- Restaurants |
- Nightlife |
- Shopping |
- Movies |
- All
Thai Pepper
- Hours:
Mon, Wed-Sat 11 am - 9:30 pm
Sun 4 pm - 9:30 pm
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Private Lot
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- No
- Price Range:
-
$
- Takes Reservations:
- No
- Delivery:
- Yes
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Lunch, Dinner
- Alcohol:
- No
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Ambience:
- Casual
- Has TV:
- No
- Caters:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- No
144 reviews for Thai Pepper
Review Highlights
"The house fried rice is a must try as well."
(in 42 reviews)
"the lunch specials are ridiculously cheap as well."
(in 15 reviews)
"Papaya salad was deliciously refreshing."
(in 9 reviews)
Loading...
144 reviews in English
-
Review from Yuedong L.
Irvine, CA
11/7/2011
I have been going to this place frequently for about a year now. This review is stricly based off of there lunch hours and lunch specials that comes up to less than 6 dollars.
Often-times at lunch, I find myself always thinking about going here. It actually takes will power to not go here sometimes during lunch... thank goodness they close no Tuesdays (to buy ingredients).
This place is a treasure for those of us who have lunch breaks during busy office hours and love Thai cuisine.
Building : The building itself is quite small. There are about only six tables total. There are usually at least one table open during lunch hours though. This place is very busy during lunch hours, so when you first ring (they open at 11), you might not get picked up. Keep on trying though it's worth it.
Employees : This place is family owned. They take a vacation every July back to the motherlands. I am assuming to see family and try to find new ingredients / spices. At first they might seem frank and rude, but that is only because they are always busy on the phone taking orders. I have gone here enough that I just simply call, ask for the pad thai lunch special, and they just say "ok see you at 12:05 Tony." Mind you I dont have to mention that I will be there at 12:05, or the degree of spiciness, or any other variables.. they really remember you and there is that distinct uniqueness and family qualitness to the service because of that.
A great example is I asked for fish sauce once, and from then on out eveytime i ate in, one of the ladies there always included a fish sauce in my tray. Now that's what I saw family service!!!
Food : Amazing. pad Thai is 15/10. Each lunch special comes with two crab rangoons, salad, and fried rice. My pad thai feels like a 10 dollar meal fit under less than 6 dollars. The yellow tofu curry is also very good. So is the pepper beef, red curry, orange chicken. Those are the only things I've tried. Honestly I only ever get the pad thai, but the things I mentioned above was good when I did have it.
I highly reccomend to give this place a try. If you want to spend less than 6 bucks and want to be super filled before going back to work, this is as good a spot as any. -
Review from Jaytee P.
Westminster, CA
1/30/2012
This place is awesome. The service is very home like. Asians know what I mean.
The food is cooked by THAI people unlike other places where there is a different ethnic group cooking it for them.
Ethnic foods should be cooked by their own ethnic groups.
Mexican Food by Mexicans
Vietnamese Food by Vietnamese
American Food by Americans
Etc, etc, etc.
The servings are pretty big especially for a Thai Restaurant.
If you haven't tried it then you should. It's a small place that's better than most bigger restaurants.
Also please don't expect some gourmet $50 a plate kind of meal. This is not a gourmet restaurant, but it sure as hell beats most normal restaurants. -
Review from Jade N.
Westminster, CA
1/17/2012 1 Check-in Here
Nice little hole-in-the-wall place. The owner's a great guy - very nice and will hold a nice little conversation with you without making it awkward. :P Seems like he likes to talk to college kids about their studies since he's got nieces and nephews around our age.
The food is pretty good and at a great price as well. The lunch specials run about $6.00 per entree (served with choice of white or fried rice, salad, and 2 fried wontons) from a choice of 17. My friends and I opted for the chicken curry, tofu curry, spicy eggplant, and chicken pad thai.
Based on the presentation, I'll have to say that the curry base is the same, and the tofu/chicken/what-have-you and peppers (your choice of spicyness) is added in at the end - which means that the flavors haven't actually had time to absorb into the meat, and the base hadn't had time to absorb the peppers. The curry base itself is good though; I'm not a huge fan of coconut milk in my curries, but this one had just enough that it wasn't overpowering.
The eggplant was pretty good! My friends and I were surprised when it came topped with chicken as well. The sauce was phenomenal, with just enough spice to give it that heat and flavor without killing your tastebuds. The eggplants themselves were cooked nicely - cooked through, but not enough to make it mushy.
Overall, I liked this place. :) Great owner, great prices, and good food.
** Don't forget: $10.00 minimum charge to use credit cards. And they DO NOT accept checks. -
Review from Mary M.
Westminster, CA
12/27/2011 1 Check-in Here
A bit of a drive from my work and a slightly long wait for the food during the lunch hour. Seats were easy to find. It gets busy during lunch with to-go orders etc.
I ordered the spicy tofu pad see ew. It was yummy! I would go back here again when I'm in the area. -
Review from K.C. V.
Huntington Beach, CA
12/18/2011 1 photo
I'm a regular customer here to the point when they hear my voice on the phone, they call me by name and asked what would I like to order. Very nice people behind the counter. Their food is tasty and a lot to be able to share if you take out.
My roommate and I have pretty much tried every thing on their menu. They have a full list of Thai food, but not all of them are good. You ought to know what suits your taste if you're going to enjoy your food.
My recommendations are the Combo Fried Rice or Chow Mein, the Chicken Mint Leaves or the Chicken with Green Beans. Those are my rotated items, and they are best in the house. One other nice thing from them that l like is they use chicken breast or white chicken without extra charge.
This place is not a place to expect a full fancy service like most other Thai cuisine around the O.C. The family-owned-and-run business is good for hop in to get a quick bite or pick it up to go joint. They seem better that way. IMHO :-)
If you choose this place to have a date or impress your significant other, bad choice. This isn't a fancy place to impress people. It's a basic, down-home, Thai restaurant.
So far they are the a decent place for the quantity of food and price compared to most other Thai restaurant in Huntington Beach I have been to. -
Review from Andrea R.
11/15/2011 1 photo
Things I love about Thai Pepper: The Hole-in-a-wall style of the place with the rinky dink chairs and tables, is exactly the style I like for lunching on my own; it's cozy, informal, puts me at ease. The cheap lunch special prices. The friendly mom-n-pop staff. The generous papaya salad which isn't bulked up by some bigass chunk of cabbage (I hate raw cabbage).
Things that are pretty decent at Thai Pepper: the food, mainly. I've tried Mint Leaves Chicken, Papaya Salad, Spicy Beef Salad, Garlic Pepper Beef, Coconut Chicken soup, Tom Yum shrimp soup, Chop Suey. Not doing grains at this time so I haven't gotten to the Pad thai or any other rice/noodle dishes; everything has good flavor, decent sized portions, and fresh-cooked goodness. Nothing stands out as either great (except the aforementioned Papaya Salad), or terrible. I leave satisfied every time.
Things I dislike about Thai Pepper: nothing, really. I'm not going to complain about the fact that it's closed on Tuesdays because everybody deserves at least one day off per week. They hustle enough on the other six days, they're old, they've earned it.
If cheap prices and pretty good Thai food suits you -- and you couldn't care less about lack of decor -- then Thai Pepper is a fine choice for dine-in and take-out. -
Review from Malena M.
Mission Viejo, CA
1/12/2012
Pretty good and a LOT of food for your money. Beef Satay was decent and the Thai Tea was great. Really small but for only 10 bucks you get an entree, wontons or eggrolls, rice and salad with a fortune cookie.
-
Review from Sadia C.
Fountain Valley, CA
Updated - 12/25/2011
I don't get it...how does this place have a good rating???
I came here for dinner, my second time, to give this place another chance.
Customer service has always been okay here and so has the food...until I had their orange chicken. I know that orange chicken isn't a thai dish, but its pretty hard to mess it up. I also ordered the pad see ew. The dinner special comes with shrimp fried rice, an egg roll and salad. The salad was generic and the dressing was decent. The shrimp fried rice was basically vegetable fried rice, with one shrimp on top, so don't expect the rice to taste like shrimp at all :/ ...the egg roll was good. The orange chicken was the WORST I have ever had. It tasted like the chicken was fried in reallllllly old oil. It had the worst and strongest after taste I have ever tasted. I would rather have panda express' orange chicken -_-. My friend and I ate the pad see ew bc it was bearable and we were starving. Pretty much, the entire orange chicken was untouched and our server didn't even ask if everything was okay? If I was a restaurant owner, I would ask....I would want to make improvements if needed.........The lady (owner as well, I presume since it's family owned) just took the untouched dish and walked away....
I gave this place another chance and yet again, an even bigger disappointment. So many amazing Thai restaurants in OC, it's mindbogglingly crazy!! that this place has good ratings.
Your food is always served hot and I love the freshly made fast food aspect, but your flavors have not won me over.....Sorry..1 Previous Review: Show all »
-
8/13/2011
Came here for lunch just a few days ago to satisfy my pad kee mow (drunken noodles) craving.
The… Read more »
-
-
Review from loren l.
Westminster, CA
1/2/2012 1 Check-in Here
My god......this place is amazing. I ventured out of my usual thai spots and found this place on yelp. And boy! Am I glad, this is my go to spot now. The spicy fried rice with tofu is amazing. Extra spicy, and I ask them to add diced tomatos to it. GET AT THAT, my vegetarian friends. They have really good vegetarian options and even a menu with vegetarian options and what not. Back to that fried rice .... completely amazing. It doesn't lack in spice and flavor at all, I feel like all my life I've never had real thai fried rice until I came here. The pad thai is extremely tasty too. YUM. Service is nice and very homely. If your looking for cheap food. With awesome portions and a moms kitchen feel kinda place. This is your place! Give them a shot! (:
-
Review from Thu T.
Garden Grove, CA
12/16/2011 1 Check-in Here
Food is not good. I had the pepper garlic chicken and my friend had the pad thai... It's bland and not flavorful. Chicken is dry, if I press on it not even a drop of juice runs out that's how dry it was. Pad thai was too soft and the seasoning is off but alot better then my dry chicken. It's small cut out of a restaurant. There's no real decor. But then I think it's a takeout place and they don't focus on dinners. I won't be doing any take out here. The owners r nice but not their food, doesn't matter how cheap I rather pay more to get better tasting food.
-
Review from D T.
Morgan Hill, CA
10/2/2011
This place is definitely a HOLE IN A WALL. A buddy of mine brought me here one random day and decided to try it out. At first, I looked at the place and let me tell you. IT DOESN'T LOOK PROMISING... So we sat down and saw a lot of people come in and out and the owner of the place seemed pretty friendly. Talking to everyone like they've known each other for a long time, which is good because he seemed to be really friendly.
In fact, he is.
Came over to us and greeted us. Really nice guy and spoke perfectly good english. Nice enough to let us know what was good on the menu and told us the most popular item on their menu(pad thai, duh). So we got a dish of pad thai and the other dish was the garlic chicken. We also ordered the Tom Yong Koong.
Food came out. First was the Tom Yong Koong soup. Smelled good.
First sip: OMFGOMGDAAAM: Orgasmic. Tastes just like the TYG in Thai-town LA.. The soup immediately gave me the hint this place was gonna be LEGIT.
Pad Thai comes out - Smells good.
First BITE: OMFGOMOFMGOFMGOMFGOMG, SO DAM GOOD.
Garlich Chicken comes out: I think you know the response...
OVERALL: SO FAR THE BEST THAI RESTAURANT AROUND OC. Compares with the thai food in LA- THai TOwn.
RATING: 10+ .. I would come here just because the food is excellent and the price you pay is about 7 out the door for lunch. -
Review from Chris C.
Irvine, CA
12/31/2011
Delicious Thai food, great selection, the people are nice, and the prices are great. They even deliver which is nice. You should totally come here if you're looking for an inexpensive but quality sit down / take-out Thai place.
-
Review from Kenneth L.
Santa Ana, CA
9/9/2011
Been coming here for a while now and I've got to say it's one of my favorite Thai restaurants in the OC area. It's a small mom and pop shop that fits probably 20 customers but don't let that fool you. The taste of the food and prices here is what makes it stand out.
They got both lunch and dinner specials at $5.50 & $8.95 that comes with your selected entree, fried rice, vegetable egg roll, and a salad. I usually get Pad Thai or Pad See Ew (both are incredibly amazing here!).
Their Chicken Pad Thai is delicious! Probably my favorite Pad Thai I've yet tasted. I don't like my Pad Thai moist and wet which is why I like it here because it's more dry. Got it at a level of 8 spiciness but ended up putting some more at the table.
Their Pad See Ew is almost VERY delicious. You gotta always get it with beef. It's sweet and comes out hot and tasty.
Even their Thai Tea is delicious. It has the perfect proportion of tea and milk to balance out the taste. -
Review from Lan P.
Westminster, CA
12/8/2011
I am not returning to this place again. I use to be a loyal customer but they gave my friend and I horrible service. They brought out my food first, and left my friend waiting for about 15 minutes. By the time his food came out, my food was cold. His Pad Thai noodles were also cold. I have no idea what they were thinking. And the highlight of the night was finding a hair in my Pad Ze Ew. The awkward response from the owner, who at first examined it and tried to suggest it wasn't hair just made it that much more worst. Never coming back here again.
-
Review from Cali A.
Buena Park, CA
12/23/2011
I absolutely love the food here! My co-workers and I would always order their lunch meals and have them delivered. The order always came correctly and was always sooo amazingly good. I'm not a huge Thai food fan, but their's is amazing. I usually get the "teriyaki" chicken which isn't teriyaki at all. I don't know what it is, but it's freakin' bomb! And the lunch special gives you a ton of food for around $5. I usually can't even finish it all. I don't work over there any more, but randomly will drive out of my way just to go over there to eat their food. It's more of a to-go place because there aren't many tables to eat at, but if you do dine in, they have great service.
-
Review from Lydia K.
Huntington Beach, CA
9/14/2011 1 Check-in Here
When I first walked in, I didn't expect this place to be so small or shall I say narrow. It is a bit of an illusion as one girl mentioned in the previous review that it seemed like the other half of the restaurant was missing. Ha ha ha!
However, don't let the place discourage you. For a last minute Thai fix, I ordered the dinner special ($8.95) with pad thai and a coconut soup. Wasn't exactly sure the name of it but it was all delicious! Portions were plentiful and food is good priced. This is going to be my take out Thai place, Woohoo! -
Review from Priscilla L.
El Cerrito, CA
9/23/2011 1 Check-in Here
This is my favorite Thai restaurant ever (ever ever ever.... [continue dramatic echoing]). Seriously. The bf took me here because it's his favorite Thai restaurant ever (without the dramatic echoing), and now it's ruined me for any other Thai restaurant! I could get mad at him about it, but... pad thai. Pad see ew. Thai iced tea. How can I be mad?
I'm really sad that I live farther from here now during the school year. Every time I get lunch with the bf, I always suggest Thai food (!), and he laughs at me. One time I forgot my leftovers from this place in his fridge, and you may laugh at this, but understand that I am perfectly serious - I was really sad about it for a few hours. And I couldn't get it out of my mind the entire night.
Today is Friday, and I think I'm going to make the bf take me to get some pad thai! :D Unless.. burritos. Hmm. -
Review from Steven N.
2.5 Stars
I've had this joint bookmarked for awhile since it is fairly close to home. I was down the street one day and finally decided to drop in and get some takeout. I decided to test how well they did something basic like pineapple fried rice. I ordered their pineapple fried rice with chicken and shrimp to go. http://www.yelp.com/bi...
This meal left a slight bad taste in my mouth. It is kind of like the same feeling one gets when eating seafood and getting some sand in their mouth. I ate half of it and chucked the rest. One of the worst versions of this dish I've tried. The chicken was super dry. The shrimp was just okay. The pineapples tasted not very fresh at all and not even yellow like. The spices didn't bring this dish home and the cashews were bland and too abundant.
I'm not sure if I would give them another shot by trying something else. They failed at this basic dish. What makes me think they can properly execute something more complex. In the restaurant biz, sometimes you only get one shot.Listed in: Surf City, USA, I like it hot and spicy - Thai…
-
Review from caroline n.
Westminster, CA
8/8/2011
I'm so excited to review this place, I just had to do it right away as I sit in my car in front of Thai Pepper. My first impression: very small, old. There was this loud sound in there that got my ears clogged as if I was at high elevation. It's okay though, the food distracted me from it anyways.
My boyfriend got the dinner special that was only 8.95, and it came with a variety of food such as shrimp fried rice, salad, egg roll, and 17 choices of entree dishes. For me, I had my usual Pad-Kee-Mow, and I must say, it is one of the best Thai food places I've ever eaten. Also, their Thai tea was tasty as well.
What I liked most about this place was the owner, Val. He actually let out a conversation with us. So sweet and actually made us felt at home. Definitely coming back. -
Review from Paula J.
Huntington Beach, CA
10/29/2011
Of course, I always have to try the panang at every new Thai place that I try. It was really runny but it tasted decent, but not the best I have ever had. It is so small and kind of ghetto in there, but the staff was nice. Don't think I would ever go again.
-
Review from Cindy T.
Anaheim, CA
8/22/2011 1 Check-in Here
This place is awesome. Nice, quick, friendly service and the food never disappoint. Their prices are also unbeatable. For under $6 (Lunch Special), you get to choose from 17 different entrees which includes salad ( their dressing is amazing), fried wonton, and your choice of fried rice or white rice.
The restaurant is small, so if you have a big party, it probably won't work.
My favorite lunch item: Tofu pad thai. yummmyyy... -
Review from Chynna Y.
Cerritos, CA
6/9/2011
I'm usually in HB on Wednesday nights, but for the first time i was there on a Tuesday night and i wanted to try Thai Pepper.. too bad they're closed on Tuesdays.. it was probably karma for something bitchy that i don't remember doing that day.
I came here on a Wed., and i was totally weirded out when i walked in. Its super tiny. I felt like half the restaurant was missing. The bf and I checked out the menu and everything seemed pretty tasty. They have a dinner special that comes with shrimp fried rice, salad and an egg roll. We ordered the chicken pad thai and tofu panang. The service was really great and everyone was super nice.
The panang was good, but i've had better. I'm a really big fan of the tofu panang at thai gulf and nothing has topped that.
But the pad thai is so freaking good. I think it might be the best pad thai i've had in a long time. The chicken was a bit dry, but honestly, that didnt even matter because of how awesome the pad thai is. I know everyone has been saying it, but it is a definite must try!
OH! they're going to be closed for a big chunk in July for their annual vacation.. -
Review from Cat N.
So glad I am living back in Huntington Beach because I get to enjoy this place again.
This place is literally a hole in the wall. Its narrow and eating here is never very comfortable. However, their food is delicious and so good. This time I got the Pad Thai dinner combo, a Pad ez ew with beef, red curry with chicken, and curried fish. Everything was in large portions and perfect. I like ordering the combos because it comes with a salad that has the best dressing. THE BESTTTTT!!!!
for 4 items, the total came to be $38. all worth it. I came early for takeout after calling and the order was already finish and ready to go. the service is awesome and the owner is such a nice dude. a good place for take out... eating in is kinda not so great. disadvantage is they close on tuesday i think and finding a spot to eat in there may be hard at certain times. -
Review from Lloyd J.
Westminster, CA
6/14/2011 3 Check-ins Here
I think I come here on a weekly basis with my mom! Yes, its that good, i'm really shocked to see the few reviews on here!
Now first of all, i'll say that this place isn't the nicest. However the people here are so nice, not to mention the food amazing. Also lunch specials are even better!
For 5.95 you get a choice from a list of their entrees, a salad with sweet mayo dressing?, house fried rice or steamed rice, and fried wontons. Now for that price what more can you ask for? It is a lot of food for such an amazing price.
I've tried so many things here that are all so good an tasty I just don't know where to start, however my personal favorite has to be the pad thai. Now you might say "pad thai, how typical is that?"; however you don't know till you try it. It is probably the most flavorful, tastiest, pad thai i've ever had. And with the portions they serve here you can never have too much!
I'll probably come here maybe tomorrow! -
Review from Ali a.
Huntington Beach, CA
7/12/2011
I'm no food snob, but like anybody, I appreciate good quality. I got the pad kee mow with shrimp, which was supposed to be spicy rice noodles with tomatoes, bean sprouts, bell pepper and basil. This is what I got:
- two huge slices tomatoes, hardly cooked
- 5 shrimp that were incredibly overcooked
- a mere splattering of basil
- NO bell peppers
- extremely greasy and clumpy noodles
Not to mention that for just one single order, it took an entire hour to prepare it. I ordered over phone, he said give them a half hour. Once I got there, I had to wait ANOTHER half hour. Granted they were busy, and yes, they are very nice people, but seriously?
There are WAYYYY better places around huntington. Silk Thai is much better quality and while I'm at it, the restaurant is much cleaner and nicer. -
Review from Kriss P.
2/12/2011
Tiny Thai Oasis
Driving from the other side of town as I pass many-a-Thai-joints seems like a lot of work for some, but thanks to Danea O. I decided to make the journey to give Thai Pepper a test run!
This oasis is slightly bigger then their rival Thai Gulf, but not by much. The place was packed to the brim during the Monday lunch rush. Though the owner was a tad frazzled with the orders & people on stand by, he eventually helped us out. We initially ordered our lunch for take-out since there were no seats left, but the owner surely accommodated us by moving the heater from a small corner table. How nice of them!
Highlights & Low-lights:
*Parking is pretty horrible!!
*Get here early or be ready for a wait if you want to dine in
*Good selection of Thai & Chinese cuisine; check out their website
*Got the pad thai lunch special which came with fried wontons, salad & choice of fried or steamed rice
*Pad thai was delicious; noodles weren't stuck together and was very "saucy"
*It's rumored that they import some of their ingredients straight from the motherland
*The owner was very nice & even gave my little one some donuts and extra fortune cookies.
*No real service during our nosh session since it was rush hour but we had everything we needed anyway
The lunch special was cheap & the food was good. What more can you ask for?? I can't wait to try some more of their dishes.Listed in: Tasty Tongue Teasing, Four Star List, Tantalizing Thai
-
Review from Melissa G.
Huntington Beach, CA
3/31/2011
I ordered for delivery, quick, fast and friendly service. I order the Mint Leave Beef. DELISH, full of lots of flavor...I have missed this dish. The last time I had it, it was the proper way with the minced beef, it had the great same taste I had years ago.
Also, I order crab fried rice. YUMMY!!
Will be eating here again very soon.
Can't wait to try some of their Curry dishes. I'm pregnant, so I'm having to stay away from spicy foods, heartburn hell right now but can't wait until I can order it up as spicy as I like!!! -
Review from Andrea D.
Chicago, IL
4/15/2011
I can't even count the number of times I've been here. I'm such a creature of habit that I've only ever ordered two dishes here: the Pad Thai and the Pad Ze Ew, both with tofu. They are even thoughtful enough to ask if egg is ok in the dishes if you order with tofu, since some of us tofu fans are also vegan. I also love that the Pad Ze Ew can come with Chinese broccoli instead of regular broccoli. Yum!
The owner is ridiculously nice and he'll remember what you like to order if you come here often enough! Parking can be atrocious if you come to this shopping center during dinner hours. I frequently would just call ahead to have my order ready for pick up about half an hour later or so, depending upon how busy they were. And there's always delivery if you live close enough.
I actually was back in town recently after moving to Chicago and I brought my boyfriend here so he could taste my "default Pad Ze Ew" to try to replicate it for me at home :P -
Review from Sally S.
Huntington Beach, CA
6/6/2011
Been wanting to try this place for a while.
We had the jumping wings along with dinner specials of kon pao chicken and chop suey, not exactly wild taste testing I know. The flavors were pretty good but to me not that intense, the food was really good, especially the amount of it for the price. Totally worth it for that reason alone.
Really loved the wings. Very good flavor to them.
Nice service. The guy behind the counter was very nice and friendly. I can't decide which one I liked better Thai Pepper or Thai Gulf which only means I will have to try them both again, probably multiple times. -
Review from J l.
Orange County, CA
12/20/2011
good food, good prices.
-
Review from Juje J.
San Diego, CA
3/21/2011
I'm trying to be fair about this review, so I'll give you my breakdown of the THAI PEPPER restaurant located at Huntington Beach.
It's cheap and inexpensive and for the low price of $5.50 (the lunch special), you really get a lot for what you pay for.
The lunch combo consist of Deep Fried Wontons, your choice of White or Fried Rice, a Salad with a Creamy Asian Salad Dressing that consisted of shredded carrots and Iceberg Lettuce, and your choice of 17 main dishes to choose from.
I ordered the Stir Fried Vegetables for my main dish.
My verdict: It was decent...not quite the best Asian food I've ever had but it was sub-par to what I am accustomed to when it comes to Thai Food.
The Fried Rice was average at best...if anything, I thought it was a little bland for my taste. The Wontons were a little overcooked and I ended up throwing the stuff away, and the Salad didn't have enough ingredients in it to make it taste good. Iceberg Lettuce with creamy Asian Salad Dressing didn't quite do it for me.
The Stir Fried Vegetables were above average in my opinion, and helped out in the rating I gave it. I love the seasoning on the stir fried veggies, but unfortunately one item doesn't make the whole meal.
I give THAI PEPPER a lot of credit because the food is cheap and the restaurant was pretty clean and I also want to add, the cashier was pretty nice. Unfortunately the three side dishes I ordered with the main dish were below average at best...3 Stars. -
Review from Nicole N.
Orange County, CA
1/3/2011
PAD. THAI. LUNCH. SPECIAL. Can't be beat for $6 and change!!
The pad thai noodles were al dente and spiced perfectly! The salad dressing that came along with the lunch special is soo good and can be bought be the bottle!
This place is definitely a hole-in-the-wall but I always take that as a good sign for authentic, no frills, cheap and filling food!
The owner is really nice too! -
Review from Jaime L.
Huntington Beach, CA
11/16/2010 3 Check-ins Here
3.5 stars.
Thai Pepper is located in the Matsu shopping center and is an extremely small space.
I came in yesterday and was hoping for a soup combo meal, but they didn't have the lunch special with soup.
Strange.
I ordered a small Tom Yum Kai ($5.99) and a diet coke. I heard the chef in the back making the soup so I knew it was fresh, after about 5 minutes, my bowl of soup came out.
It didn't have the coconut milk which I'm used to seeing but to my happy surprise, it did have real chunks of tender chicken breast. YES!
The soup had that slightly sour taste to it with lots of mushrooms, lemon grass and cilantro. I think the coconut milk would've balanced out the sour but overall it was pretty descent.
I would come here again to try some other things.Comment from Vallop S. of Thai Pepper 8/13/2011
The soup you were expecting is Tom Kha Kai (Menu item # 17).… More » -
Review from Michelle M.
Orange, CA
10/7/2011
I have been eating at Thai Pepper for years. The food is always fresh, whether I dine it, use take-out of delivery. The owners are also very sweet. It's definitely small for dining in, but I love this place and ironically, have never had difficulty getting a table. Even when the place is busy.
-
Review from Grace L.
Buena Park, CA
4/5/2011
THE BEST THAI PLACE IN OC.
It's located in an unassuming strip mall on beach and talbert, so parking can be tough (because matsu is right next door).
A little mom and pop, hole in the wall place, which I LOVE! I've tried a variety of things, and i recommend everything, but i especially love their pad see ew. I'm a noodle type of girl. haha
The grandma who cooks the food is old school and her cooking is the best. There aren't many seats so i recommend getting it to go.
SO GOOD. -
Review from Chris D.
6/4/2011 4 photos
I was feeling like some Thai food and this restaurant was on the way to our next destination so Donna and I stopped in for lunch. Place is small but had plenty of seating along the length of the restaurant. Ordering is done at the counter. Service was extremely friendly!
We both had Thai iced teas which were very tasty. Since this is mainly a to-go place the drinks came in big styrofoam cups.
There's a pretty good selection of items for $5.95 that come with small salad, fried or steamed rice, and fried won-tons. Or for $8.95 you get a bigger portion, egg roll, larger salad, and shrimp fried rice. I did the $8.95 which was a very large portion but not really worth the extra price... the only difference between the regular fried rice and the shrimp fried rice was a single tiny shrimp placed on top of the pile of rice. I was disappointed in that.
To start we had the pork pot-stickers which were topped with fried garlic and cilantro. It was served with soy sauce to dip them in. We both thought they were very flavorful and we'd order them again. You can also get them steamed. http://www.yelp.com/bi...
Donna had the $5.95 lunch special mint chicken. The portion size was perfect and she said it was a "3.5 stars" lunch. It was a bit bland. http://www.yelp.com/bi...
I had the $8.95 dinner special of eggplant with chicken. I was a bit pissed when I said "Make it spicy, really spicy" and the cook came over to the register and said "no... I'll make it medium". I'm like "Huh? No, I can handle it, I want it spicy". Even the owner guy at the register said "yea, make it hot" and the byatch refused!!! It's a fucking Thai restaurant... if I want spicy make it spicy... don't decide for me. I get my meal and I could barely detect any heat what so ever which pissed me off. I complained to who I assume is the owner and he gave me some kick ass condiment to put over my meal. It was super tiny green an red chilies in fish sauce. It was salty and extremely spicy. The dish itself was very tasty. The eggplant soaked up the sauce nicely. The chicken was overcooked but still good. As I mentioned above I'd just get the lunch special. The eggroll was good but the shrimp fried rice had one single shrimp so not worth the $3 price difference. http://www.yelp.com/bi...
I'd definitely come back..... but if they pull that "No, you get it medium" next time due to some racism bullshit I won't be back. I proved I could handle your secret spicy chili pepper condiment so I should be worthy to order my food spicy. I passed the test. Even the owner was on my side... it was the bitchy female cook.
The table behind us had a infant baby.... Every female employee had to come over and pick up the baby and walk around the restaurant with it while it screamed its head off. Kid didn't want anything to do with them. Funny for some reason. :-D
Got back to my car after eating and it wouldn't start..... :-( Review after this is my experience on that. -
Review from Brady K.
Anaheim, CA
1/3/2011 3 Check-ins Here
Thai Pepper has the BEST pad thai I've tried.
the price makes it taste even better.
Not only is their food delicious, everyone working there is so nice. I observed as a few customers walked in and it seems like they have a very nice amount of regulars. They seem to have a really amicable bond with them, too. Then i realized it's hard not to like these people, they make it so easy to like them. It's a very comfortable place.
Their lunch special runs from 11-3pm for $5.50. It's served with salad, fried wonton, fried/ white rice, and one choice from 17 different items.
Their dinner special runs all day for $8.95. It's served with salad, egg roll, shrimp fried rice, and one choice from the 17 different items as well.
your choices include:
-pad thai
-kung pow chicken
-yellow curry chicken
-chicken chop suey
-beef bell pepper
-ginger chicken
-mint leaves chicken
-beef broccoli
-sweet&sour chicken
-garlic pepper chicken
-mixed stir fried vegetables
-chicken teriyaki
-tofu curry
-orange chicken
-bbq pork
-pad prik king (chicken and green beans)
-spicy eggplant with chicken
they also have a lot of other items that are just as reasonably priced and delicious as well.
I've had the fried wonton appetizer {12 pieces for a little over $3!!), the pad thai lunch special, the papaya salad, and the thai boat noodle with the thai iced cofee to drink.
The pad thai is cooked perfectly, I know of many places that tend to make it really oily, and after a few bites the oil coats my tongue and everything tastes naaaastaaaay. Usually I grow tired of pad thai after a few bites, it's one of those dishes that I crave but I'm not really fond of. From HERE though, I ate until i was stuffed and still wanted more pad thai. It wasnt too sweet, nor was it to sour. it fell right in the perfect spot, i didn't even need to mix in the peanuts or add lemon.
I was overjoyed when I tried the papaya salad because I've been searching for a place that makes it really good, but I'm usually stuck with places that don't add enough flavor to the papaya or just use dried shrimp. This place made it similar to a tiny thai shop I used to go to as a kid, where she made the salad for us whenever we stopped by to order it. The paste used wasn't too over powering, I could taste every ingredient used in the dish.
The thai boat noodle was okay. It wasn't anything great, but it wasn't bad either. It was a rainy day, i enjoyed the warmth and comfort of a bowl of soup.
The thai iced coffee, OH MY GOD.
It was love at first sip.
Order it, you won't regret it. I'd go back just for the thai iced coffee,
but then why stop at just that? -
Review from Phuong K.
2/25/2011
I was craving some Thai food today and I wanted to try someplace new and my friend has been telling me that this place has the best pad thai he's ever tried. So i decided to try it...Its a small little mom and pop shop.
I got the pad thai Medium spicy (yes, you can specify how spicy you want it) with a combination of chicken, pork, beef, and shrimp and Thai tea. All this for about 10 bucks. They had the food ready relatively quickly and it had a good kick to it and they put a ton of meat in it, maybe too much meat but I really like it.
They also have a bunch of lunch specials here from 11-3 and the Orange chicken looks really good...I will probably try that next time. I ate less than half of my pad thai. I will definitely come back here again. Not sure if I like this place more than Thai Gulf but it is definitely pretty good here and good portions. -
Review from danea o.
Huntington Beach, CA
Updated - 11/19/2010
Seriously the BEST pad thai around the OC. I have yet to find a better place. Me and my husband love this place!
Things to get:
(we get everything in tofu, its so good here)
Pad Thai
Pad Kee Mow
Chicken Satay
I totally recommend coming here. Dont judge a book by its cover. It is a small little place, but definitly home style, the whole family works there and the owners are soooo nice and friendly and definitely remember you.
And on top of it all, its cheap and comes with a lot of food!
Thank you for satisfying my hunger and pad thai cravings! : )1 Previous Review: Show all »
-
6/12/2009
love it! it always were me and my family get our phai thai. its soo good and you can order 1-10 on… Read more »
-
-
Review from Bonnie B.
Huntington Beach, CA
9/22/2011
Now this is what I'm talking about! Good Thai food in Huntington! The good reviews on this place aren't misleading like the others in this area.
Eat here, promise you won't be disappointed.
