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Chili Lemon Garlic

3 star rating
based on 64 reviews

Category: Thai  [Edit]

Neighborhood: SOMA
518 Bryant St
(between 4th St & Ritch St)
San Francisco, CA 94107
(415) 826-8199
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Hours:

Mon-Fri. 11:00 a.m. - 10:00 p.m.

Sat-Sun. 5:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.

Attire:
Casual
Accepts Credit Cards:
Yes
Parking:
Street
Price Range:
$$
Good for Groups:
No
Good for Kids:
Yes
Takes Reservations:
Yes
Delivery:
Yes
Take-out:
Yes
Waiter Service:
Yes
Wheelchair Accessible:
No
Outdoor Seating:
No
Good for:
Lunch
Alcohol:
Beer & Wine Only

64 reviews for Chili Lemon Garlic

Review Highlights   

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"LOVE the Thai Iced Tea and Green Tea ice Cream as well." (in 4 reviews)
user photo
"Their brown rice and Tom Kar soup are also delicious." (in 7 reviews)
user photo
"I highly recommend the Thai BBQ Chicken, on the lunch-rice plate menu." (in 5 reviews)
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One of the Business' Favorite Reviews What's This?

Photo of Peter L.

 

2

20

Peter L.

San Francisco, CA

4 star rating
7/23/2009

YUM!  I've only had take out twice here but damn was it good.  The Thai spicy pan fried noodles were hot and delicious.  It's flat rice noodles stir fried with choice of meat (I had ground chicken), fresh tomatoes, mushroom, onions, basil, chili in black bean sauce.  My coworkers all wanted a taste!  The Heavenly Prawns were quite tasty also.

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Photo of Bitter J.

 

0

25

Bitter J.

San Francisco, CA

4 star rating
11/20/2009

If there's one thing I'm tired of seeing in reviews for Thai and Indian places, it's complaints about the high spiciness of the food.  If you want bland food, go to Chuck's House of Bland Midwestern Cuisine.  Some of us are actually craving a dish that has pepper in it, as opposed to merely waved in the general vicinity.  I have a general problem when going to "ethnic" restaurants, which is that the servers take one look at the white guy and decide that I can't handle spicy food; as a result, no matter how much spice I order, I usually wind up getting something that almost approaches thinking about the consideration of approximating a mild tang.  I have even had this problem with Chili Lemon Garlic when dining in, but I've discovered that, when I've ordered online, it's impossible for them to discern my ethnicity.  Rejoice!

In any case, I am generally a fan of the overall flavor and portions of the food.  My most recent dining experience, in which I ordered panang nua Thai spicy, blew me away.  Many Thai restaurants in San Francisco will present panang nua as a lot of beef in overly-sweet peanut sauce with a few sad slices of red bell pepper.  This curry was done right:  spicy, with a nice assortment of veggies included with the beef, and by "spicy," I mean sweat was rolling off my brow and my endorphins were surging in a way I have not experienced in far too long.  I couldn't stop eating the sauce even though my mouth was rebelling and warning me of dire consequences.

One can get better Thai food in terms of flavor balance and quality of ingredients, but Chili Lemon Garlic really hits the spot when you want a potent, flavorful dish, and I'd much rather patronize it than a place like Osha which tempers its food to appeal to the hipster crowd.

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Photo of Lauren S.

 

38

41

Lauren S.

San Francisco, CA

2 star rating
11/21/2009

I walked into CLG a couple of months ago as I was scouring my new neighborhood for a Thai takeout place that could become a staple for those nights when I'm too busy to cook (read: too busy watching Rock of Love/Flavor of Love/Real Chance at Love/Tool Academy 2 to cook).  

"Cool," I thought as I walked in.  "A dumpy, cheap Thai takeout place, this is excellent."  Well, I was partially right-- dumpy it is, but cheap it ain't, with a small order of yellow chicken curry with brown rice running me more than $14.  When I first walked in I felt good that I was patronizing a smaller establishment that was clearly hurting for business (no one was in there, and the cashier was obviously excited to have some human interaction), but I can't justify going back when I know I could get decent Thai takeout for $8 or $9 somewhere else.  

Sorry, CLG, but I'm a cheap kinda girl, and I need some cheap kinda takeout.

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Photo of Mariko F.

Elite '09

160

399

Mariko F.

San Francisco, CA

4 star rating
8/28/2009

I love ordering from here, from http://GrubHub.com. They have really great Panang Curry. It's creamy, full of flavour and packed with veggies and whatever else you choose to put in it. Their Pad Thai is pretty good! I liked their Pad See Ew, but I think the Pad Thai is better, but that's just me. This is actually a bit surprising because Pad See Ew is one of my fav dishes.

The best is that I struggle to meet the $20 minimum for delivery. I order two dishes and then I have to get something extra in order to meet it. I tried the cucumber salad, which is the cheapest thing on the menu. I think that adding more expensive meats to your dish is the way to go.

Their delivery usually arrives before the estimated time.

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Photo of Margo R.

Elite '09

22

322

Margo R.

Oakland, CA

4 star rating
11/7/2009

My wife loved the food and I thought it was very decent.
We had the coconut soup with chicken and it was delicious and had a little kick - one of the better versions I've had. I ordered the pineapple fried rice and it was good. My wife ordered eggplant stuffed with shrimp on a bed of vegetables with a panang sauce and she adored it. I thought it was good and unique.

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Photo of Rebecca G.

 

52

19

Rebecca G.

San Francisco, CA

5 star rating
11/16/2009

I've only eaten here once but the veggie praram and brown rice was incredible. And the waitress is one of the friendliest, most polite and happy people I've ever had the pleasure of speaking to.

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Photo of Megan P.

 

2

35

Megan P.

Chicago, IL

5 star rating
10/25/2009

I am from Chicago so maybe I do not know what is good but this place had the best pad thai I have ever had.  I did not try any other Thai places while I was in San Francisco.  I totally crave this place but I live in Chicago so too bad for me :(.

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Photo of Justin N.

Elite '09

350

167

Justin N.

San Francisco, CA

3 star rating
7/23/2009

I walked into this spot with high expectations from the decor and feel alone. Hadn't Yelped it, but went with a group of work peeps on a recommendation.

It's got that intimate little cafe feel that I prefer in my restaurants, not some hugeish room where you wonder if you'll ever see your server again. Some nice art pieces, cleverly painted, some mellow music.. yea, I though this was gonna be an aight' lunch.

Food wise it was lacking for me. I tried the lunch plate of "Spicy Eggplant", however I vote they rename it "Not Spicy At All Eggplant" for the sake of accuracy. The sauce was meh, so I ended up with my usual Thai food corrective action of dousing it in hot sauce. This is fine, I like hot sauce, but I'd prefer it if the flavor of the dish inspired me to leave it alone. If you've got to cover something in hot sauce or soy sauce or salt or whatever, then it's must not be that great. My co-workers seemed to dig the food, but I eat a lot of Thai food and I guess I was just hoping for a little more.

They have "lunch plate specials" so if you're near by and want to get your Thai on this place is fine, but I wouldn't go out of my way for it.

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Photo of Jen C.

 

6

60

Jen C.

Fremont, CA

2 star rating
8/30/2009

So unimpressed it's ridiculous.  

Went here a couple weeks ago with some co-workers for lunch.  Despite the cheaper lunch specials, I paid $12 incl. tax+tip for bbq chicken fried rice.  Usually wouldn't be too much of a wallet-killer, except that the fried rice was really just rice drenched in soy sauce with a tiny bit of egg in it.  Pretty terrible.  Their flavor is derived from soy sauce.  Not cute.  Not in the least.

It's a shame since it's so close to my work and there aren't a ton of good Asian foods around.  I'll probably give it another shot and try one of their curries, but to be honest, my co-worker's curry didn't look too great either.  Try almost any Thai place in Berkeley.  It's better bang for your buck.

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Photo of Spicy T.

 

20

152

Spicy T.

San Francisco, CA

2 star rating
Updated - 8/27/2009

First off, the food is solidly good here.  However, there are other things to take into consideration.

My husband and I met for lunch here and decided to go easy on the wallet.  We figured we would order 1 appetizer and 1 entree.  How much do you think that would cost?

At CLG Thai Cafe, it came out to $28 (after tax and tip).  Let me tell you exactly what we got:

- The Angel Wings appetizer (stuffed, boneless chicken wings).  The WIngS (plural) meant that we got TWO wings.  At $8.50 for this appetizer we thought we might get, oh, at least 4?  So $4.25 per wing.  I was mad when I saw the dish being delivered to our table.

- Some spicy beans and beef sautee that was a lunch item.  The lunch item was $8.75 but we opted for the entree that was an additional $1. (Total: $9.75)  The dish that arrived was tiny for an "entree".   I swear it was approximately 2 measuring cups of food scooped into a small oval dish.

- Since we ordered the entree, we also ordered 1 serving of white rice: $2.  For $2 this was really jacked up -- it was approximately 1 measuring cup of rice.

- 1 water (free) and 1 soda: $2.

We tipped our waiter (in full - since none of this could be blamed on her).  

Total: $28 for a light lunch.

Never again.

(Wow, I just read my previous review and nothing has changed.. shame on me for making the same mistake twice.)

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1 Previous Review: Show all »

  • 3 star rating
    4/7/2009

    The food was good, but, as reported by other Yelpers, the portions are small.  Seriously, $8.95 for… Read more »

Photo of Simon Y.

 

10

89

Simon Y.

San Francisco, CA

3 star rating
8/25/2009

Here is the deal - this place probably has the best soup within many blocks.  For $7.50, it is really hard to beat this place.  I get the Thai boat noodle soup.  It's just spicy enough to make you sniffle like crazy, but with enough flavor to make you sip all the broth.  Ingredients are pretty fresh and it's definitely a made to order type place.  Things take a bit of time to come out of the kitchen.  You probably want to have a bit of time if you come here for lunch.  The fried chicken over rice is good, but kind of pricey when compared to my favorite places.  Considering Koh Samui and Osha Thai is within a couple blocks, I would probably prefer either of those for regular thai dishes...maybe I just need to try a few more things here.  

Anyhow, it's a regular lunch spot which says a lot.

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0

11

Lifescape S.

San Francisco, CA

3 star rating
10/1/2009

I really want to like this place but I have not found my fav dish there yet after been there a few times. Nest wish for them though, I want to see them kicking Koh Samui's ass!

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Photo of Jenny E.

Elite '09

45

118

Jenny E.

Oakland, CA

3 star rating
3/10/2009

[ 2 stars for service, 3 stars for food ]

Oh, CLG, I really wanted to love you as I was rather smitten with your name and logo after passing your storefront so often recently. After seeing that cute little skewer with chile, lemon and garlic and the quirky "CLG" overlaying it, I expected to be served yummy food in a clean setting with speedy-fast service. I mean, if you need to abbreviate words so that your name is an acronym, I have every right to expect to be served lickety-split, right? ("omg ttyl, g2g! CLG!")

I hate to say it but... omgwtfbbq, dude? you were a bit of a let down. While the food was pretty good, the restaurant clean, and the restroom spic and span (with no less than 4 odor-masking products!), service was quite dismal. Granted you only had one person serving the entire restaurant and dealing with phone orders, but I think our table of four hungry and time-pressed diners deserved better service, especially  considering how we were seated *right* by the cash register.

But no, it was not to be.

We waited a good 10 minutes before our order was taken, and only after we flagged down the harried waitress. It took another 10 minutes for our drinks to arrive, and after an additional 15 minutes, my duck noodle soup was served. That was was great, except we had to wait at least another 10 awkward minutes before everything else came out. My friends all ordered the grilled thai chicken over rice, which you'd think is fast and easy, but think again. Those last dishes weren't hustled out until we told our waitress we had to be at airport within the next 30 minutes!

FOOD: Duck noodle soup is one of my favorite comfort foods, period. The broth at CLG is good; it's rich and surprisingly light but still aromatic. The duck was delicious and fatty, and the greens were perfectly cooked. They padded the bottom of the bowl with chopped iceberg lettuce, laid egg noodles over that, then the sliced roasted duck, and topped it with wilted baby spinach leaves for contrast and flavor, but I really wish that they'd used gai lan (Chinese broccoli) instead of the spinach and lettuce. While I was happy to see CLG used fresh egg noodles in my dish, the noodles were unevenly cooked.

King of Thai (various locations in SF) makes a stronger duck noodle soup with a more herbal/medicinal flavor, and theirs is served with gai lan. My favorite duck noodle soup is served at Lotus Thai on Piedmont Avenue in Oakland, but I haven't tried that in over a year so perhaps I need to revisit before I soundly endorse it--their version reminds me most of what I'd had in Bangkok.

My friends (who'd been to CLG before) all ordered grilled chicken over rice, so I expected it'd be supercalifragilisticexpialidocious. But you know what? It was grilled chicken. While it was *good* grilled, it was also hella LATE grilled chicken so I remained unimpressed. Also, the portions seemed small to me when compared alongside my duck noodle soup. We were so anxious about the the time at that point that it felt like no one at the table was able to savor the meal, to the point that it almost didn't matter how CLG's food tasted.

As other reviewers mentioned earlier, the staff tends to take phone orders in favor of serving in-restaurant diners. I also see that the management has been following and responding to reviews so I'd like to say this to you, CLG Management: Clients are clients, whether we are on the phone or sitting at a table, and we should be equally important to you. In addition to kitchen staff, you need one person to man the phones and register, and another to deal with the people at the tables. It might cost you an extra $100/day (or less, if you just hire someone part-time for the lunch rush) but your customers are going to be less likely to be left with a bad taste in their mouths from something that has nothing to do with your food.

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Photo of Belinda S.

Elite '09

312

895

Belinda S.

Irvine, CA

3 star rating
7/30/2009

I tried the Thai Spicy Pan Fried Noodles (flat rice noodles stir fried with choice of meat fresh tomatoes, mushroom, onions, basil chili in black bean sauce). They were very good. i wish the portions were a little bigger though. Service wasn't that great though.

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Photo of Maulie D.

Elite '09

72

163

Maulie D.

San Francisco, CA

4 star rating
2/21/2009

Great things come in small packages.  CLG is a perfect example - it's ridiculously small but serves such great food. I tried the Tom Yum soup with chicken, the Chili and Garlic Chicken Lunch Plate, and the BBQ Chicken over Fried Rice lunch plate.  Everything was delicious and fairly priced.  I took some soup home, and although I do wish the portions were bigger (takeout tends to be my version of grocery shopping), it's still worth it.

It seems that there are a fair few regulars that frequent the spot and treat it as their turf - I would go just before lunch or around 1 PM in order to avoid the rush and territorial lunch predators. :)

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Photo of Nicolas H.

Elite '09

73

235

Nicolas H.

San Francisco, CA

3 star rating
2/19/2009

The potential was there...but then you lost me...you really lost me...

Mark J is heading off to San Diego (he's checking out places to move to so when the witness protection program finally accepts him and he can ditch me, he'll be able to tell them where he wants to move to.) But in the meantime, he has to hang out with me. Lunch? Why yes Mark...that sounds good.

We sit down, and there's one person there. We place our order and ask for a glass of water each. Like five minutes later...BAM! The place is swarming with people. WTF mate?

So we wait...and then we wait some more. Do a little more waiting. FINALLY! After about 10 or 15 minutes, she brings out our waters.

I think that she took so long because I jokingly said that I was part camel and that I had humps full of water and could last for days. Ok...that is so not true so I'm sorry if that's what you thought...

Water comes, we drink...blah blah blah. The food (I ordered the mango curry) was actually quite tasty...which is why I went with the 3 stars instead of the 2 that I was thinking about.

Overall, it's apaprently hit or miss with this place...sometimes good food, sometimes not. Sometimes busy, sometimes not. Ya never really know...

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Photo of lorin y.

 

10

55

lorin y.

San Francisco, CA

5 star rating
1/21/2009

Love that this little place is walking distance to work, and I don't have to beg the waitstaff to make the food "Thai spicy".  (Side note: why is it that so many Thai places in the city seem to think that sugar is a suitable substitute for actual spices?  It didn't work for Cantonese food, won't work here.)

The rice places and noodles at this place taste authentically Thai enough that it reminds me of lunch when I actually lived in Thailand.  Most Thai places serve food that just make me angry.

Someone needs to tell these guys that ventilation is highly recommended in the kitchen when you are constantly stir frying.  I am resigned to smell my lunch on my clothes when going for Korean bbq and Indian, but Thai?

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Photo of Sarah B.

 

20

54

Sarah B.

Daly City, CA

4 star rating
2/18/2009

It's more like 3.5.  CLG is mine and my coworkers spot for Thai food.  The food is consistently tasty and the prices are reasonable.  I usually have the fried chicken over white rice (usually over fried rice) which is always good.  My coworker had the Thai BBQ chicken which she enjoyed as well.  The takeout portion could be bigger but it's filling.

As far the restaurant itself, it's TINY and always crowded.  I'm talking small quarters, but you forget how small it is once you start eating.

I must mention that today, we ordered takeout and were told it would be ready in 20 minutes.  We left the office 10 minutes after placing the call and it took 10 minutes for us to walk there.  When we arrived, the food wasn't ready and we ended up waiting an additional 20 minutes for our takeout.  We could've just ate there by that time.  

Aside from this snafu, I'll remain a patron as long as the food remains consistent.

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Photo of Caesar C.

 

18

29

Caesar C.

San Francisco, CA

3 star rating
4/18/2009

Now that I have officially banned Koh Samui and the Monkey, I had to find another joint to give me my Thai food fix.  So i remembered seeing signs for CLG and decided to give these guys a shot.  

I had their duck fried rice for dinner the other day.  It was pretty good!  It wasn't too salty like most other thai places.  Prices were ok (not great) and best of all they have online ordering and delivery options!  Great for folks living in the restaurant-deprived SoBe.  

I'd give them 4 stars but the service was pretty poor.  They are nice and all but just seemed sub standard and lacking professionalism.  I've gotten better service at hole in the wall chinese restaurants.

Looking forward to trying out the rest of their menu and coming back for an updated review.  For now, we'll hold her steady at 3 stars.

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Photo of Julie D.

 

7

29

Julie D.

San Francisco, CA

4 star rating
12/13/2008

Happened to walk by and decided to stop in for dinner! SO glad we did! I had the Yen Ta Fo -a delicious seafood soup with super fresh noodles. Just the thing for a chilly evening. My hubby had the Phad Thai and we shared the spring rolls. Everything was fresh and piping hot.  The staff was nice and friendly.  

The only reason I didn't give them 5 stars is that it seemed as if the delivery business was the priority and the staging area for ordering, packing plastic bags to-go and sending the delivery guy out the door was taking up half of the cafe.  Also, an annoying Christmas CD with only 5 songs was on repeat...We were the only customers actually eating in the cafe. So, in all, great food, but not the most conducive atmosphere for a dinner date.  I think we'll order delivery next time.

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Photo of Rena Y.

Elite '09

107

126

Rena Y.

Oakland, CA

3 star rating
2/6/2009

when: weekday, lunch

I'm very captivated by the name. It seems a few words thrown together to be a restaurant name. The restaurant's only half a block away from work, so its very convenient for me to go there for lunch. Though the place does get a little noisey when large groups of coworkers from another company are dining.

I dont think I've been here enough to give it a full 4-star rating, but its pretty close. I've ordered the Duck Noodle Soup and to my surprise, it came with authentic Thai noodle. I've only had it with a dinner noodle, but this noodle was kind of wavey and came in some clumps. The duck is good, not too fatty. The soup was delicious and seasoned to an appropriate amount. Absolutely perfect for the rainy day.

I've also tried their Tom Kar which was delicious. I dont usually eat this so I dont have much to compare with.

The restaurant is a little on the smaller side, but nicely decorated. They had really nice napkins that were thick and colorful--unlike most restaurants that have the usual thin rectangular ones. Service was good, nothing notable though.

They also deliever on http://grubhub.com too, so that's a plus. But minus half a star for not covering all of SOMA. The restaurant's on Bryant and 3rd, and we were on Clementina and 5th. I can walk that distance in 15 minutes. The more I think about it, the more disappointed I am about their small delivery radius.

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Photo of Kyle H.

 

0

2

Kyle H.

San Carlos, CA

4 star rating
8/14/2009

My favorite Thai restaurant in the bay area.  Their Golden Curry is spectacular; the pumpkin curry at every other Thai restaurant I've tried pales in comparison.  Their brown rice and Tom Kar soup are also delicious.  I would give it 5 stars, but the service tends to be really bad during the lunch rush, it's a tad bit pricey, and it's the only Thai restaurant I've been to that has trouble executing on "extra spicy".

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Photo of steve s.

 

0

4

steve s.

San Francisco, CA

1 star rating
4/25/2009

In short, I will never order from or go to this restaurant again.  

It is close to my apt, so I was hoping for some good and easy take-out....very disappointing.  I called and ordered the shrimp rolls and BBQ beef for dinner.  The woman on the phone said it would be 30 mins because they were really busy.  I said fine, then she said "yes, it will be like 30 to 35 minutes".  I asked if I should try them some other night, but she insisted that it would be fine.  I arrived exactly 30 mins later and I see a half empty restaurant and a couple of to-go orders sitting on the counter...mine was in the back corner...bad sign.  I could tell the food was already cold...it was frigid when I got home 2 mins later (btw, they do not include rice with their entrees...what is up with that???).  I was starving, so I ate it...barely tolerable.  So sad...I will continue my hunt for a decent neighborhood place in SOMA.

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Photo of Michael O.

 

0

6

Michael O.

Danville, CA

4 star rating
7/29/2009

For less than $10 for good Thai food, this is the place to go.  I highly recommend the Thai BBQ Chicken, on the lunch-rice plate menu.

My only complaint is that the place is a little old and run down and the portions are small.

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Photo of Nana N.

Elite '09

83

89

Nana N.

San Francisco, CA

1 star rating
9/13/2008

Seriously? How do they stay in business by serving this kind of food?  

Maybe the place is really cute? Maybe the waiters are all top-model looking AND nice guys? I don't know - because I ordered in via grubhub while working late in the office. Hence, I can't speak for the service or decor. However, I can tell you that the price here is pretty average for Thai restaurants in the city, and the food here is way sub-par, and that's putting it nicely. The crab fried rice tasted like a packaged microwave-and-ready-to-eat fried rice....Thai BBQ beef (about $10) tasted like....maybe food served in jail would taste like this? I mean, the dorm food was slightly better than this.

Never again.

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Photo of Josie M.

Elite '09

467

370

Josie M.

San Francisco, CA

3 star rating
Updated - 4/6/2009

i still come here once a week because it's so close to my office.

but dear 8 pound 5 ounces baby jesus, can they just tone down the heat in those dishes!  9/10 times i ask for NOT SPICY, and yet i start crying as soon as the food touches my lips.

stubborn fool that i am, i still try to tell them NOT SPICY each time 10 different ways with little success.

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1 Previous Review: Show all »

  • 3 star rating
    11/19/2008

    i really like the basil chicken and thai iced tea here.  the thai iced tea tastes a little… Read more »

Photo of Deb I.

 

294

222

Deb I.

San Francisco, CA

4 star rating
8/13/2008

I am all for yummy Thai places that DELIVER in my neighborhood! We wanted to stay in and watch the Olympics so I thought I'd try ordering from this place - I've seen their delivery car outside my building a couple times recently.

The good: the food is very fresh, light and well prepared. They have some unique noodle and noodle soup dishes on their menu which are executed very well.

The bad: delivery time was over an hour. Bleh. Don't they know I have low blood sugar and can get very cranky when hungry?!

Still, I definitely recommend this place as a takeout or delivery option in SoMa!

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Photo of Joyce L.

 

35

22

Joyce L.

Santa Monica, CA

2 star rating
7/10/2008

CLG,

I really wanted to like you and hoped that you'd fulfill my every Thai craving that The Monkey and Cha-Am could not measure up to...

On my first visit, you forgot the eggplant in my green curry. Upon my second visit, you cheated on me with American broccoli when the menu specified Chinese broccoli. I'm not high-maintenance, I'd just like to get what I've been promised.

And today, your final offense, my Spicy String Bean dish tasted like $5 Chinese takeout... and I paid $9.

I think it's time we moved on. It's not you... it's me.

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Photo of Adam L.

Elite '09

96

135

Adam L.

San Francisco, CA

3 star rating
6/11/2008

I've been here twice already, and it opened MONDAY!

Once for Brown Rice to compliment my bomb as indian food that I got from Trader Joe's.  Let's just say 2.50 for brown rice is ridiculous.

Today I had the Beef Noodle Soup, which was pretty tasty, it need a little salt, but all together a great lunch for under 8 bucks.

The lady in there has a little attitude, and "accidently" charged me 9 bucks, but I was too smart for her and made her correct. Nice try lady....but no Cigar.

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Photo of Chris L.

 

14

23

Chris L.

San Jose, CA

4 star rating
4/28/2009

I am definitely a fan of this place!  I have only been there a handful of times and each time better than the last.  I have had the bbq chicken, bbq pork, and pad thai, all 3 were good.  Their thai iced tea was good as well....The only problem I  had with the place is that the restaurant is small, and not very great for big groups.  Another thing that I didn't like too much was that the portions of food aren't very big - so you might want to try some appetizers.

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Photo of Jeff H.

Elite '09

73

120

Jeff H.

San Francisco, CA

2 star rating
7/28/2008

Look, I know I can't be too picky around this part of the city, if I'm not willing to fork over $25 for lunch. I work in the area, and I've simply got to deal.

This place is a welcome addition to the seeming dearth of quality eateries around Third and Bryant. Never mind the boring (but far from bland) name.

Ordered lunch to go from here today, and I'm not turned off, but I doubt I'll be going back too often, if at all.

They let me order Pad Kee Mow, even though it didn't appear on the menu. That's cool of them. I don't like when restaurants won't make something, despite the fact that you can piece together from the menu that they have all the requisite ingredients. It's like they have round beef patties, lettuce, tomato, onions, hamburger buns, and mustard, but refuse to make a hamburger. Fuck that.

Anyway, the food was tasty enough, the portions were just right. But there was an overarching normality to it all.

And at $10 a pop, um, thanks, but no thanks.

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Elite '09

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Wes M.

San Francisco, CA

3 star rating
2/9/2009

Very few restaurants actually live in the "freeway blocks" between Bryant and Harrison, but CLG is one of them.  Easy to miss, but being so small (the smallest Thai place I've seen in SF), it can still fill up.  Vibe is homey, but nicely decorated.  Pineapple fried rice is delish, Thai Iced Tea is satisfactory, panang is unremarkable.  Also, it seems like they use the dinner menu (and hence dinner prices) for lunch.  And a $2 surcharge for faux meat?  Seriously?  Don't they know how much less energy it takes to make than real meat?

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Alyssa F.

San Francisco, CA

3 star rating
8/6/2008

This place is pretty good. Glad to have a Thai place so nearby my work that is not too crazy or expensive and satisfies my common Thai food cravings.

Their pad thai is tasty, and their Praram is also quite tasty, if a bit on the watery side. But there's lots of veggies sitting in that peanut sauce, which I really appreciate. Too many Thai food places make their Praram with nothing but peanut sauce a spinach leaf (maybe even two) and a bunch of cabbage. Mine from Chili Lemon Garlic had broccoli, carrot, cabbage, plenty of spinach, and plenty of the chicken that I ordered. A satisfying lunch, although, again, a bit on the watery side.

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Elite '09

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Lisa N.

San Francisco, CA

3 star rating
7/10/2008

This place moved from their 24th St location to SOMA and I'm so happy to have another option for Thai food!  The Thai eateries around the area (Koh Samui and Osha) has got the fancier vibe down, but it's nice to see CLG move into the hood because it means a more casual option for Thai.  

The service last night was slow, but very nice.  The food was delicious, but their Tom Yum soup missed the mark.  Plus, it was a buck or two more expense than I thought it would be.  Overall, the food here is decent, you can order for take out,  and having the brown rice option is great.  I think I'll be back to try more of their dishes!!

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Carlyna R.

San Francisco, CA

5 star rating
6/23/2008

This place deserves way better reviews than the two it has received.  I HIGHLY recommend that anyone interested in good Thai food give this place a try.

First, let me comment on the other reviews.  One says that charging $2.50 for a side of rice is ridiculous.  Sure, if it is plain white rice, but they failed to mention that all of their rice is brown Jasmine rice.  Also, if you want to go to one of the many chain restaurants you might find something cheaper, but I'd rather support a family run business.

I went here last week and have nothing but good things to say:

*Unique menu with many different choices
*Great presentation
*Very flavorful and FRESH seafood
*The owners were exceptionally friendly
*One of the few (good) places open in SOMA late night

We spoke with the owners about why they moved from their old location in the Mission.   The landlord tried to triple their rent which forced them to move to SOMA where they found a smaller place to rent for a better price.   That said, they seem to be making the best of it and had GREAT attitudes.  I will definitely be back!

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Tash S.

Oakland, CA

4 star rating
4/15/2009

This place has the one of the best Green Curries in the city! The portions are small and they can be a little over priced. But when I'm really craving amazing Green Curry with Brown Rice. This is where I go.

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Elite '09

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Mia L.

San Francisco, CA

4 star rating
7/28/2008

Four stars because I prefer their cozy ambiance to the noisy clamoring of Koh Samui. Service is friendly and fairly prompt. Portions, while not overly large, are satisfying. And with Thai food, I find that "satisfying" is about all you can hope for in terms of quantity.

Had the Pad See Ew. The noodles and egg meshed together delicately. Will be back for more. Also curious to see if they deliver.

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Nathan M.

San Francisco, CA

4 star rating
4/19/2009

Came here for dinner. It was really good, and the staff was friendly. I got all my favorites (larb and pad see ew). Good if you want a more casual alternative to Koh Samui and the Monkey. Food is just as good if not better.

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Elite '09

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Christine P.

San Francisco, CA

3 star rating
7/7/2008

This is a review only for Delivery. I have never been inside this place. I just happened to run across their menu in my lobby and went for it.

As you will see by my below order, I am by no means a Thai Food Specialist.
I ordered:
Thai Satay (chicken) - $7.25
Red Curry with Chicken - $8.95
That Hot Basil with Chicken - $8.75
2 orders of Jasmine Rice - $3.00

It was delicious!  Very fresh and tasty. They also delivered it very quickly.

I will order from them again when I get too lazy to cook. (which will probably be any day now)

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YEQIN S.

San Francisco, CA

4 star rating
5/30/2009

I had been there for three times. Love the satay, beef was tender. Coconut soup, yummy. Red curry also great. Fried rice... there are too many bad ones in SF and I'll give this one a B,  The food here is not extraordinary but good enough to make me and my friends happy. I'm not Thai and don't know if it's genuine or not, but it tastes pretty close to the more high end Thai restaurants here.
It does seem like they only have one waitress usually but  when I was there they weren't busy so service was good to me.  
Good to find a nice Thai restaurant in that part of the city.   One thing I really don't like is the fountain near the window.. it hasn't been cleaned for a long time and it stinks. And the confusing name.

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