Houa Khong 2

The Papaya Salad is so fresh & full of summer vibes! Highly recommend! Bonus- the couple that owns…read morethe restaurant is the sweetest!

When my sister went to school in Merced, we always made sure to stop by Papaya Lady whenever we're…read morein town. Since she has graduated, I won't be in town anytime soon, but I highly recommend them for some good Thai and Laotian bites if you're ever in Merced! They have a selection of delicious dishes and I have loved everything that I've tried. My go-to orders are the Papaya Salad and Khao Poon. The papaya salad is a must and the spice level was the perfect amount. The Khao Poon is a coconut curry based noodle soup that is so flavorful. I've also come to really enjoy the Nam Khao (Laotian crispy rice salad), each bite is crunchy and absolutely delish. Your Asian comfort food cravings will definitely be satisfied here. Wishing The Papaya Lady continued success!

Nam vanh

Nam Wan

See all

Nam khao

Houa Khong Restaurant

3.9(144 reviews)

2.6 mi

Food and Ambiance was both authentic. Portions were huge! Service was attentive…read more I got the green curry lunch special. It was hot and went well with the rice. The drunken noodles were too wet. The tomatoes might have added too much water. The combination pho was nice, the broth had a little sweetness. Thai basil would have made it better. The spring rolls were a tasty snack on the road.

Best home food in Merced. Food is authentic, I ordered Lao Papaya and raw beef Larb. I always stop…read moreby here when I visit relatives. Parking is good, space is big for a party of 10 or lower. I always to go it but the cashier person was friendly. I definitely recommend this place.

Back room dining area

Spicy wings with sauce on the side

See all

Coconut Cafe

4.2(262 reviews)

1.9 mi

Great service, great food! Thank Yelp for another great…read morerecommendation! We couldn't wait to wait to eat, thus photo is after we chowed down. Food had great flavors and portion were good. -Thai fried rice: shrimp, calamari, scallops -Pad see ew: sliced beef, fat rice noodles and American broccoli stir fried with a lightly sweet soy sauce. -BBQ beef, large portion, side of cucumbers and rice. Location HIDDEN in backside of business center next to Indonesian grocery store. Plenty of parking. Ambiance

I went to dine at coconut cafe and I was incredibly impressed with the entire experience. The…read moreservice was excellent and everyone was very nice, attentive, and our food came out pretty quickly. The food tasted great, fresh, and unique. We finished every last bite and can't wait to come back to try more things on the menu, thanks!

The seating.

See all

Inside

Sam Cafe

4.1(490 reviews)

2.6 mi

Our family went to Sam's Café tonight. The staff were very friendly and the food was delicious. I…read morehad the Pad Thai and we shared the imperial roles. The imperial rolls were great! So was the pad Thai, several family members had other dishes and we were all pleased with our choices. It will be a place that we visit again!

Wonderful food at a great price nice atmosphere friendly Staff great service. Clean nice portionsread more

See all

New Thai Cuisine

4.0(426 reviews)

2.3 mi

Shrimp in a blanket are amazing and the service is great!! So many delicious options.read more

I love this place. Whenever I'm feeling sick and I just want soup I always think of this place. The…read morepho broth is so flavorful and warming. It was our first time getting the vegetables pad Thai but it was really good. The server asked us if we wanted it spicy and we didn't even know that was an option. Our server is really kind. She's there every time we go and we never seen or heard an issue. We also DoorDash from there occasionally. The Thai wings are also very delicious especially paired with sticky rice and their chili oil!

Dining room

Pad See ew

See all

Red curry with shrimp

Kua Lao Thai Kitchen

4.8(67 reviews)

36.0 mi

What an amazing experience. We came into this small grocery store, expecting a restaurant, but we…read morefound a smaller Service counter in the back of the store that they have a little kitchen with the most amazing food you ever had. If you love Thai food then you need to really get yourself out and try the food. The Nok, was so hospitable and working in the kitchen, actually all the ladies that were working in the kitchen were charming and helpful and guided us through the menu and the flavors were so believably wonderful I really missed having true ocean food and this is the destination. You can go to nice restaurants with candles and music and get bad food you come to this quiet little place and sit down and have one of the most incredible meals you've ever had. We are packing a lot of food to go because we live so far away and believe me it will all be eaten with the love of the food and the smiles of the Laotians that made it.

Wow! What a great place. From the outside it looks like a non-descript grocery and purified water…read morestore but inside lurks a very authentic and delightful restaurant! Walk right through the near windowless building and walk back to the right rear corner of the building. The delicious aroma should be your guide. I ordered the Pad eggplant with pork and my partner ordered the Pad Woon Sen. It's also nice that they allow you to pick the protein, Beef, Pork or Chicken. They also ask for your preferred spice level. I say choose carefully as my spice experienced partner confidentially ordered "Spicy". He ended up looking like he got caught in a downpour and was drenched in sweat! lol The woman who took our order was very friendly and helpful! She answered all of our questions about the food with confidence and personal knowledge! The prices are stuck in the early 2020's and the amount of food in the serving is generous! The building is old but the store and the restaurant are spotless! No clutter, all products neatly stacked and the shelves loaded with food items were neatly stacked and arranged. I'll definitely be stopping by again to try the Pad Eggplant with a different protein or maybe to try something new. They also serve drinks. The Thai Ice Tea was very good!

Pork spring rolls

See all

Eggrolls!

Bangkok Thai Restaurant

4.0(250 reviews)

2.2 mi

Incredible food! Got the green curry which was delicious and well seasoned. Great eggplant which is…read morehard to cook right. could benefit from some lighting/ambiance changes but don't let that stop you from trying it!

Okay, so the ambiance could use a little work, but this was the best green curry I have ever had…read more This place is amazing! But you might consider takeout

The restaurant

Chicken Pad Thai

See all

Blú Lotus Lao & Thai Restaurant

4.3(323 reviews)

31.2 mi

The staff is so friendly and helpful! 5 for them…read more The decor and spacing of tables is great! I appreciate that we weren't too crowded. Unfortunately, I was underwhelmed with the food. The Tom Kia Ghai was very lime forward with very little coconut milk creaminess that I enjoy. The chicken was a bit tough too. The green curry was spicy, but beyond that it didn't have much flavor at all - not even salt. My husband's eggplant stir fry with chicken was the highlight of our food for sure! It was delicious.

I've always liked this Thai restaurant until one of their employees was complaining that their…read morecalls were too much which was why they stopped answering their calls. Are you kidding me? Most restaurant would LOVE to have their phones non-stop with calls. The arrogance was astounding which is why I can never give this place a 5 star rating. Good food and good customer service but their attitude like they are god's give to earth needs improving. They need to remember they are not the only Thai restaurant in central valley. Quality of food: A++ Quality of service: B Price: Reasonable

Inside

35. Spicy Fried Rice Tofu , no eggs and no fish oil

See all

Sticky Rice Restaurant

3.9(437 reviews)

31.9 mi

I really don't like giving 5 stars from one visit. I like to give the 5 stars after a few visits,…read moreto ensure there is consistency in all the things, but I couldn't help it. This restaurant is off of Mitchell, which is a busy street, so it is easy to get to. It is part of a large shopping center so lots of parking. The restaurant itself it pretty spacious and has lot of seating. Could very well accommodate a larger group. We were greeted and seated right away. The lady that seated us was very pleasant and met us at the table with iced water and our menus. We ordered: 1. Thai teas: refreshing and delicious. 2. House Special: came with fried shrimp, fried broccoli, Laos sausage, fried chicken, beef jerky and fried egg roll. All fried to perfection and a great plate to purchase to appease most palates. 3. Large sticky rice: which is a must! 4. Laos papaya salad (mild): this comes with 6 Thai chilies and was perfect heat. It comes with a side of fresh cabbage. It was all the things we needed the salad to be. The sauce was dark in color, salty and that danky goodness! 5. Laos sausage: ordered this on accident because I didn't realize there was some sausage that came on the house special platter which was fine because we knew we were taking stuff home. 6. Crispy pork belly: marinated perfectly and fried to perfection. Dipping sauce complimented it well. So much food and I believe the bill came in under $90. A good amount of food, delicious and filling. Glad we stumbled upon this place and don't think it will be our last visit!

Everything was overcooked Chicken wings were disgusting…read more They were hard and freezer burned. The server didn't interact with us. Just a really weird experience that was memorable for all the wrong reasons. This restaurant is clean, though, in the surroundings are pleasant.

Papaya Small Platter

See all

Seafood Radna

Thai Wok Fusion Of Flavors

4.8(41 reviews)

32.0 mi

Visiting from Oregon and having dinner with my bestie. Everything was closing early in Turlock, and…read morein Modesto they'd close soon after. I saw that this place was open later and it was not Mexican food. That's the majority of the food around heres. We looked inside as we parked. Ok, not terribly busy. We were hungry and looking forward to some good Thai food. By the way, there is plenty of parking and it's super easy to get to from 99. Mike sat us down quickly. It's not a huge place, but there's enough seating to dine in. We sat in a booth. He served us our waters and menus. We ordered the red curry with chicken and pad thai with chicken. Both with medium heat. We wanted mango sticky rice, but Mike was not happy with the mangoes and did not want to serve them. I appreciate that he valued quality of food for his customers over making a buck. He apparently got slammed with online orders just before we arrived. He offered us some free appetizers since he felt it was taking longer than usual. We actually declined. Bestie and I were catching up and honestly didn't notice that the food was taking a while to make it to our table. It was a nice gesture from Mike. As the food came out it all looked great. We dug in and yum. Being from the Bay Area and now living in the Portland OR area, I have a certain standard with the food I consume. Honestly, I was not expecting too much from a place in Ceres. I've traveled to many small towns throughout the country. But I was pleasantly surprised that this place was up to par. And you know what topped it off? Mike's personality. He was such a pleasure to chat with. Me, him and my bestie had some good laughs while eating this great food. I love having my "go to" places while I travel and I think this is my spot now. Thanks Mike, me and "Kimmy" will definitely visit again. And hopefully mangoes will be in season.

I'm so happy this little place opened up in Ceres. As a Ceres native, it's good to see business…read moreopen up in my small town since it's always been known as a commuter town. With that said, the food was good. Hot too so you know it's fresh. I got the Rad Na with egg rolls as my appetizer. They'll ask how spicy you like your food so that's nice. Service was kind. Ambiance, it's a small little shop. Not big enough for big groups but they're good for takeout.

Papaya salad, Lao style

Beef laab salad

See all

Why does Yelp recommend reviews?

Hundreds of millions of reviews are posted on Yelp, and our automated recommendation software works in the background to showcase the reviews that it …

17 reviews that are not currently recommended

The reviews below are not factored into the business's overall star rating.

Viengmaly S.

8 months ago

Houa khong 2 , now is under new ownership and new management. The new look, new colors is nice and clean. It's really nice place to brings your family and friends to enjoy delicious foods. The workers are very nice and friendly. I would recommend this place for everyone to go and try it out. 5 stars for me. read more

Jose B.

3 years ago

My soup had a hair in it and my roommate's noodles weren't cooked well. I advise anyone from the UC to take their money somewhere else. When we asked for a refund the owner of the restaurant disrespected my housemate and told us racial slurs. Never going back ever again! read more

Jo L.

3 years ago

Really nasty food and doesn't taste authentic. Their are way better places to spend your Fin aid at. This place was very dirty. The floors were very sticky and their were lots of flies in the business. Beware of this place. read more

Medaro O.

3 years ago

Nasty food. Not sure why my review was taken down. Seems like the owner Is paying Yelp to take down their negative reviews. Super nasty food and dirty environment. The walls had mold and a bunch of flies. read more

Mario V.

3 years ago

The business has mold around the walls. It isn't safe for anyone to eat there. If your a college student I recommend you take your financial aid money else where. The food was soggy and nasty. read more

Mario V.

3 years ago

The nastiest food and environment you can ever eat at. The staff and owner wanted money for tips. The food Is disgusting. The floors are sticky and dirty. The food tastes like chalk. read more

Rose G.

3 years ago

I have been coming here for 3 years now and they never disappoint me. The portion is great! I always order the Pad Thai, Basil Fried Rice, and spicy chicken wings read more

Victoria G.

3 months ago

Food was pretty good. Good portions, staff was very nice! The ambiance was amazing. One of the ladies was soo sweet and had patience with me while I was ordering read more

John C.

4 months ago

Disappointed in this particular once again! Doing a particular particular is A waste of time- especially if it it is done over and over! John read more

Don B.

7 months ago

Houa Khong 2 is open daily with new owners and management. Their food is amazing. I recommend you check out the new vibe and food.

Yagi M.

14 years ago

outstanding taste with exceptionally reasonable prices. Very attentive service. Excellent cuisine experience!

Kay B.

4 months ago

The food it's really good and the restaurant is super clean, cozy very nice fresh flower good customer service

Panitchada O.

1 year ago

Amazing food in town! Service was excellent, and kind and the food is good!! Love it. Will back for sure!!!

Thang Y.

7 years ago

Excellent customer service and fast service as well! Definitely coming back! And the food were delicious

Kelsey M.

362

10 years ago

Always order their pad thai to go and its delcious!

Alex V.

101

11 years ago

Joe makes the best Pad Thai ever.

Pat O.

13 years ago

Not good

Houa Khong 2 - thai - Updated September 2026

People who viewed Houa Khong 2 also viewed

Bangkok Thai Restaurant

4.0

(250 reviews)

Okay, so the ambiance could use a little work, but this was the best green curry I have ever had…read more This place is amazing! But you might consider takeout

Thai Cuisine II

3.3

(393 reviews)

I've been here a couple of times and I always order chicken pho and spring rolls. The chow main is…read morealso good, flavorful and it has a good portion! I tried 2 alcohol beverages from the bar (I'm not sure if it operates separately) I think one of them was a Moscow mule and it was very very strong. Then I had a Paloma which wasn't very good.

This restaurant has been a family favorite since they opened. There is usually a good dinner crowd…read moreand they have plenty of meals that are drool worthy. The only reason I gave it 4/5 stars is because some days the Pad Thai is amazing and others the tofu is old and hard. Worth the gamble though.

Houa Khong Restaurant

3.9

(144 reviews)

Yummy Thai

4.1

(96 reviews)

The food was great! Service was fast and friendly. Hole in the wall find in Atwater Ca!read more

This is one of my go to restaurants when visiting my family. Food is amazing as always. Our go to's…read moreare steak salad, thai boat, raw larb w/ sticky rice, and pad see ew. I'd say this place is like a hole in the wall. It's small inside and super glad they installed an AC unit. Before, they had a portable AC which did not keep cool inside. Service can be a hit or miss depending on who is working that day. We've had wonderful servers who checked up on us regularly making sure our water was filled as well as making sure our needs were met. This is the place I would always recommend to my friends and family.

Thai Cuisine

4.0

(141 reviews)

Came here for dinner on a Sunday and it wasn't too busy. Ordered the fresh spring rolls (a bit…read morepricy) and spicy green beans (rice not included). Bf got the pad kee mow which had good spicy flavor. Green beans were lightly cooked which I requested. They were good, but missing some flavor. Server was nice and ambiance was fine. Prices ok. Located in a small strip mall with small lot.

We got vegan pad kee mow and vegan pad khing tofu…read more The vegan pad khing tofu comes with tofu, mushroom, ginger, onion, garlic, and bell pepper. I really liked this dish. We got steamed rice to pair. Next I tried the vegan pad kee mow and especially after the previous dish, the spice level on this really hit! I would say it's definitely on the spicier of spicy side. My partner eventually got hit halfway through the dish where the spice really started accumulating. Both were very delicious though! We came in on 4th of July for lunch and it was very busy. There was just one server so there was a bit of a longer wait for us to order after we were seated, but I could see how busy she was, seating people, checking out their bills, answering the phone, serving dishes, and handling takeout orders. Eventually towards the second half of our meal, a second server arrived. Empty tables got cleared much faster. We were just passing through Merced so very glad to have found this Thai spot with yummy vegan options as opposed to resorting to some unhealthy fast food. I recommend!

New China Cafe

3.5

(163 reviews)

Had the almond chicken combination, I shared it with my friend. Food coma. I attached the nee menu…read more9/21/25 for your review. I decided to order it since I was running errands, good service.b

0 Stars - Absolutely Disgusting Experience…read more I ordered the broccoli and beef combination at New China Cafe and found a roach in my food. Yes, an actual roach. When we told the staff, no one apologized, acted concerned, or took responsibility. We didn't pay for that plate, obviously, but the lack of apology or customer service made the situation even worse. Unfortunately, we didn't get a picture, but trust me -- there was a roach in the food. This was one of the most unacceptable dining experiences I've ever had. I will never be returning, and I strongly recommend others stay away.

Thai Cuisine

3.5

(66 reviews)

Food was savory and, from my experience, authentic. Some Chinese dishes offered too. Service was…read moreprompt and courteous. Space was open and comfortably lit. A relaxed midweek dinner; will be back. :)

BEWARE OF THIS PLACE THE FOOD AND SERVICE!!! My experience was rude disrespectful and disgusting!!!…read more I took both of my daughters here after school to get mango sticky rice to go, and they also ordered noodles. Unfortunately, this turned into a terrible experience. As we were driving home, my daughter started eating her mango sticky rice and said, "Mommy, there's a long hair in my rice." I looked and saw a long black hair cooked into the rice. Before touching anything, I took a picture of it. I immediately turned around and went back to the restaurant. I told the woman at the counter that there was a hair in my daughter's rice. She responded, "This has never happened before." I told her, "Well, it happened this time." She then said she couldn't see the hair. The restaurant was so dark that I had to turn on the flashlight on my phone just to show it to her. I eventually pulled the hair out of the rice myself and handed it directly to her. She took the hair from my hand and went toward the back. Another woman came out and said she didn't see any hair. I explained that the first woman had already taken the hair from my hand. When I asked for a refund, I was told that I couldn't get one because my daughter had already eaten some of the rice. I explained that she had to eat some of it in order to discover the hair that was cooked into it. My other daughter kept her food, and I even said I would accept a partial refund. The woman continued arguing with me about the refund. I told her this was bad customer service and that if they are preparing and serving food, they need to make sure hair isn't getting into customers' meals and should be wearing proper hair restraints. I then told her that I had a picture of the hair while it was still cooked into the rice and could show it to her. That is when she finally decided to give me my refund. While giving me the refund, instead of apologizing, she proceeded to tell me to get out of the restaurant, never come back again, and that she was going to call the police on me. I couldn't believe the way this was handled. Finding a hair cooked into my daughter's food was bad enough. But denying what I was showing them, taking the actual hair from my hand and then acting as though there was no hair, refusing the refund until I mentioned that I had photographic proof, and then threatening to call the police while telling me never to return was completely unacceptable customer service. Mistakes can happen in any restaurant. What matters is how a business handles them. A simple apology and refund would have ended the situation immediately. I have the picture of the hair cooked into the rice. We definitely will not be returning.

Hong Kong Chinese Restaurant

3.7

(75 reviews)

Hong Kong has been my family's preferred take out for as long as i could remember. We usually call…read moreahead and order one of the dinner combinations for 4 people and still have enough for leftovers. The food always fresh and delicious, i love the orange chicken, foil chicken and crab wontons. We prefer to eat at home since we have little but i occasionally see people inside. I think the ambiance could use some help, last time i was in it was kinda quiet, recommend maybe adding some background music at least. All in all, we'll definitely me back.

The portions were very generous and tasty a little more seasoning would have been nice. I got take…read moreout so I just doctored it up a bit when I got home. The service was good pleasant and very nice. The restaurant was clean and nice.

Sunrise Inn Hotel and Food Plaza

3.9

(35 reviews)

I ordered Orange Chicken, non of the kernels had chicken I. It. It was all fried breading. It was…read morehorrible !! I DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS OLACE AT ALL!

I liked this place, the portions are HUGE and the prices are decent for the amount that they serve…read moreyou. The restaurant is in connection with the motel behind it I believe but don't let that be a reason for you to not give it a try, as the motel looks runned down. There was one guy working at the time and we were the only customers there the whole time. Food was served around the 15min marker give or take, and was nice and hot. Everything that we got was nice and flavorful... I seen reviews about there being no meat in the sweet and sour chicken or orange chicken but ours was nice and filled. My only dislike was I didn't really like the wonton soup, the veggies tasted old and the wonton also had an off taste. Over all I liked this place and will be going back many times.

Canton

4.3

(57 reviews)