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    Cha Ba Thai

    3.8 (181 reviews)
    ModerateThai
    Closed 12:00 pm - 3:00 PM, 4:30 PM - 9:00 PM
    Updated 3 months ago

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    CHA BA THAI ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Moderate noise
    Good for kids
    Outdoor seating

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    Recommended Reviews - Cha Ba Thai

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    W. C.

    Great food! Great service! Great location! Loving the casual eclectic vibe of this place as well!

    Suren D.

    I walked in on a whim and ordered some to-go food (with special requests), the food was ready SO FAST and it was large portions and was really tasty. The customer service was also really excellent.

    Thai Ice Tea
    Elizabeth M.

    The food is incredible, very authentic! Always made well and served with a smile! Great outside seating area and the inside has a great vibe too! The customer service is fast and friendly! Favorite thai spot in portland!

    Tofu pad thai
    Morgan F.

    I stumbled across this place unintentionally and my overall experience was good. For $12 they give you a lot of food I couldnt finish it. I will say their outside seating tables were pretty gross and the food was a bit greasy, but who doesnt love a good hole in the wall every now and than.

    Chicken pad Thai
    Stephanie F.

    We looked up so many different Thai places in PDX and this is the one that we actually went to!!! SUPER impressed by their chicken pad Thai, it had a smoky flavor on the chicken rather than plain steamed chicken. The sauce was perfect and the portion was huge! On the right is the yellow curry which was just immaculate! The flavors burst out and tasted so healing on a chilly day. LOVED THIS PLACE! Go here!!

    Tripadvisor S.

    The Alberta Arts District is one of my favorite neighborhoods in Portland due to its' eclectic, Bohemian feel, great restaurants, and art/music/theatre scene. We deployed to the area of operations to see a Little Shop of Horrors charity extravaganza at the Alberta Rose Theatre just a couple of doors west of Cha Ba Thai. Not surprisingly, the large dining room was virtually empty at 5pm when we arrived, so we were guided to a four-top next to the window. The room is simple and tastefully decorated with a full bar on one side and tables on the other. There is also a large outdoor seating area with several picnic tables, so feel free to enjoy your meal al fresco if you so desire. We were promptly greeted when we entered and, after being seated, our drink/appetizer orders were promptly taken. I ordered a Ninkasa IPA ($5.50) for me and the Chicken Satay ($9.50) and Egg Rolls ($6) for the both of us to share. Each of the four satay sticks had a large serving of grilled chicken served with a tasty peanut sauce, my favorite, and some chunks of onion and cucumber in a mildly sweet sauce. The satay was very good, but I am not sure it was worth the extra $3 or $4 when compared to satay prices at most Thai restaurants I have been to. The egg rolls were small and somewhat bland, also being a buck or two more expensive to similar dishes elsewhere. My wife decided on the Pad See Ew (Tofu - $11.50), wide noodles and broccoli florets stir fried in a mild, slightly sweet soy sauce. She was very happy with the dish although I found it somewhat tasteless as well. I tend to favor the spicier and more savory Thai curry dishes, so I went with the Massaman Curry w/ Jasmine Rice ($13). The curry sauce was delicious, but not quite as thick as many I have had and the vegetables (carrot, potato, and onion) fresh, but there was a paltry amount of sliced beef on top when it arrived. Again, the prices for our entrees were each a few bucks too high in my opinion. The service was excellent, fast, friendly and efficient, and the food came out post haste. Overall, we were well satiated and happy with our meal, but the prices were a tad high in comparison to other Thai restaurants we have visited and the less than abundant beef content of my curry was disappointing, so "where's the beef?" CombatCritic Gives Cha Ba Thai 6 Bombs Out Of 10 ... More Bombs Are Better!

    Pad Kee Mao with Beef

    Best Thai in NE Portland!! I absolutely love this place. They always cook everything perfectly and it's always flavorful. Ordering online for takeout is easy and the service is always nice. Highly recommend!

    Charlie T.

    This is my go to place for Thai food for like forever! I've never had a bad experience here. The food here is always good and service is great. I've tried many things that are on the menu and sometimes things that are off the menu (only when the owner is around and had the ingredients). I am happy to recommend this place to anyone asking for a good Thai place to eat! My coworker and I came here for lunch and she wanted to see what I would eat. We ordered: - Chicken rad nah: very flavorful especially with the gravy part - Thai beef salad: one of my favs; beef cooked perfectly with the right amount of spice and seasoning - Chinese sausage fried rice: coworker never had it before, now loves it. - Thai bbq chicken: nice crisp texture with a good dipping sauce If I took a picture of every dish I've had here, there will be at least a few hundred!

    tofu vegetable Pad Thai

    i did not go inside because I ordered on doordash so I cannot speak on that portion of the service. however, this is the best Thai food I've had in forever! it was so yummy and the price was great for the large portion size. i will definitely be ordering again and looking forward to trying more!

    Nice colorful place!
    Debbie B.

    Loved the pad Thai! Service was pleasant and attentive. Colorful napkins add to the pleasant atmosphere. I ordered tofu and chicken in my pad Thai and the tofu was big rectangles of perfectly cooked goodness. Just the right ratio of crunch, chewiness, and soft insides. I always ask for cilantro (why don't Portland Thai restaurants use cilantro in pad Thai?) and they gave me a nice amount to sprinkle into my dish. Thumbs up!

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    1 year ago

    Went for a birthday party. I have gone to the location on Sandy before and it was really good. Would recommend

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    2 years ago

    Great Thai food and good prices. The service is quick and they get your food out fast. A really cozy place to go on a cold night.

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    3 years ago

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    9 years ago

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    3 years ago

    Good Panang curry. Good rice. Salad rolls excellent. I'll keep trying till I hit a dud on the menu but so far I'm pleased.

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    3 years ago

    Good, authentic Thai food. Friendly, good service. Reasonable prices. Will be back. Quite a neighborhood gem.

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    5 years ago

    I tend to end up at the Sandi location, but I've always had good experiences here too. Cha ba Thai makes the best Thai food in Portland

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    5 years ago

    Do not go here. Very bad food. Literally go anywhere else and it will most likely be better tasting.

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    Eem

    Eem

    4.4(1.6k reviews)
    1.7 miMississippi, Boise, North Portland, Northeast Portland
    $$

    That white curry with brisket burnt ends is everything. Sweet & sour fried chicken slaps too. Worth…read morethe 40 min wait. Go hungry.

    Ambiance: Very well lit and warm. It's inviting and pretty…read moreloud, but it looks like it's a very popular place. We were visiting and was told that the drinks here are very good. They have big windows that open up and a bar area with hooks to put your things. Service: We sat at the bar area since we didn't have a reservation right in front of the employee sink. I will say that as an observational person, I noticed a lot of female employees washing their hands, but very few male employees washing their hands. I was glad to have a female server. She followed up often with drinks, which was fantastic. Food: We got the Kingston Fix slushy tiki drinks and those were good. Nice and refreshing for the hot day. Sweet and sour fried chicken - the small was plenty for us, since we had been snacking all day. They were lightly breaded, very crispy, and not heavily drenched in sauce, but still very flavorful. White curry with brisket burnt ends - light curry taste and the pieces of brisket made this dish so robust. The brisket was a bit crunchy at the tips, but it fell apart in your mouth and wasn't chewy or tough. Overall wonderful experience. My dudes - please wash your hands. (We were there ~45 minutes and one dude with glasses washed his hands twice. I didn't see any other dude wash, but maybe there's another sink elsewhere.)

    Photos
    Eem - VIBES

    VIBES

    Eem - Chopped BBQ Fried Rice

    Chopped BBQ Fried Rice

    Eem - Wok fried yu choy

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    Wok fried yu choy

    Nong's Khao Man Gai - Our signature dish. Ask for skin on or off.

    Nong's Khao Man Gai

    4.3(2.4k reviews)
    2.8 miLower Burnside, Industrial District, Buckman, Central Eastside, Southeast Portland
    $$
    Women-owned & operated
    Minority-owned & operated

    Great chicken and rice. Not sure how they do it, but the chicken is soft, tender, moist and very…read moreflavorful and the rice is very aromatic and delicious. The sauce they use with the chicken and rice is great and is worth buying to take home to make your own dishes better. There is a good amount of seating both inside and out. I also tried the pork which was good but I prefer the chicken so will stick to that on a future visit. I have tried a lot of places that do the same thai style chicken and rice and it's almost always a miss for me, something is always off, usually the chicken is touch, or too dry, or lacking flavor but here it just hits right.

    1. Food: 3.5 out of 5. Chicken and rice doesn't tastes so great. Chicken is too dry and not juicy…read morenot tendered. Chicken and rice set has unseasoned cucumber. Pork and rice are pretty tasty and I would recommend you getting it if you like pork. Pork and rice set also provides some veggies which added variety and flavors. We also got mango sticky rice. It tastes good but I won't say it's a must have. 2. Services: this is a half serf serving restaurant. They will bring foods to you. But you have to serve your own water/tea, chili sauce etc. But this is expected. You can enjoy a little bit of the street food vibe here. Overall, the cost is pretty reasonable if you want a quick bite and if you don't need many food options or if you want to try out this experience.

    Photos
    Nong's Khao Man Gai - Lychee Rita!!

    Lychee Rita!!

    Nong's Khao Man Gai - Bitter Melon Soup (Chicken Noodle Soup) - tasty

    Bitter Melon Soup (Chicken Noodle Soup) - tasty

    Nong's Khao Man Gai

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    Zaap Thai - Chicken skewers

    Zaap Thai

    4.8(329 reviews)
    1.5 miBoise, Northeast Portland
    $$

    Incredible!! The best Thai food we have ever had. To be fair, I haven't been to Thailand yet, but I…read morehave tried a variety of Thai places across the U.S. This was amazing and I will definitely make a special stop here next time I am in Portland. Service was efficient on a weekday for lunch. I was very impressed that the woman serving us also cooks. She said she has one other person helping her over the weekend. The food was SO DELICIOUS. This was the best pad Thai we had with such depth of flavor - not too sweet or oily, just perfect. We also had the pad kra pao, eggplant and tom kha. The tom kha had good flavor and with a thinner broth that I'm used to which was fabulous. The eggplant was so delicious - the consistency was incredible. Not too soggy, just right. I also tried the mango sticky rice. For drinks we had the Thai lemon tea which tasted like Thai iced tea without the milk and lemon added - delightful! We even bought an extra dish to take with us to go. Amazing place. Ambiance is casual. I can't wait to return.

    We had an awesome experience at Zaap! We went at an odd hour but they were ready and on their game!…read moreSuper friendly service and we had a tall beer in no time. The egg rolls were really good, so was the Duck Curry, but the fried rice stole the show. Something so simple packed with so much flavor. Very laid back vibe, with a bit of a dark subtle decor that allows for a solid date spot as well.

    Photos
    Zaap Thai
    Zaap Thai - Delicious take out spread after comic con!

    Delicious take out spread after comic con!

    Zaap Thai - Pumpkin curry with chicken

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    Pumpkin curry with chicken

    Khao Moo Dang - #19 Pork Dumplings

    Khao Moo Dang

    4.6(598 reviews)
    3.2 miHawthorne, Sunnyside, Southeast Portland
    $$

    I am so sad that I am from out of town so I won't be able to eat Khao Moo Dang again. The 7.2…read moreBa-Mhee Tom-Yum Naam was the star of our meal. Soup was very flavorful and had a small spicy kick (beware if you can't handle spice). The 8. House Curry Noodle was also good but not our favorite since it was too sweet forward for our liking. It was the best khao soi we've ever had though. The crispy pork belly topping that is included in both items was the best crispy pork belly we've had from Thai restaurant. It looks like it can be dry but it's actually soft moist flavorful and freshly crispy. Other places they make it too dry or too hard, or the skin is stale/hard. Lastly $3 Cha-Yen you can't beat the value of this. It actually had such good tea flavor and not overly sweet or weak like a lot of other restaurants. We liked it so much we bought more to go to enjoy during the rest of our trip.

    Great food, chill vibes, can't ask for much more. Just a nice order ahead and sit down with your…read morefood spot. Flavorful dishes and they come out surprisingly fast. You get great value for your money too. The saucy pictured dish is the Khao Moo Dang Pi-Set for $18, very filling because you get the extras with a whole boiled egg, dumplings, and yu choy. I was starving after a workout and was pretty full after eating this. My wife got the Ba-Mhee Tom-Yum which had great flavor with a good kick, my wife can't handle spice well and struggled a bit but it was perfect to me. Egg noodles were perfect and not soggy. Biggest surprise of these dishes was the crispy pork belly that remained crispy despite being in sauce or broth. I would come back for sure for a solid delicious meal.

    Photos
    Khao Moo Dang - Interior, order at counter then they bring food to you

    Interior, order at counter then they bring food to you

    Khao Moo Dang - 8. House Curry Noodle

    8. House Curry Noodle

    Khao Moo Dang - Mango juice

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    Mango juice

    Paadee - Pad Se Ew

    Paadee

    4.1(705 reviews)
    2.5 miKerns
    $$

    Rare is the restaurant that makes one dish so well that you don't ever allow yourself to experience…read morethe remainder of the menu. Such is my experience with the Green Curry at Paadee. It is, in a word, perfect. I can only imagine what their other offerings taste like, but I myself may never know because the Green Curry is just that good. Add in excellent and attentive service and a very Portlandesque atmosphere and Paadee is a definite winner. Easily one of the best Thai restaurants in the city. If I were to pick one thing to gripe about it's that it's so good that sometimes seating isn't available, but good for them. Get it to go instead if that happens.

    Upon entering you see the wood feels like were in SE Asia? Ceiling lamps feels like bamboo. I see a…read moredish being carried to a table the waitress smiling carrying the plate with ease. We are greeting letting us know to come to the front of the counter to order although the sign says Please wait to be seated. A little confusion but with smiles, so we are happy. They are moving chairs... sit here..or here. A stack of menus by the point of sale...but you know this place is good by the smells, laughter and the smiles, the vibe...you want to be here everything is moving smooth. The person same person that guided us with the menu also delivered one of the dishes. We order some Thai ice teas, Pad see ew and Tom kha gai. The noodles fat wide on the Pad see ew. Some veggies huge bomb shrimp cooked perfectly, everything cooked spot on. The soup cream coconut flavors a little steamy on the cool day in Portland. Great tasting. They stop by to drop off the food and come by later delivering spices and checking on us. A bustling place. I see an egg plant dish.. must try that... the crowd is upscale... the food some of Portland's finest.

    Photos
    Paadee - Atmosphere

    Atmosphere

    Paadee - Peek Gai Tod

    Peek Gai Tod

    Paadee - Green curry w/ chicken

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    Green curry w/ chicken

    Thai Peacock

    Thai Peacock

    4.1(1.4k reviews)
    3.3 miDowntown
    $$

    I went here, based on a double recommendation from the Marriott Bidwell, and am inclined to agree…read morethat the food and ambiance are terrific. It's also very casual with a sign welcoming all people. The food was excellent: spicy and flavorful, though they seemed worried about me ordering the highest spice level. They checked on me three times, which was sweet. The larb appetizer was a generous portion -- probably enough for five or six people! It was also tasty, with the flavors of fish sauce, lime and chili blending nicely. There were some nice chunks of chilis visible. The mixed seafood Pad Khi-Mao (their spelling of a dish I've seen spelled a number of different ways) was also delicious. Fiery, loaded with umami and balanced by basil, onions, scallions and tomato. The textures were perfect: the shrimp and calamari were firm, but not chewy. The scallops were perfectly tender, and the noodles toothsome. I loved every bite of my favorite Thai dish. Service was friendly and quick.

    I don't usually review restaurants I've only gotten take-out from, but the food was toooo good not…read moreto. It was these meatballs. The chicken teriyaki meatball appetizer was SO GOOD. They were super tender, so juicy, literally the most perfect meatballs. Topped with some kind of cream sauce and lots of fresh green onion, it was perfect. I also got the massaman curry with tofu, which was a very generous portion! It was a good curry! And I loved the default rice not being plain white rice, mine had some kind of sprouted grain that (I feel like lol) made it more appetizing and fulfilling. But again truly get the meatballs.

    Photos
    Thai Peacock
    Thai Peacock
    Thai Peacock

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    Cha Ba Thai - thai - Updated June 2026

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