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This place is so cozy and cute. The service was amazing and the food as well. I absolutely loved the pad Thai which was really good, better than other places I have been. Loved their papaya salad which was so fresh and really spicy. If you can handle spice we'll get the papaya salad. Their Thai iced tea was good, just a little watery but overall still good. The crying tiger was okay I would say, usually it is fried but still good.
very small seating but the service was nice and quick. I will say when I went in the AC was not turned on. Didn't bother me too much just as a fair warning if u plan on dining in the summer. The prices were fair and the portions were decent as well. Would come again for a good eat and would want to try something else. Pad Thai is just my go to. I asked for medium spice and I do have a higher spice tolerance but it wasn't spicy at all for me so keep that in mind.
It's a small hole in the wall with like 4.5 tables. It's hard to find almost. It's directly across from Stella's with its big old hand with utensils. But some of the best spots are teenie tiny. I've been here a few times and the food was great. Their panang curry is super tasty and savory. The noodles we tasty and perfectly cooked. My wife finished her pad kee mao completely even though it was a generous portion. Long day and a tasty meal. For dessert we had the mango sticky rice. Very tasty. I haven't had that in ages. Had to order the special dessert on the hand written menu. The starchiness of the rice adds to the sweetness of the mango and gives a custardy texture. Yum! Definitely give them a try. They have a pretty nice and efficient ordering system as well so it's easy to take out.
The best Thai food in United States for me! They offer the authentic Thai taste. The special menu is a must. If you are Thai or have been to Thailand and craving for real Thai food. This place would be the one for you. I came here every time I visit Chicago. The food is very consistent in flavor, ingredients and display. So much love for this place. It's my happy meal. Restroom : Yes Seating : 12-15 people capacity. Parking : street parking / pay to park Service : great!
For some time, the craving for Thai food keeps growing and growing for me. Joseph searched on Yelp to see Thai restaurants will come up. Tom Yum Cafe ranks up the list as a go to place. The adage, "Good things come in small packages" applies to Tom Yum Cafe. Even though the restaurant looks small, it feels intimate. The place itself looks snug - it can only fit a couple of customers. However, with the warm weather, Tom Yum Cafe can use the outdoors to extend the dining experience. Being my "go to" favorite dish, I immediately searched for Paw Kee Mao. Tom Yum Cafe prepares it with wide noodles, red peppers, cabbage, broccoli, carrots, and chopped tomatoes. It tastes fabulous! The aroma smells amazing. Joseph goes for the Rama chicken. He says it tastes fine. Like with many restaurants, Tom Yum Cafe has an online order portal which allows patrons to order. Patrons can customize their food. Come and bring family, or friends. This place makes for the perfect date.
Beware: MOLD! I ordered last night on DoorDash and my green curry had mold all over the tofu. Fingers crossed I don't get sick. Posting this in hopes that others don't have a bad experience like I did!
3.5/5, rounded to 4/5 Of the 3 dishes we ordered, the spring rolls were definitely the least liked. It felt somewhat Americanized - excessively sweet sauce, dry wrap. The Penang Curry was pretty good, albeit a bit of a diluted flavor in comparison to other Thai restaurants. The Tom Yum is the same except probably the best of the 3 dishes. Not bad.
With one of my favorite spots in the area being closed on a holiday, I did a quick Yelp search to see where I would go for some takeout before heading home. My senses led me to Tom Yum Cafe where I was pleasantly surprised at the price, quality, and taste of my order. The name of the place itself doesn't scream anything imaginative but I am so glad I gave them a shot because it was definitely good quality! I ordered their Fried Thai Meatballs ($4.95) and the Penang Noodle ($8.95) with pork and crispy, flat egg noodle. The meatballs came in three skewers and was an assortment of different meats that you can dip in a sweet sauce. Not too bad! As for my noodles, I was surprised to see how thick my fried noodles were. They were kind enough to separate the noodles from the curry stew itself so that it didn't get soggy while on my way home. My Penang curry was spicy and flavorful, and over a bed of crispy noodles, the dish was fantastic. I really loved the food I got from Tom Yum Cafe and am jealous that such a great place exists up here for locals. I would definitely come back and dine in the small, cozy restaurant if given the chance. It definitely felt very intimate from the customers I did see dining inside.
WHAT A FANTASTIC NEIGHBORHOOD GEM!!!! this restaurant is tiny, probably maybe only around 5 tables, but the flavor and variety of thai options here do not disappoint!!!! i've been here twice and have left super satisfied and happy both times :) i think some of my favs have been the kanom jeen, tom yum fried rice, the rice omelette + mackerel with nam prik kapi (shrimp paste sauce), and the okra tom yum. the flavors are always bright, bold, and fresh, and the portions super fair for the reasonable prices!! please continue to support this family gem as i hope it stays in lakeview for a long long long time :) they have a thai menu that i def wish i could order more from (can't read thai sigh), but they do have lots of pictures of dishes on the wall that aren't on their main menu, and i do recommend you check them out!!!
BYOB. 12-seats. Lots-n-Lots of authentic Thai Spicy Dishes! Neighborhood Place. "No delivery as they only have 2 Cooks." :-) Untainted by Greed! Basic protein is INCLUDED with dish. *Yay* $9.50 PAD SEE EW is a single serving. So, so THAI ICED TEA. I look forward to coming back for more, especially the Soups!
This Thai restaurant is small, but has seating for about 12 people. The menu offers a large variety of dishes, which is great. The food was pretty good, but some dishes were a miss. Tod Mun Pla $6.50 - Small delicious fish cakes. Tom Kha soup $4.50 - Good and comes loaded with ingredients. Kai Jeow Ground Pork $7 - You can't go wrong with Thai omelet. Pad Ped Pla Duk $12 - Catfish with just the right kick. Bamee Galic Chicken $9 - Not much to this dish other than noodles and chicken. Not the bamee style I like. Mor Kang $4 - Pass on this dessert. I've had much better Thai custard than this dry and bland one. We were able to find paid street parking out front. ....| \ _ , , , - - , , _ , .../ , ` . - ' ` ' . _ \ - ; ; ; , _ ..| , a - ) ) _ . ; . ( ` - ` - ' - ' ' - - - ' ' ( _ / . _ ) - ' ( _ \ _ )
Best pad thai I've had, I really liked the flavors and how it was just the eight amount and not overwhelming. The Thai milk tea was good and finished it before the food came out. The service here was Greta! The owner really helps you bring out the flavors of the food. The papaya salad was great if you can handle the spice level. Really loved everything was fresh. Thr tiger cry wished it was crispy was good especially with the side of their sauce. It such a small restaurant and tucked away that there's limited seating. Definitely will come by here again soon. read more
Tom Yum Cafe has some solid options, though be aware the Pad Thai was pretty spicy without any indication on the menu. I had a hard time finishing it, but I'm admittedly very sensitive to spice. The crab rangoon and egg rolls were both really good though. What really stood out was their customer service, they took our large takeout order over the phone close to closing time after their website had stopped accepting orders, and they even threw in free egg rolls as a nice gesture. That kind of accommodating service goes a long way. Just ask about spice levels if you're sensitive like me! read more
Decided to give Tom Yum Cafe another try after one poor experience a few years ago, and wow I'm so glad I did! We ordered a variety of dishes including a shrimp curry, beef noodles and chicken noodles as well as a fried rice and all were absolutely delicious. The medium level spice was flavorful but not too hot so if you're looking for a challenge, don't be afraid to try it spicy! Lots of coupons online for free items the more you spend. Looking forward to eating more great Thai from here! read more
This place is so cozy and cute. The service was amazing and the food as well. I absolutely loved the pad Thai which was really good, better than other places I have been. Loved their papaya salad which was so fresh and really spicy. If you can handle spice we'll get the papaya salad. Their Thai iced tea was good, just a little watery but overall still good. The crying tiger was okay I would say, usually it is fried but still good. read more
very small seating but the service was nice and quick. I will say when I went in the AC was not turned on. Didn't bother me too much just as a fair warning if u plan on dining in the summer. The prices were fair and the portions were decent as well. Would come again for a good eat and would want to try something else. Pad Thai is just my go to. I asked for medium spice and I do have a higher spice tolerance but it wasn't spicy at all for me so keep that in mind. read more
It's a small hole in the wall with like 4.5 tables. It's hard to find almost. It's directly across from Stella's with its big old hand with utensils. But some of the best spots are teenie tiny. I've been here a few times and the food was great. Their panang curry is super tasty and savory. The noodles we tasty and perfectly cooked. My wife finished her pad kee mao completely even though it was a generous portion. Long day and a tasty meal. For dessert we had the mango sticky rice. Very tasty. I haven't had that in ages. Had to order the special dessert on the hand written menu. The starchiness of the rice adds to the sweetness of the mango and gives a custardy texture. Yum! Definitely give them a try. They have a pretty nice and efficient ordering system as well so it's easy to take out. read more
11 months ago
4 years ago
The best Thai food in United States for me! They offer the authentic Thai taste. The special menu is a must. If you are Thai or have been to Thailand and craving for real Thai food. This place would be the one for you. I came here every time I visit Chicago. The food is very consistent in flavor, ingredients and display. So much love for this place. It's my happy meal. Restroom : Yes Seating : 12-15 people capacity. Parking : street parking / pay to park Service : great! read more
For some time, the craving for Thai food keeps growing and growing for me. Joseph searched on Yelp to see Thai restaurants will come up. Tom Yum Cafe ranks up the list as a go to place. The adage, "Good things come in small packages" applies to Tom Yum Cafe. Even though the restaurant looks small, it feels intimate. The place itself looks snug - it can only fit a couple of customers. However, with the warm weather, Tom Yum Cafe can use the outdoors to extend the dining experience. Being my "go to" favorite dish, I immediately searched for Paw Kee Mao. Tom Yum Cafe prepares it with wide noodles, red peppers, cabbage, broccoli, carrots, and chopped tomatoes. It tastes fabulous! The aroma smells amazing. Joseph goes for the Rama chicken. He says it tastes fine. Like with many restaurants, Tom Yum Cafe has an online order portal which allows patrons to order. Patrons can customize their food. Come and bring family, or friends. This place makes for the perfect date. read more
1 year ago
1 year ago
1 year ago
5 years ago
Beware: MOLD! I ordered last night on DoorDash and my green curry had mold all over the tofu. Fingers crossed I don't get sick. Posting this in hopes that others don't have a bad experience like I did! read more
3 years ago
3.5/5, rounded to 4/5 Of the 3 dishes we ordered, the spring rolls were definitely the least liked. It felt somewhat Americanized - excessively sweet sauce, dry wrap. The Penang Curry was pretty good, albeit a bit of a diluted flavor in comparison to other Thai restaurants. The Tom Yum is the same except probably the best of the 3 dishes. Not bad. read more
2 years ago
2 years ago
With one of my favorite spots in the area being closed on a holiday, I did a quick Yelp search to see where I would go for some takeout before heading home. My senses led me to Tom Yum Cafe where I was pleasantly surprised at the price, quality, and taste of my order. The name of the place itself doesn't scream anything imaginative but I am so glad I gave them a shot because it was definitely good quality! I ordered their Fried Thai Meatballs ($4.95) and the Penang Noodle ($8.95) with pork and crispy, flat egg noodle. The meatballs came in three skewers and was an assortment of different meats that you can dip in a sweet sauce. Not too bad! As for my noodles, I was surprised to see how thick my fried noodles were. They were kind enough to separate the noodles from the curry stew itself so that it didn't get soggy while on my way home. My Penang curry was spicy and flavorful, and over a bed of crispy noodles, the dish was fantastic. I really loved the food I got from Tom Yum Cafe and am jealous that such a great place exists up here for locals. I would definitely come back and dine in the small, cozy restaurant if given the chance. It definitely felt very intimate from the customers I did see dining inside. read more
6 years ago
WHAT A FANTASTIC NEIGHBORHOOD GEM!!!! this restaurant is tiny, probably maybe only around 5 tables, but the flavor and variety of thai options here do not disappoint!!!! i've been here twice and have left super satisfied and happy both times :) i think some of my favs have been the kanom jeen, tom yum fried rice, the rice omelette + mackerel with nam prik kapi (shrimp paste sauce), and the okra tom yum. the flavors are always bright, bold, and fresh, and the portions super fair for the reasonable prices!! please continue to support this family gem as i hope it stays in lakeview for a long long long time :) they have a thai menu that i def wish i could order more from (can't read thai sigh), but they do have lots of pictures of dishes on the wall that aren't on their main menu, and i do recommend you check them out!!! read more
3 years ago
BYOB. 12-seats. Lots-n-Lots of authentic Thai Spicy Dishes! Neighborhood Place. "No delivery as they only have 2 Cooks." :-) Untainted by Greed! Basic protein is INCLUDED with dish. *Yay* $9.50 PAD SEE EW is a single serving. So, so THAI ICED TEA. I look forward to coming back for more, especially the Soups! read more
This Thai restaurant is small, but has seating for about 12 people. The menu offers a large variety of dishes, which is great. The food was pretty good, but some dishes were a miss. Tod Mun Pla $6.50 - Small delicious fish cakes. Tom Kha soup $4.50 - Good and comes loaded with ingredients. Kai Jeow Ground Pork $7 - You can't go wrong with Thai omelet. Pad Ped Pla Duk $12 - Catfish with just the right kick. Bamee Galic Chicken $9 - Not much to this dish other than noodles and chicken. Not the bamee style I like. Mor Kang $4 - Pass on this dessert. I've had much better Thai custard than this dry and bland one. We were able to find paid street parking out front. ....| \ _ , , , - - , , _ , .../ , ` . - ' ` ' . _ \ - ; ; ; , _ ..| , a - ) ) _ . ; . ( ` - ` - ' - ' ' - - - ' ' ( _ / . _ ) - ' ( _ \ _ ) read more
Lately I have developed an appetite for Thai and have been scavenging for the most authentic Thai restaurants in Chicago. The Yelp pictures of the food at Tom Yum Cafe all looked enticing and legit, so I went ahead and took a plunge. I'm currently basing the authenticity of Thai food based on how they prepare their basil pork over rice, and this place does it well! The basil flavor radiated strong herbal scent with every bite. Verdict: I really appreciate the authenticity and variety of Thai food this hole in the wall has to offer! Their lunch special is a snag for those who want an affordable tasting: an appetizer, tom yum soup, and choice of noodles or curry dish. Their crab rangoon is simply a burst of cream cheese euphoria. Got me by its cute round shape. The penang beef ordered mild tastes on the sweeter side of curries and coupled with good serving of vegetables. b Can't wait to come again to try their boat noodle and papaya salad with fried pork. read more
10 years ago
The best Thai food I'ved ever had! My friend brought me here when I visited Chicago. Its very close to where he lives & told me its his favorite Thai restaurant. The place is very small. Theirs 4 Tables inside. Looks like a hole in the wall type of restaurant. Theirs 1 server & 1 cook. We got thai iced tea for drink & my friend pick all the food we ordered. Tom yum soup- the best tom yum soup I'ved had in my life. Creamy, a little sweet & sour. They served it with meatballs & some crispy bread crackers on the side. Papaya salad- its my favorite salad & I always get this whenever I go to thai restaurant so I know which one is good. This is prefect papaya salad! The papaya is soaked with the delicious spicy sauce & match it with some crispy pork. Yummy!! We also got the sizzling bbq pork- I forgot how its called in thai. The sauce on the side match perfectly with it. Semilar to oyster sauce thats a little sweet. So with all this delicious food I was curious about the restaurant & ask the server if its a family owned restaurant because Its very different from any thai restaurant in NY and she confirmed it to me. I really appreciate the family owned restaurant because the food is naturally good & different. Whenever I'll go visit my friend again, this restaurant is always in my list! read more
Super tiny shack I have to give three stars only because we ordered the special papaya salad and was told they ran out of ingredients and also the wait was so long!! We were hungry after walking and we found this Thai joint. We ordered the lunch special (like $8ish) it comes with wonton or crab ragoon then a soup (Tom Yum most likely) then you choose a dish. We waited 20 minutes before our soup arrived... mind you, there's only like 4 tables in here... and another 20 minutes after we finished our soup until the food arrived. The portion of the dish was not fulfilling... and it tasted like something was missing. I have had my fair share of Thai food and this was not the best read more
New favorite Thai place in town! I honestly didn't even know this place existed until my friend told me about it and I live basically down the street. I'm so glad that I decided to try it because I'm now obsessed. The chef told me that she makes everything the way she would for herself. She looks for be most authentic ingredients and many ingredients she prepares in house because she can't find anything to meet her standards. I find this to be so impressive because for a small place she would probably save money buying it pre-made. Honestly this is as close as I've experienced to actually being in Thailand. Some of these dishes are maybe even better. I come here all the time alone because it makes me feel like being back home. read more
4 years ago
Maybe I just don't get Thai food. I keep trying, but it doesn't ever hit the spot. My lady and I ordered carryout from here. Even though the restaurant was totally empty, we were told the wait would be 30 minutes. * Steamed Vegetable Pot Stickers ($4.95) While these were fairly tasty, they completely ripped apart in our hands. Each pot sticker would stick to another one. It was like the octopus-eating scene in Oldboy. These are decent, but not exactly worth $1 each. * Ka Nom Jeen Gang Kai ($8.50) Thai pasta topped with green curry, chicken, bamboo shoots, eggplants, bell peppers and basil. My noodles came in a styrofoam container, while a soupy mixture of everything else came in a plastic container. This wasn't all that great. Had maybe five small pieces of chicken floating in a spicy, milky soup. Disappointing. Perhaps my palate isn't really adjusted to Thai food, but nothing I had here really merits a return visit. If you go to the actual restaurant, be advised it is VERY small, with room enough for maybe 12 patrons, tops. read more
Came here a couple of weeks ago with my girlfriend for a quick lunch. Had some good reviews and with our love of Thai food, we thought we'd give it a try. They have a pretty good lunch special (valid on a Sunday)! For $10, you get soup, an entree and a small appetizer. I got the panang curry - good flavors but not the best version I've had before. My girlfriend got the pad see ew and she enjoyed it, but again not the best we've had. We did enjoy the crab Rangoon appetizers though! Crispy and tasty filling. The setup was interesting - reminds me of how a school lunch may be presented all in a tray. Took away one star because service was slow considering we were the only customers, and the waitress, although nice, was too attentive to her phone. We also heard the microwave go off, which we have a feeling might have been our soups for the special... Probably will come here again, but for take out, which seems to be the more popular option. read more
Picked this place because it was something nearby and we wanted thai/non-american food. The inside is incredibly small - I think this place is mostly take out. You can definitely sit a group of four inside, I don't know if there's an upper level or not though. I got the Moon Ping (pork appetizer) and the Garlic Stir Fried w/ beef. Both were pretty good, I really loved the sauce that came w/ the Moon Ping. Gf ordered the Tom Yum w/ chicken soup and Green Curry / chicken. I preferred her dishes over mine. The soup is definitely a great value, I'd suggest that if you're trying to fill yourself up. We got extra hot for all our food, but I didn't find my dishes that hot. The green curry was definitely spicy though. Everything tasted pretty good, and it was cheap. I'd go back for a quick bite. Only reason I'm not giving it five stars is cause we had to kill a few mosquitoes on our table. Not sure how/where they came in from, but there were at least four on our table. read more
4 years ago
If you are looking for authentic Thai food, you must try Tom Yum cafe! My favorite dish is Tom Yum soup read more
6 years ago
So first off let me start by saying that I absolutely LOVE thai food; it's my favorite cuisine. My husband and I frequent this area as we like to stop by Intelligentsia for their Avena Latte. I happened to come across this place on our previous visit and kept it in mind to try the next time we were in the area. Let me also mention that we drive from Wauconda to find to this area. After calling maybe six times they finally picked up the phone. I ordered the Panang Curry lunch special. After walking back to my car to eat, this is what I took out of the bag. The middle container is the curry - IT'S HALF FULL!!! SERIOUSLY?! When I pay $11 for food you can at least fill the container completely! What a joke! I immediately returned back to the restaurant to ask for a refund as I did not expect to receive a half full container of curry. Definitely not impressed and won't even attempt to try the food or return. read more
What a wonderful, family owned Thai stop! Despite the cliche name of Tom Yum Cafe, this place really is authentic - down to the people who work and own the place, and you can really feel it in the atmosphere and through the food! Its definitely a no frills kind of place, and reminds me of one of my favorite noodle stops back when I was living in Wuhan which, albeit not in Thailand, has a similar kind of communal, simple but good vibe. Ordered the Panang Curry with crispy noodles and the Tom Yum Noodle Soup at the highest level of spice. Definitely a great choice, plus the nice waitress even gave me soft noodles on the side (I didn't expect "crispy" to actually mean "deep fried"). Turns out, crispy noodles are surprisingly addicting when they are soaked in panang curry; it's like eating a curry soaked french fry mmmm Drinking the tom yum soup was like a walk back down the narrow streets of Phuket, where the street stalls would sell tom yum soup next to the beach across from my favorite thai tea stand. Really blew me away, the vermicelli and the peppers they used were on point. Definitely get the full spice level if you can handle it. Out of all the "fusion" and trendy sushi/korean fried chicken places that are sensationalized on Clark St, definitely go out of your way and give this little cafe a shot. read more
9 years ago
This place is such a hole-in-the-wall gem! I wouldn't have even noticed it if my friend hadn't taken me. It's a little hard to find parking around this area so if you can come by bus or train I would do so. The restaurant is super tiny, only a few tables but when I came in we were the only customers. The menu has a lot of options but I opted for a curry. They give you the choice of spice level and I would recommend the mild UNLESS you can handle a lot of spice. The curry was amazing tasting, not too oily or overwhelming, but super aromatic and flavorful. I felt like I was really having a true authentic thai experience with the food. They do offer lunch specials so you can get those if you want as well and you can get soup and side! read more
Stopped in because we were craving Thai and found one of the best fried rice dishes we've had in a while. It was Cambodian fried rice with basil sauce, onions, eggs, and carrots. It also has bell peppers, but my friend has a thing about cooked bell peppers vs raw bell peppers (I know - he's weird), so we ordered it without, and it was Delectable! It came out piping hot, fluffy, full of flavor on every grain and each bite. We almost finished the plate and forgot about the entrees :) I loved the seafood larb salad! It was light, cool, and all around refreshing; the mix of cilantro, onion, and mint was quite lovely, but the spicy Thai lime dressing made all the difference!! The Pad Woon Sen had big chunks of chicken and veggies in an awesome sauce and the glass noodles were perfectly cooked. The two appetizers were the most disappointing element of this dine-in experience- The quail egg wraps were hard boiled, deep fried, dry, and dusty. They tasted like chalk looks. Blah..... The eggrolls were small, thin, oily, and empty. Really. Couldn't taste the chicken or cabbage. Sigh..... Our order totaled $50. Overall, i would return for the Cambodian Fried Rice. read more
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More info about Tom Yum Cafe
608 W Barry Ave
Chicago, IL 60657
Lakeview
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(773) 270-5646
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Ask the Community - Tom Yum Cafe
Are they still open for business? No answer by phone and mailbox is full.
I was there this week but I don't know their hours. I was there for lunch. Their page says open 11 am to 10 pm
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