I had never experienced a bad pad Thai--until yesterday. The emptiness of this establishment should've been a sign but I went in trusting my fellow Yelpers. Big mistake. I left with less money but the same amount of hunger because this food was just not good. The sauce in the pad Thai was vinegary and tasted anything but "fresh". More like store bought. The chicken was few and far between and just bland. The spring rolls were edible but could've been cooked a little longer. Service was prompt and friendly but I honestly question the glowing reviews because there was nothing authentic or remotely tasty about this meal. Hard miss for me. read more

Thai Fresh - Thai Spring Rolls ( Fried) - Thai Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

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Food was just ok but I would not consider it authentic. My dish was salty, but my friend's dish was better. They didn't use the right wide noodles for Drunken Noodles. The complex flavors were just not there. Fresh herbs, such as Thai basil, would have helped. Thai iced tea was average as well. It is clean inside, and the staff is friendly. Free 1 hour parking garage one block down the street and around the corner. read more

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Drunken Noodle is superb! I've been in a few times, and always try something different. Today, I asked the owner his favorite. He recommended Green Curry or Drunken Noodle (new to the menu). I opted for DN, and it was excellent! Flavorful, spicy (on request), full of veg. And the owner is super sweet. Highly recommend! read more

Service was great, the staff were very friendly and efficient. We ordered the Thai tea and Pad Thai, must try! Taste, portion size and price was all great. Nice ambiance, family friendly! Space is small, but definitely worth it. Definitely will come back to try all the curries :) read more

Excellent fresh delicious food prepared super fast, highly recommend this little gem!!

The Pad Thai was good. They even made it mild for me. They only have canned drinks or a pitcher of water and cups. This is very casual place. read more

Just average, nothing special. Little pricey for what you get. Nice and welcoming host / cook. Open during the slow time of the weekday when competition is closed until 5. read more

Excellent food, efficient service.we're regulars go at least once a month for lunch or dinner!

It's a bit of a tough one. I stopped in for what was labeled on the menu: a vegan Pad Thai (I'm not vegan mind you, that's just what I wanted). The owner warned me that he makes his Pad Thai sauce with fish sauce, so despite what's on the menu, he couldn't make it vegan. On one hand, I appreciate the honesty. On the other hand, a bit of a puzzler, as it's not that hard to make a good fish-free Pad Thai sauce, and a bunch of vegetarians, vegans, people with allergies, and people who don't like the taste of fish sauce would sure like that option. I was told the only thing I could get vegan was fried rice, so I got that. It arrived tasty and full of fermented black beans. There was a bit of what might have been egg (or maybe just shreds of tofu); I couldn't tell and I didn't want to push it as there was clearly a bit of a language barrier. The rice was delicious, and I'm all for a small business making things fresh, run by someone who knows the cuisine. The food was tasty and I ate it. I can't really recommend it from a special diet perspective though; not enough clarity there. So this review is a bit of a compromise and I'll leave it at that. read more

Thai Fresh - Fried rice - Thai Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

Gosh this place is so delicious and cheap!! Everything on the menu is priced in the single digits. We got an assortment of appetizers, fried rice, and drunken noodles. Food came out fast and piping hot. The khanom jeeb reminded me of shumai, the spring rolls were so crispy. The drunken noodles were a bit oily but I love the usage of spaghetti noodles and medium spice will be more spicy than most restaurants but still manageable. Also, everything is just the right portion (not too big or small) so you can really try everything! This Thai food really tastes like top tier street food, it definitely offers something more unique than your typical Thai restaurant. read more

Thai Fresh - Khanom Jeeb, DRUNKEN NOODLES, Thai Fried Rice - Thai Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

I Just wasted 20 minutes of my time waiting for an order that they got completely wrong TWICE. I walked up to the register at 12:10 PM, and placed an order with a woman for chicken fried rice. Two minutes later, she walked over and brought me the wrong order. I told her that it was wrong and she looked confused and almost seemed to suggest that I was wrong. I told her what I ordered again and then she just left and took it behind the counter. I figured my actual order would be brought out me within a few minutes, but then waited about 10 more minutes and it didn't come out. I walked up to the counter and asked about it, and she said that it would be out in a few minutes. I then waited 10 more minutes and was getting frustrated because I had to leave soon for a meeting, so I went up to the counter again and spoke with someone else. She had no clue what I had ordered, so I told her that I ordered chicken fried rice, and then she spoke with the cook who appeared to acknowledge the order as though he was about to start cooking it. I sat down, and within 30 seconds that person walks over and hands me a plate of Pad Thai. Somehow, they managed to get my order wrong two times even though I had just told her 30 seconds ago what I had ordered. Also, while I was there at least two other people complained that they had been given the wrong take out order and had to walk back to get the correct order. Their problem is that they don't take down customer names, and they don't give out numbers. They just try to go off of memory. That's probably fine when there's only two or three customers in the restaurant, but when it gets a little busy that is clearly not going to work. read more

This was my first time trying Thai Fresh. I ordered through a third party delivery service and food arrived quickly, everything was hot and well packed! The green curry had nice spice to it, which was a pleasant surprise since there were no options for spice levels or spice on the side when ordering. It was a little weird to have steamed broccoli and carrots in the curry, but not a total turnoff. Neither of those ingredients were listed on the menu and I'd prefer them left out next time. They were both a little mushy and just didn't fit with the dish. The tofu and curry sauce/broth were both on point though! Would love to have this again with fresh basil. I don't really love pad thai, but I always try it when my partner gets it. I actually liked this one. It was hot, fresh and had great flavor. The portion was very generous, especially for the price! The chicken was perfect. The"Drunken Noodle" was not really Drunken Noodle. I wish they'd call it something else. It tastes more like a cross between lo mein and a stir-fried noodle dish from a Chinese restaurant. There were no typical Thai flavors in this and no resemblance to drunken noodles at all; they use spaghetti noodles. Having said that, it's not a bad dish. If you want stir-fried, salty-ish noodles, this is a great value. Huge portion at a very reasonable price. We would actually order this as a side dish to share. I wish there was an option to order it with the rice noodles they use in the pad thai. It would work much better. The Thai tea was huge and very good! Definitely sweet, but that's typical. Would get again for sure. It was big enough for two of us to share. read more

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This is a convenient spot situated downtown offering both dine-in and take out options. Masks are required (per the door sign) but I was the only customer so I didn't observe masks being enforced. The restaurant was pretty clean and also very slow ( Thursday Afternoon). I ordered my food Togo and waited for it at a window seat. I was asked about the spice level for my meal which I specified ( 4 out of 5 ). The food was out in about 8 minutes which was very quick but as I stated they were empty. My food came and I observed immediately the large hard chunks of rice which resemble none other than old rice. Not spoiled or bad, just old and not very warm. The entire portion was excellent! Vegetables were cooked but not over done, fresh, and seasoned well. The main draw was that the food wasn't spicy at all. The wonton soup was just ok. It honestly tasted like water with bean sprouts and garlic. When I got home I added in my own spices as well as to the chicken and vegetables. The food was hot and I would possible visit again. Pros: Quick Service Good prices Great size Portions The Garlic sauce cooked with the main dish was delicious ( not spicy ) Vegetables were fresh Cons: Old rice was given Food wasn't prepared as asked The soup I would skip or try another They use styrofoam containers read more

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Was craving some Thai food especially with being cooped up because of quarantine and had heard about Thai fresh from some college friends. I ordered the Thai gyoza, khanom jeeb, and spicy pad Thai - everything was so cheap and so DELICIOUS. The gyoza and khanom jeeb were so succulent and well seasoned. They both came with a soy sauce and a sweeter sauce that worked really well with both dishes. The pad Thai was ACTUALLY spicy which was such a wonderful surprise because it's been hard to find Thai food at a good spice level. The portions were huge especially for the price and I had enough food to last two more meals. The service was also really quick - Food is currently only ordered to go. The food came out really quickly and was very convenient especially with my busy schedule that day. Had a good time talking to the owner as well - was super friendly and approachable! Delicious food and great service! read more

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I love Thai food so much so I was excited to try a new place, however, the pad Thai was off. At least on this occasion, it smelled putrid like a cattle pen. The scent was so awry that I wasn't able to eat my food. My partner's food was fine though, so it was something that they used in their chicken Pad Thai. I'm not sure if they're using expired ingredients or not storing something properly, but it's something to be aware of if you plan on ordering that dish. read more

An affordable and flavorful lunchtime spot. No frills here and the prices have crept up slightly, but it gets the job done and they're relatively quick. Keep it simple - pad Thai or fried rice. They prefer cash. read more

Just stumbled upon this place last night while walking the pedestrian mall. First of all it's so cheap!! It's a little weird because you're served on styrofoam plates... but for the price, it's fine! I'm vegan and I got the fried rice with no egg, and tofu instead of chicken. The only man working there was so sweet and accommodating. The food was ready quickly and tasted really good. It had little to no spice though, so when I go back I'll be sure to talk to the chef and see what he can do. (They don't ask or indicate on the menu anything about spice level like most Thai restaurants do) This is a small place, no romantic ambiance or anything but I will definitely return for more cheap Thai food. read more

Thai Fresh - Fried rice with no egg and tofu instead of chicken - Thai Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

Pretty OK Thai food all around. The restaurant was mostly clean and the staff was friendly but the food was just alright. We ordered the thai iced tea, golden bags, dumplings, thai fried rice, and red curry. The thai teas were a bit too watered down for my liking and didn't have enough sweetness to it. The golden bags are a better version of chinese cheese wontons and those were by far the favorite item we ordered. The dumplings were flavored okay but a bit dry on the inside. The thai fried rice was pretty good but was a bit more oily than I'm use to with other Thai restaurants I've been too. The red curry with chicken was flavorful and delicious - I just wish there was more meat to it as it was mainly full of sliced green peppers. Overall we left full but will probably try other places around next time we are in the area. read more

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Several years ago, when my office was located on the downtown C'ville mall, I came to the garage behind the building to return river clean up supplies used that day for a big event. I left my car running, my pup was in the front seat. It was only supposed to take a couple of minutes. Instead, the huge garage door slammed to the ground, locking me inside with m pooch, my purse and wallet, my phone and my car outside. It was a Sunday afternoon and there was little activity on C'ville Mall. I called, I yelled, I cried out for help for hours, but alas nothing, no one heard my calls for help. Then... I heard a truck drive in to that secluded car park. This person was at the end of the building and I feared that her would not hear me. I hollered like a maniac and this kindly gentleman, owner of the Thai Fresh Restaurant, heard me and walked down the isle of garages, wondering where the calls for help were coming from. He called the C'ville Fire Department, turned off my car's ignition and held my pup till help arrived. Not only do I love the food at Thai Fresh on 5th Street on the downtown mall ( just down from the Pavilion), I love and honor the owner who saved the day... and potentially my pup's life. Give Thai Fresh a try, thank the owner for his humanity and kindness to other. I promise you won't regret it! read more

No frills Thai take-out restaurant serving the basics done right. Best Pad Thai I ever had was here. Simple choice between chicken or vegetarian (tofu). Noodles were great consistency, well-thought portion size and packaging. No lingering flavor which strikes balance between sweet and savory flavors. Menu was simple and straightfoward. read more

I absolutely LOVE Thai Fresh. It's a little hole in the wall and you'll definitely have to finagle parking downtown, but totally worth it. I always get a Thai tea and their pad Thai and to be honest it may be the best pad Thai in town. I love lime leaf and Thai 99 as well but there's is cooked right in front of you and really does the job. Definitely recommend if you want a quick cheap Thai to go plate. read more

I came here last Saturday to try it out. I ordered a Pad Thai, Khanon Jeeb, and a Green Curry. The Pad Thai was good but definitely not great. The Khanon Jeeb was good. The Green Curry was the biggest disappointment. It was VERY watery, had hardly any chicken and was full of green peppers. I've had much better elsewhere. While the prices are low for a Thai restaurant the portions are quite small too. The reason why I am giving it three stars is for the following reasons: 1) Very convenient location. It's located in the Downtown Mall in Charlottesville. 2) The restaurant was clean, well organized, and overall a pleasant place to sit and eat. 3) The staff were respectful and courteous. My only issue was with the quality of the food. Silk Thai (elsewhere in Charlottesville) is better in terms of quality (some dishes more so than others). And there are Thai restaurants in Northern Virginia, D.C. and probably even Montgomery County, MD which are MUCH better. read more

Actual star rating: 3.5 Thai Fresh is a small, local takeout place located in the Downtown Mall, run by one owner. It has limited seating inside and a limited menu. Although the menu didn't have a lot of options, it did have the staple Thai food dishes like Pad Thai, which you can request for it to be spicy if you want. I decided to get the Pad Thai spicy, and it was quite flavorful. Even though there wasn't much heat to it, the dish's immense flavor made up for it. I was also able to try out their fried wontons, and they were disappointing. Maybe they were a bad batch, but the fried wontons were just fried shells with little to no meat. If you're in the area and in the mood for some cheap yet flavorful Thai food, then I would recommend checking out this place. read more

Thai Fresh - Pad Thai - Thai Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

This place was great. Fast and friendly service, not to mention really solid thai food. We got tofu pad thai, chicken fried rice and "golden bags" (crab rangoons) -- all were great, and I was shocked to find that the best crab rangoons I'd ever had would be in Charlottesville of all places! read more

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Good tasty fresh veggies. Tofu dish was pretty scant with the tofu. A bit oily but tasty.

Excellent thai food. Very healthy options. Friendly service. Comfortable seating. Clean bathroom.

Really great, really cheap Thai food! We tried the Green Curry, Penang Curry, and Pad Thai. The Pad Thai was very good (though the looks are different than I'm used to, it's very red so I think they use a large amount of sweet chili paste). The curries however, stole the show. We got the Penang Mild and it had just enough chili for flavor and some kick, but was not too spicy. The Green we ordered Spicy and boy did it deliver! Usually I can't get something that's truly spicy, that plus the rich flavors of both curries make this a new Thai favorite in Charlottesville! read more

Still amazing after a few years! Really balanced flavors, especially the pad thai and the service remains top notch! read more

Thai Fresh - pad thai! - Thai Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

This is a hidden gem located on a side street in downtown Charlottesville. I made my 2nd visit to this place on Friday to grab some lunch. If you need cheap, takeout Thai food, I highly recommend checking this place out. There is also limited seating inside if you choose to dine in. Don't expect anything fancy if you dine in, you get disposable silver wear and plates. The menu here is very small, but with some good options to choose from. The portions are decent and the service is friendly. On my first visit, I ordered a pad thai. The dish is very flavorful and fresh. Everything was cooked just right. During my last visit, I ordered the green curry. I thought it was just okay. The curry literally was only green peppers, chicken, and the curry. I guess I was just expecting more to it. Also, the curry was very watered down. I advise you to try their gyoza and spring rolls as well. Their food is very comparable to other Thai restaurants but at a much more affordable price. Definitely a great place to satisfy your thai food cravings at an inexpensive price! read more

Thai Fresh - Thai Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

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I was really looking forward to trying a new Thai place and we visited mid afternoon on a weekday so we had the place to ourselves. They are very pleasant at greeting you and taking your order right away at the counter. We ordered chicken green curry, chicken drunken noodles, crispy Thai spring rolls and gyoza. She repeated our order but started I had coconut curry so I had to state green curry again. Prices are great and they bring it out to you if you dine in which is nice. There were only 2 small spring rolls for $5. My hubby enjoyed his drunken noodles but mine was in fact, coconut and not green curry as I order green curry quite often. I just ate it since I was hungry but was disappointed she still didn't get my order correct and the ingredients were a small portion of green pepper, cabbage, chicken and coconut curry with most of it being coconut milk and white rice. You do get a big portion of white rice but I did miss the choice of a brown rice too. read more

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We walked around Charlottesville and got a few drinks and snacks at some of the bars and restaurants in the area. I was hungry and wanted some quick dinner to go home with because we were tired for the day (it was a long day!). We stopped by Thai Fresh and got freshly made pad thai and massamun curry in 15ish minutes. I thought since this was a tiny store a little off the beaten path in downtown Charlottesville that this would be better than it was. For the price point ($6 for a small container of pad thai) its not the end of the world that it was not as tasty (as I hoped), but I expected a little more. The chef was great and is a one man show from what I could see. It's good and cheap but if I had more time i would have gone somewhere else or maybe even sat and grabbed food for a little more. read more

Thai Fresh - Thai Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

The price and customer service here can't be beat! My green curry was a bit watery, and some of the vegetables weren't cooked as much as I prefer, but considering it was only $6 (!) I was very impressed. The clear noodle soup was my favorite thing I got there, the flavors were perfectly delicate. Overall, Thai Fresh is a fantastic low priced meal! read more

Cute, hole-in-the-wall Thai restaurant with quality, delicious food and really low prices! I've been meaning to come here for a while but never got the chance to until now. I'm really glad I decided to finally try Thai Fresh out because now it's officially my second favorite Thai place. The menu has limited selections, but the prices are unbeatable. Pad Thai was only $6 and my coconut curry was $6.50. Both dishes were super delicious! I loved the consistency of the pad Thai. It's nice and chewy and the flavor was superb. The coconut curry was also fantastic. Unlike most curries, this curry was more water and had a more soup like consistency. Everything about it was just right though. The amount of fresh mushrooms and meet, coconut milk, and saltiness! Definitely my favorite curry dish amongst all the Thai places in Charlottesville. The restaurant itself is small and only has a few tables, but it wasn't too crowded on a Friday night. Most people do take outs. Parking in downtown mall is unpredictable as usual, but we managed to find a spot not too far away. Overall, very satisfied and happy with my dining experience at Thai Fresh! read more

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I went there because I heard good things about the place, but was too disappointed by the food I got. I ordered drunken noodles (which are wide rice noodles) that usually come with many vegetables. Instead, what I got was spaghetti-looking noodles with barely any vegetables on them, no basil, no tomato's, just peppers and onions; in addition to that, it was extremely salty. read more

Thai Fresh - Drunken noodles - Thai Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

The cashier was a little rough around the edges, but she warmed up as time went on... The cook was very sweet, and the food was all delicious, especially the fried tofu! I don't live in Virginia, I was just there visiting my sister, but if I ever find myself that way I will definitely come back! read more

Thai Fresh - Tofu fried rice, tofu coconut curry, tofu pad Thai, and fried tofu... All were delicious!! - Thai Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

Absolutely Love this place. The food is very good, and the price is right. I don't even bother going anywhere else for Thai food anymore. Absolutely give them your business, they are very nice people, family owned. read more

The food was amazing. Had the drunken noodles and it's honestly the best I've ever had. The spicy is no joke and I loved it! Highly recommend if you like Thai food :D read more

This is one of my favorite take out places in Charlottesville! I love how authentic and original this restaurant is. It's simple, yet the food is as elegant as it gets. The restaurant is ran by one man who is also the cook. He's always incredibly welcoming and joyful towards customers. He's never unhappy or hostile! My favorite thing to get here is the pad thai. Get the pad thai- no questions asked. The pad thai here is amazing. The texture of the noodles is just right. It's chewy, soft, and mouth-watering good. Besides the noodle, the star of the dish is definitely the pad thai sauce. The sauce is so savory and flavorful. The best part about this restaurant is the price. The price here is unbeatable. Each dish is only $6-7! Note that this place isn't fancy or anything like that which is why it's able to offer such great prices. Everything comes on disposable plates or containers and that's perfectly fine with me. Great food needs no embellishment. The only con I could possibly think of for this restaurant is that the green curry is a bit on the saltier side. I'm not sure if the curry is always like this or if it was just off the time that I ordered it, but I'm willing to give it a second chance sometime in the future! Overall, if you're looking for a cheap, delicious meal, come to this restaurant! read more

Ordered take out and it was delicious!! We ordered the pad Thai, drunken noodles, red curry, broth soup and gyoza; everything was tasty and spiced well. The gentleman that gave me my order at pick up was super sweet. I'll definitely order again next time I'm in town read more

Sooooo so good!!! The man working was friendly and it smelt amazing in here. The service was quick and you could tell a lot of love and care went into the food. We got the spicy pad Thai and it was easily the best Thai I've eaten in Charlottesville. We will be back! read more

Thai Fresh - Pad Thai - Thai Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia