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Amarin Thai Restaurant
Category: Restaurants Thai Thai [Edit]
6755 Mira Mesa BlvdSte 109
San Diego, CA 92121
Neighborhood: Mira Mesa
(858) 450-4475
- Hours:
Mon-Fri 10:30 am - 9 pm
Sat-Sun 11 am - 9 pm
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Private Lot
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Price Range:
-
$
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Wi-Fi:
- Free
- Good For:
- Lunch, Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Beer & Wine Only
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Ambience:
- Casual
- Has TV:
- No
- Caters:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
147 reviews for Amarin Thai Restaurant
Review Highlights
-
"Mambo Mambo Chicken ($10.95) - has ripe mango that is..." In 4 reviews -
"Pineapple fried rice -- best thing ever." In 6 reviews -
"I usually get the Pad Thai, Drunken Noodles and Tom Kha." In 23 reviews
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147 reviews in English
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Review from An Y.
4/29/2012 4 photos
Good price for such big portions! I can vouch for the Spicy Noodles, Gaprow Rice dish, Pad Thai, and See Ew, in that order (the See Ew is pretty similar to the Spicy Noodles, but not as tasty). It's easy for Thai noodles to be too oily or strong in a why-is-there-so-much-MSG-in-this way, but Amarin Thai's noodles were strong in just the right way.
The Green Curry wasn't bad, but also not especially great and seemed smaller in size to all the other dishes.
Spice level 6 starts to get spicy, but I'd try out a 7 or 8 next time.
Atmosphere/decor is on the intimate side, but can pass for casual as well. Their running background music is this (we think) Asian artist covering a lot of modern pop songs: Bleeding Love, How to Save a Life, Time After Time, etc in a soft way. I really liked her style and all the covers - will ask for the artist's name next time.
The waiters were all very nice too!
Overall, a solid Thai restaurant and probably the one I'd recommend to anyone looking for casual Thai food. -
Review from Andrew S.
5/16/2012
2nd time here, but first review.
Both times had a mediocre experience as far as food.
Ordered Pad Thai today and the noodles were not of high quality 3/5 stars
Taste 3/5 stars
Service 4/5 stars
Little skimpy on the pad thai as far as ingredients (not talking about the noodles).
Dine in includes soup of the day (soup was very delicious, best part of the meal for me), salad, and seasonal fruit. The seasonal fruit is somehow always orange, and the orange I received was very dry as if it was left out from the last tables order.
I would not go here again. -
Review from Fernan B.
San Diego, CA
4/26/2012
My buddy, Bear Peter (he is called so, because if you see him, he looks like a polar bear), were craving Thai food. Since we live in Mira Mesa, and didn't feel like driving all the way down to Amarin Thai in Hillcrest (which we love), we drove to Amarin Thai in Mira Mesa.
The layout of the restaurant left a lot to be desired. It looked like a formerly-abandoned Mexican restaurant converted into a Thai restaurant. The background music was a Thai artist singing the latest pop songs. Some of the latest renditions were very good (One Republic is improved!), but some of the other renditions should not be played (The Killers). However, Bear Peter and I were there for the food...
Though the spicy fried rice that I ordered wasn't too spicy (they didn't ask me what level; perhaps they could see that my tongue burns at the slightest), it was still great! I could taste everything--even the hint of spice. -
Review from Dino D.
San Diego, CA
5/19/2012
I have eaten here on a number of occasions in the past but the last 2 times have been horrible. I gave a pass the last time as an exception but after 2 times in a row, I had to comment.
We ordered a spicy seafood mix, pad thai, and eggplant dish. The spicy seafood dish had an excessive amount of lemon grass, cilantro, and onions. I ended up putting a third of my meal on a side plate as it was just too much. All of the seafood was cold when the dish was served. The pad thai came in a massive clump of knotted noodles and tasted very bland. The eggplant dish was sitting in a pool of oil rather than sauce and the texture of the eggplant was overly soft. Unfortunately, the best part of the meal was the thai tea I got to go.
Not sure if the cook changed or what, but the food has definitely gone down in quality the last couple of times we have eaten here. Will be avoiding this place going forward... -
Review from Maylen R.
San Diego, CA
4/19/2012 4 Check-ins Here
I've been coming to Amarin Thai in Mira Mesa for a couple of years, and I average at least one visit per month. Each time I've come here has been pretty consistent in terms of their flavors.
Although my taste for Thai food is very Americanized, I will say that this place has the strongest flavors. Are they authentic? I don't know for certain. However, if you ask for your food to be spicy, they WILL size you up and see if you truly can handle it, but once the ticket goes to the kitchen with a "7" for spice level, the cook will take that as, "This person is serious. Ok, I'll dump extra chilies in for them."
My go to items here (all with mock duck - aka a wheat gluten shaped to "look" like duck meat):
- Drunken Noodles
- Spicy Fried Rice
- Green Curry
Not to mention the prices are very cheap for dinner and the interior is nice. It is still a little place, but their staff is friendly and I would say just be patient with them, and they will be nice to you too. They're not professionals, rather they're workers and one should go in with the right expectations. -
Review from Tiffany L.
San Diego, CA
3/24/2012
Ambiance: Casual, authentic, nice. It is not a formal or elegant looking Thai restaurant. The restaurant isn't the cleanest and we eat over paper mats. But it is a great place to come casually for some great Thai food.
Service:
When we arrived, there was only one other table being served. With three waitresses working, I still had to wave my hand to get there attention in order to place my order. They were all speaking Thai to each other and having a good time. After we placed our order, I watched as our server quickly and sloppily poured soup into our bowls and then serving it to us. I'm just glad the food came out quickly. The service overall was mediocre even though we were the only ones there.
Taste:
We had a noodle dish and curry dish. The taste was excellent and very authentic. The spices blended so well together that you can smell and taste it! It was delicious. My curry was only a spicy level 3 and it was already quite spicy. The only complaint I had was the rice. I felt like the rice was a bit mushy and clumpy (too much water?). My curry dish was almost perfect. My brother really enjoyed his Pad See Ew.
Price:
The total price came out to be $18 including tips. We went during lunch specials so our meals included soup, salad, 1 egg roll, and 1 orange wedge. The main entree was a little small, but I guess it is proportional to the lower prices.
Overall:
Delicious Thai food. -
Review from Areleous B.
San Diego, CA
Updated - 5/5/2012 3 Check-ins Here
Just say Phuket! Two beers for $4.00. Thanks, I needed that.
-
Review from Kelly C.
San Diego, CA
5/1/2012 1 Check-in Here
Quick lunch stop here with some girlfriends and it was pretty good! I like that they have lunch specials at excellent prices and a wide variety of meals. I would probably give more stars if I did not have another favorite Thai place in the area.
-
Review from Michael M.
Gardena, CA
5/2/2012
Didn't like the service. The wait was ridiculous. I think we were told about 30 minutes. And about an hour and 5 minutes later, we got seated. When we sat down, no one ordered alcohol, and our waitress spoke to us like we were making a mistake or being lame. Then all the food was mediocre. For example, my spicy noodles(or drunken noodles) tasted like they've been over-soaked in water, under-cooked, and was under-seasoned. I consider myself a connoisseur of these noodles and it was the worst I had ever had. I felt like they were trying to tell us that they didn't want our return business because none of us drank. I'm never going back. My friends who have gone back have expressed similar experiences with their noodles.
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Review from Nicholas M.
San Diego, CA
1/15/2012
I have been here three times over the last 3 weeks so obviously I like that place. My usual spot is Sab E Lee but this place is very good also.
I will make all of my ratings based off of comparisons with Sab E Lee since that is what sets the bar for good Thai Food in San Diego imo.
1) Decor/Service - This place is really nice inside and is always packed. The service has always been very friendly and expeditious. The waiters/waitresses always are dressed very nicely and I would give 5 stars for appearance....parking sucks though.
2) Tom Yum Soup - WOW! The Tom Yum here is awesome! I would suggest ordering the Hot Pot if you have 2 people. Pick your protein but I recommend the shrimp - you get about 9 or 10 jumbo shrimp. This comes out in a big pot with fire underneath to keep it warm. The only criticism that I have on this soup is the spiciness - I like my Thai food to be very spicy. If you don't request a 7 or an 8, it will not be all that spicy in my opinion. Tom Yum here is better than Sab E Lee
3) Curry - Panang, red, yellow - The curry is very good but not nearly as good as Sab E Lee's panang curry. Again, the spice factor is fairly low. I normally get the chicken which is good. Last time, I tried the crispy duck and did not like it at all - it was very chewy and very gamey.
4) Thai Tea (orange color) - also better at Sab E Lee but it was pretty good here.
In summation, if you are taking a date for great Thai food, this is DEFINITELY a great spot! Service, Decor, and food are all close to 5 stars. Go here! -
Review from Deborah L.
San Diego, CA
1/15/2012
Had the Panang Curry and it had the perfect flavor of spice & coconut. The service is great & the presentation of the plates & cups seem to provide an authentic Thai dine-in experience.
Try the curry, You won't be disappointed ! -
Review from Gina K.
San Diego, CA
11/23/2011
I live in Mira Mesa, and live with 4 other girls and OUR thai restaurant of choice is Amarin Thai for the past 2 years because:
- Price is extremely affordable
- THE BEST Thai food i EVER TASTED
- 1 mile away from my house
- Better price and quality than Spices Thai (We got a non-seafood fried rice, specifically for one of the girls that don't eat seafood, but it tasted hella seafood-y...as if they used the same pan to cook the fried rice..)
- Best Pinneapple Yellow Curry with Chicken I ever tasted
- Love the Three Flavor Fish dish
- Always get the Amarin Thai Fried Rice and the Pad Thai (Level 2 hotness)
- Tried the Curry Roasted Duck dish and it was hoovered by my friend, and only got to try a tiny piece....I want it all for myself next visit.
The only difficulty is that the employees taking Take-Out orders are difficult to understand over the phone...
Also, they do NOT have an online menu - the sister Amarin Thai does though, but it's not the same menu as this location.
Thus, we memorized our favorites :P -
Review from Joshua K.
12/29/2011
This place is pretty decent, but since making bad Thai food is hard it can't get a free pass.
I've had their Pad Thai at spicy level 10 a couple times now. It's around a 5 at the other (better) Thai place I frequent. A little misleading...especially after the guy HAD to make me repeat 10. No_you_didn't: "Yes, Ten motherfucker, bring it! Your shit is weaksauce, das right!"
Also if "ease of use" impacts you, the Pad Thai tends to come in massive knotted noodle clumps. Pack it in. Just pack it in. Portion size is not too big. This is a surprising plus. Getting bloated off spicy hot Thai food makes your stomach hate you. -
Review from Zildheam D.
San Diego, CA
1/1/2012 3 Check-ins Here
I love the lunch specials here. The parking lot is always crowded, too many office buildings surround this food court -
Get there early and beat the crowd.
My favorite: Amarin fried rice w seafood.
For about ten bucks, you get a yummy soup, a small salad and an entree. -
Review from Tony W.
San Diego, CA
1/19/2012
The lunch specials are both delicious and affordable.
I ordered a yellow curry with chicken. It also came with a very well-cooked spring roll, all for only $6.95
The chicken and curry were very well cooked and the perfect amount of "spicy." The rice was also cooked well for an excellent meal.
But bad service (Obese women) -
Review from Joe C.
San Diego, CA
3/6/2012
Really good food at really reasonable prices. Good lunch specials as well. Eat in or call ahead and take out. Their soups are super tasty. Try the Spicy Beef salad, I did and loved it.
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Review from Kristine L.
San Diego, CA
11/23/2011 1 Check-in Here
This is my go to place for Thai food when I am working. It is really close to my office and I love that they are pretty cheap. The staff is not the friendliest but they are okay. The food is always good and I have never had issues with my food tasting different. It does get busy here and it is a small restaurant so there might be a wait sometimes. I usually get take out so I never really had to wait.
Favorites:
Crystal pad thai with shrimp
Shrimp panang curry
Satay chicken
Good Lunch specials! -
Review from Laura I.
San Diego, CA
12/31/2011
Pad Thai with tofu is my go-to dish. The prices here are great! Great food at a great price = a place I will go to again and again.
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Review from Christine M.
San Diego, CA
8/2/2011 5 Check-ins Here
My husband and I have a tradition when ordering: Angel Wings for an appetizer; for our entrees I get the See Eyu Noodles w/ Tofu #2 and he gets their Chicken Pad Thai #5-6 and Thai Iced Tea for our beverages. Id like to say weve been going to this place for almost 3y now and our orders have never changed- its THAT good.
Ive been here other times w/ cousins & friends so I've had their other dishes like Drunken Noodles, various types of fried rice and eggrolls (you can pass on the eggrolls- it tastes like its the frozen eggrolls you buy at Lucky Seafood, surprising because everything else tastes really good).
The workers here are really attentive which is great. The only reason why I didnt give it a 5 was because of the space- for the amount of customers they serve (like I said, its THAT good), they should think about expanding if possible. Sometimes when there are too many bodies it tends to get stuffy, but other than that- everything else is a 5.
But then again, its just my opinion.. -
Review from Amy L.
San Diego, CA
2/17/2012
I like this place, the food itself didnt really stand out from the rest of the Thai places I have tried, but the service makes up for it. All the servers were really friendly, the guy waiter we had was especially sweet. Two of us came here and ordered the Tom Kha soup and drunken noodles, both of which i would recommend, we also ordered the fish cake appetizer, which was only OK. We also order some Phuket beers, 2 for $4, cant beat that! Overall, i enjoyed my experience here and will be back again!
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Review from Jennifer T.
Irvine, CA
8/2/2011
Pineapple fried rice -- best thing ever. It was the first dish I ever tried from Amarin. I was in my first year at UCSD and a friend bought an order for my roommate, who was kind enough to share some with me. From then on, I
was hooked. It was my Thai to go place for the next four years.
The drunken noodles, pad thai, and crying tiger are all very good as well.
The atmosphere is casual, but the restaurant is still well-decorated with framed artwork on brightly painted walls. While it has its own shop space, it's still located in a "food court." All the restaurants in that area share a public bathroom, so if you're in need, you'll have to exit the restaurant and walk down a separate hallway.
It's also clean, and the waiters and cashiers are friendly. Prices are reasonable. If you're ever craving some Thai, be sure to give Amarin a try. -
Review from Scott M.
San Diego, CA
2/1/2012 6 Check-ins Here
Ugh, they used to be good but they have gone downhill lately. Final straw was ordering Spicy Noodles and the dish they brought out was absolutely awful. I only ate a few bites before I sent it back; I didn't ordering anything else and yet they still charged me for that slop. Never again.
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Review from Ceci Z.
12/9/2011 1 photo
Got the Crystal Salmon Pad Thai for lunch and the serving is HUGE! I had it to go and they really packed in lots of noodles. The salmon was fresh and really well done, it is crispy on the outside. The whole dish was quite delicious, and spicy too for a spice level of 3. It is more expensive compared to their lunch specials or Spices Thai Cafe across the street, but there are soooo much food it is worth it. I ended up eating the whole thing because it was so good and got extremely bloated XD
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Review from Jeff S.
6/22/2011 2 Check-ins Here
Over the last 6 years I always find myself coming back to Amarin. It's like my Thai KFC, comfort food yum.
Yes the place is tiny, dingy, and warm (does the AC work)? Sometimes the folks over at Amarin don't speak English well, and some dishes taste like sh**, but they do have three of my favorite dishes...
- The Pad Thai Road Duck is unusually good. It has an almost silky like texture, which could be the grease... Regardless it is my favorite in SD.
- The Massaman Curry Road Duck over white rice is filling. It has chunky potatoes mixed in a brown coconut curry with all the fixings.
- I really do like their Pineapple Fried Rice or Amarin Fried Rice. Both are good and flavorful.
I have eaten here for a better part of 6 years, from grabbing a meal after getting destroyed after finals, to a mid day lunch break with the co-workers. My favorites have never treated me badly, so 5 stars it is. -
Review from Maria C.
Came here for a quick lunch.
I found it unusual to find this Thai place in the same shopping center as Spices (another known Thai establishment in SD). This place was difficult to find. It is located in the "Food Court" of this shopping center on the west-side of BevMo.
Small full service restaurant with several tables. I think patrons come here moreso for the to-go service.
Ordered the usual Shrimp Pad Thai and tried the Drunken Noodles with Duck.
The SPT was OK, nothing special. Actually my first bite had a sour taste to it. Perhaps I should have mixed it first? Peanuts were on the side, which I found odd, but I guess you can mix in the amount of peanuts to your liking.
I didn't care for the duck since it was a 5 (on the spicy scale). It was just too spicy for me. -
Review from Brenda M.
San Diego, CA
12/19/2011
I'm a huge fan of this place. I have been going here since 1996. My mom always took me here in high school, and when i worked nearby I continued enjoying the food for my lunch brakes. I recommend the crying tiger & panang chicken (hubbys fav), chicken over rice-(if you are preggers with morning sickness, such a great cure!) and Tom Yum. All of these items I know how to cook myself, so I know how it should taste. I can say that they are consistently good and the service is really great.
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Review from Nolan B.
San Diego, CA
12/30/2011
"Meh. I've experienced better."
I got a Beef Pad Thai at ~2:00pm for $8.65, to go. They gave me a bundle of noodles covering half of the bottom portion of the to-go container. The noodles were a bit dry and stuck together. Taste wasn't that great. They included a mini salad, an orange slice, and a mini eggroll. I didn't get my "moneys worth" and I'm upset. They had a nice, new employee at the counter. She said it would take 10 minutes, but it took less than 5. -
Review from Jessica Q.
Costa Mesa, CA
1/20/2011
This place would have got 5 stars if it wasn't for one unpleasant surprise in my last meal.
I've been going here for years with my family because it's down the street from my parents house. The dishes are authentic, not Americanized at all like some other Thai restaurants.
My typical order: Pad Thai, Tom Yum, Red Curry and Chicken Satay. The Pad Thai is always 100% successful. Sweet with a little bit of spicy, cooked to perfection. The noodles are always tender with just the perfect amount of meat and bean sprouts (some restaurants put way too much bean sprout). Tom Yum was decent, but you can't ever really go wrong with Tom Yum in my opinion. Red currey was absolutely delicious, creamy, rich with a nice kick of spice.
And now the reason why I gave this place 4 stars instead of 5... my chicken satay liked so delicious... until I was about 3/4 done with my first piece and realized it WASN'T COOKED THOROUGHLY!!! They were nicer than other places and were very apologetic and even gave me a complete new order to go. But it did make my stomach real uneasy. I'll just try to forget about that experience because overall, this place is a hit. -
Review from Clark Y.
Perfect portion with a nice price!!
My plan was to go try the one in Hillcrest but a good friend of mine suggested the oneMira Mesa, alot closer to home. Though, hidden deep inside Bevmo plaza, its barely noticeable.
Here, they have christmas lights still hanging around the outside windows. Front desk didn't look appealing but as you turn to the right, there are tables set up with cute tiny pumpkins with flowers in them. My friend was adoring them.
Right portion for the right price? Completely.
Tom Kha Coconut Soup - Much more different in my taste. Usually the ones i have tried are more creamy and more coconut based. This one was a more lime sour taste to it. Still good and came out hot.
Pad See Ew Noodles w/ Duck - I am a lover when it comes to Duck and why not pair it up with my favorite thai noodles! flavors were really good, but Duck could use some work. I felt my friend fell in love with my dish more than hers
Yellow Curry - Lovely combination of onions, potato, and beef..right amount of spice but apparently it was 1/10 spicy level and my friend could not handle it. I was disappointed!
I am planning to visit the hillcrest one soon.. -
Review from ash m.
San Diego, CA
3/5/2012
This place is a hit or miss. I have eaten here a few times and on days their food deserves five stars and on others it is a careless, half-hearted effort which is hardly enjoyable. The prices are reasonable and the setting cozy. This could be a great place only if their food was consistently good.
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Review from Wendy K.
San Diego, CA
9/12/2011
This thai place is in the same shopping center as spices thai, but Amarin Thai is cheaper, tastier and has the best music EVER! Seriously, it's a female singing smooth jazz versions of your favorite Guns and Roses and Killers songs. And I'm not talkin' November rain, I'm talking Welcome to the jungle!
But the food is delish and in large portions. The pineapple fried rice is awesome (My boyfriend refuses to get anything else) I love the panang curry and drunken noodles! I had lunch there saturday and had a full meal made of leftovers today! -
Review from Kerra A.
10/29/2010
2 stars for fast & friendly service. 1 more star cause the kids liked their dish. Food is so-so, not the greatest. To feed my family of 4 (2 adults & 2 kids) costed $35...and that's with one appetizer. The kids shared one lunch platter plate.
Appetizer: Thai sausage. Tasted good, a bit over priced for the portion. It was 2 small thai sausages nicely sliced to share, served with those super hot green chili peppers (HOT STUFF), slices of ginger, roasted peanuts, and a wedge of cabbage.
I had the BBQ pork egg noodle soup. The BBQ pork was kind of dry and the egg noodles tasted like plastic. The broth however was good and the portion was pretty big
The kids shared a chicken & classic fried rice lunch special which also comes with one SMALL eggroll and a small salad. The eggroll was literally the size of my 7 year olds pinky finger...maybe even smaller. The salad had a mildly sweet dressing which was actually not to bad. The chicken & fried rice was pretty good too (two thumbs up from the Lil bambeezy's)
Hubby had the chicken green curry: overall he said it was 'good'. But he's not much of a curry person. The coconut milk was a bit overwhelming. But if u like coconut milk...u might like it more.
Glad I tried it, but I highly doubt I will be back for their food. I'll stick to my good ol' Vietnamese egg noodles or go to the Viet Sandwich place next door
BUT...i did scope out their HAPPY HOUR menu....so I just MIGHT be back to peep that out =) -
Review from Michelle N.
San Diego, CA
9/5/2010
It was 8:30pm on Sunday of Labor Day weekend, and I was desperate for food. Having just arrived from out of town, I was too tired to go far for food, so I yelped the nearest Thai restaurant that was open, scanned the reviews, and called up Amarin Thai.
Worst. Decision. EVER. I don't take harsh reviews on Yelp seriously, but after today's experience, I will. -_- It was just BAD BAD BAD. I walked in and ordered the following to-go:
Golden shrimp - I paid $7.50 to get 5 measly little shrimps wrapped with egg roll wrappers. However, you really can't go wrong when you deep-fry shrimp. Except Amarin Thai did go wrong. They also wrapped some hair in the wrapper with my shrimp. GROSS.
Pad see ew w/beef - Tiny portions, ooooomg. Imagine those foam to-go containers. This one was half-full. The noodles were really thick, but they were super chewy and rubbery. The broccoli and beef were overcooked. I know I have a TMJ disorder and all, but my jaws were seriously SORE from chewing on beef. -_- No bueno. I think it was $8-10?
Duck noodle soup - I don't know WHAT a Thai restaurant is doing serving mi vit (or at least that's what I've known it to be - a Vietnamese soup), but it was gross. It was seriously the most disgusting soup I've ever eaten. The duck was cut into really thin slices, the noodles were gross, just ugh. I don't even want to talk about it anymore. I think this was $8-10?
Moral of the story: don't eat here. Even if there's no other restaurant open, just starve. Seriously, do yourself a favor. I hate writing bad reviews, so if I don't like a place, I usually won't yelp it, but I just had to do it out of consideration for my fellow yelpers =). Sorry Amarin Thai, but you were so bad, I'm not even gonna THINK about giving you a second chance. -
Review from Katherine Y.
San Diego, CA
8/8/2010
Overall, I enjoyed my dinner here but had to knock it down one star because of a slight mistake in our order.
My elementary school friend recommended this place for dinner over the other Thai place across the parking lot. We started each with a Tom Yum soup. I usually like spicy food so I got a 7 but danngg for some reason it was super spicy even for me. It was a good thing we ordered the thai tea, which was delicious as well, because I would have started crying WAH! Anyways, good save and an overall good choice, maybe my taste buds were having an off day!
Now as for my noodles, I'm not sure what I ordered. I'm looking through their online menu and don't see it posted. However, the dish I ordered is actually one of noodles dishes featured on the menu. All I remember is that I pointed to it because I didn't want to seem like such a lame-o and butcher the name. When the dish came, they look a bit weird because the noodles are dried and all the sauce is at the bottom but once you kinda mix em around, they actually turn soft. The veggies were crisp and meat was yummy. An overall good dish, nothing out of the ordinary. Now the down side was that it wasn't spicy at all and I wanted it at a 6. I wasn't too bummed since the soup was too spicy for me so I just stuck with them.
The place is pretty small and a little cramped but the staff seems pretty attentive. I think they expected my friend and I to leave quickly and I could tell they were trying to hurry us up but that didn't seem to work since we just kept talking. I will definitely give this place another visit to try some of the other dishes. -
Review from Tony T.
San Diego, CA
11/5/2011
Had their chicken pad thai and kuhmo? Seafood dish with steamed rice. Both were a bit spicy even at the mild level but not bad for the price.
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Review from CJ P.
San Diego, CA
I came here on a Friday night for dinner. The restaurant was pretty slow. It's hidden in a shopping center, on the other side of Spices Thai restaurant. I agree with the other reviews, this location falls short of its other location in Hillcrest. I give the Mira Mesa location a 3/5 overall and the Hillcrest location a 4.5/5. Here's what I had:
Mambo Mambo Chicken (4/5) - Probably just as good as their Hillcrest location. The curry has great flavor and the mango compliments it very well.
Pad Thai (2.5/5) - Definitely not as good as their other location. It was drier and very plain.
Ground Beef Larb (3/5) - This was okay, I've had better.
Also, the restarurant in Hillcrest is much nicer with better service. -
Review from Albert W.
Updated - 10/27/2009 3 photos
Our hero returned to Amarin to give them a try for dinner at the insistence of his friends. He was somewhat taken aback at how it had changed since his last visit. The tables were upgraded to nicer wooden surfaces, there were candles lit for dinner, and soft adult contemporary music was playing.
Ordering outside of the Westernized pad thai and drunken noodles that lunch-goers usually get, our hero tried out the duck curry, ho mok seafood soup, and "crying tiger" beef steak. The duck curry was fairly average, but well received by his dining companions. The ho mok soup was probably the best dish, which featured scallops, shrimp, mussels and more in a spicy curry broth. The crying tiger dish looked good and came with two interesting sauces, but was overcooked and rough tasting.
Despite improvements in the food over his previous lunch experiences, the original verdict stands -- ignore the Yelp consensus that gives both restaurants the same rating, Spices is the superior Thai restaurant in the same shopping mall (especially for lunch).
PROS:
- Pretty darn good sit down dinner ambiance for a small "food court" style restaurant.
- They seem to have some pretty decent deals on alcohol. Thai beers and sake for $2. Definitely try the Zato sake, which was $2 for a 187mL bottle of refreshingly chilled sweet filtered sake. The server said it used to be $1 a bottle at some point in time... they must have discontinued that when too many people found out that drinking at Amarin was cheaper than getting loaded at the BevMo in the same mall.
CONS:
- Lunch is still crappy.
- They ding you heavily for a "large" extra serving of plain white rice at $3, which only really feeds one and a half people.Listed in: Hi guy, it's Thai
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6/9/2008
Why is Amarin Thai rated as highly as Spices Thai in the same mall? Our hero would pick Spices over… Read more »
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Review from Errynne B.
Morristown, NJ
1/17/2011 1 Check-in Here
I love that I live so close to this place, it's the best for take-out. I love their YELLOW CURRY, and you get a lot for the price!
I have never actually eaten in at the restaurant so I can't comment on the service, but when I've gone to pick up my order they've always been very friendly.
I highly recommend this place. It's nothing fancy... just your tasty neighborhood Thai restaurant. -
Review from Vicky L.
9/5/2006
Good thai restaurant located in the food court at the intersection of Mira Mesa and Camino Santa Fe. (Its a little hard to find, since the signage for the restaurant says "Thai Food." =P
We come here often for lunch specials since it fairly close to my workplace. Their food is authentic and the flavors are strong, definately not bland! I enjoy their tom yum soup, pad thai, pineapple fried rice, and spicy noodles.
Lunch specials come with a smaller portion, and a slightly sad looking salad along with a side of the soup of the day.
Prices are very generous. -
Review from Allyson M.
Irvine, CA
9/13/2009
I haven't been here in years, but I have fond memories of coming here during my workday lunch hour.
One thing I like about certain Thai places is when they ask you what level of spiciness you want. I always go for the top level, and Amarin definitely delivers.
In fact, one of my funniest moments with the ex was after having lunch here. He was not one who could handle heat. I let him have a little bite of my dish. Everything seemed fine 'til we were driving away. We were stopped at a red light and he turns to look at me and his lips looked like Ballpark Franks! They were red and very plump!
I laughed so hard. To cool off, I told him we should go to Farrell's, and we did. And more good times ensued.
