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    Thara Thai

    4.2 (298 reviews)
    ModerateThai, Salad, Noodles
    Closed 11:00 am - 9:30 pm

    Thara Thai Photos

    Business Info

    THARA THAI ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Moderate noise
    Good for groups
    Good for kids

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    Recommended Reviews - Thara Thai

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    Drunken noodles
    Robyn K.

    Can't get Thai in Peoria so stopped on our way through. The service was excellent! Portion size good although I couldn't stop eating to have leftovers. Expansive menu! I read so much about the spice level, and I'm disappointed because I like spicy but went with medium just in case. Wish I would have went with medium like my husband. Will be back when in the area.

    H. A.

    Food was super good & the service was wonderful! I only took off one star bc i feel like its kinda expensive but prices of everything are going up these days so i understand. we got the Red curry and the chicken Pad thai :) both were delicious

    Pad Thai
    Arun K.

    Good food (except Pad Thai) and service, Ambiance is fine as well. We ordered the below Combination Fried rice - 5/5 Pad Thai - 2/5 - sweet n bland Red Curry lunch special- 4/5

    Chicken pho
    Ashley B.

    Outstanding always. The food, the service and the comfy booths are the best. Their pho will make everything better.

    Papaya Salad (Som Tum)
    Monica L.

    My husband describes this place as his favorite Thai restaurant in the whole world. He hasn't been to Thailand, but for a Thai restaurant in central Illinois, this place is for real. We've stopped at this place several times in our travels, and it always delivers. (They also have carry-out. Ha!) Most important consideration. When you're asked, "how spicy?" consider the chef is probably a native of Thailand. "5" is Thai spicy, as in melt your tongue spicy. "2" is American spicy, as in your nose will run but you can still enjoy the flavor. I ordered "3" once and it was eye-watering hot. Be careful. When we were here a couple years ago, they hadn't yet reopened to dining in, but I'm happy to say, you can eat inside now. The dining room is simple and clean. The service is efficient and super fast. We waited less than 3 minutes for our crab rangoons -- crispy and filled with spicy cream cheese. The spring rolls were also expertly made and very fresh. I deviated from my useful order of shrimp green curry to try the papaya salad (aka som tum). Think of it as the tastiest tomato and iceberg lettuce salad you've ever eaten. The shredded green papaya is not sweet--it reminded me of bean sprouts. It was served with hot white rice, which I found weird until I tried it. Definitely try it. You might like it, too. It cost $17.99, which seemed high but it was very fresh and flavorful. (There are lunch specials for $12.99 if you're looking for value.) We will, without a doubt, be back.

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    3 years ago

    The Thai dumplings are amazing! I also got the Pho Special which was super tasty. It was exactly what I was craving.

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    3 years ago

    Delicious food & friendly staff. I've only ever gotten takeout from here, but the restaurant's interior looks cozy. I will be back!

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    13 years ago

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    5 years ago

    Love love love Thara Thai! Customer service is excellent and the dishes are so tasty!!!

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    6 years ago

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    5 years ago

    Love love love their pad Thai! Definitely one of the best in town! Staff is also very friendly and the food is always done super quick!

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    The food is decent, not great. Their prices...OUTRAGEOUS! They charged me $50.15 for a soup and fried rice. Service is good.

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    5 years ago

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    Page 2 of 8

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    Golden Wheat - Jiajang noodles, aka Beijing noodles

    Golden Wheat

    4.5(15 reviews)
    2.3 mi

    I was really pumped to try Golden Wheat because my friends raved that this is the #1 noodle place…read morein Champaign. The restaurant is operated by super friendly and nice Chinese owners. It appeared that they do not speak the best English, but we didn't have any trouble ordering as there was an English/Chinese menu printed out, which we used to point to the item that we wanted to order. What we got: Beijing style JaJangmyeon: I had Korean-styled jjajangmyeon, so I didn't know what to expect at first. The portion size is beyond generous and the amount of topping on the noodles was more than enough. The noodles were soft and chewy. The dish tasted like peanut noodles which I am not the greatest fan of, but my friend loved it! Spicy fatty beef slices noodles: this was really good! I am a big meat lover and the amount of meat that came with this dish made me really happy! The dish was not too spicy and well-balanced. I wish there was a bit more soup because it was just a lot of noodles, but I think this is supposed to be more noodles than soup because it was one of their 'mixed noodles' dish. Overall, it was a very hearty meal. The owners were super kind enough to give us a free bok choy+fish cake side dish which we enjoyed as well. Despite the communication barrier, the service was great and the owners are super sweet people. I will definitely be coming back!

    Stopped by after a few friends recommended this place! The noodle soups are amazing. Here are a few…read moretips for non Chinese speaking customers like me. It took a little effort to order due to language BUT it was totally worth it! ORDERING The owner who was originally taking my order was so friendly but only spoke Chinese, so someone else had to step in and help me translate. I asked for the most popular noodle soups and he pointed to "dry beef noodle soup" and "pork shoulder noodle soup" so we ordered both. After you pick your dish he asks if you want spicy or non spicy. We got one of each. I personally liked the "spicy" version and thought it wasn't spicy at all! FOOD I ran into a friend there who knows the owner. He told me everything is made from scratch! Including the noodles. The broth was perfection. So fragrant, flavorful, well seasoned, and clean tasting. Meat was super tender (both beef and pork) and pretty much melted in our mouths. The "dry beef" in the name is totally misleading because there is nothing dry about the meat. ATMOSPHERE It seems like the restaurant kept most of the interior decor from PvP bakery so the aesthetic is pretty nice. Simple, clean, modern, minimal. It's sort of a self serve style in here so you have to get your own water. Just like most Asian restaurants. PACKAGING I ordered our meal to go but the restaurant IS also open for indoor seating. Our food was packed with care! The noodles and soup were packed in separate containers. I will add a note of caution while carrying the food. The hot soup warped the plastic container quite a bit so by the time I got home I noticed that the lid was just barely hanging on and on the brink of busting open. As long as it's held upright though it should not be an issue. Overall, if you're looking for a non frills place with good authentic Chinese food, this is the place to go! Price was pretty good too especially for how good the fooAbout $11 per noodle soup which is much cheaper than mid summer and golden harbor. We will definitely be back!

    Photos
    Golden Wheat - Chicken and mushrooms

    Chicken and mushrooms

    Golden Wheat - Beef noodle soup. Classic.

    Beef noodle soup. Classic.

    Golden Wheat - Sour spicy beef

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    Sour spicy beef

    Mid-Summer Lounge - B4 Tomato & Scrambled Egg Dry Noodle 番茄炒蛋面 ($12) - tomato and egg are sweetened more than I prefer, but otherwise good

    Mid-Summer Lounge

    4.2(119 reviews)
    2.3 mi
    $$

    Great fast-casual noodles for lunch near campus…read more The food is simply prepared and delicious. I ordered the first item on the menu: Bok Choy in Chili Oil Noodle. The hearty noodles were chewy with a slight taste of rice -- neither too refined nor over cooked. The beef broth brought the dish's rich taste and gave it some depth, while the bok choy and green onions in the soup were fresh and crispy. Even though the chili oil was a treat, it overpowered the broth and veggies so that I'd consider omitting it from the order. The restaurant was crowded with lunch-goers when I stopped in, but the turnaround on my order was fast. If you need a bite and want something simple and well made, his could be your spot.

    We ordered: 1. Pork & Egg w/ Bean Sauce Dry Noodle…read more2. Szechuan style Beef Noodle Soup Very pleased that UIUC now has meal access to a Chinese noodle specialty shop. Flavor of the fermented bean sauce was good and I liked the chewiness of the noodles. Friends liked the Szechuan beef broth flavor and the beef chunks were tender. This will be very nice in the cold winters. No issues with service and there's a good amount of seating for small to medium size groups.

    Photos
    Mid-Summer Lounge - E4 Stewed Pork Belly in Toasted Bun 腊汁肉夹馍 ($7) - different pork belly filling from that of the 卤肉饭

    E4 Stewed Pork Belly in Toasted Bun 腊汁肉夹馍 ($7) - different pork belly filling from that of the 卤肉饭

    Mid-Summer Lounge - B4 Tomato & Scrambled Egg Dry Noodle 番茄炒蛋面 ($12) - tomato and egg are sweetened more than I prefer, but otherwise good

    B4 Tomato & Scrambled Egg Dry Noodle 番茄炒蛋面 ($12) - tomato and egg are sweetened more than I prefer, but otherwise good

    Mid-Summer Lounge - D1 Spicy Shredded Potato

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    D1 Spicy Shredded Potato

    C-U LaLa Noodle - 101. Noodles with Braised Beef Soup ($9.99)

    C-U LaLa Noodle

    3.8(25 reviews)
    2.2 mi

    First of all, do NOT order online for pick up or take out since it is much more expensive. The meat…read moredishes (pork,beef,etc.) in store were $16.99-$17.99. I was going to order online but they were all around $22-25. The rice special lunches in store were $9.99 but online is around $15. I actually came because my friend loved to come here a couple years ago and said it was his favorite restaurant on campus. I ordered the pork lunch special. And I was extremely disappointed. As seen in the picture when you open your food, there's just a whole ton of cabbage. I then sifted through it and counted less than 8 pieces of meat. And the bottom of the box was padded with a thick layer of rice. I also ordered a stewed pork bun. It lacked flavor and the meat to bread ratio was extremely off. I assumed because of COVID, prices went up (at least online) and less expensive ingredients were being used(meats) and more cheap materials were used to complete customer orders (rice and veggies). I know many restaurants have done this but my order was just laughably disappointing. Also I came to order on a Sunday afternoon. I was placing my order when the cashier told me that the cook was out and they couldn't make over 50-60% of the menu. That put me off a bit as I was originally going to order two things from the menu but they were both "unavailable". I think there should've been a note in the menu so customers would be notified before they spend 5 minutes looking at the menu to decide. Anyways that was a slight tangent. But another reason I gave this place 2 stars is because the cashier and workers were quite short. They would interrupt you while talking. It's just not the customer service I would expect. The only redeeming factor I believe was that one of few pieces of meat I had actually tasted pretty good. Besides this I do not think I will be back or will be recommending this place to anyone else. If you're craving authentic Chinese food, I believe there are many better options on campus (Northern Cuisine, Lao Sze Chuan, etc.).

    I forget the soup we had BUT it was full of flavor. Tasty veggie broth dressed with a by vinegar…read moreand peanuts. The eggplant was my favorite! All in all everything I enjoyed my meal.

    Photos
    C-U LaLa Noodle - Lunch Combo with 2 Entrees 两菜午饭套餐 ($8.95) - Fried Eggs with Tomatoes 番茄炒蛋 + Fried Green Cabbage 炮炒包菜

    Lunch Combo with 2 Entrees 两菜午饭套餐 ($8.95) - Fried Eggs with Tomatoes 番茄炒蛋 + Fried Green Cabbage 炮炒包菜

    C-U LaLa Noodle - 605. Stewed Lamb Bun 孜然羊肉夹馍 ($6.99)

    605. Stewed Lamb Bun 孜然羊肉夹馍 ($6.99)

    C-U LaLa Noodle - 601. Flat Bread with Lamb Soup 羊肉泡馍 (Large) ($14.99)

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    601. Flat Bread with Lamb Soup 羊肉泡馍 (Large) ($14.99)

    Thara Thai - thai - Updated May 2026

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