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    Circles Contemporary Thai

    3.5 (468 reviews)
    Open 12:00 pm - 10:30 PM
    Updated over 3 months ago

    Order Circles Contemporary Thai Takeout or Delivery

    Circles Contemporary Thai Photos

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    CIRCLES CONTEMPORARY THAI ATMOSPHERE

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

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    Pineapple fried rice
    William N.

    This is one of our go-to places for Thai food. It is nicer than most other Thai restaurants. It's a bit pricier too but the portions are decent.

    Dejah D.

    The food here was amazing! Popped in on a random weekday, the restaurant was very quiet and romantic on the inside--Cute for a date night! The service was top tier, the staff was prompt, helpful and kind. I really enjoyed everything we ate--The crab pad Thai was to die for. We also had the Penang curry shrimp dish which was tasty too. And for starters the shrimp summer rolls and crab ragoon was the best I've ever had. I will be back soon!

    Ling C.

    Circles Thai is an unassuming restaurant located on the outskirts of Northern Liberties. It's a small restaurant with 10 tables. The ambiance and vibes are impeccable, especially when you consider the price of their food. It's perfectly dim and well decorated with flowers on the table and lining the walls of the beaches. It's one of the most classy casual Thai restaurants I've been to. Our server was also incredibly nice and attentive! Now for the food: We got the fried Thai rolls to share. They were so fresh, super hot, and incredibly stuffed with a perfect blend of meat, noodles, and vegetables. It had a perfectly crispy exterior and savory, soft, umami filling. We weren't sure what exactly the wrapper was. It was similar to rice paper wrapper as it had a unique texture; it still managed to have a chew to it which was awesome. The savory roll paired well with the sweet plum sauce. For my entree, I got the tofu pad Thai with a "hot" spice level. The tofu is deep fried so it was still crispy and there was a TON of it too! It had the perfect amount of vegetables and the noodles were perfectly cooked. This pad Thai is not sweet at all like some variations may be! It's spicy and has a nice deep flavor. I handle spice pretty well so I wouldn't say the "hot" is too spicy. It's a little less spicier than the Buldak noodles to me. The portions are super generous, I had leftovers! This place is being added to my rotation of regular restaurants!

    Panang Curry - Hot
    Emily B.

    Great flavor! Usually I order hot from Thai places and it barely has a kick but this place was actually very spicy. I would probably order medium next time. I selected "chicken" and it also came with vegetables which is great. Rice was included even though it didn't say so. Nice surprise!

    Tofu green curry
    Phylicia H.

    Dined here for the first time last night and thought the food, service and ambiance were great! A small, quiet and clean restaurant with dim lighting. Majority of the people were actually dining alone. Our waitress was very kind and attentive. We picked spice level 3 for all dishes and she let us know she could always bring out extra spice if we want it hotter. We ordered the papaya salad, chicken pad Thai and tofu green curry to share. Everything was delicious! Papaya salad was nice and refreshing. Pretty presentation and a nice palette cleanser. The pad Thai was tasty, but was not the best I ever had. I'd still recommend it, but next time I will try a different noodle dish. Green curry was flavorful and a bit more liquidy than others. Great flavors and very filling. Byo spot with great prices. Highly recommend for a nice casual Thai dinner!

    Khao Soi
    Karen N.

    Wonderful tasty food! Comes out hot and very nice portions- a lot of choices too. Friendly and prompt service.

    Pineapple curry w/ pork
    Joseph T.

    What a nice surprise! The girlfriend & I had tix to a show at the Foundry, and the places we wanted to eat were all completely full with super long waits. So at this point, we're just like, "First place that looks open and has availability, we just have to eat there." *Glances across the street* "What about that place?" Works for me! Yummy food! One of my favorite restaurants in my hometown has a pineapple curry that I absolutely love, so I had to get the pineapple curry at Circles to compare. They're nearly indistinguishable! Which is absolutely great news for me. The pork & crab dumplings were good. Not amazing. Just good. The sauce had some sweetness. Like a syrup? Molasses? I dunno, there's some sweetness in there. It was good, but not amazing. Never tasted the crab. Just the pork. Friendly staff. Nice decor. Good price. Lovely surprise. The only reason I hesitate to give it a 5th star is because it didn't blow my hair back. But, I did find myself nodding with approval quite a bit. Can't go wrong with Circles. I'll be visiting again, no question. Pro tip: if you like spicy food but don't like things *too* spicy, then level 3 will work just fine.

    Jody S.

    I can't believe I've never written a review about this establishment since it has been my go to take out location for years. I've had 2 dine in experiences and countless delivery orders. Each time that I've patronized this location parking was always a headache but that's not a surprise if you're familiar with the area. The restaurant is very warm and cozy inside. Each time I've dined in, I dined by the entrance and was warmly greeted and accommodated by the staff. There was some wait in getting our meals due to the high volume of orders they receive. The food though is consistent, delicious, and satisfying. My go to is the Pad See Ew with shrimp but I've had the Panang Curry, and Snapper in the past. I love spice so I get medium spicy and every now and then very spicy (which is not for the faint of heart). While to me this is the best Thai food in Philly, the portion of shrimp provided per dish is very small (5-6 shrimp). For this I would have to give 4 stars vs. 5 stars especially since the up-charge is significant. Anyway, we were looking for a Thai dinner last night and this satisfied my Thai food fix!

    Crispy Red Snapper
    Sha M.

    Omg this spot is fire. I chose the spicy Thai option... Boy!!!! I love hot and spicy but this one here... Phew! It had my immune system flushed out. The sweat was pouring from while I keep trying to devour this dish. Philly don't play when it comes their dishes. I have to come to the location where they are making this fire bomb of flavor. The stuff I eat when I'm on the road working in the industry. Man!! Live, Love, and Laugh - Sha

    Pad Thai
    B D.

    i was strolling through the neighborhood when i came across Circles, stopped to look at the menu outside and decided to go in. Instantly greeted by CJ & ask for her recommendations & decided to go with the Pad Thai with Shrimp - medium spice level. My order was a takeout but CJ offered me a seat in the dining area & then i noticed Jack setting up working hard & spark a convo with him. Amazing people that work here & Jack even offered me a water while i waited which i greatly appreciated. I will definitely be returning off the hospitality alone. the city is still filled with love. 10/10 food. i love spicy, like sign a waiver because of my health could be at risk spicy & my nose is running while typing this lmao. Anything higher than medium is at your own risk lol. Enjoy!

    chicken and shrimp Pad Kee Mow
    Amanda W.

    Thai food always make me happy. The spice level is 10/10 guaranteed make u sweat if you choose "hot". Happy for me a spicy addict. Thai tea is good, appetizers dumplings was better than the summer roll. The filling is so good and so was the dumpling sauce. Summer roll feels lacking shrimp and too much of vermicelli. Pad see ew and Pad kee mow were so good have to try. I love the seafood freshness and the tofu is so flavorful. Whole meal 10/10

    Garlic Basil Fried Rice
    Kaitlin R.

    This will be our regular Thai place. Food is devine and the staff were very kind. Can't wait to go back and try more dishes

    Weird sauce with summer rolls. Way too salty
    Jenny K.

    I've been living in NoLibs for 4 years and some people will ask if I've had circles bc "it's so good". I hate to sound pretentious but having visited Thailand and having some of the best Thai food of my life I always refused to try this Thai restaurant that had been closed down a couple times for health violations. I finally decided to try it out to say that I've tried and in my honest opinion and for my fellow locals I have to say Baan Thai is a way better option if you're craving Thai takeout. Please refrain yourself from this whitewashed version of Thai food. And to the chefs and owner, do better. Summer rolls - I liked that the shrimp was cooked well but they were super warm which I did not like for summer rolls and no peanut sauce. Just a really salty hoisin like dipping sauce I didn't care for at all Pad see ew - the beef was so tough and chewy I refused to eat it. There were barely any noodles but lots and lots of vegetables. This was honestly a disgrace to the pad see ew! For the price I basically got sautéed vegetables with over cooked beef Red curry - this had way too much coconut milk and not enough curry paste. And I even ordered it the spiciest level! The chicken was so rubbery I also refused to eat it. It was also super watery. The best thing about my order was the side of brown rice. It was cooked well All in all, no one is allowed to tell me Circles is good Thai food anymore. The protein was inedible and the flavors were lost. This is your good ol gentrified Thai food

    Crab Rangoon

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    Food, ambiance, and service is incredible! Will definitely be returning for the Pad See Ew

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    Ask the Community - Circles Contemporary Thai

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    Kalaya

    4.4
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    Back again for another perfect Thai meal! Everything was FANTASTIC! Some of the dishes were spicy,…read morebut nothing as crazy hot as that yellow curry I had the first time. Not to mention, many of the cooling dishes did their jobs in mitigating the heat. The super-friendly and informative wait staff was careful to make sure that members of our party with food allergies were safe from shellfish. And Chef Nok stopped by our table to say hello!

    Came to here to meet up with friends who are parents of a 4 month old. The manager noticed we were…read morebeing seated in a smaller booth which would have left the parents cramped with the carseat so she immediately had the staff relocate us. The bigger booth was so much more comfortable; it definitely enhanced our experience. The waiters were also wonderful with checking in on us throughout the meal but not trying to rush us out the door. We got 3 entrees + 1 side: - pla nung manao (branzino) - tumis pla (fish curry) - gai yang naa por (half chicken) - yum makhua yao (eggplant) My favorite was the tumis pla and I was sad we didn't have leftovers to take home. The eggplant (I'm not always the biggest fan) was delicious - great texture and complexity of flavor. The food is a bit pricey (portions are quite small) but it all tastes delicious. We shared this among 4 adults and I left satisfied.

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    Xiandu Thai

    Xiandu Thai

    4.2
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    We went visited Xiandu Thai a year ago and the food was delicious minus one thing we didn't really…read morecare for. However overall it was some of the best Thai food we had in Philly and we used to live in the area years ago. We decided we had to come back and see if the food was still just as good and the results are in...IT WAS! First the customer service is still really good and the server was beyond friendly and attentive. The restaurant itself is still super quant and perfect for a girls dinner or a date night! Now onto the food! We ordered the Sexy Shrimp appetizer, Pad Thai, Dan Dan Noodles! The Sexy Shrimp appetizer was good but we weren't really a fan of the dipping sauce that came with it. It was like a chipotle dipping sauce but I think the a traditional Thai Sweet Chili would have been better. But my, my, my the Pad Thai and Dan Dan Noodles were Phenomenal! Portion size was HUGE, flavor and spice was spot on and honestly, I wish I could pick up this restaurant and move it to DC where we are located! Still phenomenal and we will continue to return everytime we come back to visit Philly!

    Phenomenal place! I love Xiandu Thai and they offer a good deal Happy Hour and their menu overall…read morehas some great options. Drinks are made well and reasonably priced. I love good Hendricks martini But I also do stray away from some of their original cocktails. The Chicken Pad Thai is my absolute favorite here. I always ask for spice and extra peanuts! Never disappointed. The Drunken Noodles are also a go-to favorite. Their starter options are sized appropriately so you'll have room for dinner. Bonnie & Peter are remarkable and they have an amazing staff. Xiandu is such a kind and friendly atmosphere with a beautiful ambiance both indoor and outdoor. Located right on Walnut Street you'll see beautiful views from their full bar (with two TVs) and they also have a beautiful patio with spacious seating. I would recommend Xiandu for a cute lunch, beautiful romantic dinner and a place to really come have some amazing Thai cuisine!

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    Mawn

    Mawn

    4.7
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    Philadelphia's food scene never disappoints and Mawn proves it. Along the same strip as popular…read moreAngelo's Pizzeria is Mawn, a Cambodian restaurant worth visiting. Walking in around 5:45pm on a Friday evening in June without a reservation, I was able to get a table for 45 minutes within five minutes. Here's my experience. 1) Food: Wow- just wow. Everything is excellent. To feed a hungry stomach, I ordered the Garlicky Cabbage, Yellow Curry Noodle Soup with Chicken, and my server gifted me with the Grilled Saht Koh as a surprise. Everything had textured flavors that are well balanced. The winner for me was the Garlicky Cabbage. Having grown up in a country where cabbage is the staple, these are among the best I've ever had. I'll note that I was warned that the Yellow Curry Noodle Soup was spicy. I love spice but can't handle it. I was unaffected by the soup's spice level. 2) Drinks: The Thai green iced tea was unique, refreshing, and delicious! I almost ordered a second. Like many places in Philly, it's BYOB so there isn't a cocktail, beer, wine menu. 3) Service: It was excellent. Taylor, my server, was passionate about the menu, personable, and interesting to talk to. She's awesome! 4) Location: In South Philly, there's a lot to experience nearby from top-rated restaurants, parks, and public art.

    Enjoying lunch at Mawn felt like I had won the lottery!! If you know how hard it is to secure a…read morereservation than you know the feeling! So you might stumble across info for the best times to secure a walk-up reservation and they'll tell you to arrive at least by 10:30am Thursday through Saturday as Mawn opens at 11am. But let me tell you how I pulled up in front of Mawn at 10:40am on a Thursday and there was already a line of about 15 people!! Mind you, these people have PEOPLEZ as quite a few were holding spots in line for others in their party who could now casually stroll up to the line since their spot was secured by their people. I'm telling you have a game plan! If I knew then what I know now I probably would have got there at least by 9:30, seriously. My party got waitlisted as soon as we were just one person away from entering the restaurant and we had to wait for another 40 minutes. Fortunately it was a nice day so we just walked around the neighborhood and came back and got in. It's a small quaint place that only seats about 28 people. You'll feel like your visiting your favorite relatives home. You'll glance around at the other guest and feel like WOW i'm one of the few who finally made it into one of the most coveted highly acclaimed restaurants in Philly! Now let me see if it lives up to the hype! haha! I started out with the pear melon salad. It was light and refreshing. I thoroughly enjoyed the citrus notes and the pear slices. I would have never thought to add the pear but that really complimented the salad well. I was told that a MUST try is the head on soft shell shrimp. At first I wasn't thrilled about the thought of eating the head but said what the heck, lets go for the full experience! If you love softshell crabs you'll love this! There was nothing off putting about it. It simply taste like delicious premium shrimp in a fish caramel sauce with a hint of thai basil and chili. It was wonderful. I could have gone for a second round but I wanted to try other items. I enjoyed the seafood fried rice..this is similar to the crab fried rice but included uni roe and caviar with saracha on the side so you can regulate your heat level. I'll say this, while I enjoyed the seafood fried rice and the bonus elements of it, I was not a fan of the texture of the rice itself. Perhaps it's just my preference. The rice was light, fluffy and slightly sticky in texture whereas I prefer more of a thai fried rice which is dry, slightly firm and non-clumpy texture. But that's not taking any cool points away from Mawn. It's just my preference that i'm mentioning in case anyone else goes in expecting a different texture. I love the team service aspect at Mawn. Our waiter emphasized that we're not bugging anybody if we need anything we can stop any staff person walking by. I love that. Beef Noodle soup is delicous here. So is the yellow curry noodle soup. The fish is really good here too. I didn't realize I could have requested for it to be deboned (probably because I was talking to much lol) But my waiter was kind enough to come over and help me debone it when they saw I was struggling lol This was the first time I ever had a green thai tea! It was really a treat. Not overly sweet. Nothing but pure deliciousness here! And a super helpful warm friendly staff.

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    Circles Contemporary Thai - thai - Updated June 2026

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