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Astor Place (6)
8th St-Broadway (R, W)
2nd Ave-Houston St (F, V)
"How have I not reviewed this place before?? I walk by quite often and always think of their delicious mango sticky rice dessert, which they…" read more »
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There are three really good Thai restaurants in NYC that I know of: Sripraphai in Woodside, Pam Real Thai in Hells Kitchen, and then there is East Village Thai on E. 6th. St.
There is almost no seating, so this place is all about the food. This is about the closest you can get to a small neighborhood restaurant in Bangkok that you can find here. Everything is excellent and reasonably priced. The service is laid back but quick. You can't go wrong with any of their curry dishes. The Pad Kee Mao is great, but I think my all time favorite is the Pad Kra Prow.
Virtually every dish on the menu is overpriced and not very good.
HOWEVER, there is one dish that is worth it (and still only at lunch when it's $6.25) and that is the Satae with chcicken (or whatever meat you want). Its an incredibly peanut sauce that I'm pretty sure I could eat every meal for the rest of my life.
Don't even bother with anything else.
For the life of me, I cannot find pad kee mao in any of the Thai restaurants in my neighborhood in the Chi-town suburbs. I had to come all the way to NYC to get my fill of my favorite Thai dish.
This place is a tiny TINY hole in the wall, but it's a gem in the East Village. I shared a tangy, creamy coconut soup with my friend before moving onto my beloved pad kee mao, which was spicy and basil-y, filled with giant shrimp, and oh so yummy. The curries are amazing as well, and the guys behind the counter are extremely patient and nice. Can I get one in my neighborhood please?
I ordered the green curry and the tom ka soup. The soup was phenomenal and is definitely worth the 5 dollars. You get a large serving (really was quite big, 2 servings - great for sharing). The green curry was pretty good, but was thicker than i usually like it (not to say it was bad, i just prefer my curries to be a little thinner). Overall both items were pretty good, and the price was a little higher than other thai restaurants, but very in-line with the quality of the food. check out this shop, you'll be in for a treat.
A hole-in-the-wall I've been frequenting (and I do mean FREQUENT) for over a decade now. In that time I still have not found an establishment from either coast that serves better thai than this joint. They're likely propped up singlehandedly by students from Cooper Union and the NYU dorm nearby, so kudos to them for keeping their standards consistently high over the years and only a few grudging price jacks in reaction to the economy. Every time I go there I offer a little prayer that they will still be open the next time I come 'round.
Food was great! We ordered 3 entrees: Jungle Curry, Gang Ka Ree (yellow curry) and Pad Kee Mao. They were all very tasty, nicely spiced, and the vegetables and meat were fresh.
Bit pricey considering the hole in the wall appearance hence the star deduction. Service was attentive; there are only 3 square tables (6 diners max).
Ok, so don't get the pad Thai. I finally tried it because I was craving and in the village but I was pretty disappointed and wasted a lot of carbs on a flavorless pile of noodles. I tried to salvage the dish with condiments I had in my house but that just didn't cut it. Stick with the curries, guys!
I really wish that I had the field experience to yelp about something other than the Gong Massaman… Read more »
Four stars going on Five. If I go back and have a meal as striking as the one I had tonight, this will get bumped to five despite the relatively high price for such a shoddy environment.
I wish I could remember my dish's name; it was under "House Specials" (first word was Sod) and was knock-me-on-the-floor delicious. It was a combination of ground pork and vegetables, but it was the flavoring that made the dish. It's amazing a single bite could pack so many layers of flavor, some subtle and others intense, without becoming like white noise in my mouth.
Lest we lose perspective, this place is a dingy alcove with four tables and entrees that start at $10. For food that good, I guess they had to cut corners somewhere. Otherwise, that should have been a $30 dish.
***EDIT/NOTE: I went last night and found a note saying they are closed and will re-open on September 11, 2008.
Very good pad kee mao! A tad bit pricey
I don't even LIKE thai food and want to eat here. Every night. Seriously.
Sure, it's a little expensive ($10-$13), but I make two meals out of their dishes. (If you have a big appetite, probably won't happen).
Try the Pad Kee Mao (so good!), the Green Curry (also so good!) or (if you're feeling adventurous) the Nam Sod.
I order from here a lot because i work right down the street and it always hits the spot. I find the food to be a little greasy but pretty tasty... Minus two stars though because they always seem to forget something about my order..
People who knock this place probably don't appreciate authentic Thai flavors. You can't get better Thai in the E. Village even at (god forbid) Kurve... (notice how that place is all of a sudden focusing on food when their exclusive euro-trash nightclub wasn't going so hot?) or Thai on Two. I'd say this place ranks up with the best in Manhattan. Reasonable prices. Cozy environment when not too crowded. Otherwise take out. Among several others I like the Green Curry, Fried Rice, and Kaprow dishes.
Looking for Thai food but want that "Oh shit, is there a stray family pet in my dish?" feeling you get from a Chinese takeout dive? Here's your place.
Stopped in for lunch w/ some colleagues and ordered the house curry lunch special (green curry w/ coconut, bamboo shoots, eggplant, string beans and rice) w/ pork. One of my colleagues ordered it w/ chicken.
When the woman at the register give us our stapled brown to-go bags, she didn't remember which was the green curry w/ chicken vs. pork. She just smiles and says, "It'll be a surprise!" and then gives us a 5 second wave as we walked out of the place.
You mixed up the chicken and the pork? My inner Jew is irate! Granted, it was my non-Jewish colleague that ordered the chicken (and I the pork) but still.....
Anyway, we get back to the office and there is no problem telling the chicken apart from the pork as the pork belies any 'other white meat' distinction. The spices in the dish were ok, the portion and the amount of veggies was good, but the pork wasn't good at all. I don't believe there's any bad part of the pig but they seemed to find it. Maybe it's near the snout or feet? I tried my friend's chicken and that was better - so stick w/ that if you're going to order from here (I should have listened to Yinna!)
Prices are good but I don't think they're good enough given the competition down there. $5.50 for a lunchtime Thai curry dish isn't bad at all except for the fact that Spice, Cafetasia, and Klong all charge about $7 and thrown in an appetizer.
So maybe this is a worthwhile takeout dinner spot (when the other Thai places get pricier) but I don't think it's worth a visit for lunch....
I am giving 100% of the four stars to the food...do not go to this place if you want a nice atmosphere! There's only four tables for two people each, it's basically a closet, but the food is truly INCREDIBLE!! I ordered the green curry with shrimp: it was a great value at 12 dollars, a generous portion with tons of veggies (bamboo, eggplant, basil, green beans, and carrots!) with shrimp and a huge pot of rice! It was plenty for just me, and I didn't finish all of it. Unlike Holy Basil, which is overrated in my opinion, you get great value here. The service was nice too! I think this place is pretty much just a take-out and delivery place, although I kind of enjoyed eating there. My dinner mate ordered Pad Rad Kar (sp?), which were wide rice noodles smothered in a dark gravy, with Chinese broccoli and beef. It was good, but I liked mine a lot more. This might even have been the best Thai curry I've ever had...although next time I might get chicken or scallops with the green curry, because the shrimp were a little on the chewy side, but still tasty! Definitely give this place a try, and try to stay away from Holy Basil because I honestly think that place is overrated for what you get--the portions are small, mediocre, and overpriced. The only plus there is the atmosphere, which is romantic and interesting, with authentic Thai decor, but who really cares about all that?
I come here for lunch (before 4pm), and i get the house curry, a delicious coconut based curry with lots of veggies like bamboo shoots and string beans, with chicken for $5.50. You can also try it with tofu.
Then I eat it.
I've done this about 40 times now since 2 years ago and will continue to do this because it is perfect and simple and there is no reason not to.
I absolutely adore this place.
I am sooooooooooo shocked that only a few people have bumped into this place. Then again I like it that way b/c that mean I can actually walk
over here at lunch time and get a seat. (By the way there is like seat for 6 people on a good day in this location. 8 if your lucky but thats it tops!)
Yet thats a n endearing quality that I have come to appreciate in a place with great food at unbeatable prices.
Like everyone else I am a fan of the Green Curry! so if you ever walk by this place order the green curry on your first visit. (unless you're just not into curry) Do it for your appetite, but it thats not enough then do it for Jesus, b/c that what he would like you to do! What can I say Jesus wants you to be happy and Green Curry makes us all happy.
The lunchtime special can't be beat at $5.50 and the people are great.
I could eat pad thai every single day. I could eat pad thai until I became physically ill. If I'm on death-row send the pad thai for my last meal. There are MANY thai places in NYC and all of them seem to vary a little. Is this a regional variation that exists in Thailand or some sort of phenomenon created in the wok?
I went slightly out of my way today to do to East Village Thai-I had not had pad thai in over a week. EVT is nothing fancy-a creepy Garfield cat clock swings its tail and googles its eyeballs as the minutes tick by. FAKE plants hang above the register. EVT has not spent money on decor like some of its contemporaries-they put it in the food. If I was the cook here I would sincerely hope that no one suffers from claustrophobia-they are in the space the size of my bathroom-my bathroom may even be larger.
Anyway Pad Thai YUM!!
Pad Krow Pow with vegetable YUM and spicy (but not in an ouch kind of way)
My only beef is the lady who took my order seemed to have a communication issue. What happened to the small man who used to have this job?
The lunch special can't be beat although just like everything else it has increased in price over the years. I have eaten in while certainly not glamorous is adequate. Do not go on a first date here-it is more of a we were up all night wink wink nudge nudge and we missed breakfast and now it is lunchtime scenario.
Went for lunch - ordered the Spicy Basil Shrimp (Pad Kao Prow) - they skimped with only three pieces of shrimp (large) - a lot of vegetables and flavor - it's a very small hole in the wall (8 seats), but you can literally look over the counter and see them cutting fresh vegetables and cooking. I'll come back for what appears to be a famous green massuman curry, although this is not one of my favorite dishes....overall, i'd still have to place ranks in the second tier of Thai restaurants with Rhong Tiam way ahead in #1, and then Wondee Siam and others in Hell's Kitchen.
I am giving it 2 stars because for the price it's not that great. I suppose if we had BYOB'ed it would have been "cheaper' but I found the food to be very one note, not bad but not great. I almost gave it 3 stars for the simple atmosphere of the place, but the food is what I really wanted to rate. This is a place that I really wanted to love, since it's so small, but sorry. That said, I will go back at least one more time to be sure, but I will wait until it gets warmer outside.
My wife and I normally go to Why Curry on St Marks Place but we wanted to try someplace new and this got so many stars we had to try it.
There are better places for less money in the neighborhood.
(ps, according to yelp, 2 stars = "Meh. I've experienced better.")
this place is literally a hole in the wall, so take out is the way to go. thai is one of my favorite cuisines and the food here is SO GOOD. simply put. give this place a chance regardless of what it looks like. it's run by a family and has been in the neighborhood for as long as i can remember. it's a popular spot for cooper union students who have class right down the block, or nyu kids who live in the area. otherwise, it's one of those hidden gems.
the best dish (perhaps one of my top 5 favorite dishes in all of new york city!?) is their gang masaman curry. they put AVOCADO in it. it is offensively good. the curry is thick and full of flavor, and the cashew nuts along with the avocado and whatever meat you choose is just unbelievably good. the curry is definitely rich and will have you rolling around if you finish the whole thing--which is a large portion but so difficult to not inhale. the flavor is deep (but not overwhelmingly powerful at all), and is not your usual run-of-the-mill coconut milk-heavy, runny curry.
their simple house thai fried rice is very good. it's subtle but the flavor is just perfect. their pad ped green bean--a saute of greenbeans with choice of meat, onions and carrots in a spicy chilli sauce, is another favorite. this dish is very flavorful, perhaps due to the little fish sauce they use in the saute.
i love thai food and can't stress enough how great the food in this hole in the wall is. call in for an order and you won't be sorry =)
This is the best Thai I've had in Manhattan. I don't go to the chic, loungey Thai places so as far as divey Thai joints go this place is tops. I love it. Everything I've had has been great. Their lunch special is unbeatable -- it's like $6 for a plate of pad thai or massaman curry.
What's up with the Garfield cat? This place is a total dive and TINY, but it's cheap; the lunch special's a great deal, as others have mentioned. They give you a generous portion for $5 and the pad thai's great! I always see a lot of Asian college kids, probably from nearby Cooper Union, eating here a lot...
delivery was extremely fast and nice and hot. the spicy basil fried rice hit the spot and was delicious. my dude was not thrilled with his peanut chicken dish. it didn't look too good, either. the sauce was on the side but it was basically some boiled chicken and weak looking veggies and a peanut sauce in a cup. nothing too exciting there. but my lemongrass soup was delicious. i will probably order from there again, it just seems like you have to watch what you order a little bit.
Fab hole in the wall thai food. Peanut sauce dishes, great. Pad thai, yummy. Chicken kee mao, not my favorite (noodles are a little dry and too spicy). This is one of three thai spots in my neighborhood that I frequent -- not my favorite but a stand out local spot in a sea of EVill thai restaurants.
Went here last night with 4 friends. they were very accomodating with moving people so the 5 of us could fit. I think being thai helped us move 2 people to the side table so we could take up the 2 other tables. Anyway, upon reading all the good reviews here I figured we'd all try it. We ordered pad thai, pad kee mao and I got the gai pad ga prow. I requested it to be cooked thai-style which uses ground chicken instead of chicken strips. The pad thai looked authentic, although in thailand they dont include a pile of julienned carrots on the dish. The pad kee mao looked and tasted really good, but I think they overused dried chili flakes, whereas this dish is typically made with a sauce and chilies. My dish was pretty good, although in my experience, pad ga prow doesn't have bell peppers in it. Not to be snobby or anything, but ma dukes never uses it, so i think that may have just been filler. They also didnt use enough holy basil which would have made it tastier. I think for the neighborhood, its good, but you'll probably find the same quality at nearby places like Thai on Two and Tara Thai (both of which are nearby and have thai owners). I think if you want a little more authenticity go to Won Dee Siam in hell's kitchen.
yea, pad thai, i know boring but really good. didn't get five stars because the shrimp is hiding somewhere else in the shrimp pad thai.
um, i love this place. curry fried rice is all you have to say to me. scoff all you want about how "americanized" that shit is, but i likes what i likes and i likes me some curry fried rice - dammit!
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Neighborhood: Midtown East
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Category: Thai
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Category: Thai
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Category: Thai
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