This review is for the food only. MaDee does not have much of a dining atmosphere...it feels like a fast food joint. Ambiance= 2 stars... BUT like I said this a food review only. I've eaten at MaDee's 5 times now, it quickly became my favorite local Thai restaurant after my second visit. My husband and I love Thai food but have had a hard time finding really authentic Thai in the Newport Area. If you love Thai food you already know that the best places are always the small Mom and Pops that have zero ambiance; usually hidden in the corner of an old strip mall, non concerned with making Americanized Thai dishes. Guess what?! MaDee is very small and hidden in the corner unit of a strip mall. Back to the food- -Duck Curry- My husbands new favorite dish. Spicy, savory, delicious. -Tom Yum soup- My favorite soup, a little spicy and salty with the right kick of roots and herbs. -Pad Thai- They do a great job with their Pad Thai. Unfortunately a lot of Thai places Americanize their Pad Thai and turn it into spaghetti with peanut butter. MaDee Pad Thai is authentic and correct. -Pad See Ew- This can be interpreted many ways but MaDee does it right. Just the right amount of salty and sweet. As the others reviews attest, MaDees's is a must go for great Thai food.....I just stick to take out! PS- If you're in South OC, my favorite Thai in all of OC is a little place in Rancho Santa Margarita....Rice and Spice...read the reviews! read more

The service here doesn't deserve 5 stars but the food is great and that's why I'm giving a 5 star rating. It's better than most of the high end Thai restaurants in Orange County. Its a small hole in the wall corner spot. The parking lot is fairly big for the size of the restaurant. I've never had a problem with parking. All types of people from groups of high school kids, to couples, to singles, and old folks can be seen here. The flavor of every dish here is just right, and they also offer vegetarian dishes as well. They serve sodas and one or two types of bottled beer. Definitely recommend this place to anyone who has a craving for thai. read more

MaDee Thai Kitchen - Thai Near Me - Costa Mesa, California

So far so good. It's nice to see a real Thai place pop up in the eastside CM area (Thai Spice is crap and does not count). The neighborhood was really hurting for a cheap, takeout type Asian joint. Only tried the pad thai so far, but it was pretty solid. And it came with a free drink, which was a nice bonus. The menu has lots of choices, so I'll be sure to try some other things soon. Oh, and the couple that owns/operates the joint are super nice. The one critique I will give is that I wish they would charge more for my food and just give bigger portions. Not that the portions are small by any means, but I like it when there's enough for leftovers. The main reason though, is that the prices are relatively low for the area, almost too low (almost every entree is basically 7 or 8 bucks). I know, weird thing to criticize, but it really makes me wonder if their menu is priced correctly to turn a profit. I really hope so, because I'd hate to see this go away. read more

Great service, clean environment and tasty food. lol love the pad Thai from this place, recommend the shrimp one

Chicken KaPrao is phenomenal...just like I would eat as a kid in school in bangkok every wednesday. If MaDee made the Thai version of Hainan Chicken rice (called "Kao Mun Gai sai Nam Cheem" that would be culinary heavan...going to keep asking :) Also get the prik khing tofu - fresh kafir lime leaves make this drier and more paste like curry the perfect combo with brown rice ! read more

Finally a decent Thai place in the neighborhood. Been trying to survive off of Thai Spice for years and now have a sure fire delicious Thai option. The people who run the place are really nice The food was delicious. Their Pad Kee Mao usually comes with Chow Mein noodles, but they were kind enough to swap out for the thick flat noodles. Asked for medium and it turned out to be pretty spicy for someone who's into spice. Could have been just that dish though. Yellow curry was thin and had a robust flavor. Even though it's nice to have curry where the potatoes get all melty, I was really happy to have a thinner version. Finally, we had the Buttered Shrimp. Pretty garlicky, but really hit the spot. Not the best option for take-out since it would be ideal fresh out of the kitchen. Overall, pretty happy with this new place. Looking forward to trying their other dishes. read more

I've lived in the area for almost two years now and have frequented this place here and there. It's a little tucked away shop on 17th and (insert other street name). Their sign reads "MaDee Thai Kitchen" and the corner sign reads "Thai Food" -a little strange to me and unfair for this mom & pop restaurant. Of the times I have come here, I've had mixed feelings about the place. Yes, their food is good but would I say its amazing? Probably not. Serving is quite small for what you pay for. From what I know and understand a lot of Southeast Asian cuisine is meant to be shared family style. Thus I don't know why the prices are kinda high for single serving. Aside from this aspect, you can expect the food to be made by authentic Thai folks. How do I know this? Listen to the language they're speaking and you can def make this out -of course this is coming from another Southeast Asian person. This restaurant is definitely catered to the White communities within the Costa Mesa/Newport border area. Which is cool and all but I would expect a little more in order to really serve a nice Thai dish I've always gone to authentic places to get Thai food but when I'm lazy and don't want to drive too far, I'll give in and come here. Try the pad see ew, pad thai, curries, and fried tofu! read more

Smart owners. Really good food. Was craving Pad Thai so jumped off the couch and drove to Ma Dee to satisfy the urge. Placed order for three items and was told that it would take 30 minutes. 30 minutes for a to go order, really? Apologetically the owner (part of the husband wife team that do all the work here) said yes - and I reluctantly waited. At the 30 minute mark (call me anal) I returned to the counter only to learn that two of the items would take another 10 minutes. 10 more minutes I was unwilling to wait. The owner gladly refunded my money, and then did something that should be a lesson in service recovery for any business. She insisted on giving me the Pad Thai dish (which was ready) for free. When I protest that it wasn't necessary, she insisted. Well, it was terrific. Flavorful and chocked full of medium size shrimp. And guess what? 7 days later I went back (after calling in the order ahead of time) and had a really good meal. One note for the folks like the Mrs. who are sensitive to spicy, order your meal with the appropriate amount of heat. Good work Ma Dee. Next time I'm craving Thai I know where I'll be eating! read more

The atmosphere is not impressive, the food on the other hand is. Great flavor and authentic! Take out might be your best option. read more

MaDee Thai Kitchen - Drunken noodles Tom yum & spicy squid. - Thai Near Me - Costa Mesa, California

Small portions for the price. Food was excessively greasy, flavorless and had no spice. Don't come here if you are looking for good Thai at a value. I have tried this place multiple times and have ordered Beef Pad Thai, pork jerky and various meat Pad See Ew - was not impressed with any dish. 2 stars are for cleanliness and nice staff. I'd rather have Sutha Thai Kitchen (Tustin) than this place. I do not plan on eating here again. read more

This is technically a take-out joint with a few tables. What you're taking out is intense food. Have you been looking for duck? They got it and it's yummy. Jerky pork with sticky rice? Aw yeah, totally worth it. Nothing they server isn't good, and the prices are amazingly low for the quality. Fresh veggies, yummy spices, and a generous Thai iced tea. Honestly, this place kicks the ass of lots of other stuff in the neighborhood. Why would you suffer a chain restaurant? Sit down at a 1970s plywood rable and eat like a king! read more

Madee is a weekly staple. The woman who works the front counter (I believe she's the owner?) is adorable and very kind. Favorite dishes include: pork jerky, tofu pad see ewe, ground chicken w/ basil. I highly recommend phoning in your order before arriving. Seating is very limited inside and they get very busy very quickly. read more

Food was decent, their fried rice and pad thai were pretty good and had nice flavor to it. Nothing stood out to me that would make me want to visit again though. read more

GREAT little Thai kitchen! The owner and her staff are great. Don't expect your food in 5-10 minutes because this place is busy and the food is made fresh so the wait is well worth it! Authentic Thai food (of course I've been to Thailand! Who hasn't?!) "Keep Calm, eat at MaDee's Thai Kitchen and Chive On!" read more

The basics - You order your food at the counter, there is no waitstaff and your food arrives on paper plates. There's very little seating at the restaurant, seats 10 people tops. Like a typical Thai food place, it's family style dishes, so find people to share your food. There are no combo plates. It gets a little crowded at business lunch time. OK moving on - The grub here is obnoxious, it's so freaking good. Totally authentic and made fresh when you order it, so expect to wait and your food will come out scolding hot. The Panang curry was off the chain and their sour soup was pungent (in a good way), but the real stand out was the Jerky Pork! The pork is chewy but not tough at all, a perfect texture, like soft beef jerky and the dipping sauce it came with was incredible, had to lap it up with a spoon once the pork was gone. Can't wait to go back! read more

I love Thai food but it seems like every place serves the exact same items. I understand any style of food has staples, but give me some variety. And that's what MaDee's provides - standards alongside atypical offerings. I came here with my brother and another friend, so we decided to just order a bunch of stuff and split it up. I think that's the best way to eat at a spot like this because it gives you the opportunity to sample different things. Started off with the grilled squid, which was served on a skewer. The meat was tender and not rubbery, but by the time it got served up it had cooled off a little too much. I still ate it. Chicken satay was decent, maybe a bit on the chewy side. Peanut sauce tasted rich and delicious. My brother's pad thai was the best of all the entrees we got. It's loaded with flavor and very filling. To be honest, I don't even remember what I ordered. Probably something with chicken and vegetables, like I always do. The memory of that magnificent pad thai has clouded my recollection of whatever I ordered. Dining is casual. They've got a handful of tables inside. You pay, wait and then grab your food when called. Service seemed a little slow but it wasn't intolerable. read more

Delicious hole in the wall alert! MaDee is more of a take out place but there are a few tables in this not-so-charming place tucked away in a run down mini mall. But don't let the rough exterior fool you. MaDee is beautiful on the inside. Everything I tried was top notch. I stayed close to the tried and true: red curry with tofu; pad see ewe with chicken; tom yum soup. All was cooked to perfection and service was with a smile. food is served on paper plates and in plastic take out containers for dine in guests. There are some interesting items offered and I plan on diving deeper into this delicious menu. read more

Pad See Ew with Tofu!! I loved this! I am trying to be a vegetarian, but I still love my food greasy and delicious. I was really scared the tofu pad see ew would be not as good, but however they made it, the tofu tasted like they used beef! The texture obviously wasn't beef, but if I wasn't paying attention while eating, I would have just thought it was beef. I can't wait to come back for more!! There was a bit of a line. There's one worker at the front taking orders/packing to-go orders/picking up the phone so you can tell she was busy. She apologized so many times to us, and we were in no rush so it was fine. But a line only means it was good! The food came out at a reasonable time, partly because we expected it to be behind, but it was hot and still delicious. The place looks like its run down and an old Mexican burrito joint, but honestly I go for the food not the location. If I wanted to go to a fancier place, I would have paid more than $8 for dinner! read more

The wait is forever.. food was so so. We went there just to grab some to go food and it took 37 minutes and it was not busy

Ma Dee...interesting name...and also interesting food. My bff and I have always loved this one particular Thai Restaurant in LB where the food is as authentic as Thai food can get...and we were craving for Thai food few nights ago but did not crave for the drive to LB. So, my bff searched up for a nearby Thai food in OC that can be compared to...but better than many other Thai restaurants in OC....and she found Ma Dee....so we went. OMGoodness, what we had was very good (crab fried rice, panang curry and tom yum kung). Yes, this place is set up like a food to go/take out restaurant, but the food is far from fast food style...I would call it "high quality" fast food take out if you must deem it so. The best thing about it being a category of "fast food, Thai Style" is their price....yes...very cheap compared to many other Thai restaurants we been to. The owners and chefs at the restaurant were very friendly and hospitable to us. They brought us some samples of the special fruity drink (non-alcoholic) that they made and also samples of the (jello-milky dessert), which my friend liked it more than me just because I don't like milky-type of drinks/desserts too much. Overall, this place is definitely on my "future revisit" list of restaurants. Thank goodness that it is now much closer to where I live and I don't have to drive soooo far just to get good quality Thai Food. Thank you Ma Dee for a nice experience! Keep up the good food and good luck to your new business! read more

Quite an upgrade from Choito. Some of the best thai food that I have had in central county. Real good chicken skewers, shrimp pad thai, beef pad see ew. Really liked the house rolls which were basically thin egg rolls. Only thing I probably wouldn't order again would be the bbq chicken. Definitely will go back. read more

Love this Thai takeout restaurant. Excellent food with great flavor. This obscure restaurant is a can't miss in Costa Mesa.

It can be hard to come across a great Thai food restaurant. Its almost like you stumble into accidentally. And thats what I did as I tried Madee Thai Kitchen for the first time. Let me just tell you what I learned after eating there several items; They have the best thai food i have ever had. I don't get too crazy on the Thai food menu so I can't speak on the more unique items they offer. But I can say their Pad Thai is fan-fuk-ing-thai-stick. And if you are looking for the best orange chicken in town. Go there. Also, if you have deep pockets, go for the "Scallop and Shrimp with Asparagus" dish. read more

It's been a while since I last lived in my beloved NB/CM area. Things have changed and new places have come up. This is one of them. This little hole in the wall is perfect for that yummy thai craving without all the fine dining. Served on plasticware, you enjoy and toss. My only complaint is that since they use plastic forks, they tend to break when you try to eat noodles or spear a piece of beef. Stronger utensils are a must. But the food is so good, one can easily overlook this. read more

Its tucked away in a random corner, but service was good. I was greeted with a hello and a smile, which is always nice. My food took about 10 minutes, but everything seemed fresh so I didn't mind waiting. I got the pad thai beef and pad see ew beef, they were delicious but didn't have enough vegetables in my opinion. Price for each dish was $8. Serving size was ehhh, but it was good!! If you're craving thai food and are in the area, give this place a try read more

I'm feeling bloated from here. Possibly because I ate alot. I decided to try this place because we were in Costa Mesa and were craving some Thai. I got the papaya salad and spicy squid dish with a side of brown rice. The papaya salad is not on the menu above the register, but if you look at the take out form, there's an option to get papaya salad. Normally I like to get PadThai at every Thai place I go, but I decided to branch out and try something new. The papaya salad was pretty flavorful, but I was bummed that there was no blue crab paste that some other places use. I prefer my salad a bit on the fishier, fermented side, but this salad was pretty good. The spicy squid was not bad. It had a good base of basil and came loaded with vegetables. The dish itself is quite spicy and comes with both the squid body and tentacles, so if tentacles gross you out, I'd stay away from this dish. Otherwise, the dish was pretty good and tasted nice with rice. After eating the dish however, I felt extremely bloated, like I had just ate from an AYCE sushi buffet. Overall, food is pretty good, but I think I'll have to try the PadThai here next time before judging if I like this place more than others. read more

I've had pretty legit thai food, and this one is A-Ok. A To-go food only. The person who took my order said the food will be done in 30 minutes. I gave about 35 minutes before I left the house and 7 minute drive coming from home to the restaurants location... so that was about 42 minutes. Got there and still have to wait for another 10 minutes. I ordered Pad Sew Ew which is pretty popular from the menu. The Pad Sew Ew, was 2/5 Star. It was not even worth the try, I had two meat put in there 1 is chicken and the other is shrimp. I only had 2 pieces of shrimp, and chicken were cut so small that i could barely know if it's chicken. The Pad Sew Ew was very bitter and super oily. I also ordered Thai Tea which is about 3/5 Star. I didn't really have a great impression either on their venue. Location is kind of hard to find, but I managed since I have GPS. Over all the impression I got from this place is 2/5 Star. I wish it could have been better than Diho Siam but it's not.. I paid about 13.00 for Pad Sew Ew (with chicken and shrimp) and thai tea, which is pretty A-ok same price I would normally pay at any other thai restaurant. But will I come back here? the answer is I wont come back here for thai food anymore. 2 Star Hard to find the place To-go food you have to wait for at least 45-50 minutes read more

LOVE this place!!! Little small hole in the wall! Very authentic! Worth the drive literally best Thai Food in the OC area! I get the Beef Pad See Eew glad to see they make it the right way...no mushroom, no carrots and they use the right kind of Broccoli these are big deals to me when it comes to making it right! I say come check it out if ur in the area! Very casual fast food type place! Good for take out and cheap! Wish they delivered!!!!! read more

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This restaurant is really casual. Small shop where you order at the counter. First glance at the menu, I wished they had lunch specials or at least set meals (almost everything you have to order soup, rice, etc. separately). Sat looking through Yelp photos before finally deciding on Tom Yum w/ Tofu & the Crying Tiger. Soup was good, but I don't think I'd pay $5 for it again. The crying tiger on the other hand was amazing! Very tender beef and good flavor. I saw in some other review that the portion was small, so that's what I was expecting, but it was actually a lot of meat for the price. Friend got the Pad Thai and as some other people have mentioned, their noodles are pretty oily. The flavor itself is good and different from most other Pad Thai but not worth feeling like you just drank vegetable oil with your food. I think this spot seems to be a hit or miss place. read more

I really thought this place would be promising but WHAT. A. DISAPPOINTMENT. Literally the portion sizes for the price is ridiculous, what they give you to-go is what I would have when I pack my leftovers after eating at a normal Thai place. Not only are the portion sizes whack, the flavor is completely off too!! The curry was watery and BLAND/TASTELESS... It's like they watered it down on purpose and didn't check the flavor. The pad Thai was so dry & packed no flavor at all... the lime slice they gave us was so tiny that I barely had any juice to squeeze onto the pad thai to make it taste better. The chicken eggplant with spicy garlic was the only thing that was just... okay. And to top it off, I found a piece of plastic in my rice!! Rice that was cooked with too much water... how do you fuck up rice????? Honest question? Man... for a place in Newport Beach you'd expect better but well... what did I expect. Really wish I didn't spend $30 for a whack ass meal... I could've just gone to Thai and Chinese Express and been satisfied without spending a buttload of money. If I could give this place no stars, I would. Waste of my time and money and gas read more

MaDee Thai Kitchen - Thai Near Me - Costa Mesa, California

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I have never eaten at this establishment but have ordered delivery recently. I have tried the pad see ew with beef, papaya salad, kha soi with chicken, mango with sticky rice, and coconut shrimp soup. The positives? I enjoyed the papaya salad and the flavor of the kha soi as well. (Wasn't a big fan of the noodles provided). The mango and sticky rice was tasty too! That being said, the portions are quite small. The pad see ew had a strange smell to it, and unfortunately tasted exactly how it smelled. I will definitely pass on that going forward. The coconut shrimp soup was standard, everything excluding the pad see ew had good flavor, but I have definitely had better Thai food before. I don't know, I feel indifferent about Madee. Will probably go with a different restaurant next time due to the quantity vs price. But I will say I am craving that papaya salad, like now. read more

Order take-out via the phone. We made the mistake of ordering our food in the restaurant because we couldn't make up our mind at home. We sat around for 20+ minutes. The food was great! This is our new favorite Thai restaurant. The beef pad see ew is my a must. We also got pot stickers and yellow curry chicken; both great. Unlike some of the other Thai places we been, MaDee's is clean and you can see directly into the kitchen. We'll be back soon to try many more of their dishes. read more

I like the place. The service is good and the food is tasty. Much better than some of the other Thai places in the area. However, there's nothing too spectacular about the place. The prices are nothing to rave over and the food, though good, felt like it was missing something. The curry was more like a broth than a curry. The Pad Thai was kinda slimy and the noodles were overcooked. The Coconut soup was very good, but you should order it with some steamed rice, because, like the curry, it's mostly just liquid. I would recommend the place if someone was looking for a place in Costa Mesa/Newport --simply due to a lack of good thai food in that area. It's the best for miles around, which, sadly, isn't saying much. read more

Our favorite local Thai spot. Food is great and service is good. Mostly take out, though they have a few tables.

MaDee is super stingy with their curry dishes. Several times I have ordered their yellow curry, and it amazed me each time how little I was given for the price. They don't maintain a high enough temperature on their wok, so the Drunken Noodle and Pad Thai don't get caramelized the way that they should be. This results in limp, soggy noodles that aren't really what you're looking for if you know what good Thai tastes like. Mint Leaf Thai down on Balboa Blvd on the Newport Peninsula is the best Thai I've had in Newport. Thai Wave up in Huntington Beach is also pretty good. read more

Im always going here when im picking up my kids from school. They love the pad thai and im always getting spring rolls

This was my first time and love it. I came in during lunch hour . I felt very special knowing that it was cook just for me. Can't wait to craved it again. read more

MaDee Thai Kitchen - Pan fried noodles, chicken with a cool coke. - Thai Near Me - Costa Mesa, California

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This is one of the only Thai restaurants on 17th St that isn't a chain. It's in the corner of a small stripe center with 2-3 other businesses. If you blink, you'll miss it. Walking in, it is a no frills type of restaurant. You order at the counter before sitting down. There are about 7-8 tables and will probably fit 20 people max. The food is good. There is one person taking orders (both in restaurant and phone orders) and maybe 1-2 people cooking. Don't expect the quickest or best service either. I LOVE their khao soi. One of the only Thai restaurants that serve this dish. I've also had their pad thai, pad see eww, crying tiger, and beef salad. Everything is good. They serve most of their dishes on plastic throw-away plates. Again, NO FRILLS Thai restaurant so don't expect a fine dining experience. read more

This place is amazing!! This is actual, authentic Thai food right here people- and that's hard to find coming from the fake and faux wannabe Asian restaurants in these areas (you know who you are). Don't go here expecting a fancy feast, but definitely hit it up for a good lunch spot or quick Asian food fix for dinner. Seriously though try this place if you are in the mood for Thai food in the area. The Pad See Ew is to die for and they have some other really great items as well. read more

This place gets very busy with many "TOGO" orders and when that happens, the food does take a very long time. I've eaten there once so far and everything was good (we ate at around 5pm during a weekday). I tried to go another time to order food and the line was out the door. But I'll go back. I asked for the Som Tam (green papaya salad) extra spicy like I always do and they killed me! I loved it! Wife took one bite and looked at me like I was crazy for ordering/eating it. Small place, not the type of place I'd go for a seated meal, but a great takeout place for sure! BTW- I think they are closed on Tuesdays. read more