We had the papaya salad and the kha poon soup (spelling?). They were both good but the soup stood…read moreway out. It was delicious. The place is located in a Mexican store and is take out only. The service was excellent and the owners very interesting and communicative. Definitely will be going back for the soup and to explore the rest of the menu!

When my sister went to school in Merced, we always made sure to stop by Papaya Lady whenever we're…read morein town. Since she has graduated, I won't be in town anytime soon, but I highly recommend them for some good Thai and Laotian bites if you're ever in Merced! They have a selection of delicious dishes and I have loved everything that I've tried. My go-to orders are the Papaya Salad and Khao Poon. The papaya salad is a must and the spice level was the perfect amount. The Khao Poon is a coconut curry based noodle soup that is so flavorful. I've also come to really enjoy the Nam Khao (Laotian crispy rice salad), each bite is crunchy and absolutely delish. Your Asian comfort food cravings will definitely be satisfied here. Wishing The Papaya Lady continued success!

The food here has to be the best Thai food I've ever had. Really. They are consistent and each dish…read moreis bursting with flavor. My wife thinks it's because they grow their own vegetables and pick them fresh and ripe. We saw their garden in the back so I think she's right. I recommend the Tom Kha, it's like a creamy sweet and sour soup. Very good and tasty. I also recommend the red curry, it comes with your choice of meat. I got the shrimp today and it was really good. The flavors are very well balanced. I love the sticky rice here too. I'm not supposed to have it, but I indulge when I'm here. The server was a sweet ole lady who was attentive and nice.

If you ever want to eat food that was just made especially for you nice and fresh all vegetables…read moretaste like they just cut it off the garden go there their food is delicious. Their customer service is amazing and his family owned. The cooks are amazing cooks.

Great service, great food! Thank Yelp for another great…read morerecommendation! We couldn't wait to wait to eat, thus photo is after we chowed down. Food had great flavors and portion were good. -Thai fried rice: shrimp, calamari, scallops -Pad see ew: sliced beef, fat rice noodles and American broccoli stir fried with a lightly sweet soy sauce. -BBQ beef, large portion, side of cucumbers and rice. Location HIDDEN in backside of business center next to Indonesian grocery store. Plenty of parking. Ambiance

The food is good and consistent. Staff could be friendlier. They open at 10:30. We waited outside…read morefor 10 minutes for them to open at 10:40. When she unlocked the door I asked if they did open at 10:30? Her disgruntled response was not welcoming, not accountable, nor friendly. They could stand to do a deep clean in the restuarant, windows, doors etc.. It's too bad because this could be a 5 star with a little cleaning and gracious attitude adjustment.

Upon arrival, the restaurant had plenty of space and a friendly, booming owner to welcome us. We…read moresat wherever we wanted, and menus were brought over quickly. We chose to order: - Imperial Rolls (chicken, shrimp, a lettuce, cucumber, cilantro, and bean sprouts in rice paper wrappers) with a delicious peanut-soy dipping sauce; - Tom Kha Kai soup (Coconut Chicken), Spicy 3 (1-10); - Chicken Pad Kee Maow (Drunken Noodles), Spicy 3 1-10). The food came out quickly and very fresh. The Imperial Rolls were tightly wrapped and stuffed well (albeit more like cigarillos than the larger egg roll size you'd expect). And they had 2 small shrimp in each, as opposed to the pictures in the menu which showed 3 shrimp lining the insides. Cuts happening everywhere. ‍ The Tom Kha Kai was well-blended (coconut and broth melded beautifully and creamy!), chicken, mushrooms, and white onion slices were perfectly cooked in a serving bowl and not the usual sterno-fueled soup contraption. It was mildly spicy and probably the best I've ever had! The Chicken Pad Kee Maow was different than others I've had. Sam Cafe adds in a little sweetness (Tamarind?), broccoli, chunks of cabbage (also slightly sweet), carrots, onions, red peppers, tomato chunks, and basil...along with the requisite large rice noodles and white meat chicken. Truly satisfying and delicious without feeling super oily, burnt, or lacking sauce. The entire meal was a great deal and an amazing find in the middle of the Central Valley! Next time I'm up this way, Sam Cafe is on my itinerary!

Found this place while traveling. Food was prepared very quickly and it was YUMMY. We had Pad Thai…read moreand Pad Seew. Spice level 5 was really pretty mild, but great for traveling. Server was really nice and attentive.

i loveeeeee this place!! it's my family and i's fave restaurant in merced by far. great food.read more

The Pad See Ew noodles were super wide. The crispy tofu is…read morepretty good, huge portion The red curry was a big portion and very sweet in flavor Service was friendly and quick The music was country and kinda loud

We've tried the pad Thai, general tso chicken, and tofu spring rolls. Everything is always SOO good!read more

The food here is as authentic as it gets. The laab was incredibly savory with just the right touch…read moreof roasted rice richness that gave it amazing depth and texture, an easy 10/10. The chicken Pad See Ew was just as impressive, with a smoky aroma and rich flavor that had me coming back for a second visit in the same week. The service made the experience even better. Such a friendly and genuinely kind family. This is one of the few spots I'm always excited to recommend to people.

This place has the BEST spring rolls and egg rolls anywhere,…read moreever. I also just loved their huge bowls of steaming hot delicious Thai soup. That's all that I've had there, but we are definitey going back for a third trip when we can. The place is huge, quiet, has large portions and get service.

Absolutely love coming here the food is amazing and the service is so great they don't take forever…read moreto make the food and it's always full of so much flavor definitely recommend !!!

A favorite, go-to for Thai in the Central Valley. We've eaten here multiple times over the years…read moreand service has always been top notch. Food is flavorful, reasonable price and portions are good. Dining area is smaller but we have never had to wait, many get their orders to go. (Restaurant is usually very busy but orders go quickly!) Lad Na, Pad se Ew and Pad Thai are regular choices!

The staff is so friendly and helpful! 5 for them…read more The decor and spacing of tables is great! I appreciate that we weren't too crowded. Unfortunately, I was underwhelmed with the food. The Tom Kia Ghai was very lime forward with very little coconut milk creaminess that I enjoy. The chicken was a bit tough too. The green curry was spicy, but beyond that it didn't have much flavor at all - not even salt. My husband's eggplant stir fry with chicken was the highlight of our food for sure! It was delicious.

Such a great local, family-owned Laotian spot! The restaurant is small, cute, and clean, and the…read morefood is absolutely delicious and tastes truly authentic. Service was friendly and welcoming, which made the experience even better. So happy to have a spot like this in the neighborhood -- definitely worth supporting and coming back to!

Service was great! Food was amazing! Will definitely return. My Granddaughter suggested it!read more

Visiting from Oregon and having dinner with my bestie. Everything was closing early in Turlock, and…read morein Modesto they'd close soon after. I saw that this place was open later and it was not Mexican food. That's the majority of the food around heres. We looked inside as we parked. Ok, not terribly busy. We were hungry and looking forward to some good Thai food. By the way, there is plenty of parking and it's super easy to get to from 99. Mike sat us down quickly. It's not a huge place, but there's enough seating to dine in. We sat in a booth. He served us our waters and menus. We ordered the red curry with chicken and pad thai with chicken. Both with medium heat. We wanted mango sticky rice, but Mike was not happy with the mangoes and did not want to serve them. I appreciate that he valued quality of food for his customers over making a buck. He apparently got slammed with online orders just before we arrived. He offered us some free appetizers since he felt it was taking longer than usual. We actually declined. Bestie and I were catching up and honestly didn't notice that the food was taking a while to make it to our table. It was a nice gesture from Mike. As the food came out it all looked great. We dug in and yum. Being from the Bay Area and now living in the Portland OR area, I have a certain standard with the food I consume. Honestly, I was not expecting too much from a place in Ceres. I've traveled to many small towns throughout the country. But I was pleasantly surprised that this place was up to par. And you know what topped it off? Mike's personality. He was such a pleasure to chat with. Me, him and my bestie had some good laughs while eating this great food. I love having my "go to" places while I travel and I think this is my spot now. Thanks Mike, me and "Kimmy" will definitely visit again. And hopefully mangoes will be in season.

I'm so happy this little place opened up in Ceres. As a Ceres native, it's good to see business…read moreopen up in my small town since it's always been known as a commuter town. With that said, the food was good. Hot too so you know it's fresh. I got the Rad Na with egg rolls as my appetizer. They'll ask how spicy you like your food so that's nice. Service was kind. Ambiance, it's a small little shop. Not big enough for big groups but they're good for takeout.