Yeah, sorry, I had one of the nastiest cases ever of (what I believe was) food poisoning after eating here. Food-poisoning concerns aside, I don't really know how chicken can end up in part of vegetarian pad see ew. I can understand a completely wrong order. If I had opened up my to-go container and found chicken bits in my pad see ew, I would have walked it back and gotten what I ordered or my money back. But the top three-quarters of the container had nothing but tofu, and then at the bottom--huge chunks of chicken. I think I ate two of them before realizing that something just wasn't right about this tofu's consistency. I guess I will thank Plearn, though, for reinforcing the fact that I don't like the taste of chicken. I hadn't eaten it in maybe ten years before accidentally ingesting it from here, and while this may have contributed to my insides' violent uprising for the next thirty-six hours, it is nice to know that I'm actually not missing anything by continuing to be vegetarian. OK, maybe I am missing something, but chicken isn't it. read more

I will admit, from the outside of the restaurant, it's a little uninviting. But the food is pretty good. I haven't had a chance to eat in, I usually do take out. I call in and my food is ready in 10 minutes. Since I do take out, I don't have much interaction with the staff, but they do seem friendly. A special note for those with peanut allergies (those like me), the waitress informed me that they do not cook with peanut oils or add peanuts because it's way too difficult to clean and make sure the proper precautions are taken so someone doesn't go into an allergy attack (although I'm not sure if they have peanuts at the tables). My chicken pad thai was slightly on the spicy side which i don't mind because it gives it a little kick. I haven't seen tofu in my pad thai, although it's stated on the menu and I've ordered it at least 3 times. I always tell myself to ask when I call in my order, but never remember until I start eating my food. The chicken larb, although I said mild, came out very spicy, so beware. If you don't eat spicy food, let them know ahead of time. They accept cash only and I don't believe I've noticed an ATM inside. The prices aren't bad, expect to pay $7-10 per dish. For lunch, you also have the option to add a house salad and spring rolls for $1 more. read more

Glad we just happened to get a parking space in front of Little Plearn, had no idea it was there - it's easy to overlook if you're just walking by. So delicious! We had an order of fishcakes and Siam Noodles, both were excellent. Knocking off a star because the Siam Noodles were part of a lunch special but we didn't get any of the "extras" for some reason. Otherwise, excellent service and super tasty, we'll be back. read more

I love Plearn. And I hate the spanakopita from Berkeley Bowl that I'm eating right now. Ptteeauh. RAaaaach. Nasty. Where was I? Oh. Right. Plearn. Good food. I used to work just above Plearn, so it was the favored spot whenever I had to take an author out to lunch. NOTE: These were the B-grade authors, who we didn't have to impress, the ones who were drooling just to see their name in print. Or the ones under 40, who didn't expect a lavish meal, let alone lavish sales. (The big authors we would take to Downtown restaurant, a few blocks away.) So...Plearn. Right. Big portions. I remember one time when a bunch of coworkers went there, including my colleague, Ms. J. Chan. The cute little old man with the beady eyes and tickled grin who is always working there came to take our drink order. There is something very rascally about this little man, something very mischievous. Everything he says sounds like a double- (or triple-) entendre. So we all went around, ordering our Sing-Has and Thai Ice Teas, and when he gets to J. Chan, she orders "just a hot tea for me, please." The little man smiles a big smile at her and says, "Sure, hot tea for Chinese lady." If he weren't so damn CUTE, we'd have been appalled at this classic instance of asian-on-asian racism that we all see so many times. But I digress. Where was I? Oh right! Plearn... read more

A good friend and I decided on the spot to try out Little Plearn tonight while walking around in downtown Berkeley - I pass by this place almost everyday going to work and hadn't ever tried it, but I'm really happy we did! The exterior and sign of the restaurant look really old and make it feel like a hole-in-the-wall that could be questionable, but once you step inside it's completely the opposite. It's designed without feeling like it's trying too hard, it's small but doesn't feel crowded or cramped, and I love the taller tables along the one side. We decided to order a few things for the two of us to share and just have a little of everything since there were so many things that we wanted to try. We started with the fresh spring rolls (as opposed to crispy, which I'd think of as egg rolls). The complimentary sauce is the sweet chili sauce but if you want the usual peanut sauce, that costs $1 extra which we thought was really strange. It was billed as spicy peanut sauce and while it didn't look as smooth and creamy as I usually see it, it was still pretty darn tasty. The rolls come with tofu inside (instead of pork or shrimp) and while the marinade for the tofu brought a ton of flavor to the party, the rolls were just pretty expensive for spring rolls at $6.45 plus $1 for the sauce. Next came my favorite Thai soup, tom kha. We ordered this with the standard tofu and the pieces in the soup were nice and fluffy inside. The soup itself was piping hot and really tasty, not overly tangy. There were too many mushrooms and slices of white onion in the soup for my taste, but I appreciated the big pieces of carrot and the few chunks of tomato to cut the creaminess. For our entrees, we shared the special Plearn's duckling ($13) since we were both really feeling some duck and then instead of adding rice to that, we got the pad thai (I never branch out from yellow curry and pad thai is a pretty safe bet) with added prawns ($11 instead of $8.95). I always thought pad thai should have a little kick to it, but this was super mild. It was really flavorful, if a little underwhelming in terms of texture - the noodles were sticking together a lot and it seemed dry, super lacking in the sauce department. The prawns were a great addition though, definitely worth it for this entree (as opposed to others like the curries were prawns add $5 to the price). The duck dish was the highlight of the meal for me. While some of the duck meat pieces were a little dry, they were exploding with umami flavor and had been roasted so beautifully, I was eating the skin and rendered fat -- and I NEVER eat the skin on poultry, even fried chicken. The sauce was sweet helped with the drier pieces of flesh. I liked having the fresh and sweet addition of the pineapple, red bell pepper, and the pieces of onion and lettuce to balance out the rich and flavorful meat. It was nice to be able to sit and eat slowly and chat for a while without feeling like we were being rushed out on a Friday night (the restaurant, though small, was surprisingly not very loud at all from all the voices when it was full), but it was while after we'd stopped eating before a server asked how we were doing and we could request boxes for our leftovers. THIS PLACE IS CASH ONLY. They do not have an ATM so if you need to, go get cash back from Target Express or run to one of the banks nearby if you bank with them before you start ordering and eating. Overall, the service was nothing to write home about but also there was nothing wrong with it. The food, while a little overpriced in my opinion, was delicious and the portions were pretty big - the two of us left pretty full and with leftovers from the soup, pad thai, and duck dishes! Lastly, this is in downtown Berkeley so coming at an off time, you may be able to find street parking, but down Addison there is a structure that's pretty affordable - $2.50/hour for the first hour or two and then around $2 for each after until you hit a maximum. I may keep adventuring since there are many other Thai spots around campus and Berkeley in general, but this was a delicious meal in a comfortable place and I'm really stoked for the leftover duck I'll get to eat tomorrow. read more

In Thai, Plearn is when you are so absorbed in something that you forget yourself. A very Buddhist experience. The name is perfect for a restaurant. Who wouldn't want to be absorbed in a meal? I really like this restaurant back from my student days. I would come here after a long hard impoverished day and order a noodle dish made especially for me. This was the most authentic variety of the dish I could find anywhere and it was filling and spicy. It had vegetables, big rice noodles, and ground beef. Often times I try to order this at a restaurant and am told no can do. Here they were able to make it and, sigh, it was splendid. Reminded me of a home cooked meal. read more

It's always sad when a place has pretty good food and horrible service. Even giving our waiter the leeway I always give people who are dealing with larger-sized parties, his efforts fell way south of flat. Small annoyances included the fact that I ordered brown rice and got white. Fine, I can deal. Medium annoyances included the fact that my boyfriend waited 15 minutes for his beer when everyone else at the table had alcoholic beverages in hand, and even then he had to flag down the waiter to get his drink. (He ordered along with everyone else.) On a Friday night, when you're the only table in the place? Not awesome. Then there was the situation with the duck, which was both incompetent and disgusting. The incompetent part: My friend Carole ordered roasted duck for an entree. The waiter came to our table and dropped off everyone else's food, then told Carole that they weren't able to prepare her entree because the duck was bad. Um, you wait until you deliver everyone else's food, fully cooked, and people are starting to eat, to tell her you can't make her entree? The disgusting part: The idea of duck meat gone foul (so to speak) is gross enough, especially when you're about to dig into a plate of hot food. No, really, please tell me more about spoiled meat as I open my mouth to eat my meal. Now imagine you hear tell of bad duck as you're eating a big plate of curried DUCK, as my friends Erika and Damien were doing. They literally stopped eating with their forks mid-way to their mouths. "The duck is bad?" they asked. "Not that duck," the waiter said, "only her duck." Uh-huh. Excuse me while I run to the bathroom and throw up now. Amazingly, after that, Carole didn't want to order an entree, and they did nothing in the way of apologizing to her, not even a drink or some spring rolls on the house. Seriously bad form. As my friend Erika said after the waiter left the table, Gordon Ramsay would have a field day at Plearn. It would probably take Gordon Ramsay to get me to go back there, though. read more

We walked into Little Plearn Thai, told them that we were in a hurry and asked if they could be fast. Upon receiving a positive response, we sat down and browsed through their extensive menu, trying to pick out a couple dishes quickly so we can be on our way. We decided on just two dishes - the ginger sole ($10.50) and the red curry with chicken ($8.95), with white rice ($1 per person), which turned out to be just the right amount of food. I particularly liked the flavor of the ginger with the fish. The red curry wasn't bad either, it had just enough spiciness to counterbalance our other dish. Bottom Line: All in all, we had a pretty good meal. Service provided was pretty good and I must say, quite fast. Recommended. read more

A.K.A. Little Plearn. I like the lunch deal, pad thai and a little salad and spring rolls. Not spectacular yet satisfying. A little too much soy creeped into my meal but I had to expect that. My belly didn't gripe too much afterwards. The rice noodles in the pad thai were salty and oily and spicy. And since I like just about anything with salt and oil and spice, it hit the spot. If the spot was looking for something a bit more elaborate and flavorful it would have been disappointed. My five-star system for accomodating people with special diets: Responsiveness to questions/needs: **** (four stars, they answered all of my questions) Dairy-free: ***** (five stars, most are dairy free) Gluten-free: ** (two stars, not much without wheat-based soy) Vegetarian: *** (three stars, some veggie options) Vegan: *** (three stars, some vegan options) read more

I like Plearn Thai Kitchen. I've only tried the Little Plearn, though I would be surprised if there was a big difference between the two. Also, I've only been for lunch, which I recommend. Their lunch menu is quite tasty and at a good price... $6-7. I've tried the pad thai, one of the noodle soups, and their basil chicken. The basil chicken was to die for. Pad thai came in a close second. The noodle soup was a bit bland for my tastes, but not too bad. Also, they don't take credit. Check or cash! The first time I went there, I had neither.... but they very graciously let me walk out of there with a promise to come back with money. It was 3 days before I came back, but they didn't even call me to bug me about it. read more

Man. I don't like giving less than 4 star reviews... but "A-OK" pretty much describes how I feel about Little Plearn. I came here once... got a lunch special. The food was fine, the service was good, I was satisfied... but I haven't been back. My cousin, who used to work around here, swears by their Tom Yum soup... but I didn't know this beforehand, otherwise I would've tried it. Instead... when I'm in the mood for Thai food, I find myself (without having a second thought) going to what is now my de-facto lunch choice for stir-fried noodles, soup noodles of the Southeast Asian variety (which is not Little Plearn). If people are looking for a full-menu of Thai dishes, I would certainly be open to/encourage people to come here... but for a simple man in need of a quick Thai fix, I haven't been too self-encouraging to get myself back to this restaurant. Yet. read more

Little Plearn was were I learned about and fell in love with pad thai. Oh sit, where had I been living, under a freakin' rock?!? They know how to rock the pad thai and would give enough to feed me for lunch and dinner when I used to frequent this locale as an employee of Tupper and Reed (RIP) just a few doors down. Sadly, I think they are still cash only, so stop by the ATM before visiting. I think I like Little Plearn better than Big Plearn but for no good reason; it is practically the same menu if I recall correctly. read more

I really didn't want to go here. There were only 2 other patrons on a Saturday night. On Shattuck. At 8pm. I often take my cue from the number of diners and would have kept walking, had my pushy friend not insisted. The food was pretty good. The sweet and sour pork and a noodle dish with chicken (sorry -- I forget the name -- it's the one just below Pad Thai) were better than expected. Not so great: It's kind of ugly and they charge you for rice. Huh? The prices are also high for the area ($9 and up), especially compared to the number of other, equally good Thai restaurants close by, which, as I recall, provide complimentary rice. read more

Please don't do what I did. Why? Because I love the food here, and I want it to be here when I am back.... I asked for extra chili paste to go along with the fish I had. And I asked for more. And then I asked for more. giggle. I liked it so much, I asked them if I could just buy their chili paste. It's obviously home-made. Here's how much I loved it. I ate the tub that I purchased of it. I ate it with oranges instead of meat, because it was so good. lol. That tub of chili paste did not last long with me. I also enjoyed that I got to really talk to the business owner, and that she has a great understanding of Thai food, but has a very practical approach to the restaurant business. Now, if you don't already know this, Thai people tend to be very picky/finicky/exacting in their food. And if you are married to one...you really understand that it requires a lot of love. read more

Ate here Thanksgiving night at 9:30PM. They were open!! Bonus right there!! The service was amazing. The gentleman working was extremely attentive, considerate and accommodating. There were people that came in right after he let the chef leave. He tried to tell them that the restaurant was closed. They pleaded, and he let them in, and gave them rice. They were extremely happy with that, as they were surprised Plearn was even open at that time. Food was so yummy. However, my Tom Yum soup was made with button mushrooms. I always feel that's a cheap way out. Wish they used a better mushroom. The Pumpkin and Chicken Curry was amazing. Perfect portion too. Sticky Rice and Mango was the perfect thing to top off the wonderful meal. We ate it so fast.. the server joked about if we wanted to order another one! Overall, we had a fabulous experience at Plearn Thai Restaurant. I would definitely recommend it. read more

Shatangi enjoyed a great cheap meal with friends. Finally a restaurant that really get the difference between spicy and mild. I like my food spicy and they served us several dishes that were very spicy in the good way. Not enough to make you sweat but very flavorful and satisfying. Good service too! I will go back net time I'm in the hood. Shatangi told you... read more

1st meal here @ Little Plearn Thai Kitchen, in Berkeley. Sweet, smiling server. For lunch I had Pumpkin Chicken Curry Combo. Quite delicious! White rice is cooked perfectly. This dish is curry sweet, with coconut milk. It is a good beginning dish for someone new to Thai Cuisine. It's not hot. It has very little heat. And that's the way I like it. I cry if too spicy hot. I'm a baby when it comes to Thai heat. read more

Little Plearn Thai Kitchen - Getting ready for lunch. - Thai Near Me - Berkeley, California

I would give it 5 stars for the Pad Kee Mao (AKA Drunken Noodles), but unfortunately the rest of the food is just average and that brings down the rating. I only get the Pad Kee Mao here as it is the best I've ever had in my life. Compared to the Plearn on University the Pad Kee Mao is spicier and has that little something else. The lunch specials are a good deal with the combo that comes with the spring rolls. The fresh variety are the better choice IMHO read more

I'm bummed. Seriously. In case people weren't aware, Plearn's main location (the larger one) on University Ave has closed its doors. I was told by our server at the smaller Plearn (on Shattuck) that the owner retired and wanted to scale back. And scale back they have, for not only have they closed a prime location, but they're now clearly cutting corners with the food. And this is just too sad for words. You see, Plearn used to offer what was quite possibly the best Thai curry in the East Bay. Particularly wonderful was their spicy, rich, and sublimely distinctive green curry, which was profoundly better than all the other bland, dishwater-esque green curries served up everywhere else. Plearn's curry had depth; layers of rich flavors coupled with a seriously spicy kick. There was a time when Plearn's green curry was the spiciest I'd found in all of Berkeley. Furthermore, the chicken they used with it (if you went that route) was noticeably tender, fresh, and and tasty, quite unlike the dry, flavorless, super processed bits of "chicken" served seemingly everywhere else. Plearn also had the best Tom Kha Gai (coconut milk soup with lemon grass and chicken) of any place in a 15 mile radius. Sure their other dishes were *very* hit and miss, but the curries and the Tom Kha Gai were always reliable standbys. But Plearn's curry is essentially no more. Sure, the dish is still on the menu, but on a recent visit to the dingy, "Little" Plearn, I discovered that what they serve now is a small, watery portion with dry, processed chicken and only a hint of the unique, complex flavor of the original. This is a far cry from the curry one could've found there even a few years ago. Clearly, they've scaled back on quality, which is upsetting. And now the fact remains, there is simply no longer a place to get some decent Thai curry in Berkeley. That's right, Berkeley - the mecca of cultural "with-it-ness," the bastion of good and eclectic ethnic foods, no longer has a Thai place that's worth a dime. Sure, you can find good Thai food at Banana Blossom in Oakland (Park Blvd), Suriya in SF/Mission, and Royal Thai up in San Rafael (all three of these establishments being significantly superior to just about every Thai restaurant in Berkeley), but I'll always lament the loss of Plearn's green curry, because there's simply nothing else even remotely like it. And as for Plearn, I don't think I have a reason to come back. read more

Taste great, satay needs more sauce. But pricy but def taste good. Great environment too!

Little Plearn.. so close to my work that I end up eating there as least 1x every other week. The lunch specials are an awesome deal. 10-15 Curry and rice dishes that you can upgrade to a combo (with fresh or fried spring rolls and a salad) for under $10.00. You can choose beef, pork, chicken, or tofu as the protein for any of these dishes, The service is fast and friendly. The food is fresh and tasty. I'm a big fan of the tofu and vegetables, the chicken with ginger and carrots, the spicy beef basil, and the yellow, green, red curries.. oh and the pumpkin curry is tasty as well. Oh, and I love the fresh rolls and the salad. I try to avoid the place when it's packed with Berkeley High School kids.. but if you walk in to find all of the tables occupied with high school kids eating from take-out boxes, ask for a table anyway. The servers will make the kids move to other tables so you can sit down and eat. (The kids are typically only in there for 30 minutes) CASH ONLY IS NOT A CRIME Yelpers, why do you ding a business for not accepting credit cards? You do realize that accepting cards means losing money on the high service fees that are charged by the card companies? Many small bars and restaurants are CASH ONLY. It's so common that I have a habit of glancing at the door (to look for credit card signs) and/or asking the employees BEFORE I decide to eat/drink at a place. It's frustrating when there are no ATMs nearby, but there are no fewer than 3 banks with ATMs within a 2 block radius of Little Plearn. read more

Best Thai food in Berkeley in my opinion. We've tried the garlic noodles (fav), pad see ew, and all the curries. Everything is excellent.

I had to double check to make sure I was writing about the correct place. There is another restaurant in downtown Berkeley called Plearn Restaurant. I had actually called there and placed a to go order. However, I mistakenly went to Plearn Thai Kitchen. The employee led me to believe that the two are not affiliated, and that this restaurant had no reservations about vulturing business from the other Plearn. The employee told me that I should just get my food at Plearn Thai Kitchen. Her demeanor would best be described as impatient. I felt rushed to decide whether I should go find the other place, or just stay here. I was really hungry though, so I decided to give this place a chance. The food was not very good. I had the red curry with chicken, and it was not as good as the same dish at Chris Thai or Tuk Tuk. I was a little bit on the bland side, and they definitely skimped on the vegetables in the curry. The worst thing is that now I don't want to try the other Plearn. Regardless, I'm not eating at this Plearn again. read more

Stopped by for lunch and was very disappointed with the Pad Thai that had none of the color and crunch I typically expect such as cilantro, peanuts, carrots and fresh sprouts. It was a very plain rice noodle dish missing the flavors of tamarind and chili- it's a pity I remembered Plearn as one of the good Thai places. The eggplant dish was okay but again was missing flavor, perhaps they are tailoring the food to other folks? read more

Plearn isn't super fancy but it's homey and cozy. I was craving noodles so I got the pad see ew with tofu. There was broccoli, carrots, and a good assortment of vegetables along with my tofu. My dish came out piping hot and I really like how it came with more vegetables than other pad see ew I've had. The portion was quite filling and I was stuffed after finishing my plate. My dish was $8.95 and came out to be $9.78 after tax. (Not including tip). There were other things I would have liked to try such as the pumpkin curry. Only thing is that it's cash only so don't forget! read more

Excellent! Loved the green chicken curry and Bird's service was top notch. They don't accept credit cards so before I left for the ATM, he took my order do when I got back, Boom! read more

Little Plearn Thai Kitchen - Green curry chicken - Thai Near Me - Berkeley, California

one of my favorite places to eat in downtown berkeley. when their bigger location closed i was devastated but thankfully Little Plearn is still here. warm atmosphere, very nice staff and i always enjoy the food no matter what i get read more

We came in because I looked at the menu in the window and they have one of my favorite Thai restaurant appetizers - Meung Kum. Yum! We also had Thai iced coffee (very good, with plenty of cream), yam fries, beef salad (with a lot of lovely "popping" flavors) and roast duck (with interesting vegetables). We ordered 1 rice and also some peanut sauce. My only quibble was that some of the duck seemed a bit over-cooked. If you like really crispy duck, that will be OK. I prefer my duck a bit more tender, less crunchy. Otherwise, everything was interesting with snappy tastes and textures. The restaurant is small (long and thin) with table space for about 40 people. It seems to be an undiscovered gem (no line at 6pm on Saturday night). It was far from empty, but you could probably bring a larger party here if you come early and plan ahead. The tables along the one wall can easily be adjusted to accommodate 2, 4, 6, or more. The wait staff was attentive and pleasant. There's a note in the menu that says No credit cards or ATM cards so bring cash! Little Plearn Thai Kitchen is now on our list to go back to the next time we're in this part of Berkeley. read more

Hmmm, how does this place rate 4 or 5 stars for some people? Plearn isn't awful, but the food seemed like it was prepared by an amateur who never learned the basics of cooking. I'm not benchmarking it with higher-end Thai joints -- for me Plearn doesn't rate more than two stars even for a no-frills, take-out place. Our yellow curry chicken was watery and the flavor one-dimensional. The basil pork dish we ordered wasn't any better. The key to this dish is to infuse the meat with a balanced mix of the basil, fish sauce and lime. But Plearn used large slices of meat, with the result that the dish tasted very "meaty". Moreover, the cook used very little basil and instead threw in unnecessary ingredients like string beans and red peppers just to super-size the serving, American-style. Another thing I noticed in both our dishes was that the meat was sliced in completely haphazard fashion (odd sizes, thicknesses and shapes). That's a sign of carelessness and/or amateurism. Granted, I only ordered the above two dishes and didn't try anything else. Possibly some of their other stuff is better, I don't know. read more

Absolutely phenomenal and well priced. We were blown away by the pad see ewe! Cashew chicken was also good. Service was wonderful and they seated us at 8:30pm even though they closed at 9pm. Definitely recommend!!! read more

The wait for the Great China was too long so we came here. Despite the price being only one $ on yelp, the taste and quality of the food is that of a $$ restaurant. I am definitely coming back. read more

Little Plearn Thai Kitchen - Green curry, prawn pad thai, and spicy fried rice (mild upon request) - Thai Near Me - Berkeley, California

NOTE: Cash only. Come prepared. I love this place. When I go to Berkeley, I'm frequently heading either to the Shambhala Center or to the campus. I'm usually on BART, and that means I pass right by Little Plearn. I've been coming here for several years, and I like it very much. The service is great, the folks are nice, the food's terrific, and they're usually playing some nice jazz, which is an unexpected addition. I've recommended it to many folks, and have had nothing but good reports. It will remain my go-to place for quick Berkeley meals. read more

Came here for lunch today on a Sunday. Great service, delicious food. We had spring roll app, fried pineapple rice and pad see kow. Soooo good. Jasmine tea was nice too. I will be back next time I'm in the area but just be sure to have cash on you. No cards. read more

Food: 1) Spicy Eggplant: don't let the name fool you, it was not spicy and the overall dish was not that great. 2) Curry Noodles: again, deceptive name...there was curry flavor in it at all. Just looked and tasted like typical Chinese pan fried thin rice noodles. Disappointment. 3) Papaya Salad: Not spicy and sour enough. I've had WAY better. 4) Thai iced tea: I liked it! But then again, it's hard to mess up on a Thai iced tea. Service: No one cleared our plates and we were done with the papaya salad halfway into the meal. Atmosphere: have to give it credit for attempting to look a little Thai with a couple of giant Thai style portraits on the wall Price: decent. didn't pay an arm and leg for this meal, but it was overpriced for the quality we got. We ended up paying $37 total with tax and tip. Special notes: ONLY TAKES CASH! My friend and I didn't know this and we had to eat up the surcharges from the neighboring Mechanics Bank where we had to take out some cash from the ATM to pay for our meal. LAME! Who doesn't take credit card nowadays?!?! read more

Yummy pad thai. Spicy and filling. Spring rolls were decent. Had the yellow chicken curry before and it was coconutty-delicious. Crappy beer selections. Gave my leftovers to this homeless man who recited poetry to me all the way to my car. Small. Relatively empty and quiet atmosphere. Waitress didn't understand English too well. CASH ONLY. Sucks when you have to jog to the ATM on a full stomach. I made my date do it....hahahaha. SIDE NOTE: This is LITTLE Plearn, get it right people! (lol). Don't cha just hate when you search for something and ya can't find it because it's NOT under its official name or it's misspelled and so you add it as a new business and you get bitched at by the moderators!? (ok, enough venting...) read more

Okay, I appreciate that this place has nice service and nice tableware, but the brown rice sucks. That is unforgivable. It ruined my would-have-been-wonderful meal. The rice was really really hard and got stuck in my teeth. I ordered the spicy eggplant with pork-n-prawns. They used real thai eggplant which was kind of a pleasant change. It wasn't as oily as this dish normally is. Nevertheless, the rice sucked ass. Learn how to make rice please. Thanks read more

Little Plearn is delightful, always has been. The owners are great folks who have raised their kids in the restaurant, know their customers, and ensure that their food is always good. Definitely a family-run operation. I've been eating here for over 10 years and have converted my husband and friends to be big fans as well. This is our go-to Thai take-out at least 2 to 3 times a month, sometimes a lot more and often a work-lunch destination. Their version of pad kee mao is the best around and the red curry with duck is my version of heaven. The fairly recent addition of pork moo young is also great. My only warning is to be careful at lunch time when Berkeley High is in session. Because the owners are such wonderful and generous people and the food is good, it's a very popular place for the students who don't always have the best manners or lightness of voice while in the restaurant. Sorry young people, don't mean to bash. I worry that Little Plearn will not survive today's demanding hipster foodie crowd who seem to prefer noisy, overpriced fare that is more about "pretty" food and popularity contests than good food. If you like dependably good food, a quiet, welcoming atmosphere, and affordable prices, this is a place for you! (And to all you hipster foodies out there who are actually looking for a place to relax and have a good meal, we promise not to take pictures of you or your food and post them to our sites......We'll just smile and say "hello" while not waiting in long lines for mediocre fare and while having pleasant conversations with our friends and families due to the low noise factor.) read more

They don't take credit cards... only cash or check. My friend and I had sat, placed our order, and then get his with the news. GET WITH THE 21st CENTURY!! read more

I went to Plearn two nights ago for dinner while I was working across the street. I only had a 30-minute break. I sat down, ordered my food, and waited. 20 minutes later my food still hadn't arrived so I asked them what was taking so long. The woman who owns the place has always been very kind to me. Unfortunately she wasn't there that night. The young Asian man, who I've seen many times there, was working and was extremely condescending and rude with me. He asked me several times if I wanted to cancel my order. Then, when I told him I've never had to wait so long for food, he pointed to some restaurants across the street and told me I could go there. I've always enjoyed going to this restaurant- the food is delicious! But with such poor customer service like that I will probably not be going back. read more

Came here for lunch on a weekday. The waitstaff was friendly and accommodating as I had to wait about 30 minutes for my brother to get there. The restaurant is small and it was pretty busy. Staff was friendly and quick to take our order. I ordered the chicken wings and the pad Thai. Food was okay and had decent flavor but the portions were on the smaller side and we didn't have the option to raise the spice level which I typically do. Overall I'd say this is a decent Thai spot if you're in the mood. read more