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Belmont (Purple Express, Brown, Red)
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I just had lunch here with an old friend. He and I had not been back here, we learned or apps, for several years each. We had Spring Rolls and a mint Beef Salad, ten Curry Chicken and Corn adn Beef in a peanut sauce.
Each was the best version of these dishes I have had in Chicago - ever. Prices were not too bad - and service was wonderfully homey - if a bit more friendly than my jaded city self is used to these days in Chicago.
Great place of a long lunch - and special dinner - but not a grab-n-go kinda spot - thank goodness. Our community is already full of those.
Seriously - anyone has any complaints with this place!? Maybe my standards for Thai food have been so lowered by living downtown and totally deprived of it, but I looooved this place as did my brother who was visiting from Boston (where they have lots of very good Thai)!
The only item I didn't like much was the spring rolls because they weren't as soft as I like them. But otherwise their dumplings, corn cakes, basil rice and my brother's dish were all excellent!
Even better was the service! The lady was warm, grandmotherly and took great joy in feeding us with good food!!! She could tell from our faces what we'd like and kept coming up to make sure we were having a good time!
P.S. They had all their vegetarian items marked on the menu - I love it when they think of us and do that!
Super suck. Starving like mofos, my friend and I stopped in here for a quick meal. Using my super intelligent reasoning, chemistry smarts, and knowledge of human anatomy and physiology, I decided an appetizer should be enough to fill me up. Of course, by fill me up I meant to the point that my stomach stops growling, but not enough to dull any of the sure to come alcoholic consumption about to take place at the next destination of choice, Market Days.
So...crab rangoon it is. For the friend, Thai roasted duck. The food finally arrives and I had the four most pathetic looking pieces of crab rangoon ever. Sadness. My friend basically ended up w/ about 6-7 slivers of duck just engulfed in some orange sauce. Def not worth the $10.95. And 20 minutes after finishing our food and 10 minutes after asking for our check I had to walk up to our server and corner her just so I could pay the damn bill. So, $20 poorer we headed over to Market Days, where at least we could drown our sorrow in raspberry champagne slushies.
I've lived in the area for quite sometime and sampled many of the local Thai restaurants... there are a ton! My 3 girlfriends and I had a great night here! The servers are wonderful, drinks great, and a huge menu that can suit just about anyone! My very picky eater friend couldn't find anything that had all she wanted or more importantly, what she didn't want. The server took time to talk to Ms. Picky and made her a special dish!
I'm in love with P.S. bangkok and it's my new favorite Thai place for when I'm in the area.
A little bit more expensive then a place like Cozy but I still thought the service was worth the extra buck.
P.S. Bangkok is pretty good thai as far as I'm concerned. We were just extremely happy that the place was open that late. I think we arrived about 10:45 on a saturday night and don't close until 11:30. There was one other couple that was finishing up when we got there, so I immediately was wondering, "Why is this place empty on a saturday night?" Eventually, there was one other couple that came in, but that was it.
Our waitress was very pleasant and patient--I dined with a vegan who had to get a dissertation on each dish on the menu before he made a decision. Let me reiterate the word PATIENT. Unlike a lot of thai places, it seemed to have a cozy restaurant feel and appeared to be pretty clean.
I had my usual yummy thai iced tea with what's supposed to be crab rangoon. It tasted different than what I'm used to; more like it was frozen out of a box. It kind of turned me off when I saw the fake strip of crab meat. Nevertheless, I inhaled them. My entree made up for it. I ventured away from my usual Pad Thai and did the cashew chicken. It was just what I had a taste for: lots of veggies and good flavorful chicken with rice. My friend, who had the green curry commented that it was overly spicey. Two people fed for about forty bucks? Lovin' that!
Chicken curry dishes are great. The pad thai is not bad. We like that they have beer. I like the Chang beer. The atmosphere is warm and cozy. The staff is very friendly. Be sure to check the specials on the menu posted outside before you go in. For free dessert or free appetizer you need to mention the offer while you are ordering.
The Love Me Tender Duck was unbelievably good, as were the Bite Size Delights. Sue was very helpful, provided detailed instructions on the perfect way to eat everything, and got my orders lined up for my next few visits (she highly recommends the Panang Curry). I'll definitely be going back soon.
Spoke with the owner today and was saddened to hear that they no longer serve Sunday Brunch Buffet. She said she couldn't afford the waste when it was slow. What a shame. It was great!
I've walked past this place and thought the inside decor was so cute so FINALLY I got to eat there this weekend. The waitress was VERY friendly and helpful. It was tough for us to decide what we wanted because the menu is really long but she was able to narrow it down by asking a few questions.
I've never had rama with peanut sauce so deeeeelish in my life. It's a bit tangy and citrus-y but that's not even a good way to describe it. It's just so damn good!!! If you like spicy, this place has it in droves, and they'll even dial it up or down for you. Although...a bit of a warning...if you say REALLY hot, you'll get what you asked for. Beware. They can turn the hot up to 11.
For dessert, I had a banana pudding thing with coconut frosting and coconut ice cream. UGHHH I can die now. Even the bite of the sweet potato pudding I sampled was fantastic.
This place has perfected Thai cooking...nuf said.
There are probably more authentic Thai places in Chicago (hell do I know about authentic Thai), but I have great affection for P.S. Bangkok. First, I've been eating here for 20 years, since they were in their old location on Halsted. Second, the owner Sue is almost always on site, and frequently stops by the tables to talk with the customers. "How do you like my food?" I like your food, Sue. Third, they have a kickass Sunday buffet which has tons of items to choose from, including a whole table of fresh fruit and desserts.
The menu is extensive, with plenty of appetizers, noodle and curry dishes. Skip to the House Specialties to try something a little different, like the Charcoal Chicken or Love Me Tender Duck. (Yeah I know, cutesy, but so good.) The Banana Blossom Salad and the Green Papaya Salad are both a little unusual. I'm a big fan of fish cakes, but unfortunately I'm not a big fan of P.S. Bangkok's fish cakes. Eh, you can't win 'em all.
Another reviewer complained about the place being a little tired and worn, which is strange, since they went through a big remodeling not that long ago (last summer?). It's not upscale, but it's very comfortable, with big front windows that open onto Clark street. The service can be a little dicey, but it's very friendly, and you can tell people are doing their best, so I let it slide.
Jeepers, looks like a love or hate thingy here from the reviews. I guess the delivery food is not good. My wife and I go to Chicago when we can and always hit the Sunday buffet here. There are several Thai places in this neighborhood, yet we always come back here before I drive us back to the twin cities. Sorry to hear that others do not like it. I feel I am a foodie, and this place is always on the list. You figure it out?
I like P.S. Bangkok's Sunday Brunch.
By far my favorite thai place in the great city of Chicago.
Yes I could say the decor is nice (some people care about that shit) but I really don't want to waste my time talking about that even though it is pretty tight. I just want to talk about the food!!! OH GOD THE FOOD IS AWESOME!
The phrase heaven-in-my-mouth came to my mind but I realized that was a huge understatement. The fantasticness is more like (Chuck Norris + Ninjas + Alan Greenspan's power + Hot Pepper's from South America + black Ferraris + Mary Poppins + everyone's friendliness at Yelp's First Annual Birthday Bash ) ^ 23rd power. I'm not even just talking about one dish, I'm talking about every freaking dish I tried!
Their appetizers, if I could have only one appetizer on the planet it would be the Beef Paradise. I used to think Kalbi and Bol Gol Gi were the best meats on the planet until I had the Beef Paradise. What a great name for an appetizer. I'm sorry, even though Ruth's Chris does have the best prepared meat on the planet, the seasoning on Beef Paradise beats the buttery goodness ANYDAY.
If you like sweet, then they have the BEST PAD THAI in Chicago as well. They have kewl names for their food as well like the Love Me Tender Duck, which I loved. Their curry was delish as well. I can't wait to go try the buffet on the weekend. I'm going to bring all my friends. When it gets nicer out, I'll come here at least twice a week. For now, I will walk here to eat the amazing food as often as I can in this frigid weather despite living a mile away.
I will no longer be going to try new thai restaurants because all my business will go to P.S. Bangkok until I move out of Chicago. Siam Rice will be allowed my presence only when I'm working in the loop.
How do you write an average review... when there is nothing so exciting that you want to shout it from the roof tops, or so bad you want to call the health department.?
This is my quandry with P.S. Bangkok, the food is average, the service was average (although the owner seemed enthusiastic), they don't seem able to decide on a price (yep, that rewritten menu thing was wierd), and what prices they have decided on are too high.
I guess I just have high standards when it comes to my thai food. So if you do visit P.S. Bankok, be prepared to be, you know, well, average.
P.S. Bangkok is the single most unique, inspired, interesting, authentic and delicious Thai restaurant in all of Chicagoland. Their curries a delictable, their noodle dishes are perfect, their appetizers satisying and the their desserts delicious. Their menu is diverse, with some dishes and/or ingredients that I have never found anywhere else. They have this lychee curry dish, that when you get it with the rarity of brown rice (I think brown rice is like 20x better than simple white rice... the subtlety is magnificent.
Now these folks don't serve bourbon, but I can actually overlook this for once -- simply because the food is so spectacular. I am EVEN willing to forgive its location in the Lakeview/Wrigley area... which normally I would avoid like the plague. It is REALLY too bad that I live just outside their delivery area... if they only would deliver to me... I would be in heaven.
Go here now. You will not regret it and if do, you probably have bad taste anyhow.
P.S. - Do NOT go for their buffet, this will not do justice to their prowess as the best Thai restaurant in Chicago... something about the individual love they put into a singular entree... mmmm. Yum.
Is this the same place these other reviewers are talking about?
We ate in the restaurant once and what I ordered was supposed to be beef, but smelled so strongly like dog breath I couldn't eat it. We ordered delivery based on the positive reviews, and again, probably worst Pad See Eiw I've ever had. My husband refused to even eat his Pad Khee Mao.
Maybe we just don't like authentic Thai?
I love the owner lady here. Very nice. It make sa difference.
The food is great and they have crispy pad se ew which is hard to find.
I give four stars instead of five because I had a problem with black shrimp tails in my drink glass ice. Twice. I don't give them one star because of the genuinely horrified reaction of the staff both times and they wonderful way they handled it and plus everything else has been up to way up to par here.
Went here and ate in for the first time. I used to order take out from P.S. Bangkok 2 (not sure if they have the same owners or not). The food was good. I enjoyed the sweet and sour pork and a chicken curry dish (which was addictive).
The staff was extremely friendly and seemed genuinely happy we were there. However, the menu needs a reprinting and the place feels a bit dated and used. Pricing is reasonable.
This place is fabulous! It's as good as Thai in Chicago get in my opinion - and I've been to plenty here. The Pad See Ew is amazing - the flavor is full and the wait staff is very friendly and accommodating. If you want a tasty appetizer try the beef paradise - it's delicious! I'd go here for dinner everyday if I could.
I'm surprised by all the recent bad reviews- I went here a few days ago and I loved it. I thought the atmosphere was nice, and the service was friendly. The food was consistently yummy, if not WOW!
I had this AMAZING drink that I can't remember the name of (Sal?)... It was a delicious mix of creamy milk and some banana-flavored green syrup. I have no clue how many artificial ingredients were in it, but I DO NOT CARE. I will have it again and again.
The other thing to mention is the pickled mustard-greens soup. Bizarre sounding, scrumptious tasting. Really-- I live in Hyde Park but I've been trying to drag people into making the trek with me, because I can hear the faint but insistent voice of that tasty, tasty soup calling.
11/11/08
Edit:
Ok, yes, the soup is AMAZING, and yes, that drink thing is amazing too. But that's about ALL that's amazing there. Aside from the pad thai, everything else I've tried has been blech. Too rich or too bland or too swiiming-in-sauce. 3.5 stars. Just get the soup.
I loved my food at P.S. Bangkok. I did not love the service. So, this averages out to a 3 star review.
The restaurant was empty except for a table or two when I walked in with a friend of mine. We could not figure out if we were to seat ourselves, or if someone would walk up to the front to seat us. Someone looked at us from behind the bar and told us to pick a table. So we did, expecting someone to bring out menus and water. We waited at least 5 minutes before our server showed up. There was no reason why we should wait that long when the dining area was empty.
I ordered the Thai roasted duck, and was absolutely amazed by the flavor. Duck is usually a fatty meat, but the meat I had was relatively lean. It was the perfect mix of meat and vegetables. The spicy soy dipping sauce isn't really necessary because the dish already comes heavily seasoned, but a tiny bit of spice really brings out the other flavors. I had a bite of my friend's pad see eiw, and it was good, though pretty average as far as noodle dishes go.
I'd be willing to give the restaurant the benefit of the doubt on the service side and try it again, because the food was delicious.
The decor is seriously old-school Thai. I mean you could call it "authentic" but honestly, I've been to Bangkok, what 6 times, and I can tell you that an "authentic" or "traditional" environment does not guarantee the same quality in the food they serve. Personally, I found the atmosphere a lil' tired and worn. (I mean this place has been around for 17 years, and it shows, My menu had like 30 crossed out items. Time for a revamp? At least reprint the menu....)
On to the important bit- food. Let's just say, it reflected the decor. Its Thai all right, not mock-Thai, but my Pad Thai was soggy and too too sweet (I see parallels!) and the shrimp rolls were not worth the price paid.
However, the curry was spicy enough and great on an abnormally cold spring day.
Wouldn't go back though.
OK, I have ordered delivery from here twice. Cold and mushy and completely boring. Why did I go twice? Well, my friends told me this is a great place, so I thought maybe the first time with the bad food was a fluke.
Nope, it sucks. Spend your money elsewhere
Possibly the most gawd-awful Thai meal I've ever had. Being Thai, I feel personally offended upon encountered establishments such as this one that would insist such garbage is Thai food. The Panang did not taste anything like how curry should taste, but rather like they dumped a ton of overly salty peanut sauce over boiled chicken. Disgusting. The Tom Yum soup was so salty and sour I couldn't even eat it. On top of all this, the prices were outrageous for such terrible food. $10 for a plate of curry too small to share between two people? Really? Don't ever come here. You've been warned.
I've been going here for years, and the food has always been great. The curry dishes are always spicy and flavorful, and the steamed dumpling appetizer is perfection. The owner is a doll, and always friendly. I want her to adopt me!
I don't understand the comments on the decor. Would you rather it be decorated in the hideously generic modern style every Asian restaurant seems to be adopting? I love the old school decor and requisite portraits of the monarchy. Much more comfortable than sitting in the equivalent of a CB2 (or should I say Ikea) showroom. When did sitting on a fake Eames chair and drinking mango flirtinis become synonymous with Asian cuisine? That trend needs to DIE.
However, the menus REALLY need to be reprinted. I've been going here since I was a little kid and they are using the same damn menus. Time for an update!
The menu is great, but the lunch buffet was standard at best and some of the food was cold. However, I did find the inclusion of prepackaged
Little Debbie brownies at the desert table somewhat charming.
Went last Friday night with a friend and we had to laugh, after reading some of these reviews about the crossed out menus, etc. Neither of us found it a big deal at all. And as for the decor, who cares...it wasnt' dirty and in my mind, that's way more important than some tired paintings on the wall.
Anyway, we were a bit nervous because the place was not crowded at all. But we were very pleased with the food and the service was fine. I had the beef panang curry and my friend had the chicken pad see ew. We tried each other's meals and agreed they were both really tasty. We also had a crab appetizer that I'd probably only give 3 stars. The Thai ice tea was also yummy.
The owner came and asked us if our meal was ok (nice touch), and from the conversation I eaves dropped on, a couple sitting not too far from us were frequent regulars....there MUST be a reason some people go back again and again. I'll defnitely go back.
Another plus.... walking down the block and seeing the packed houses in Mia Francescas and another restaurant I can't remember...I'd rather go to an emptier PS Bangkok on a Friday night.
I can't believe how good the other reviews are for this place. We ate there last night and it was awful. The beef paradise appetizer was heated unevenly, with some pieces perfect warm and others almost cold. I ordered the Pad See Eiw and my wife had the Eight Angels seafood dish.
The Pad See Eiw was burned and somewhat flavorless (aside from the burned part). It was bad. I would much rather go to Joy's or Cozy than here for thai noodles. The presentation was also very poor.
The Eight Angels was also bad. It seemed like they just slopped some out of a vat and then microwaved it to get it warmed up. The heat of the dish was uneven and it didn't taste fresh.
I would never go here again.
While the service was kind and helpful, the food was not appetizing at all. The Pad Thai is quite spicy, which is strange for American Pad Thai. The location was not air conditioned during this banquet I attended so it was very steamy (with spicy food...not so pleasant). The staff did continually bring cold water, but I wouldn't go back due to the food. I would recommend going 3 store fronts south to Noodles in the Pot.
I went here for the first time tonight to celebrate a friend's birthday. I always trust her opinion when it comes to restaurants, so I knew the place had to be good, but dinner exceeded all of our expectations. We were a decent-sized group, and each person ordered something different so that we could taste as many things as possible. For appetizers, we had egg rolls, spring rolls, steamed dumplings, and the Beef Paradise. The egg rolls weren't all that, but might have been better without so much black pepper. The spring rolls tasted fresh, but were fairly bland. The steamed dumplings were delicious, though, and the Beef Paradise was the favorite of the table.
Then came the entrees: basil chicken, ginger chicken (ordered with extra ginger), beef panang curry, crazy noodles (off-menu), pad see ew, pad thai, Love Me Tender duck, and this steamed fish with chopped fresh garlic on top. Everything was ordered spicy, including the ginger chicken, which is normally mild. We passed the plates around, and either we're a bunch of geniuses and ordered the best items on the menu, or this might be the most consistently excellent Thai place I've ever been to. Different people preferred some items to others, but not one dish disappointed. The pad see ew tasted different to any I've tasted anywhere else. My favorites were the ginger chicken, the beef panang curry, the crazy noodles, and the fish. I know that's not narrowing down much, but the owner was batting 1.000 tonight. Everything was so good, that as much as we ordered, there wasn't a single thing left to take home. Despite protests that everyone was full, the table shared two orders of sticky rice and mango, which was perfect.
As far as service is concerned, the owner/chef was too good to be true. She waited on us herself, only enlisting another waitress to assist with carrying so many plates to the table. More accurately than waiting on us, she doted on us, asking each and every one of us if we liked the food and which dishes we liked best while heaping extra servings of white rice onto our plates. She joked with those of us who suffered from chile-induced sweating, and nursed burning mouths. As we got ready to leave, she told us that she wants to see each of us again very soon. We couldn't have asked for a better evening.
I love, love, love this joint. I go for the weekend buffet and I'm never disappointed. I've taken a bunch of friends to check it out and everyone has said the same. The weekend buffet offers plenty of seafood choices and I'm crazy about the Lab Nar. Actually there isn't anything I've tried that I didn't like. And you can't beat the neighborhood. Tons of cool shopping to pick from within a few blocks. You can eat yourself silly here for less than $15. To me, that's a deal.
I have nothing but amazing things to say about PS Bangkok. This location is my particular favorite. The owner/chef puts her heart into every dish on the menu. (the huge menu) Fabulous traditional Thai restaurant decor and lovely staff gives you the feeling you're not in the busy city. The curry is well worth it. Not to mention their thai custard is delicious. (and dairy-free)
I ordered delivery from here once and got the panang curry or something like that and it was awful. Upon ordering, I was informed that if I wanted meat in the dish it was an extra $3 so I declined assuming there would be SOMETHING in the curry sauce, perhaps vegetables or tofu. My curry consisted of a container with just sauce with absolutely nothing in it and a container of rice. The sauce wasn't even very good and it definitely was not worth $7 or whatever I paid for sauce and rice. Before this most recent incident, I used to go here and dine in like 4 or 5 years ago and was pretty impressed and don't recall having to pay extra for meat. Despite my previous decent experience, my last experience totally made me never want to come here again.
Went to try their Sunday buffet and found the place CLOSED and completed gutted for renovation. Ended up going back across the street to Thai Classic. This is the 3rd time I've had their lunch buffet, and I have to say Baisi Thai on Michigan Ave is cheaper and has way better seafood and salad entrees.
My new favorite Thai place. They have the most authentic tasting curries I have had in the city. And the heat is even, not an upfront jalepeno heat that some "thai" places use.
As far as Thai food goes, PS Bangkok is not bad but nothing special either. I think this is par the course with the majority of Thai restaurants in Chicago. I had the Panang Curry with chicken for lunch and it tasted great. But again, nothing spectacular about it. The owner, Sue, is an extremely friendly lady who makes you feel very welcome in her restaurant so thumbs for that. However, I must caution you that the prices here are a bit higher than at other Thai establishments (granted Thai food is inherently cheap, so we're basically talking an extra buck or two per dish). If you're in the area, it's worth checking out but don't expect to be blown away or anything.
They have a ridiculous thai buffet here, its $14 all you can eat and there's literally like 50 things to choose from! The regular stuff on the menu is fabulous as well, great curries and great pad thai.. beware they are closed on Mondays
This place's got a huge menu. It's truly amazing and pretty tasty as well.
Standard Thai fare. Menu is quite typical, flavors are close to authentic. Good if you live close by, otherwise rather indistinguishable.
This place is pretty good. Nothing to make you jump up and down, but definitely better than a lot of other Thai places around the area. The owner was helpful, but since it wasn't busy (on a VERY cold afternoon) she gave us a little too much attention. It is a little pricey, but I've never had a bad meal. Soooo I think it's worth it.
I have sampled most of the thai restaurants in the Lakeview area, and P.S. Bangkok is a great stand-by! My boyfriend and I went at a slower time (10ish on a Thursday night), and it was pretty sparse inside. The owner/chef is absolutely adorable, and really spent a great deal of time talking to us, answering questions, and telling us about different thai ingredients. We ordered Bite-Sized Delights for our appetizer, and they were AMAZING. The owner/chef, Sue, was by us as we were trying them, and she kept telling us to try them with more chilies and to "eat in one moutful!" (and she was certainly right). What a delicate blend of flavours and spices. I got a special item, which was quite tasty, although could have been a bit more spicy for my liking. My boyfriend got the Lotus Blossom, which had such a great presentation and a wonderful blend of flavours. Really diverse menu all around (curry with lychees anyone?), and really tasty thai iced tea (and much cheaper than the heinously priced Thai iced tea at thai classic). Do skip the canteloupe cakes, though, as they are a bit bland (but to their credit, the waitress repeatedly said that she would get the sticky rice instead! Our fault!). Since that wonderful meal, I've ordered delivery a few times and have been significantly less impressed. I really feel like this ia restaurant where the food tastes much better in-house, on the plate, with the ambiance and personal interaction.
I am regularly not a Thai fan but this place its a goood. The establishment is actually relatively nice compared to other middle eastern restaurants that I have frequented. Our waiter looked like his uh voice hadn't dropped yet but the service was fast so no complaints. I had a stir fry of chicken, shrimp, squid and another animal of sorts. I was metaphorically blown away by the chicken, very tender. It looses one star for too much sauce on the plate, don't get me wrong it was good but I would say there was a plethora of sauce. Another thing I liked about this place is the liquor license. Most thai places are BYOB which is good if you know you are going to polish off a bottle of wine or six pack of beer but if you are looking for a tasty adult beverage to wash down your meal its nice to have it on demand and they served Tsing Tao (pronounced Ching Tao, FYI). Third reason I liked this place is that the windows to the restaurant are gianormous doors that when opened gives you the outdoor feeling but without the dangers such as bird and bugs. Overall I was quite satisfied and full upon leaving.
Neighborhood: Lincoln Park
Category: Thai
Neighborhood: Lakeview
Category: Thai
Elk Grove Village, IL
Category: Thai
Neighborhood: Lakeview
Category: Thai
Neighborhood: Lakeview
Category: Thai
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