This was f*cking amazing. The pad Thai, fried rice, and lo mein were all incredible. The staff was incredibly kind and the food came quick. Good vibes in restaurant. If im ever in the area again, I will be stopping here. read more

Great gem! Will definitely be back!! Delicious soup, pad Thai, and fried rice. The best spot I've found in Atl so far. Tasted homemade with love. read more

I ordered food from here for the first time and it was amazing. I ordered the Duck Pho and Thai Tea with Milk and I'm am so satisfied with my order. The broth from the pho was separated from the noodles, duck, herbs, lettuce, sprouts and scallions, which was great so nothing got soggy on the way to my house. The broth was so rich and the duck was very juicy. I took a picture of the other half of the food I didn't eat yet. The Thai tea was the best one I've ever had in my life. I can't wait to order from here again. Will recommend. Oh and it only cost $14, minus the delivery fee on DoorDash! read more

Hot Cafe - Thai Near Me - Atlanta, Georgia

If you are looking for authentic Lao/Thai cuisine you will be blown away. Definitely a hole in the wall Mom & Pop restaurant that should no longer be kept a secret:) read more

Hot Cafe - Larb is a type of Lao meat salad that is the national dish of Laos, along with green papaya salad and sticky rice. - Thai Near Me - Atlanta, Georgia

See all

Completely amazing Thai and Laotian food. A friend told me about this restaurant last week and we went the next day. The food was amazing, the ladies who were serving are super sweet and we just had a wonderful time. We will be going back! I want to go back with more people so that we can order many more items read more

As others have mentioned, a hole in the wall Thai/Lao joint in a very small shopping strip near the airport. When you walk in don't let the unassuming, run-down appearance turn you away. The food is actually pretty good. I ordered drunken noodles (aka pad kee mao), pad thai, papaya salad, and 5 pc chicken wings. The food is pretty good. Pad thai and kee mao tasted okay and standard though I've had better. Papaya salad was nice and spicy. I particularly enjoyed the chicken wings - fried to crispy perfection and came with a side of dipping sauce (tasted like fish sauce mixed with mae ploy sweet chili sauce). Peeking at the kitchen, it looked like it was a couple of grandma's cooking the food so it's as authentic as it's gonna get, peeps. With the entrees each costing around 10 bucks each and papaya salad at 8 bucks and the chicken wings at around 5 bucks, total came to 34 bucks. Overall, positive experience and worthy of a visit if you're near Atlanta Airport and have a craving for Thai grub. read more

See all

We ordered food to go tonight and it was amazing!!!! The basil fried rice, Tom Yum soup and laos rolls were outstanding. Great value for perfect spice. Thank you Hot Cafe for your delicious food and outstanding service!!! read more

The issue with the food here is that it was disgusting. Service wasn't any good either. This review, although scathing, is pretty accurate. Avoid the pad see ew at all costs it tastes and smells like very bad gone off fish sauce. read more

Whenever I'm in town, I make sure to stop by this mom and pop restaurant on the way home. Hot Cafe serves authentic Laos/Thai cuisine - ranging from a variety of dishes. There's a decent amount of parking spaces available. The interior is outdated, but it's something to look over since the food is delicious. There are plenty of booths and tables for seating. Service can be a little slow, since it's usually one person working as cashier, server, and waiter with one cook in the kitchen. My go-to dishes are usually: fried chicken wings, papaya salad, sausage, chicken banh canh, jerky, beef lab, any of the lardna dishes and pad se-ew. Order these dishes with a side of sticky rice and it's the perfect dinner. Their thai tea is refreshing too! It's the right amount of sweetness. read more

Hot Cafe - Thai Near Me - Atlanta, Georgia

See all

The shrimp fried rice & papaya salad are top tier! minimal wait time and pleasant service add to the experience. I would recommend giving Hot Cafe a try. read more

Finally got to try this place today and it was a bit of a let down. I got papaya salad, fried sausage (sai oua) and 5 piece fried chicken. Came out to be $20 which isn't terrible. The chicken was crispy, but no flavor. The fried sausage was good but they cut up the sausage while it was cooking (I think?) so it wasn't crispy and was oily. The papaya salad was just meh. It was on the sour side and I felt like the fermented fish sauce they used was flavorless. They had mixed cherry tomatoes with ordinary tomatoes which waters down the salad which was disappointing. Overall, I wouldn't go back. Next time I would just drive a little further and go to Pho Lanxang which is another Laotian restaurant that is pretty on point. read more

Hot Cafe - Papaya salad. Comes with cabbage slices and pork rinds. - Thai Near Me - Atlanta, Georgia

See all

Very good flavor and chewy noodles! Great find, we will try other dishes also. Support local businesses :) read more

Hot Cafe - Chicken Kee Mao - Thai Near Me - Atlanta, Georgia

I've been coming here since my high school days. Great authentic food and friendly staff.

The service was excellent and the food was even better, I will definitely be coming again!

Love the beef larb with tons of greens and they have the delicious microwave buns also

I have been coming to Hot Cafe for about ten years now, more often when I used to live closer. I love it so much, I should uproot my family and move back closer again. They have truly AUTHENTIC Laos/Thai food. I sort of like their papaya salad better than my sister-in-law's who is Laotian. But the absolute BEST thing they have is actually their fried chicken wings. How do they get them so crispy and juicy? Other favorites include their lad na, the best pad thai I've had in metro Atlanta area, and all of their fried rices (especially try the pineapple fried rice). I tried their coconut soup for the first time recently, and I also fell in love. The only thing I no longer get there is the pho, which is the only thing that is just okay. They seem to be slowly remodeling the interior. It has new hardwood floors, and the ceilings no longer have black spots. The exterior and interior are questionable and do not look the most appealing. They are also in a sketchy neighborhood close to the airport, BUT they get a full 5 stars because their food is THAT good. The end. read more

Hot Cafe is hands down my FAVORITE restaurant!!! The food is always amazing! My go to dish is the chicken pho, I promise it never disappoints! But everything else I've tried has been great as well! Portions are generous and the quality of the ingredients are excellent! Kim and the rest of the staff are very friendly and welcoming! I've lost count of times I would over hear a new customer (and regular customer) at another table rave all great things! I highly recommend, you won't regret it! read more

terrible customer service. i called to place an order and he told me the food would be ready in 10 mins I drove 15 mins to the restaurant and he barely acknowledged me. He asked me a few mins later while I was waiting what i'm there for and I said my order. Since I hung up the phone earlier after I thought he didn't hear me about how much it was after I placed my order he assumed I didn't want my food no more and then he told me they were closing. I left extremely disappointed on how rude he was. read more

I wouldn't mind coming here to eat if I were in town again. Parking - It's a small strip lot. Unsure how busy this lot gets... but it was fine when I went at like 12pm for lunch on a Saturday. Space - I'd say medium to large. There was NO ONE sitting when we arrived but lots of tables/booths Service - We were the only ones there, so it was fine. I think the owner was our server. He was super nice. Food: Chicken Wings - I liked them! Tasty. Done very well. The sauce included is goooooooooood. I asked for more to put into my Pad Thai. I was half full of the wings when my entree arrived. Pad Thai - Was solid. Portion was extremely generous. I want to say they're right below Little Bangkok's Pad Thai. Noodles were cooked just right. Sauce/ingredients were delicious. NOMNOM. Thai Tea - Was a little sweeter than usual. Nothing too bad. I have a sweet tooth so I enjoyed it! read more

Hot Cafe - Chicken pad thai - Thai Near Me - Atlanta, Georgia

See all

Great little hidden jem on the south side. Don't be intimidated by its location in a dark strip mall on the side of the highway, this place is legit. Also, don't be afraid of how it looks inside. The carpet is old and dingy, and the tables look worn, but seriously amazing food comes out of their kitchen. Think of this place as lived in, and loved like the house you grew up in, rather than dirty or messy. They've got good sized portions, and seriously authentic (and spicy!) Thai and Laotian dishes. I love the tom yum soup. It's overflowing with lots of fresh veggies. And their crispy seasoned chicken wings? Oh baby. Even without sauce, the wings are great. I was a vegetarian for several years, and wings like these make me glad to be back on the dark side. Their papaya salad is also super delicious, but it will light you up if you're not used to spicy foods. Seriously, mkay? My pepper-head significant other shovels it down, but I can only eat a small amount at a time (even if we order "mild"). Get some sticky rice to eat with it to offset some of the heat. read more

See all

I live on a different side or I-285, and I would drive all the way there just for some authentic Laos-Thai food. Fried chicken is the bomb. Laab and papaya salad is always on point as well. Try to ignore their interior cause it's outdated but food is legit! read more

Hot Cafe - Excited to come here every time! - Thai Near Me - Atlanta, Georgia

See all

Really I'd give it a five. Good cheap food, what's not to like??? But just so you know going in, this is a hole-in-the-wall kinda place. If it's your anniversary dinner, do yourself a favor. And if it's prom night, just keep looking. But if your hungry for good food and don't feel like payin $30+ per plate, this is your place. My coworkers would be embarrassed for me, but my friends and family would all say "SCORE!!!!!" read more

One of my favorite restaurants of all time. I eat here every time I'm in Atlanta. I love the pho soup and egg rolls. They bring out so much fresh vegetables to put in the soup that it takes an hour to eat it all. The restaurant is just a hole in the wall kind of place frequented mostly by locals, the place is family run, and the chef is a little lady from Laos that cooking her mother's recipes with a Thai twist. Over the last thirty years I have tried nearly everything on the menu and it is all fantastic. read more

I'm half Thai, this is definitely authentic Thai food. Reminds me of my grandmas cooking. It looks a little rough on the outside, but don't judge a book by its cover, those are usually the best places to eat. read more

I stopped here because I wanted some Chinese food and it was around 7pm on a Sunday. From the outside, it doesn't look the best and the inside was a small step better. I ordered Shrimp fried rice and egg rolls(they give you 3 per order). They give me a full dinner portion enough to eat for two days. The egg rolls were more of a spring roll texture and although they were a little overcooked, they were good. I would definitely go back. read more

Hot Cafe - Egg rolls..it was 3 and they were overcooked but still delicious. - Thai Near Me - Atlanta, Georgia

See all

I crave food from Hot Cafe way too often.. which is unfortunate since I currently live in a different state!! Prices: reasonable Ambiance: it's a family owned hole in the wall, that's how you know the food is gonna be darn good Portions: great for family style sharing Favorites: wings, papaya salad mild heat since I'm a big baby, sticky rice and Thai tea read more

OMG Great Food & great service! I will be back on a regular. We enjoyed! Thanks guys!

Years ago, I first ate at Hot Cafe following the recommendations of two women. Until today, much time has passed since my last visit, probably because I had a falling-out with those two women. Currently, said women and I are on friendlier terms, and I drive past Hot Cafe on a regular basis since being hired to work at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, so I decided to return to find out if the food is as good as I remember. Thankfully, it is. Hot Cafe is an inconspicuous restaurant immediately south of the airport that serves Laotian, Thai, and Chinese cuisine. It's a small eatery adorned with art, posters, and Buddhist statues that are typical of the orient. Hot Cafe seems to cater to both Americanized and Far East tastes, though more so to the latter. I always try to convince myself to order something other than pad thai when dining at a Thai restaurant, but it's common for me to ultimately stick with what I know and like. Notwithstanding, I've also tried their pan-fried noodles, which is also an excellent choice. Plus, they carry drinks such as soy milk, coconut juice, and bubble tea. For better or for worse, Hot Cafe reminds me of my own formative years of "indentured servitude" working at my parents' restaurant. It appears to be an understaffed family-operated business, which is apparent during busier times such as lunch hour. For example, during my last visit, one employee acted as server, cashier, and telephone operator. Furthermore, I suspect that only one cook was present because my wait time seemed to be inordinately long. Given that I was once on the other side of the kitchen door, I'm more patient and understanding of minor inconveniences such as prolonged wait times. Provided that you too can overlook minor gripes, you'll find that there's much to like about Hot Cafe. read more

Hot Cafe - Thai Near Me - Atlanta, Georgia

See all

Parking: small strip mall but still spaces available. Neighborhood looks shady but as a single female at night I didn't feel unsafe. Interior: Older decor BUT that stands as a testament of how long they've been in business serving amazing Asian food. Now down to the business of food. Omgggg, talk about I've never had Asian food this great. I ordered the Thai Tea, Hot Jasmine Tea, Duck Mee Soup, Combo Pad Thai and Fried Wings with Shrimp Fried Rice. I could go on and on about how yummy the food was but you should just come try it yourself. I'll definitely be back as a repeat customer. read more

See all

I'm a believer in hole-in-the-walls! This place looks sketch, smells sketch, and at first I thought it was closed. But after coming in and sitting down, the food turned out to be delicious, satisfying, hot, and pretty quality. My table was a group of ten, it seems like they cook to-order max two plates at a time so it took over fifteen minutes for every one of us to have our food, but knowing it was made literally minutes before improved my feelings when the wait time collapsed. I heard rave reviews for the pho, se ew, and lo mein. Become a believer! read more

Hot Cafe - Chicken fried rice (deliiiicious!!!) - Thai Near Me - Atlanta, Georgia

You can find me at Hot Cafe at least twice a month. You will see a lot of Laos and Cambodian people eating here because it's family run and authentic. It is usually staffed by one person up front, and he is always super fast when it comes to service. The only thing some people have to overcome is the cleanliness. Their pho is the best on this side of town as it has much more flavor than places like Dai Loi and VN. They also have the best khao piek in Atlanta in my opinion. It is also a good option to do family style with spring rolls, chicken wings, jerky, meatballs, larb, tham, and sticky rice if you come in a relatively large group. The chicken wings are extremely flavorful and perfectly fried. Not only do they act as a restaurant, but they also sell grocery items such as baby egg, sugarcane, etc. read more

This is a no frills spot but this that was the best shrimp fried rice (ask for spicy) and spring rolls I ever ate, this has got to be the best Thai/Chinese food spot on the whole southside. read more

Best Pad Thai and wings in town. The staff is always friendly and never gets my order wrong when I call. I have recommended a few coworkers to this place and they love it as well. Keep up the great job!! read more

I lamented a while before writing this review. I've been coming here for about 20 years. I feel like I should really give this place 5 stars because it holds such a special place in my heart. There have been many family meals and 2 PM hang over meals here. If you want authentic Lao food, this place is THE SPOT. The standards: chicken wings, Lao sausage, papaya salad, and sticky rice. Those are just my side dishes. We usually get these items for the table to share. Lao cuisine has a lot of sharing involved. Cooking and eating is kind of a social activity. I want to note that Lao Papaya salad is similar to Thai. It's less sweet and has more of a "seafood" flavor. The padek (fermented fish sauce) adds that extra kick of flavor. My mains: Lard Na Seafood (stir fried noodle and egg with a special gravy sauce over it) or Pad Woon Sen (stir fried glass/bean thread noodle). I hate to say it, but the Lard Na is better than my mama's. Hopefully, she never sees this review. Ask for the vinegar jalapenos if it's not already on the table. I don't think the Pad Woon Sen is on the menu, but they'll make it. It's a much thinner glass noodle than the Korean ones and a more savory dish. Throw some chili oil in it...and you're golden. Add in a Thai Tea. Perfect meal. They also do a wonderful job with other Lao dishes such as larb. Prices are pretty average. Maybe $10-$12 per dish. For 2 people, I might drop $40-$50 because we usually order so much and just take it home for a second meal. You have been forewarned. This place is authentic of a hole in a wall as it gets. It's in a sketchy strip mall and the building really shows it's age. I love hole in a walls, but the reason I docked off a star is because there are people I know who would be legit scared to eat here. I swear the decor/furniture has not changed since I started coming here. There are leaks in the ceiling and space heaters during the winter. Not the best maintained space. Despite it all, the food is SOOOO WORTH IT. If hole in the walls or really good authentic Lao food is your thing- this place is a MUST TRY. read more

Walked into this establishment with the intention of having a nice, sit-down meal. As we entered, a menu was thrust into our face. I asked if we could be seated. The server told us that they close at 9. It was 8:20 pm. I asked again to be seated. I was told I could be seated if I would be done in time. I asked done what? He said eat and leave, we go at 9. That was it, for me. I left. He was so rude. I have been to this restaurant before. The food is good. The customer service, however, is seriously lacking. read more

My family loves Hot Cafe! It's one of our favorite places to pick up food. Our usual order here is the papaya salad, beef jerky, chicken wings, sticky rice and sometimes fried rice. The papaya salad here is one of the best I've had at any restaurants here in and around Atlanta. They make it spicy and give u a side of fried pork skins. The time before last that we ordered it, we ordered hot and it took me a few days to finish it. This time I asked for mild and the hubby got hot (we get our own order because it's that good) and it was still spicy but it only took me 2 days to finish instead of 3. Lol Their beef jerky is also delicious, it really goes great with the sticky rice, papaya salad and wings. Definitely one of our favorite spots. I only wish it was a little closer to us. read more

Hot Cafe - Delicious! - Thai Near Me - Atlanta, Georgia

Not sure why this place has such high reviews. I tried their chicken pad thai (spicy) and their famed chicken wings. I must say I was thoroughly disappointed with both. The pad thai noodles were not very good. There was no flavor in the pad thai and the sprouts had an odd flavor to them. The wings were nothing to write home about, just regular mediocre wings, though to be fair the sauce they came with was decent and new to me. Service here was friendly so they deserve some credit for that. I love pad thai and can say I have had some really good pad thai at random whole in the walls but sadly I cannot say this is one of them. read more

Everything about this place was HOT besides its location and uncleanliness. But, I guess sometimes you gotta go to a hole-in-the-wall type of restaurant to get the best Thai/Laotian food. Trust me, I questioned myself as I drove over 20 miles to get here, just for Thai food, but by the time I left with a filled and satisfied stomach, I knew that I'll be coming back. LOCATION: This place is super close to the airport so it's a perfect location for those who want to grab a bite before boarding the plane or just arriving to Atlanta. From the outside appearance of this small strip of businesses, it looks super sketchy and perhaps, kinda scary....so lock those car doors and hide your valuables when you're here. When you walk into the restaurant, you'll noticed the cashier to your right and cabinets full of Asian remedy products that you can purchase. If you know anything about Asian establishments, especially the old school ones, this is pretty normal. And it doesn't look the cleanest, with buckets of water for the leaking ceiling and tables/chairs looking run downed. But, don't feel disgusted or intimidated by this, because trust me, the food is worth it. SERVICE: We were one of the two parties that were there so service was pretty quick despite that there were only two ladies there. They are super friendly and it seems like they get a lot of regulars here. We ordered and got our food pretty quickly. FOOD: Everything that we got here was pretty yummy. Although I believe that it's a little pricier than I expected, I think it's definitely worth the price for it's authentic taste. While we were there, we got 5 piece chicken wings, sticky rice, papaya salad, and two Banh canh. This was the only place that serves Thai/Laotian Banh canhs and although it wasn't as good as the ones I've had in Thailand, it did satisfy my Banh canh cravings. The chicken wings and papaya salad were so good and authentic. Nostalgia hit hard because it reminded me of my go-to chicken wing stands and papaya stands that I went to while I lived in Thailand for a year...and trust me, eating those chicken wings and papaya salad tricked my taste buds and stomach into thinking that I was in Thailand. Our tab came out to be around $33, which isn't too bad for what we got. We couldn't finished all of our food and to-go some of it as well. Overall, I'll definitely come here again for those chicken wings and papaya salad. So, come here if you want to experience an authentic Thai/Laotian experience and don't be intimated and turned off by its location or decor...because I honestly feel like it's the product of their location and that's why everything looks so run-downed. read more

Hot Cafe - Thai Near Me - Atlanta, Georgia

Everyone and their mothers have told me to check this place out whenever I'm in the area, so I finally got to try this place last night. The parking/area was pretty sketch, when you walk into the restaurant, it seems pretty sketch as well and SUPER quiet and dark. The only noises you hear are from the kitchen and the tv in the corner. It did not seem like a place that would serve up some good food BUT never judge a book by its cover :) My boyfriend ordered the red curry and I ordered Papaya Salad (mild) and Lad Na. I did asked how spicy it was and the waitress told us it's going to be a Thai person's spicy, which is exactly how I wanted it. Food was great and the waitress was nice. If it wasn't for the sketchy area, I would give them 5 stars. read more

Papaya Salad + Sticky Rice + Wings = Winning Papaya Salad + Sticky Rice + Wings = Winning Papaya Salad + Sticky Rice + Wings = Winning read more