Tasty and spicy esan food, but there was much needed ways to improve. The portion of the dish was so small. The wait time for each dish was so long. read more

I'm very happy that Hug Esan still appears to be going strong after the hardships of the past year and a half. Their food is as good as ever as is their service and delivery. This restaurant is a neighborhood gem and remains one of the more unique Thai restaurants I've visited in the US. They may not have all of the bells and whistles of some of the newer more trendy places, but their food is solid and prepared with so much care and love. It is definitely worth a visit to Woodside if you're not a local. read more

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Stopped by with a friend for lunch one day. The weather is getting cold outside. They had an area for outdoor seating, but nothing was set up. We sat inside where it was fairly easy to practice social distance and their had partitions set up between the tables. There's maybe only 4 tables inside, fairly small space. It's not fancy or anything, but they do have some interesting informational stuff on their walls. The staff was nice enough. The place felt clean. The service was fairly quick. The food was different, but that's also why I choose to check the place out. The food and drinks: Thai Iced Tea - delicious Dumplings (came with lunch special) - were actually pretty good, tasted previously frozen but had a good amount of shrimp and the sauce was different and had a bit of sweetness to it. Khao Piak Sen - was pretty delicious, was a little disappointed that the noodles weren't homemade...and if they were, they're not the noodles I was expecting. They were the same noodles as the ones used in Vietnamese Bun Bo Hue. They had dry chili powder, but no chili sauce (sriracha). Nam Khao Tod - was pretty good and the spice level was on point. Spice actually means spice. I wanted the rice to be a little crispier. The salad was a little wetter than what it should be, but the flavors were good. Could've used some lettuce to wrap it in. Coconut Pudding - delicious, comes with 3 and in little cups. TLDR: totally worth checking out for a different type of food. They specialize in Northeastern Thai cuisine and are pretty on the market with it. read more

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Have been here for many years. Cozy Thai place. Remind me the hometown food. They have the best papaya salad Grill pork Very worth for money the set of 3 choices I have grill pork, papaya salad and soup. Very good and will come back probably for take out!! read more

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This is my most favorite northern Thai food in the city, really authentic and tasty with reasonable price. If you want some spicy don't miss this one. read more

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A friend brought me here on my most recent visit to NYC last month, and I have been dreaming of our meal ever since because we don't have this regional cuisine in SF. We had the dill soup, papaya salad (the spiciest dish on our table!), mee ka ti, and something else that escapes me since it's been almost a month. Everything was so good! read more

I'm a big fan of Hug Esarn! I've ordered from them over 15 times, and my absolute favorite is their Nam Khao Tod. They never fail to impress, especially today--it was exceptionally delicious. I'll definitely be ordering from them again and again. For those who enjoy spicy or Esarn-style cuisine, I highly recommend giving them a try--you'll love them just as much as I do! read more

Great place for authentic northern Thai cuisine! Had a feast here. They accept Venmo and Zelle, if you forget to bring cash. read more

Hug Esan - Soft Shell Crabs Papaya salad - Thai Near Me - Elmhurst, New York

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Suuuper underrated. When all else fails with seating at the popular neighboring Thai restaurants on the four corners, Hug Esan is a great "fallback" restaurant--I wouldn't even call it a "fallback" restaurant, just because of its small, cozy, casual appearance. My cousins and I came here for dinner, particularly one from out of town who doesn't have access to a variety of Thai restaurants like we do over here. We really underestimated Hug Esan by its small appearance and low attendance. The food was phenomenal--authentic northern Thai cuisine that feels a lot like a hearty home-cooked meal. It is also refreshing to know that the restaurant is run by women who are very passionate about their food. We couldn't help ourselves with the interesting variety, so we got the Crispy Pork Belly, Grilled Chicken, and the Thum Plara Salad. Everything was DELICIOUS, especially the Crispy Pork Belly, which we almost ordered another plate of--it was perfectly grilled and crispy with the perfect amount of tenderness and fat. The Grilled Chicken looked really nice on the menu and was tender, but it wasn't my favorite--I couldn't taste all the seasoning that I was looking forward to. I did like their sticky rice and it's warmness and yummy texture made it possibly the best sticky rice I've ever had. The portions were huge and we almost couldn't walk straight to our car. We had the Mango Sticky Rice for dessert and it was lovely, although the condensed milk was a bit light. In addition, two of us used our Yelp check-in offers for the free ice cream and we were able to get the Thai Iced Tea and Coconut Ice Creams. Their ice cream comes with corn, jelly, and peanuts, which was an odd combo, but a nice crunchy touch to it, nonetheless--and that really did it for us. If you're finding yourself on a long queue at one of those popular restaurants, I highly recommend this place with no hesitation. read more

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A cute little restaurant in the corner, food was amazing. The pricing was great and the portion size was pretty good too. Our favorites were the $25 papaya Salad and the $17 beef pad see ew. read more

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There's just something about this teeny tiny (less than 20 seat) matchbox restaurant. From the moment we arrived there was a 25+ minute wait and everyone we encountered were thai, somehow knew someone else and definitely not first-timers. These were all excellent signs. We finally got seated and quickly chose the whole fried fish and basil stir fried squid from the lunch menu. And of course, their popular fried pork belly appetizer. The pork belly came out first and it was perfectly proportioned. Small, inch-long thoroughly breaded and deep fried pork were perfect 1-2 biters with a side of their spicy sour sweet Jaew sauce. All I need is a big spoon of white rice for chaser after each dunk of pork deliciousness. The basil squid (L6) was a bit disappointing only because I had envisioned it to be accompanied by a veggie minced meat medley. Instead it was well cooked squid ringlets stir fried in a subtle soy basil chili emulsion. It was lovely and not so powerful as typical Thai dishes tend to be. Then the star arrived. That fried whole fish. It looked amazing and tasted hot, fresh and moist accompanied by the same Jaew sauce and a simple vinaigrette. We tore that up and left no bone unturned. And then proceeded to eat every morsel on the table. Interestingly enough, he said we did not order anything really unique this time but just simple tried and true dishes. Yes, if I had it my way it would be a lot more organy, bloody, tangy and bitter. But we both agreed what an introduction this was and cannot wait to revisit for the "more exciting" dishes. It's pretty clear you can't go wrong any which way here. read more

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A hole in the wall thai restaurant where everything on the menu is delicious, literally it is all good here you can pick an item blindly and itd be guaranteed to be good, came here with a group and basically ordered everything on the menu here and all the food items were magical, with the hug esan papaya salad, and the crispy tilapia being the favorite dishes here. Hug esan papaya salad is basically a papaya salad with the works! They throw everything in there and blend it all beautifully with that wonderfull fish sauce of theirs....tilapia was crispy and tender with the sauce providing a nice flavor kick ontop of everything. Defintely recommend coming here, space is a little small, but food quality is excellent read more

This place is bomb dot com!!! What a cool restaurant featuring dishes from the Isan region of Thailand. Very different from the Americanized Thai food that most of us are used to. The esan sausage is one of my favorite dishes that my childhood Thai friend got me into. It is so fragrant, juicy, and delicious. It has such a unique addictive fragrance. Very highly recommended. I also really love the papaya salad here. Beware because it is very spicy!! I got the medium level spice and I can usually handle my spice level (I eat a lot of authentic Korean, Indian, and Mexican food). However I was not aware that Thai people are at another level when it comes to spiciness. The salad was so good but I was unable to finish it because it was too spicy!! It's for this spicy-sweet-vinegariness that pierces your soul, but is so damn good. I kept trying to eat more but I couldn't. Unfortunately next time it pains my pride to say I will have to get the mild. The fried fish here is amazing!!!!!! The Pla Pao. A whole grilled tilapia with delicious spices and juices. Such flaky white fish meat and crispy skin. If you like the fish from Sripraprai, you ain't have nothing yet until you try the Pla Pao at Hug Esan. yummy!!!!! The chicken is pretty good as well (Gai yang) with a cool spice dip. Tender pieces of chicken. It was delicious but not nearly the star of the night. Hug Esan is truly a treat. I will say the restaurant is like a tiny hole-in-the-wall. But it's blowing up in Queens and on Eater. Truly a delicious cultural experience!! I would come back. read more

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My first impressions when I walked in was: oh this look like someone's kitchen! We were sat in the front tables by the entrance doors but it looks like there are more tables in the back. The restaurant is small overall. The waiter was kind enough to explain the menu to us as it was our first time here. The menu, unlike other typical Thai restaurants, seem to carry authentic Thai cuisine, or not your basic pad Thai or green curry. I ordered the grilled chicken with sticky rice (to be on the safe side) and my partner ordered the curry rice noodle. When you think of a grilled chicken, you think of a chicken breast/thigh/leg that generally does not have any skin on it. This chicken had all the skin on it and was over spiced. I couldn't describe the taste. I was trying to take the skin off during the whole dinner. My partners curry rice noodle was just okay. It actually tasted better when he took my remaining sticky rice and mixed it with the curry sauce. read more

Hug Esan - Grilled chicken - Thai Near Me - Elmhurst, New York

This review is for take out service. This is my 2nd time ordering from this restaurant and I must say, both times I was disappointed. I figured I'd give them a second try but I shouldn't have even bothered. Both times I ordered Pad See Ew and both times they served me some other noodle. The food was also bland, no flavor whatsoever. read more

Hug Esan - This is supposed to be beef Pad See Ew. Those are not pad see ew noodles! - Thai Near Me - Elmhurst, New York

OMG SO GOOD! I love Thai food! We had the noodle soup. The soup was so flavorful and noodles were soft. The fried fish so crispy!!! I love it so much and price was very affordable. Came here with few friends. Is very small in there. Really didn't even have room to put jacket, had to hold it. But I would do it again for the food. The pork was good with the sauce. Papaya salad was good with the spicy sauce provided. (Wish they had mango salad) We share everything including the jasmine rice. Def recommend coming here! read more

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Located on the ground floor of a residential apartment complex, it feels like you're eating in a Thai family's home. Upon opening the door to the restaurant, you're instantly greeted with the aroma of fish sauce that permeates the vicinity. That's how I knew this place was a winner. We had: Esan sausage (perfectly sour and savory) Crab omelette (it wasn't bad but not a complete standout like the other dishes) Pork Larb (which also had pork liver, pork stomach, ground pork, and also pork ear. The texture and flavor combination was out of this world. We ordered "spicy" which was 10 chilies; which wasn't the most spicy level; but it was HOTTTTT) Pork pad krapow (also pretty damn spicy but in a good, masochistic way) Looking forward to my next visit! Wonder if I can handle the Thai spicy (15 chilies!) read more

Had the best Thai meal I've ever had in New York. Hug Esan specializes in Northern Thai cuisine which has extra spice and different flavors. I had Mok Nor Mai, a wonderful pork belly dish of medium spice with bamboo shoots, so many great flavors with sweet sticky rice. I also had a fabulous Tum Thai Kai Kem, a Papaya salad with peanuts and shrimp with a kick ass spice. My wife, who has a much milder pallette, had a pad Thai that she said was incredible, far different than any other she had. The noodles were thinner and darker, it had eggs and a much different sauce. The service was fast, friendly, caring and accurate. They played wonderful southeast Asian music and the small space was cozy and warm. We will definitely hit this place again the next time we go to Citifield. read more

Real authentic Esan Thai food ! I'm not Thai but I'm Burmese who is quite familiar with the taste of Thai food. This restaurant serves real taste of Thai and I'm amazed by how inclusive like PLA PAO/salted grilled fish. It pretty much heals my homesickness. The portions are quite generous and I have been ordering from here at least 3 times a month their desserts are amazing too. Don't forget to get mango sticky rice in season and their ice cream is buzzing too. read more

Hug Esan - Combo Set PLA PAO (Papaya salad with chicken feet, Pork Jerky, PLA PAO) - Thai Near Me - Elmhurst, New York

Saw the menu and it looks promising, ordered the papaya salad with Thai spicy level and the crispy pork bely, not only it was really spicy but the taste was pretty authentic. The market is saturated with Americanized Thai restaurants, so very happy to find Hug Esan, I hope they don't change to be one of them. Can't wait to try everything else on the menu. If you're looking for a real taste of Thai food, this place is the one. read more

Small, cute place serving solid Isaan food. My wife and I got the grilled fish set which comes with your choice of any two dishes from the app/larb/som tum/salad or noodle sections. There are a couple of limitations on what you can pick but we got what we wanted which was the pork larb and papaya salad with crispy pork skin. The pork larb had bits of liver, ears and pig blood. They paid attention to every ingredient. Even the lettuce leaves, mint, and cilantro was crisp. I liked the distinctive sour element in the papaya salad and the crispy pork skin added a nice crunch but I think I expected more flavor in the pork skin. The star of the meal was the grilled fish. They stuff the fish with lemongrass, galangal and other herbs so you don't actually see any of that until you cut open the fish. It definitely made the dish more flavorful. We will be back to try other things on their menu. read more

Hug Esan - Pork larb (left) and papaya salad with crispy pork skin - Thai Near Me - Elmhurst, New York

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****This is based on my delivery order**** -Crispy tilapia fish was extremely dry and over cooked. - Pad garlic was bland, lacking in flavor. - tub tim krob, was small and not worth $7. It was also WAY too sweet. I could barely even eat it. The 2 stars are for the Khao Piak Sen, it was the only thing I enjoyed. The noodle texture are good. Soup was flavorful. Pork was tender. Really disappointed since the reviews for this spot are good. The delivery time was not long, and my food was still hot/warm. So fish should not of been dry. read more

One of my favorite Thai places. Note that mild here is almost like regular spicy. Fave dishes: - pork larb (get this every time) - crispy pork belly - mee ka tee (curry nice noodles) read more

This restaurant I can say Authentic Thai food it makes me like Mom's cooking. I have just ordered Grilled Chicken (come with steam sticky rice and tamarind spicy sauce) it makes my mouth watering the texture was tender and crispy from skin get some smell of herbs that was so good, I ate it after order about 40 mins food still heat. And another dish is Laos papaya salad with black crab and pickled fish sauce this is cool dish this is local style that I can say this similar test like street food in Thailand so yummy. Green papaya and green string bean still crunchy, get testy from black crab. I recommend this place for person who want to try real Thai local food. Hidden Gem in ElmhurstGai YangPapaya Salad read more

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After reading all the rave reviews that have been hitting the press in recent months, and discovering they deliver to my apt, I knew it had to try Hug Esan. Unfortunately, I came away underwhelmed. Was really excited about the pork larb but it ended up not being to my taste, prefer the juicier version from SriPraPhai. Grilled chicken was also only ok - thought some parts of it were a bit dry. Papaya salad I ordered the Laos version and it ended up being too funky for me - probs should have stuck to the Thai version. To my surprise, the Pad Ka Prow (chicken) was unexpectedly delicious and my favorite dish. Coconut pudding was surprisingly dense but a good flavor. I really wanted to like this more than I did - perhaps I need to visit in person and try the popular fish dishes / crab omelette. read more

If ya want a little taste of Thailand to remember that experience you had in Bangkok or wondering what it will be like when you visit Phuket, this place is a must try. Due to COVID, prices have increase by $1 or 2 so please come support your local small business. Thai food has so much different flavors. No better place to let your tongue experience spicy, sweet, sour, salty in one bite. read more

Authentic Thai food in Queens. Very delicious If you like Esan food here is very nice. Don't miss Somtum prara, Crispy pork belky, Spring roll is a special one it not the same as another place you should try, Mushrooms soup. Service is very good and friendly read more

Hug Esan - Thai Near Me - Elmhurst, New York

It was my first time here I it didn't disappointed. The food was delicious Thai authentic food and very friendly staffs read more

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I think they do a good job of making their dishes, hence the four stars, but for me all the dishes are a wee too sour for my preference. Instead of their popular larb pla (fried tilapia) or the crispy pork belly, we actually enjoyed the crispy rice dish with sausage bits the most (sorry not sure what it was called)! The tilapia and pork slices are all well fried but I am not sure I would order them again, especially since the fish dish was so expensive. I was prepared to be blown away by the larb pla but alas perhaps my expectations were too high. The fried pork belly I've definitely had better in many other places (such as the fried bacon chips in Gyukaku flushing). As other reviewers note, this is a tiny cozy place so it's not a good place for large groups. Best for dining with a date. Prices are not cheap. Cash payment for 10% discount. They do accept Venmo or zelle if you don't have any on hand. read more

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Great service, incredible food!!! Would def go back again to try other dishes from them.

By far one of the best Northern Thai cuisine locations in NYC! Feels like I'm back in the motherland. Loads of flavor, spice, and cultural charm. Definitely will be going back for more! read more

Authentic SEA food! No need to look further! The papaya is legit and they make Lao style too

I understand why the reviews are so good for this restaurant! The decor is beautiful and seems to be authentic. I felt like I left NY and stepped into another world. The menu is unique and filled with dishes I've never heard of before. Fortunately, the hostess recommended this delicious fried fish dish that was featured in the media. It's cooked to perfection, and the fish is meaty and filling--presented beautifully. I would recommend this restaurant to anyone! read more

Hug Esan - Thai Near Me - Elmhurst, New York

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I found Hug Esan from uber Eats and this is my first time oder from Hug Esan. The Service was great and All the dishes that are unusually not found in typical thai restaurant finally I found my favorite spot restaurant See you anytime soon! read more

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Northern Thai Food. Great food. So Yelp says my review is too short so ill make it loooooooooooooooonnnnnnnnnnnngggggghggghhhhhhggggggggggggggeeeeeeeeeeerrrrrrrrr than most. So, hoowwwwwwwsssss thaaaaaaaaaaaaattttttt Yeeeeelllllppppppp And it said that I'm rolling and ask if I have anything to addd. Yeeeeeeeessssssss. I will aaaaaaaaaaaadddddd some more. Are you satisfied yeeellllllpppppppp?!!!!!!!!!! read more

Hug Esan - Thai Near Me - Elmhurst, New York

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The Food is really good and tasty, the place is really small. The service (server) we had was a little snappy-maybe because I had a big family and we required her attention a lot (but we were ordering not demanding) she had a firm tone and made us wait for the most part. Otherwise, the food is worth the wait and price. I guess the server was tired and hungry so she was not so pleasant. It won't stop us from coming back here, not for her but for the good food. read more

I'm usually not a fan of writing reviews for Thai places especially, how my taste can be different than others. This one though is an exception, I was recommended by a family member and co-workers and I'm glad that I was open minded about food. This place is not like your average boring Thai places that has your "basic" dishes, they challenged us to the next level. They offer E-San style in which can be quite a challenge for many of us including Thai's pallet, because of its fermentation and the way that it has a stronger smell than most food we're used to. Luckily, I love trying new stuff and open to all types of food. Some of the the things I've ordered a lot of the stuff from the combo and I enjoyed it all including the fish to the pork spring rolls and even that dill mushroom soup. I absolutely enjoyed the Tum Laos with the dry chili. I was amazed with how salty and spicy it is, because unlike most places around, they don't do it as well. For the dessert, I went a little more basic with the sweet mango and coconut sticky rice (hey, you can't go wrong with a sweetened mango right....?) the coconut cream that comes with it was so perfect as it should be creamy, sweet and salty. They even have the fried yellow bean that in Thailand does. What else can I ever ask for? read more

Make sure to leave room for dessert here! It is amazing here. The mango sticky rice was absolutely delicious, with an entire fresh sweet mango and coconut crispy bits on top of the sticky rice. We also ordered the coconut pudding which was my favorite item of the night, served warm and only $5. A must order! We also ordered a dinner set with the whole tilapia, which was fun to eat with the DIY vegetable wraps. Otherwise, the papaya salad was a bit too salty for me, and the fried pork belly had too much fried dough and I wish it had more meat instead. Overall, though, the dessert blew me away. read more

Nice place good food and nice service been here a couple times good as always. The best Thai place i ever been. I am from Esan which is Northeast of Thailand and the food here is amazing and exactly the same as the food from my hometown Good food good vibes read more

Hug Esan - Combo Set Grilled Chicken is the best and amazing!!! - Thai Near Me - Elmhurst, New York

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Went here couple of times & haven't given a review yet. It's a small venue caters limited seating to customers. Still the atmosphere were awesome, homey feeling, felt so comfortable, with its courteous humble service. This traditional Thai restaurant serves authentic tasty homemade food, with its freshly unique herbs & spices. Their grilled fish tasted so good & fresh, also the papaya salad Som Tum Poo Plara...wow yuuuumm! And the price was reasonable with its good food quality. What else??...I'd surely come back again! read more

Hug Esan - Not only the food that's seriously good...Hug Esan brings up the homey traditional tin plates decorating on its wall. Vintage! - Thai Near Me - Elmhurst, New York