Earlier today I placed a pretty significant order. We had vegetable egg rolls, potstickers, chicken satay, chicken larb salad, pad Thai, spicy fried rice, lad na, Thai fried rice, mango sticky rice, and Thai iced tea.
I ordered the way I did on purpose. These are my go to Thai dishes. The staples. I wanted to taste everything I consider my personal favorites so I could really gauge the restaurant across the board.
The vegetable egg rolls and chicken satay were good. Solid. The potstickers were good. The chicken larb was actually good, maybe a little too much sugar, it tasted slightly sweet, but still one of the stronger dishes. Mango sticky rice was enjoyable.
The Thai iced tea, flavor was on point. That's actually my first indicator when I try a Thai restaurant. The only thing that would've made it better is crushed ice. Real Thai spots usually use crushed ice. It melts perfectly and dilutes the sweetness just right. When you use block ice, the tea stays too sweet longer. Crushed ice gives it that smooth balance. Small detail, but that's how I gauge authenticity.
Now to the honest part.
The pad Thai was mediocre. It was lacking. I've definitely had better and I wouldn't recommend that dish. The spicy fried rice was okay, nothing special. The lad na gravy was way too thick, and instead of using Chinese broccoli, they used regular American broccoli. That's usually my second give when I rate a Thai restaurant. Traditional lad na uses Chinese broccoli. That swap changes the texture and the authenticity of the dish.
They also didn't have the typical sauce that usually complements lad na, which I found strange for a Thai restaurant. The Thai fried rice was decent.
Overall, I'm giving this place four stars.
Here's my why.
First, they didn't have common condiments that are pretty standard at most Thai restaurants. That threw me off.
Second, the service. They weren't rude at all. Everyone was friendly. But the attentiveness just wasn't there, especially considering we placed a large order and the restaurant wasn't that busy.
Third, the flavor and authenticity details. It just didn't hit the way traditional Thai food usually does. I've eaten Thai food all my life, especially in Thai Town in California and throughout Orange County, and the flavor profile here wasn't on that level.
If someone asked me if I would return, probably not. But don't let my review stop you. Be your own judge. My goal isn't to hurt the business. It's feedback. Tighten up the service, dial in the flavor, stick closer to traditional ingredients, and it could easily level up to five stars for my taste.
And yes, expectations vary. I've eaten a lot of Thai food, so I may be grading on a different curve.
One more tip, if you're a party of six or more, double check your receipt. Gratuity was already included in ours and I didn't realize until I got back to where I was staying since I'm out of town. I had to call and have the extra tip removed.
Just keeping it real. read more