I was born and raised in the western suburbs of Sydney so I grew up on lao/Thai cuisine (also helps that I'm of Laotian descent!) having moved to Melbourne a few years ago I had a hard time looking for places to offer me my home food. Yim Yams is probably the only restaurant here that is close to or on par with the food I have sorely missed! Flavour explosions meals! This place does get busy so best to book ahead. Or better yet take away if you live nearby. Also I have dined at both Yarraville & ascot vale branches and I prefer Yarraville! Recommended foods from here is definitely the papaya salad (if you're game get the salted crab/preserved egg version), roast duck curry, fried fish with secret sauce, prawn Tom yum and chicken pad sae ew. Oh and get all the sticky rice! read more

Great menu, food fantastic, atmosphere is great, service and staff, the mucked up our order but what we go was still very tasty. Price was fantastic for the portion sizes. The restaurant was booked out as we were a walk in, yet there was a long shared table in the take away waiting area, so we couldn't sit there and eat, which was very nice looking out the shop front window, watching the people going past. You have to walk past the kitchen to got to the bathroom, the kitchen was busy and clean. No complaints here, loved it read more

Very happy to have finally tried this place! I'd heard it was super tiny and a bit cramped, but obviously they've extended, because it was spacious and had a relaxed feel. I was at home right away. The Thai pancakes were really delicious; the dried pork had a very unique flavour and texture, and the crepes themselves were delicate and fluffy. They were the perfect size for an entrée for one person (provided that person has the appetite of a standard human). I was excited to try the chicken roti roll, figuring it would be all crunchy roti and flavour-poppin' chicken, wrapped up like a catered lunch item. The format was on the money, and it was a big serve that would sort you out for lunch on its own, which is great. But it was lacking in flavour and texture a bit, so wasn't a stand-out item for me. However, the toasted rice and coconut salad is a must-try; seriously tasty flavours and lots of exciting textures, but still a very light dish. Highly recommend. Service was pleasant and reasonably paced, and while we only tried 4 or 5 items on the very extensive menu, there were lots of others that I would have happily ordered, which is always a good thing. I will definitely head back to Yim Yam for a well priced meal that steps a bit away from the Melbourne norm. read more

The food here is excellent and that is why my partner and I who are locals have consistently come here over the years. But the service is absolutely hopeless and tonight was the last straw. Every time we eat in they give us the wrong thing and we have to tell them wrong table. The wait is almost always longer than what they say on the phone for takeaway. And now tonight I arrived and they realised they accidentally gave my takeaway to someone else. The staff are polite and I know these are honest mistakes - but when it is time and time again there is a systemic problem. As I was sitting waiting writing this, another staff member tried to give me someone else's meal yet again! The food is good but not worth this crap service anymore. read more

OMGEEEE! This place is fantastic. We ordered Green Curry with Chicken, Pad Thai, and curry puffs. The service was friendly and efficient and the food came out really quickly. Lucky too, because we were starving! Also it was really busy in the restaurant so we were really impressed. And we heard how hard it is to get a table there. We arrived just before the crowds did around 6pm. My favorite was the green curry. It was the perfect amount of sweet but still quite spicy. The pad Thai and most of their noodle dishes are on special on wed. night. They have another night where their meat dishes are on special and then another where the curries are too. Only $9.95! So far, it's the best Pad Thai I've ever tried. The back of the menu has information about how they got started as a tiny shop and now have 3 restaurants around Melbourne. My husband and I left with smiles on our faces. Can't wait to go back again! :) read more

Not bad but overrated imo. Super busy and that sometimes leads to inconsistent meals.

Super vegan friendly. I love it. Super busy place and food can take a while to come but worth the wait. Love the curries and husband loves the duck pancakes. read more

I've only ever purchased takeaway from here. My one and only attempt to get a table failed at 6pm on a Thu. So book ahead if you want to eat in. The quality of the food is excellent. Roti rolls are healthy and yum. The staple red and green curries are very good quality. read more

Yum yum yum for Yim Yam! Delicious and fairly authentic Thai/Laotian food for a reasonable price. We spent two weeks in Lao last year and Yim Yam comes pretty damn close to approximating some of our favourite dishes from the region. The Papaya salad with noodles was fresh, spicy, and fragrant; the Massaman curry adecadent delight; and the Thai pancake with dried pork was totally unique for Melbourne. Everything was loaded with heat (as it should be) and full of flavour. Service was friendly and prompt. My only complaint is that the dishes can be a bit sweet here. I guess they're ramping up the sugar to appeal to the western palette. Otherwise, a great choice for dinner or take-away in the West. read more

Super extensive menu with things that you wouldn't find at all places. Their desserts are always top notch, and I once had an interesting salad here that was more like a fried rice. Would recommend! read more

Great flag ours of food, and prompt service override the tiny space's cramped seating arrangements. The Thai pancakes are areal gem.

Based on this one experience, I probably would not return again. Our server was just plain unfriendly and seemed annoyed at our requests which, were very few. Maybe she was having a bad day and didn't like the way we looked, I don't know. We are polite people who have worked in hospitality so it was kind of a bummer. We liked the crispy fish salad. Nice balance of flavor. The tofu laab (a.k.a larp, larb) was not very flavorful. I would like to try more dishes. Maybe we'll catch the staff in a better mood next time. read more

After living in Thailand and visiting Laos a few times I'm always sceptical of Thai restaurants that aren't that Thai. Yim Yam is actiually the real deal, albeit without the same level of pric kee noo (rocket fuel chili). read more