score. I wish I had some room for the mango and rice but I couldnt move. Highly recommend this place if your in the mood for thai. Service was excellent, very welcoming and attentive. Hope you enjoy as much as I did, I will be back soon read more

Ayada Thai - Classic papaya salad and wings waiting on the spring rolls - Thai Near Me - Elmhurst, New York

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Just writing this review of Ayada Thai is making me drools... The food here is surprising authentic Thai which is not easy to find at least at a lot of the so call Thai restaurants I been to! I am lucky that my Yelp NYC friend able to squeeze in Ayada Thai in my busy "eating" schedule as a pre dinner snack stop! We ordered: E-Sarn Sausage ($8) - has such a good bite and interesting taste and love those fresh Thai chili as garnish! Papaya Salad ($7) Thai Spicy - Sour and Spicy and not for everyone, I saw some teary eyes and one of my dinner mate just grab my Thai iced tea and drink that in one sip! Fried Calamari ($8) - Light and Crispy! Where is my Singha! Raw Shrimp Salad ($9) - Bitter Melon, Raw Shrimp, Garlic, Fish Sauce, Herbs.. Come up your mouth and enjoy! Penang Duck Curry ($9) - Great curry flavour and the soft tender meat, went so well with the sticky rice! Mango Sticky Rice ($8) - Mangoes in season!! So Sweet and the warm sticky rice infused with coconut milk was cooked well, moist and chewy... perfect ending to our pre dinner snack! Ayada Thai is definitely worth a visit, you won't regret it! read more

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I ordered the Pad Kua Gai. Silky, smooth noodles. Enough sauce and oil to keep the noodles separate. The right seasonings; balance of sweet, sour, and spice (sriracha sauce blend on the side). I wasn't sure if I'd like the squid, but I loved it. 2 pieces of squid, tender, cross-hatched cooked, meaty. Some slivers of chicken and bits of egg. It's a small restaurant, maybe seating for 20 ppl. It's clean and courteous staff. Fairly inexpensive; good value. The seating/table. On a cold and windy day due to the polar vortex, I sat on the bench seat which I felt was heated. I soon realized, the bench encased the radiator. I appreciated the radiator cuz of the obvious, kept my tush warm. However after I got warmed up, the radiator was too hot to handle. Fortunately, we were on our way out. read more

Ayada Thai - Pad kua gai: chicken, squid and egg - Thai Near Me - Elmhurst, New York

I went here yesterday with one of my friends. The service was excellent, the waitresses are very accommodating and welcoming. I ordered the fried calamari and thai iced tea. Prices are very reasonable and portions are great. read more

Ayada Thai - A14. Fried Calamari - Thai Near Me - Elmhurst, New York

Hidden gems. The moment I walk into the restaurant I can smell the delicious smells of Thai food . Wonderful service , I order the papaya salad and the Penang curry duck. Penang curry is a little pricy , but totally worth the money . The Chef have done beautiful job preparing the food . Never have curry with duck ( even I grew up in Asian) Duck lover , Penang curry is a must . Portions are huge too read more

Ayada Thai - Penang curry Duck - Thai Near Me - Elmhurst, New York

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Came here with my sister. We were both starving and wanted Thai. We decided to get a lot of food and shocker it was TOO MUCH! She got her Drunken Noodles. The portion was huge!!! It was wonderfully spicy. Great food. I got my Jungle Curry and was so happy with it. The bowl which the Jungle Curry came in was enormous. It was so filling and spicy. The calamari we ordered was piled high on the plate. Freshly fried and so delicious. The sauce that came with it was the sweet Chilli sauce. The wings I'd say was a bit excessive. The food is spot on and the portions are huge. The prices are very reasonable and overall a memorable experience. read more

Ayada Thai - Amazing calamari - Thai Near Me - Elmhurst, New York

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Can't even decide on what's my favorite dish in here but my the reason I always go back to this restaurant is the incredible fresh flavors I love the raw shrimp salad, the Tom yum soup, the fried crab rice and the fried crab mango salad, I love Thai food because of this restaurant read more

Ayada Thai - Y9. Raw Shrimp Salad - Thai Near Me - Elmhurst, New York

Beautiful ambiance, beautiful food, beautiful service. I love everything about Ayada. I love coming here for any of the fish dishes mostly. The crispy fish is so bomb I feel like I'm teleporting to Atlantis every time I order it. I recommend absolutely everything read more

Five years later, and they're still the best, hands down! I've made several visits to the Chelsea Market location, since it was easier to get to coming from out of town, but the food at the original location is consistently good. read more

I heard great things about Ayada and it really bothers me that I am writing this review. I walked into Ayada already loving the romantic decor and seeing that the restaurant was almost full. Isn't this a good sign? The staff members are very friendly and attentive from the start. I observed that they have very good team work and that everyone helps out any customer. I liked that. So far, so good. I got my usual Pad See Ew with beef and Thai Iced Tea. My companion got the Nam Tok Noodle Soup. Pad See Ew was extremely salty. The meat was really tough and overcooked. It was very flavorful with spice though. My companion thought his dish was overly salty as well. Thai Iced Tea was too sweet for my taste, too. I did love the strong tea aroma. Overall, the ingredients in each dish was very generous but the saltiness was too overwhelming for me to ignore. My tongue was really hurting from the extreme sugar and salt experience. I know I will be coming back since my companion lives so close by. I really hope to give a better rating in my update review. Sorry. read more

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