Best Thai food in the Bay!!! I come here all the time and just put my friends on. The green curry is so authentic read more

New Thai Elephant - Green Curry - Thai Near Me - San Mateo, California

The chicken satay and pad kee mao were flavorful and well-prepared, and the ambiance made the overall dining experience even more enjoyable. read more

New Thai Elephant - C03. Pad Kee Mao Noodle - Thai Near Me - San Mateo, California

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Food and service are both good, would recommend! The store decorations are also pretty read more

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We stopped here with a party of 8 on Friday evening for dinner. It was a long wait but boy was the wait worth it. The entire unanimously agreed that this restaurant has really delicious Thai food. Food 5/5: We ordered a number of items green curry, pork curry, veg pad kee mao, pork fried rice and Thai iced tea with a panda on the top (it was a showstopper and everyone was intrigued to see it - great conversation starter) We were disappointed by crispy tofu - that's a really bad dish - bland and simply not worth the calories Ambience 5/5: it looks nice. Ambiance is functional and interiors are really good for the price group $$ sign yelp restaurant category. They maintain cleanliness and hygiene Service 4/5 - service was good. People were friendly. It took a relatively long time for them to bring fried rice dishes compared to everything else and they missed to add one item during ordering. But also the restaurant was really busy and a long wait list with only 2-3 staff members, so understandable Parking was easy to find in the downtown parking garage Definitely recommend trying it read more

New Thai Elephant - Thai Near Me - San Mateo, California

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3.5 stars. I think the main reasons why this average Thai restaurant has such great reviews and is always busy is because they provide an incentive for people to write reviews (free Thai tea for yelp review and free ice cream cup for Google review), they are a small sized restaurant with limited seating, and their affordable. For those reasons, always expect a wait. There's an iPad wait list and they will text you when the table is ready. They only take reservations for parties of 5 or more The food is decent taste wise. Prices are pretty good for the quality and portions. It's nice that the curry dishes come with rice. We ordered the red curry $13.75, yellow curry $13.75, pad Thai $14.75, and spicy eggplant $15.25. Everything is on the sweeter side and not very spicy despite my request for spicy. Food is not bad, but didn't quite satisfy my Thai food craving, which is not a good sign... read more

New Thai Elephant - Red and yellow curry - Thai Near Me - San Mateo, California

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Tried this place out for the first time, and rather enjoyed myself! The Fried Rice was the best part. Savory and seasoned quite well, nice and piping hot as well. They left in some tomatoes when I asked them not to, but it didn't ruin the dish since I could just pick them out. The Fried Chicken Breast wasn't bad...but could've used more seasoning in my opinion. The Fried Shrimp Roll kinda suffered from the same issue. Awesome with the sauces (especially the Plum Sauce, first time trying it and I LOVED it), but just ok without them. Overall, will definitely try some more dishes here in the future, especially with how affordable they are for a restaurant! read more

New Thai Elephant - Fried Rice with Fried Chicken Breast and Sweet Chili Sauce, and Fried Shrimp Roll with Sweet Chili Sauce and Plum Sauce. - Thai Near Me - San Mateo, California

Located in San Mateo. The Pad Kee Mao is my go to and I wasn't a fan here unfortunately. I tried it with pork this time and will definitely be coming back to try the chicken next time. I wasn't given a spice option, it was very bland. Next time in person I will see if I can do a 4x spice option as I LOVE spicy pad kee mao. Thai tea is yummy they also have ice cream. The atmosphere is also really nice with plenty of seating, and they even have a fun photo op wall that adds a nice touch to the dining experience. read more

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We have passed by many times while walking around this busy part of San Mateo, but this time we decided to give them a try since we haven't had Thai food in a while. We got here for an early dinner, so there were many free tables available, though all the booths were taken when we arrived. Modern interiors and casual vibes. ***OUR PICKS*** MANGO SALMON SALAD ~ deep fried salmon, mango, cashew nut, and onions in spicy lime dressing, served with sliced cabbage. The salmon was fishy and didn't taste fresh. The cabbage was so minimal that you could count the shreds, and it looked like pre-cut slaw from a bag?! It looked O-L-D. This was supposed to be a salad. Not much greenery on the plate. What stood out were chunks of mango and fried salmon. The only thing good was the mango. 2.5/5 CRISPY CHICKEN WINGS ~ deep fried chicken wings marinated in a house specialty sauce flavored with salt and pepper, served with sriracha sauce. The chicken was breaded and fried. I guess I wasn't prepared for that kind of chicken, and the menu didn't give a detailed description of how it was made. I prefer the chicken to be coated in flour versus a bread crumb coating. The chicken meat inside was flavorful even without a sauce. I believe the sauces I got were sweet Thai chili and a salsa. Nothing spicy. 3.5/5 ROASTED DUCK CURRY ~ Slice roast duck with pineapple, bell pepper, Thai basil, and tomato with red curry. My guy ordered this dish, and I just tried a sliver of duck. Tasted like Chinese roasted duck, and there were maybe 4 small pieces of duck. You get a bowl of rice, but this should be listed as an appetizer. 3/5 SPICY EGGPLANT WITH SHRIMP ~ sautéed shrimp with eggplant, bell pepper, basil, and Thai chili. Lots of flavor in this dish! Probably the best dish out of the 4 we had. 4/5 Maybe we ordered wrong. We didn't want the typical Thai dishes like Pad Thai or Pad See-Ew, but maybe those were the dishes they do well here. read more

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Unbeatable prices for delicious Thai food. Best part is that their curries come with rice and it's not an extra fee. I think that their Roast Duck Curry is by far the best dish, but they have an extensive menu. What's also really nice is their bear-shaped ice cubes that come with their Thai Iced Tea. Service at times can be slow, but the staff are very friendly. We also enjoyed the fried bananas and ice cream, but it was more ice cream than banana as we had 4 pieces of fried banana read more

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Came here for lunch and had a delicious meal! The appetizers were okay, the roti wasn't very fluffy and the satay was decent. But the entrees were delicious! The pad see ew with crispy pork had tons of protein and was super tasty. We ordered the roast duck curry medium spicy and it was very spicy but very yummy. Portions for everything were pretty good but would skip the roti and chicken satay next time. Came on a Sunday for a late lunch and there was still a wait, so it can be pretty busy! read more

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Cute, popular Thai restaurant in downtown San Mateo with attentive servers and cute decor. Food was good. The Thai drink is very cute. Lovely place, recommend the booths by the walls for a more intimate experience. read more

We decided to try New Thai Elephant for the first time. The first dish served to us was the main dish -- rice with pumpkin curry --instead of the appetizer/salad and a couple of minutes later the papaya salad arrived. The chicken wings came next, and the eggplant dish was served last. The papaya salad was awesome and perfectly done! I loved it at the medium spice level. The chicken wings were okay, but nothing particularly special. Since the main dish was served first, it had already gotten cold by the time we started eating it, and the rice was a bit hard, probably from having less water when it was cooked. The flavor was really good though -- very tasty. I was just hoping the curry sauce would be thicker and creamier instead of watery. For the eggplant dish, we chose duck meat, but unfortunately it was too salty for us. The eggplant itself and the bell peppers were good though. The experience wasn't quite what we expected, and there are a few areas that could use some improvement. I hope the team can look into this. read more

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Messy, dirty, sloppy: I visited around 7pm on a weekday and waited quite a long time before anyone acknowledged me. I was put at a dirty table and excused myself to go to the bathroom. I passed the kitchen and it smelled of garbage. The bathroom was atrocious (see photos -- I mean, if you can't clean your toilet or the space behind the bathroom door, what else are you missing? When I returned to my table - it had puddles on it and had not been wiped off. The server brought me tattered menus and apologized for the table being wet and said he'd return but then attended other tables. After another 10 minutes - I just left. Abysmal service and cleaning standards. read more

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Super good food, great drinks, not to mention great servers! Get all the currys and taste the difference. Great way to experience the variety. read more

New Thai Elephant - Thai Ice Tea ($4.50) w/ Young Whole Coconut ($6.95). - Thai Near Me - San Mateo, California

WOWI love Thai food but haven't found a GREAT one, BUT now I found an EXCELLENT one! It is soooo delicious. Fried calamari 5/5 Pork belly fried rice 5/5 Chicken satay 5/5 Pad See Eww 5/5 ( note not the sweet kind, but still good!) Egg rolls 3.5/5 ( couldn't taste the vermicelli, so tasted like regular eggrolls) Iced tea 5/5 perfectly not too sweet just right! Loved the cute iced teddy bear! This will be my go-to Thai restaurant in the entire SF Bay Area! read more

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Food 4 stars : We ordered the green duck curry, pumpkin curry, larb salad, papaya salad, eggrolls, pad see yoo, spicy eggplant, crab fried rice. The curry was a little small. Service 5 stars: maybe need more staff but very nice staff Ambience 4 stars: fun vibe, busy, loud read more

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We were quite hungry after running some errands, and based on the reviews, we decided to give this place a try. It's a fairly small restaurant with only three booth-style seats and mostly small tables. Honestly, the tables for two felt a bit cramped, so we were lucky to get a booth. We ordered a vegetable broth soup, which had a light, clean flavor. It was good, especially since you can adjust it with spices provided. I also had the pumpkin curry, which was good and came with rice which I appreciate as most of the time, the rice is not included. It wasn't the best pumpkin curry I've ever had, but it was good. The pad see ew was good as well, though nothing particularly memorable. The fried rice, however, felt a bit too oily for my taste. Overall, it was a good meal, though I think our hunger definitely played a role. I'm glad I tried it, but I'm not sure I'd go out of my way to return. read more

The food here ia so good and tasty. The staff is nice, attentative, and pleasant. I really enjoy coming here to eat as a lunch option in downtown San Mateo, Ca. read more

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Very solid Thai food spot on the Peninsula. Although the place is a little small, the ambiance and vibes are pretty modern and up to date. They try to make it more romantic with dimmer lighting and candles as well. I love how close it is to boba shops in downtown so you always have dessert options without driving. Definitely come earlier since there was already a 5min queue time on a Saturday around 5:30PM. I ordered a Pad Thai and Pad Kee Mao, and both are really good and flavorful. The Pad Thai was sweet and a little stinky (according to my wife) from the fish sauce but I found it to be a good balance between sweet and savory. I just wished the beansprouts were cooked instead of raw, but they still paired well with the dish. The Pad Kee Mao was a little spicy with an amazing flavor profile, but it came with ground beef when we were expecting beef slices. I think ordering chicken next time would be better. The portions are generous, especially at this price point and ambiance. Service was pretty attentive but it can get very busy, so a little initiative never hurts. They do try their best to tend to every table, but the high turnover rate and small restaurant can be a challenge. This is overall a very solid spot for and affordable date night, and we are definitely coming back! read more

New Thai Elephant - C01. Pad Thai Noodle - Thai Near Me - San Mateo, California

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Good food and price for san mateo. Get the fried fish cake Come early for large party as it gets crowded... read more

New Thai Elephant - Thai Near Me - San Mateo, California

I am not sure why this place has such good reviews, maybe it's because they offer you a free thai iced tea if you leave a rating on Yelp? My family and I visited for lunch today and were not impressed. All the dishes were simultaneously too sweet and too salty, and nothing was spicy at all, which was surprising for a supposed Thai restaurant. We ordered the roast duck curry, pad kee mao with chicken, roti, crab fried rice, and crispy pork with bell peppers. The roast duck curry was far, far too sweet, and barely tasted of curry. There was barely any meat inside, and most of it was just the duck skin. The pad kee mao was alright, but also too salty and barely had any chicken in it (you can see in the picture that there were very few, tiny pieces of ground chicken inside). The roti pieces were floppy and not crispy at all, and again the dipping curry that came with it was far too sweet. The crispy pork felt overcooked, and was the only dish that wasn't sweet, but was even more salty than the others. The only passable dish was perhaps the crab fried rice, which had a fair serving of crab, but was a tad too oily (even for fried rice). I'm not sure how much sugar they use in each of these dishes and I'm not sure I want to know! We definitely won't be coming back, there are plenty of other authentic Thai restaurants in the area that are much better like Sweet Basil in Foster City or Farmhouse Thai in Menlo Park (although the latter is fairly pricey). I would recommend going to one of those instead. read more

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I enjoyed my dinner at New Thai Elephant! This restaurant balances both upscale and cozy vibes. Service can be a bit lacking as you will need to reach out directly to order and to get the check. Papaya salad was delicious, this was my first time ordering this dish and I don't regret it. The vegetables were fresh and the fish sauce added the right amount of concentrated flavor to the dish. The Pad Thai was delicious, our protein was tender and seasoned very well. Portions here are sizable but definitely finishable in one sitting. read more

New Thai Elephant - A03. Papaya Salad - Thai Near Me - San Mateo, California

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Very decorated restaurant! A few booths and small tables throughout. Service was just okay. Took a while to get our order and water refills. I really enjoyed the Papaya Salad! Super funky and the fish sauce was perfectly potent. Papaya was crunchy and refreshing. Sooo delicious! The Pad Thai was tasty. No notes, but they probably have better noodle options! read more

New Thai Elephant - C01. Pad Thai Noodle - Thai Near Me - San Mateo, California

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Always coming back here for some good thai food cravings! will definitely recommend to friends and families. read more

New Thai Elephant - Thai Near Me - San Mateo, California

Came here on a Tuesday around 6:15 and were seated right away. The boneless duck noodle soup and the panang curry with pork were both phenomenal! The bear ice in the Thai tea was a cute touch. A very solid dinner for 2 and very reasonably priced - everything came out to about $50. Would absolutely come back! read more

New Thai Elephant - Thai iced tea - Thai Near Me - San Mateo, California

Food was amazing! The service was awesome! Highly recommend New Thai Elephant if you are in the area. It's a must! read more

New Thai Elephant - Thai Near Me - San Mateo, California

Nice and Beautiful restaurant, it was very cozy, and a wonderful place to celebrate my birthday :) read more

New Thai Elephant - Thai Near Me - San Mateo, California

Great fast service, amazing atmosphere, amazing food! Would reccomend to bring family and friend over! read more

New Thai Elephant - Thai Near Me - San Mateo, California

Great service and food :) would recommend as always. Try the pad Thai and fried chicken over rice for a good variety read more

New Thai Elephant - E01. Fried Chicken Over Fried Rice - Thai Near Me - San Mateo, California

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Its a small, well decorated indoor restaurant. We ordered crab rice , roti and pad see eww. We were confused whether we required another dish to order but the waiter was kind enough to help us know the portions. They can get busy be slight delayed with orders or giving a cheque. The flavours were great and was feel food food read more

I ate dinner here with a small group of friends. The atmosphere was very lively but not too noisy or overwhelming, complemented by a fun assortment of decorations. Service was pretty efficient despite the full house. I ordered the Panang Curry (with duck) and Roti. The Roti's texture was great, and the duck curry portion was generous and priced pretty reasonably compared to other options I've had across the Bay Area. Will definitely be back to visit! read more

New Thai Elephant - A20. Roti - Thai Near Me - San Mateo, California

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I don't get all the good reviews. Ordered for pickup for around 2 pm on a Saturday afternoon and they were jam packed. The panang curry with shrimp was too sweet and had a small piece of chicken in it. So random. I thought it was weird that it had peanut sauce in it. I did like that it came with steamed rice and a good amount of it. Maybe I just picked an off dish. I'll give them another try to redeem themselves. Nicely decorated interior. Street parking only. read more

New Thai Elephant - Shrimp D01. Panang Curry - Thai Near Me - San Mateo, California

We often enjoy Friday nights in downtown San Mateo so was excited when a family member suggested New Thai Elephant to eat at. I had never been but have always wanted to check it out. On this particular Friday, they were pretty busy. We put our name down for a party of five and had to wait about 40 minutes before we were seated. The restaurant is intimate and cozy. All of the tables are pretty close together. There is a cute flower wall. Once we were seated, service was quick and efficient. I had to try to their special Thai iced tea which came with a ice-sculpted teddy bear in it. It was just the right amount of sweetness and was refreshing. We ordered a bunch of dishes to share. - papaya salad - I don't usually like papaya salad but this one was flavorful and fresh 7/10 - crispy chicken wings - crispy and moist 8/10 - pad thai 7/10 - pad see ew with chicken 7/10 - green curry chicken with rice 6/10 - kao gra prow w/ ground chicken 8/10 - spicy eggplant with pork 8/10 - crispy pork belly 7/10 - fried chicken with fried rice 8/10 As usual, we went overboard and had lots of leftovers. I am really glad I tried this place and happy to add this to my list to come again. read more

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New Thai Elephant made a great late night impression, offering comforting Thai food in a cozy and romantic setting that feels perfect for a date night. We arrived around 9 pm and they closed at 9 30 pm. The service was awesome for taking us in so late and they never rushed us. The ambiance immediately stood out. It felt romantic with dim lighting and small lights on the table that gave the restaurant a warm and intimate feeling. The food was fantastic and well priced for what you get. We ordered the pad gra prow chicken, pad Thai, crispy chicken wings, fried tofu, and a Thai iced tea. The Thai iced tea was a fun highlight because it came with a frozen Thai ice bear, which was such a cool touch. Everything came out quickly and piping hot and we enjoyed every bit of our food. Overall everything was very good, but I would not order the fried chicken wings again. They were seasoned well but had a very heavy breading. The pad gra prow, pad Thai, and fried tofu were all solid and satisfying. Parking wise, the street in front was converted to seating during Covid, so there is no parking right out front. There is plenty of parking nearby and a garage just down the street. I have been meaning to try this place for a while and I am glad we finally did. I really enjoyed my dinner here and would definitely come back again. read more

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3.5/5 Stars Kinda just a standard Thai restaurant. Came in for an early Tuesday dinner and we got seated immediately. The restaurant is somewhat small, and the menu has pretty standard dishes that you would see at a Thai place in this area. Not too quiet, not too loud, with a very vibrant/colorful interior. We sat at the booth where we were able to focus on the conversation without nearby interrupting sounds. To be honest, we had to wait a good amount of time for our food to come out. Here's what we ordered: - Curry Puff ($12): 4 pieces, so 1 for each of us. I highly recommend this dish because the "puff" part is immaculate. The curry flavor is strong, so it's a texture-and-flavor heaven. The best way to eat it is when it's piping hot (you have to burn your tongue). - Panang Curry ($14): To be honest, I wasn't a huge fan of how the rice and curry are plated together because it takes away from a family-style experience, truly not a big deal though. The curry is great, with good portions of veggies and meat. - Crispy Pork Fried Rice ($15.50): Flavor is strong here, but the pork is leaning more crispy and the overall dish was a bit oily. Complemented the curry well. - Pad See-Ew ($14.50): Similar to the fried rice, where it was slightly oily but had really good flavor. Everything is just... alright. It's good, but nothing crazy. I was in Seattle for a few months last year, and I think all the Thai food there mega spoiled me. There aren't many Thai places in San Mateo so it definitely curbs the cravings. read more

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The vegan version of their coconut soup (Tom Kha Gai) was sooooooooooo good. Sweet and tangy, and the coconut flavor was not super creamy or overpowering. A full 10/10 just for this soup! Their vegan Pad Kee Mao noodles were also pretty good. Price was extremely reasonable and service was very fast read more

My family was craving Thai food for lunch so I suggested trying New Elephant Thai since we always walk by it. The place was packed for lunch, which is usually a sign of a good restaurant. We signed up on the wait list with 6 tables ahead of us. We were expecting a long wait, but was informed within 5 minutes that our table was ready! We sampled the grilled pork neck, pineapple fried rice, the crab meat fried rice, spicy eggplant with pork, and roasted duck over rice. The food came out quickly and all the dishes were very tasty! The grilled pork neck was very good and not too fatty. I ordered the eggplant dish medium spicy, but it wasn't spicy at all. It wasn't an issue though, since I utilized the free condiments on the table to increase the spice level. My daughter found a crab shell in her crab fried rice, which proved they use real crab meat. Everyone enjoyed the food and the portions were pretty generous. I highly recommend New Elephant Thai if you're in the mood for delicious Thai food in downtown San Mateo. It has quick and friendly service, good food and reasonable prices! read more

New Thai Elephant - F08. Spicy Eggplant with pork - Thai Near Me - San Mateo, California

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This restaurant cannot get orders correct to save their life. When you tell them, they take down your name and number on the side to throw away later. If you mess up and don't give me the order I paid for, I need a refund. Period. read more

Came here with my family for dinner on a Sunday and the place was very busy, with many people waiting outside since the restaurant is pretty small. We got the following: (8.5/10) Roti - Really soft and lots of pieces to share, came with curry sauce which was okay (9/10) Pad see ew with mixed vegetables - portion sizes are large, you can customize if you want egg or tofu, seasoned well and the noodles were chewy (7/10) Chicken satay - 5 skewers, came out a bit lukewarm, came with peanut/sesame sauce(?) (8/10) Papaya salad - plated with chucks of lettuce, tomato, not actually spicy Overall service was pretty slow to take to our order because of how busy they were. Servers were nice. There were flies and fruit flies around or table though. Menu had a wide variety and food was tasty. If there is no wait and I was in the area, I would consider coming again! read more

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Came here on a weekday evening and was seated immediately. By the time we left, all the tables were full, and there were customers waiting for us to finish. My friend and I were seated in a booth area, where the booths were 100% divided by walls decorated with beautiful and colorful scenes. My friend and I ordered their Thai Iced Tea and different variations of the Pad See Ew. Loved the Thai Iced Tea and the cute and sugary Teddy Bear on top! The drink was not too sweet. I ordered their Pad See Ew with beef and it was delicious! Loved the seasoning of the beef along with the noodles. My friend got their Pad See Ew with the chicken, and the chicken was nice and tender! They gave us some candies at the end too. Service was good, and food came out in a timely manner. Good variety of dishes on their menu too! read more

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