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Lemongrass Thai Cuisine
Category: Restaurants Thai Thai [Edit]
2348 Polk St(between Green St & Union St)
San Francisco, CA 94109
Neighborhoods: Nob Hill, Russian Hill
(415) 929-1183
- Hours:
Mon-Thu, Sun 11 am - 10 pm
Fri-Sat 11 am - 10:30 pm
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- Yes
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Beer & Wine Only
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Ambience:
- Casual
- Has TV:
- No
- Caters:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
332 reviews for Lemongrass Thai Cuisine
Review Highlights
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"The pumpkin curry made a great lunch on Monday." In 15 reviews -
"Pad Makuer Tofu: Probably the best thing we had here." In 4 reviews -
"I love their pineapple fried rice." In 9 reviews
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332 reviews in English
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Review from Ornella G.
San Francisco, CA
2/19/2012
I Loved it this place!!
The service is very good and fast, the food is delicious, the atmosphere is casual and great value for the price!
I will definitely come back !! -
Review from Kels D.
San Francisco, CA
3/6/2012
I got off work late last night and decided I want Thai. So, one of my staff members and myself read great reviews for this place. We called in our order so it would be ready when we arrived. I had the chicken pad see ew. She had the tofu red curry. Food was good. It did remind me of mom's homecooking, which I don't get often.
The only thing that really bothered me was our waitress. Perhaps she was having a bad night?? When she asked us if we liked anything else besides water to drink, we were trying to look at the drink list, but she snatched it up! I'm not sure what that was all about. So we just stuck with water. Honestly, every time she came by our table we felt like we were bugging her. There were 2 other tables but not crazy busy.
Because of our experience with the waitress, we're not going back. I'm sure we can get Thai somewhere else with better customer service. Seems like we were the only ones who had to deal with this -
Review from Dan M.
San Francisco, CA
2/15/2012
This place is guuuude. They have the best pad see ew in the neighborhood; I'll get it with fried tofu and without the broccoli. The noodles are just perfectly cooked and have the right amount of grease. The red curry with beef is astounding too. I get delivery from Lemongrass quite regularly and there has been no incident yet.
I ate there once and the service was pretty friendly and quality. -
Review from Henry H, H.
San Francisco, CA
5/23/2012
A pretty place, romantic too. Delicious soups and satay chicken. Good Pad Thai. Delicious chicken with basil. Great location. Friendly service. Comfortable seating. Overall a nice, affordable Thai spot!
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Review from Tom W.
San Jose, CA
5/19/2012
Visiting the city and Lemongrass was close to the hotel. Toi, the owner, actually waited on our table. Great service and even better food. The place was slammed and we still got our food in about 10 minutes. This will be a place I go again when I'm in the city. Best Thai food I've had in a long time. Thanks for a great night Toi.
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Review from Mat G.
San Francisco, CA
5/6/2012
Not only does Toi Sawatdee make the best Thai food in SF, but she's probably the nicest person I've ever met. Lemongrass is the best deal on catering in the city (and the only Thai restaurant I could find that will fully cater your event). Most importantly, the owner of this place (Toi) cooks here nightly so the food is always excellent.
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Review from j d.
San Francisco, CA
5/23/2012
just ok thai food.
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Review from Stacey M.
Pacific Heights, San Francisco, CA
5/1/2012
Delicious Thai food!! The service is really good and everyone is by nice. The prices are affordable and they have a good wine selection. I would highly recommend this restaurant to any of my friends. They also deliver which is very convenient.
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Review from Nadine K.
San Francisco, CA
4/10/2012 1 Check-in Here
Best Pad See Ew I have ever eaten. Excellent service, very reasonable prices, outstanding food.
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Review from Adrienna Y.
San Francisco, CA
3/29/2012 1 Check-in Here
The first time I ordered delivery, everything went smoothly and the food was delicious. This time around however my food took over an hr and a half to arrive when my work is only 5 blocks away and I only ordered a pineapple prawn rice and fried eggrolls. No matter. Then when I received my food, my eggrolls had fallen out of its box and I had no napkins or a utensil to use to eat my rice. So I called them back and said I didn't get any utensils and the guy on the phone was so rude talking about I don't know what and then hung up. So I waited thinking he was gonna come back. It's been 2 hrs and I'm still sitting here with my rice.
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Review from Giu G.
San Francisco, CA
5/4/2012
we come here for lunch, and you can get seated right away, the food is consistent, we get pad-thai noodle with tofu and chicken curry most of the time and they never let me down. The service is always attentive and they remember regular. THANK YOU
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Review from Keilin H.
12/14/2011 4 photos
Voted Best of the Bay hmm? Maybe it's "best" if there are no other Thai restaurants and you're reeeaaally hungry and desperately craving Thai food.
The prices are decent for a cheapskate like me...it's just the food is mediocre. Not horrible, but I've definitely had better Thai food. Although I must admit, they know how to cook brown rice! It was soft and fluffy, not crunchy like some brown rice I've had.
APPETIZER: Thai toast. I liked this the best out of all the food we got! It's like a savory deep fried French toast. HMMmmmm!
ENTREES: I got the Pad Makuer Tofu. It was good, but kind of salty. Eggplant = tasty.
Friend got the Yum Noodles (hahaa! Called Silver Noodles Yum). Unfortunately not yum :( Too sour! :P I think they added too much lime juice.
My other friend got the Lemongrass Special Noodles. She had initially wanted the Tom Yum Noodles, but the waitress said she wouldn't like it because it has a distinct smell (??!!!) o.O Uhh...OK?! Could she have suggested it because the special noodles were 55 cents more?? Oh well...the special noodles were pretty good, so I guess that's all that matters right?
The service was OK. Our waitress seemed impatient. I liked the atmosphere of the place (candles, flowers...quite romantic!), BUT I did NOT like the way the seats were set up! There were these triangular pillows separating different tables and you literally have to pick up the pillow to sit down. It was super awkward because we were seated next to these other people and I had to pick up the pillow and maneuver my way in, all the while apologizing to the other party for brushing against their table and basically interrupting their dinner.
I guess if someone wanted to come here, I would go again. I don't think I'd come here of my own free will though. There are better Thai places around, especially in the TL! -
Review from Johnny W.
11/12/2011
As our attempt to eat at Aux Delices was thwarted by our failure to first check business hours, my friends decided on Lemongrass, right across the street. And who was I, being an hour late, to say otherwise (even though I had my reservations)?
After arriving, our party of five got orders of yellow chicken curry, prawn pumpkin curry, chicken pad see ew, and pla-jeaan (fried snapper filets) to share. The yellow curry and pad see ew were okay dishes, but mostly forgettable. The fried snapper was good, albeit a bit on the sweet side due to the tamarind sauce. The pumpkin curry, however, was pretty darn tasty, and on its own, would have earned Lemongrass four stars.
Along with an appetizer and drink that they'd ordered while waiting for me, it came out to be a little under $15 per person after tip. Not bad for a filling lunch, but not a place I'd recommend going out of your way for. -
Review from Marc S.
San Francisco, CA
2/25/2012
Had a light late lunch one day of a chicken salad item. Total cost was $10. It was ok, though I would have liked it on a bigger plate or in a bowl since it was hard to maneuver the lettuce without it spilling off. Nice lemongrass and fresh vegetables, though it did not over impress me. I would return to give some other items on the menu a try. Nice calm place when all the other places on Polk are packed on a weekend.
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Review from Jane A.
10/3/2011
CAN'T GO WRONG WITH THAI FOOD...
(3.75 stars)
Despite the door wide open on a very warm sunny day and flies hovering at the enterance about ready to attack your face, this place was pretty great!!!
- Food, delicious
- Price, decent
- Service, good
- Ambiance, welcoming and quiet
Decided to try a different thai restaurant from the norm. When I'm fixated with a craving, I am on a mission to shut it down. IT WAS SHUT DOWN by the end of my meal - thank you! Since it was my first attempt to try this place, usually I'll order Pad-Thai and judge it on that but since i saw that the wait-staff was Thai, the food must be legit and authentic, no need to put them to the test.
HEFFER-STYLE STATUS
GAI PAD KHING ($8.95) - Sliced chicken sauteed with fresh ginger, onion, and dried mushroom. This dish was served family style and had to order rice on the side. Everything was fresh and tasted very good. The ginger was definately fresh, felt like i was just biting into a ginger root. I wished and recommend that they cook down the ginger a little more to give the broth the sweetness of the ginger flavor because every bite was a bit pugnant with raw ginger taste.
SIDE OF RICE ($?) - It's family style, ordering rice on the side is a must.
Will I be back? Enjoyed the food, service, and quietness of the place. I can see myself coming back but I have my favorite Thai spots already picked out.
Until the next review.... -
Review from Meagan H.
9/13/2011 2 Check-ins Here
Lemongrass is our go-to for Thai delivery. I love that they will deliver to north beach.
Some faves are: red chicken curry extra spicy, pad pak raummit (sauteed mixed vegetables in oyster sauce), chicken satay, and the tom kha soup.
One of the things that really sets them apart for me is their amazingly easy online ordering system. I don't know why I hate calling in to-go orders, but I do. -
Review from Shivani S.
San Francisco, CA
2/29/2012
Seriously? how is this place even in business still with all the far superior/tastier thai restaurants in the city. How can you mess up pad thai --- this place did. Will never eat here again! Go to Yukol Thai on Lombard instead! it's WAYYYY better.
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Review from Julie H.
San Francisco, CA
8/25/2011
I wouldn't call Lemongrass a "destination" kind of restaurant; it is most definitely a neighborhood spot for folks that live within walking distance (like yours truly).
Service is fine, ambiance is fair... you might want to consider take-out instead. The food is good: reasonably priced, good portions, and noodles that taste fresh (not "gummy"). Limited selection of beer and wine.
Lemongrass is A-okay in my book. -
Review from Human Dumpster A.
San Francisco, CA
4/13/2012
They have some good dishes. I'm almost a regular at this place, and it's a great place to bring a date/ significant other. The tamarind soup is very good--try it!
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Review from Briget P.
6/2/2011 1 Check-in Here
This is a very small restaurant with limited seating so beware if you plan on coming in a large group of 10! Although, the wait was kind of long, I gotta give it up to the waitress that was holdin' down the place all by herself. She waited all tables and was quite punctual.
On to the food: I ordered the Chicken Pad Thai of course, my favorite thing to order, I don't care if that's boring...I love Pad Thai! It came out kinda slimy, you know the kind of watery versions of Pad Thai and it wasn't as good as I thought it would be, given that this place has a very good average of ratings. My sister ordered the Lemongrass Chicken Savory which was a coconut based, hot garlic sauteed plate. It actually sounded better than it tasted. The Thai Tea was not my cup of tea, tasted processed and not fresh and it was too sweet.
I didn't really get my Thai food fix here! Moving on... -
Review from Andy S.
7/17/2011 1 Check-in Here
Although I'm not typically a big Thai food fan, my wife enjoys it more than I, so we decided to give this little place in our neighborhood a try. I went in with an open mind, and we had a reasonably priced dinner, but the two of us had mixed results. I actually enjoyed the meal much more than I expected, and she enjoyed it less. The culmination of our two experiences at the same meal would be a 3-star rating.
We started with a silver noodle salad, which I enjoyed (it has a degree of zing and spice in the dressing), but my wife did not. My wife also started with a small bowl of coconut soup with chicken that was probably the high-point of the meal for her (I did not taste it but she consumed the entire portion). My main course was a sauteed swordfish dish on a hot plate with mushrooms and onions paired with brown rice that was absolutely delicious. My wife ordered a peanut-sauced chicken dish which was just so-so at best. I think in retrospect we should have ordered a Pad-Thai...
Anyways, while I'd be open to returning (I really enjoyed the swordfish, and had my eyes on several red snapper dishes...), I think we will probably gravitate towards other options. I have had more consistent experiences at the various Osha Thai locations as well as a nice recent meal at My Ivy on Divisadero St. -
Review from Allie E.
Danville, CA
8/22/2011 7 Check-ins Here
Relatively inexpensive, cute thai place with friendly staff.
Voted Best in the Bay 2010.
Yellow curry is a tad more spicy than most yellow curry I have had, but still good. (Has onions and potatoes in it)
The Lemongrass Chicken on the specials menu was good - think a mix between peanuts and bell peppers - but next time I will probably go for noodles.
I will definitely go back because it is so close to the apartment and decently priced, decently tasting.
However, only tasting the Pad Thai will tell... -
Review from Teddy T.
Oakland, CA
2/6/2012
I been coming here for almost ten year and its my favorite. I felt it was time I Yelp about it. The food is authentic , good price and services. It is more that you get for the value - casual yet comfortable and elegant. Over the years I have gotten to speak to the owner and she is just sweet and still very vested in her business. Love this place.
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Review from Salonje R.
Walnut Creek, CA
5/31/2011 1 Check-in Here
This place has great food. I tried the Lemongrass Chicken Savory and some other dish I can't remember...I had two Sanghi beers' which were very light.
We had one waitress that was surprisingly unfriendly. The other was totally friendly in her attire was beautiful. One thing that honestly shocked me when I walked into the place was that their statue has a stack of quarters in its left palm. The statue is of someone in meditation...maybe it is just me but I would think the focus of money would be more subtle. -
Review from Chris O.
Wailuku, HI
Updated - 9/10/2011
Geez---not sure what happened to this place--but I ordered a dish with beef---and it was as tough as leather.
Their take out menu states they won an award recently----either they did the ratings themselves or people have just become zombies, devoid of any sense of what IS good food !! I will NEVER drop my money there again.
Pass this one by---its seen its better days .....2 Previous Reviews: Show all »
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2/27/2011
Service has really fallen----food remains 4-5 stars-----but service is now close to non existant.… Read more »
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Review from Robert H.
San Jose, CA
11/17/2011
Great food for a great value.
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Review from Elaine S.
San Francisco, CA
12/3/2011
pad makuer tofu - eggplant with tofu, garlic, green/red peppers, chili, basil
this dish is AMAZING. very garlicy, but worth every bite.
it usually goes like this in my head:
"i'm hungry, what should I make?"
"i'm too lazy to make something, i want thai food"
call lemongrass - order pad makuer tofu without fish sauce (it's vegan)
15 minutes, pick up food and take it home
"ok, i'm only going to eat half"
put half on a plate, put the other half in the fridge
eat the food on my plate
"hmmm, i want some more"
go to fridge and start eating more out of the container...it always ends in finishing the entire thing!
the tom yum pak soup is pretty good too, it's also huge and i always end up eating the entire thing. the other dishes i've had were nothing memorable, but i give lemongrass 5 stars for the pad makuer tofu, it's just that good.
i've only gotten take-out, so not sure how the service is but they are friendly. -
Review from ThuZ W.
San Francisco, CA
2/9/2011
I love Thai food, and definitely have had better. ( maybe cos I actually have lived in Thailand before, and know what Authentic Thai should taste like )
The staff here is soooo nice.
But the food wasn't just soooo great.
Everything is super greasy. Their Tom Yum soup had fake mushrooms in it. ( OK they are not fake but just the gross canned ones )
Their pad thai tasted like something else, just not pad thai. Oye - was oober disappointed.
BUT if u are just right around at Green's sportsbar, and wants some greasy take-out while watching the games... this will be your good option. -
Review from Ryan M.
San Francisco, CA
6/17/2011
We just ordered for delivery. We ordered the Tofu Basil, listed as L on their menu and the Lemongrass Chicken Savory (M on the menu). The delivery was quick and the delivery dude was nice.
When we opened our items, we notice the lemongrass dish didn't seem right, at least to us. We have had lemongrass chicken entrees at many different Thai places and most of the time they are very similar. Their menu mentions all of the key ingredients to this dish. It specifically says Sauteed with garlic, lemongrass, coconut milk, a hint of chili, green and red bell peppers and basil: served on a hot plate of rice. Sounds like the lemongrass we have ordered at other places. When we received it, there was no sign of lemongrass and it was flooded with peanut sauce. Definitely does not match the description. It actually matches the description of their Chicken Delight item.
I call and tell them it is not we ordered. They told me there is peanut sauce in it. I was surprised and told them it should be mentioned in the description on the menu. We would not have ordered this item if we knew that. It really doesn't make sense the key ingredient is not mentioned in the description. That would be like a restaurant selling vegetable soup, listing a few vegetables in the description, but failing to mention it also has beef, something gross like pickled herring, liver, etc. Doesn't make sense at all.
They were very understanding and let us replace it with yellow curry. Overall, the food is good and the service is good. -
Review from A R.
San Francisco, CA
7/21/2011
ABSOLUTELY AMAZING THAI FOOD!! We decided to randomly try Lemongrass the other night as an alternative to Osha and we where blown away by the food! It's quick, very fresh, simple flavors and surprisingly inexpensive!
We are completely sold on the place and already talking about the next time we will be going there.
Kudos to the owner, chef and team there! -
Review from Alice L.
4/22/2011
The boy ordered takeout for us from Lemongrass twice. We had the pineapple fried rice with brown rice with extra veggies, the pad thai, the chicken delight (chicken breast topped with red curry and peanut sauce with cucumber salad) and tofu basil (crispy tofu, sauteed with lime juice, chilli, green and red bell peppers and basil; served with rice).
I'm a big fan of the fried rice and they really do throw a good amount of veggies in there. The pad thai was pretty run of the mill, good but unspectacular. I tried a piece of the chicken delight and it was flavorful.
I totally see myself ordering from this place in the future. -
Review from Sarah C.
1/26/2011 4 photos
Came here for lunch. I heard of Lemongrass somewhere before so I was like hey lets try it! It has to be good if I have heard of it before.
We walk in and the decor is so cute! They had this sofa seating on the right and each section was sectioned off by this armrest pillow. (see picture) I have never experienced anything like it. As you can tell, small things make me happy.
We arrived shortly after noon and there was two by the window. I, of course, sat at a table with the sofa seating and the armrest.
We both ordered from the combination rice plates. $8.75 and you get to pick two items out of 6 choices. Comes with rice.
I ordered the chicken satay with pad pak ruammit (sauteed mixed vegetables with bean sauce) - two pieces of chicken satay which was probably the best thing I had at this place. Although you get a lot of veggies, it was sauteed in msg. It was very salty and I was dying of thirst 2 hours later. I did like the little sauce plate that held peanut sauce and tiny pieces of celery.
My friend ordered the chicken satay also and the Kang Karee with Chicken (A mild yellow curry with chicken, coconut milk, potatoes, and onions) - The yellow curry was watered down.
Before our entrees arrived we were each given a small salad. The salad was not very thai and not very good.
One bathroom. The bathroom itself is separated from the sink by a door. Pretty clean and nice sink.
Overall, I don't think either one of us will be returning. The only thing that was Thai that we had was the chicken satay. My veggies tasted like it was poorly made Chinese food. -
Review from Kurt A.
Long Island City, NY
10/8/2011
Here's the short version: the Tom Yum Gai was tasty, the green curry was good, but the poached trout special was poor: the trout was fishy, the sauce was way too sweet, and the broccoli was cold. Service was good. I won't be rushing back.
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Review from Sarah Z.
3/4/2011
I can't believe I have not yet written a review for Lemongrass! I eat here at least twice a month! and I always order the same thing....
This review is specifically for dinner menu number 62 aka LEMONGRASS SPECIAL NOODLE which the menu describes as "Tom-yum shrimp, ground chicken, fish balls, fish cake with lime juice sauce and rice stick soup."
Now I'm thinking the idea of "fish balls" and "fish cake" does not appeal to the average Russian Hill resident (hah!) but my dear neighbors do not be afraid...this soup is delicious! Tasty and tangy and known to cure [my] hangovers, I have taken many friends to try this amazing soup and they all agree that it's eye opening.
I've tried many other things on the menu and I can see why one might try Lemongrass for lunch or dinner and walk away with three-star thoughts, but just trust me here and get this soup.
Love,
Sarah Z. -
Review from Natalie G.
San Francisco, CA
3/25/2011
Amazing service and just okay Thai food.
This is a good place to come for a cheap dinner (if you don't get alcohol, probably not going to happen *nudge nudge). The waitresses were really friendly and the food came out timed nicely. I liked the Appetizer Combo the best which came with egg rolls, Thai sticks and chicken satay. Its a nice way to try a lot of different things.
The Tom Kha Gai coconut soup was good. The serving was huge. I barely had half. I thought that everything was a little greasy for my liking, and I left feeling so full. We ordered way too much food. Next time I will try a curry. -
Review from Danny M.
San Francisco, CA
3/11/2011 1 Check-in Here
First time visiting Russian hill's little Thai restaurant lemongrass. Have to admit the yogurt/rice pudding place next door drew us across the street. Upon sitting down in the quaint window seats for two we ordered egg rolls, number 62 noodle soup an yellow chicken curry.
The egg rolls were dynamite. A definite must have nomnom give me more..
Next the 62 seafood soup was very satisfying and delish. The hint of lime added just enough acid to cut the chicken broth. As a previous reviewer mentioned great for hang overs
Lastly the chicken curry was good but not amazing, cooked a little bit long and potatoes need a little more home made loving.
Overall a good night out, a place to come back to.... For the egg rolls -
Review from Stefanie L.
San Francisco, CA
3/13/2011
I'm always tempted to get one of two dishes at any Thai restaurant: yellow curry or pad thai. And I've had these two dishes at Lemongrass, and they were both great. But on my last visit, I decided to branch out with a pork-and-vegetables dish. Change is good!
This restaurant has a great menu, a few unique appetizer items, and a decent ambiance (enough idle noise for it to seem busy, but quiet enough to hold an actual conversation with the person(s) at your table).
The one negative(?) thing I'd say about this place is that it's a bit... boring. By that, I mean that I've never been noticeably stoked to get food there. It's not a *destination*, if that makes sense. If you're looking for an awesome time enhanced by the atmosphere, this probably isn't your place. But the food and service are excellent, so it's more of a nice, simple, quiet-night-out type of restaurant. -
Review from Tony P.
Naperville, IL
12/25/2011 1 Check-in Here
This has got to be the best Thai food I have ever had...!!!! Loved It
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Review from Ashley J.
10/3/2011 1 Check-in Here
This place was pretty good. I came here with a friend last week as a random Polk Street dinner option after passing by on a Friday evening. It was pretty busy inside, but not too busy to get a table for 2 right away. We ordered a bottle of wine, a steak dish, and a chicken and thai basil dish with veggies. The food was pretty good. Portions are huge, and prices are decent for what you get. I believe my dish was $9 for the chicken and thai basil. Service was standard, nothing out of the ordinary. I'd come back here again for a casual meal out with a friend or two.
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Review from Debs M.
San Francisco, CA
6/27/2011
This has always been a cute no sot pricey spot in our neighborhood.
I really enjoy the Basil Chicken dish and the Tofu Basil dish as well even though I am not a vegetarian. They have decent options for diners of all types so you can bring your Veggie friends but still enjoy meat yourself.
Service is what you expect of a Thai restaurant- not bad, not amazing. They do their job and you eat well.
