I'm going to give Lao Cafe their flowers because it checked all the boxes for me. Service was very welcoming and friendly. The owner is very polite and proper. After finding out it was our first time he brought out some crispy pork belly to sample. I enjoyed it, very fresh/crunchy. The establishment was clean and it didn't smell funky or anything. The bathroom was clean and stocked. Def not the prettiest part of town and there really is nothing anything to look at in regard to the exterior or interior, also, restaurant lighting could be better. $1.75 for a fountain drink! Pretty cheap compared to everywhere else. The pricing in general is a little less than other similar establishments. My lemongrass chicken plate was delicious! And generously portioned - I made 2 meals out of it. Pretty good for the $13.95 price. The sticky rice is cooked perfectly and the ribs were Chinese style, it was a big portion as well. Unfortunately, the owner stated they were not preparing any of the appetizers currently. I had wanted to try the egg rolls, spring rolls and ban mi. He said business is slow and didn't have all the ingredients or helping hands to make all that. Felt kind of bad, go support this small business if you can! read more

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This little hole in the wall is not in a great part of town and I'd recommend you either take your food to go or get it delivered because the food deserves all the credit! We ordered a pork stick, a bahn mi, pad see ew and pork ribs with sticky rice. The food was immaculate. The sticky rice was perfect to eat by the finger full and the pad see ew was blooming with thick noodles and rich broth. The bbq ribs were so hot temperature wise I ended up taking them home and they were good cold as well! The bahn mi was delicious! The bread was soft and crusty and the spread was tangy. I really liked it! Now for the not great part of the review. Do yourself a favour and don't dine in. The entire restaurant was poorly lit and grubby, dirty in some places, and while we sat under the table with the brightest light, we also sat at a table in an area that smelled a lot like urine. There were almost no decorations and although it was lunch time there were no other diners. Also, the bathroom was out of order. Once again, the food was great but the ambiance was nothing I wanted to return to. read more

Lao Cafe 2 - Bbq ribs - Thai Near Me - Fresno, California

I've ordered here a couple of times and the food has been ok, I've only tried a few dishes none of the soups yet, it's a really bad location, outside on the lot you see garbage and used needles.... It doesn't seem like a safe place, it's far from other businesses and just feels and looks sus. Both times I've gone it's been to grab food before I head to work, so around 11:30am, maybe that's why it's so empty? The inside is nice and clean, service was friendly and food comes out in a timely manner. Will I go back? Probably not, due to the location (sad face) read more

Lao Cafe 2 - Pork belly and sticky rice - Thai Near Me - Fresno, California

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I came in here yesterday for some simple egg rolls. When I walked in there was no one to greet me I almost felt like I should leave and I said hello and before I could ring the bell someone finally came out. She was rude just asked what I wanted and I asked if I could see a menu since there was none for me to look at. Uninviting person to say the least. I proceeded to pay for my 6pc egg rolls and sat down to wait. Mind you NO ONE IS IN THE RESTAURANT BESIDES ME. I then wait at a table and continued to wait for what was probably 15-20 minutes!!!! For egg rolls they probably have premade frozen ready to go? They pretty much forgot about me and I almost wanted to get my money back. The nice gentleman said sorry for the wait but that was it. Not even an extra egg roll I'm never coming here again. And it's spelled like roach feces. Thumbs DOWN. I wasted my money and time. read more

For my cheat day, sticky rice with spicy beef larb and lemon grass chicken hit the spot. Services were good and can get busy at times ('cus it be good lol). The portions are plenty and I can eat a lot. Sabaidee Bo read more

The pork belly was really good a little overcooked for some of the pieces but it didn't ruin it. Flavor was great. I also got a pork skewer which was even better EXCEPT they had bones in them. I don't think things on a skewer should have bones. They should be easy to eat. Overall I was happy with the food read more

Lao Cafe 2 - Pork belly sticky rice - Thai Near Me - Fresno, California

This is a hole in the wall diamond in the rough. I had the pork chops with shrimp and egg. Wow! It was amazing. Enough to feed me twice. The service was quick and the food was underpriced. read more

At first I thought this place was some kind of mob front because of how the entrance looks and they used to only accept cash (now they accept everything). But they have amazing food. Fantastic flavors. Curry was a bit spicy and very delicious. Pad Kee Mao was perfect. We also had spring rolls, and it all came out to only $41. Go try it. Let me know how the Laab is. Several Door Dashers came in and out while we were there, so try that route if you don't feel like going out. read more

I took my daughter there for dinner and everything was fantastic and the waitstaff who is also the cook was super friendly. It was so good that we were about half-way done before we started taking pictures. read more

I used to really like this place. The pho is pretty good to eat. However, the service was very lacking. The one person working was mostly in the back of house and it took atleast 10-15 minutes before we got menus. And then like another 15 minutes before we got to take our order. We almost were gonna leave because it seems like they just focus on the take out orders. We got our food. The beef looked kinda low quality to be honest which was new. When you order the first time that's your one opportunity to ask for anything else. Once the food comes out that's it no more service until you get up to pay. And the dine in place wasn't even full or busy at all. When we arrived we were the only ones dining in. Everyone else was picking up DoorDash orders. Unfortunately we won't be returning here again. Might as be a self service place. read more

Don't let looks deceive you, this restaurant is a hidden gem. Tucked in between a liquor store and thrift shop, this restaurant serves fresh and delicious authentic southeast Asian cuisine. The waitstaff is friendly & attentive. I believe this is a family owned business where children laugh while doing their schoolwork on nearby tables. I will definitely return to get my Pad Kee Mao fix. read more

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Lao sausage is definitely the winner, compared to another restaurant's Lao sausage with more yelp reviews. So good!

Large chicken pho and shrimp spring rolls ordered. The worker didn't say anything about it being ready soon or how long it would take. I went in to get it. I was told to take a seat upon entering. It wasn't ready yet, but it had only been a like 5 minutes. Clean, safe and practiced restaurant. Wall decor and typical seats with tables. They also have a little stage. One of the workers was very kind and offered a bottle of water while waiting. Appreciated! Order was ready shortly later. Paid for it. A worker had problems with payment on the new register aka cell phone connection to a card holder. Took a little bit, but got it to work and the worker that handed the water to me handed over the order with well wishes. =) Lunchtime! Got everything set up. Chicken pho and shrimp spring roll order split. The large chicken pho only comes with 3 ounces of chicken. FYI everyone! Luckily, we had more chicken here and mother gave me all of the chicken that came with the order. You get a lot of noodles that come in it along with seasonings/ hot sauces and fresh jalapeños. The shrimp spring rolls were fresh and good. Problem, 2 shrimp spring rolls only had 3 pieces of shrimp and the other only had 2 pieces of shrimp. They did include extra peanut sauce and that was really good. My chicken pho half was really good! Added the hot sriracha sauce that made it better. Plus, I had all of the chicken. Mother said her portion was good. Of course that's after adding chicken from the tiny portion they gave for a large. She really liked the spicy oil they included. Good service and pretty good food! Just should have been more chicken and more shrimp in the spring rolls. read more

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Was really craving Lao food but needed it delivered. I saw this spot and all the good reviews and had to give it a try. Unfortunately it was really disappointing. We ordered quite a few things as the group but I specifically got the papaya combo with the pork belly. The papaya was pretty good, but the pork belly was so bad. Not crispy, chewy skin, straight up pork fat only. Another person in the group got the same thing and agreed. They also tried the nam tok medium rare. It came well done and sliced thick. Super chewy and dry. Another group member got the sausage and it came burnt. Overall, not sure we'd ever order here again which sucks. Maybe they were having an off day. read more

Their food isn't so bad, but I ordered chaomein to go and was eating it and bit into a thin metal piece of whatever it was. read more

Lao Cafe 2 - Small metal - Thai Near Me - Fresno, California

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Have to be honest, I definitely judged a book by its cover with this one. My boyfriend and I were in town for a funeral and wanted something different to eat for dinner. Found this place and drove here. It's in a run down strip mall/stores area, the parking lot was pretty much empty, and the outside didn't look that appealing. Quiet Sunday evening in the place, no one was there, it was a bit dim. We ordered, lao sausage app, lao papaya special spicy that included kaopoon noodles and pork belly, and raw laab. YA'LL, the smell from the bag was amazing!!!!!! Got back to the Airbnb and finally had our first bite and LORDDDDD ALMIGHTY! These are the best lao sausages I have ever eaten! We could not stop talking about them and doing my happy food dance. The papaya was crunchy and didn't look like it was spicy but it packed a punched. Only thing I wished it had was snake long green beans and thai eggplant. The pork belly was thin and skin was crispy! Yum. As for the raw laab, I wasn't used to how it looked but I liked it and my boyfriend liked it a lot! I love how much herbs that put in there. Service was great, 2 nice and friendly gals worked there and helped with the menu and explaining. Overall, we are back home in MN and we both said, we would only go back to Fresno for these lao sausages. Praying that maybe if they see this review they would be willing to ship them frozen and overnight. Hahah. read more

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I was craving for some Lao food. they didn't have ka poon or navam. the sausage was perfectly cook. read more

Excellent, authentic food. Of all the restaurants in town, this place has the best Lao food. The laab cut was on the thicker side, but still delicious. The papaya salad is my favorite in all of Central Valley. read more

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2nd time here. 1st time was about 10-12 years ago. Both times blow me away! Not in the best corner of town BUT to-go and delivery items are an option... read more

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The food is GREAT. Thai Boat Pho is 10/10...HOWEVER service is chaotic, so wait time is long and you have to remind them about items constantly. They are attentive and will comply with special requests tho, so I appreciate that! read more

Wow. This is a hidden gem for southeast asian food within Fresno. I enjoyed the Laos papaya salad even though it was too spicy for me and the chicken pad kee mao. I will be sure to come back again. read more

Lao Cafe 2 - Thai Near Me - Fresno, California

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Thank you again for that $5 on DoorDash! Couldn't wait to use it on the yummy food. Got egg rolls as well, my baby's favorite. The sticky rice was so moist! read more

Lao Cafe 2 - Ohmygoodness! Beef laab so yummy!!! - Thai Near Me - Fresno, California

My husband and I decided to experiment with Lao foods. We ordered from the Lao Cafe 2 through Door Dash. We ordered the Papaya Salad. Unfortunately, the description did not indicate how spicy the salad is. It was so spicy that my husband and daughter could not eat it. I ordered the Spring Rolls. The rolls were good. I really liked the sauce you dip your spring roll in. The sauce was very tasty and sweet. The papaya salad is a traditional Laotian salad that was invented by them There is also a Thai papaya salad version which is slightly different. After trying to eat the salad I decided to look up the recipe. Other articles suggested that it is better to try the Thai version first. I learned a good lesson today. If you are trying new foods from a different culture research it first. It would also be helpful if the description said it was extremely spicy hot. Another option could be to offer a choice of mild, medium or hot. I'm not giving up on Laotian food. I want to explore and learn more about the cuisine and culture. Try it but research it first. It's a great way to learn about a new culture and it's cuisine. read more

Randomly ordered pho and Vietnamese sandwiches from here because it was the only place that had a combo for small pho and half a Vietnamese sandwich and small drink. My mom said this has been the only place where the pho tastes like the pho she had back is Laos. That's awesome! I ordered again for dinner the next night. Everything we ordered has been good. (pho and Vietnamese sandwiches only so far) My only issue is at night it's pretty sketchy because there's homeless people hanging around outside at night read more

The hubby had a hankering for papaya salad as we haven't had Thai food since pre pandemic. Yelp lead me here, so glad that we tried Lao Cafe 2, currently a two-person (mother/daughter) operation. The daughter Mina is a sweetheart. We ordered the papaya salad Thai style. Mina made sure that we ordered the right level of heat as her mom uses high-quality, spicy chilé peppers. Also had chicken pad Thai which was seasoned perfectly, not too sweet. Mina suggested some seasonal stir-fried veggies and steamed rice. Everyone was so good. The location at Cedar and Shields is a bit sketchy, but Lao Café is very clean inside. Be patient and savor the delicious food coming from a one-woman kitchen. As with so many small businesses surviving the pandemic, they are experiencing trouble finding willing employees. read more

Lao Cafe 2 - Papaya salad, Thai style - Thai Near Me - Fresno, California

This was our first time here and wow! Service and food was bomb! Our server was very friendly and was talking to us like we knew each other! She made us laugh and we had a great conversation. Food was superior! I thought Lao food was going to be too sweet or too spicy and I wouldn't like it. I was wrong. This place is definitely a new favorite. I didn't know about this place until my aunt told me about it. I would have never picked a place to eat on this side of town. I'm so glad I checked it out. I will definitely be back soon! read more

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Every time we order from here, AMAZING! I didn't feel like cooking because of a long day of work and my fiancé was coming home from a long work week out of town and omg. Always great food! Everything was perfect. 100% recommend for authentic lao food. Kop jai lai lai (: read more

Lao Cafe 2 - Larb beef (raw), thom kuang nai, papaya salad, lao sausage, & chicken wings. - Thai Near Me - Fresno, California

Best damn pho and at the price - unbelievable. The service is phenomenal. I had actually ordered the kha poun the night before and didn't really care for it. I called and said it didn't have any chicken except what felt like bottom of the pot stuff. Kid wouldn't eat it. They said they'd be happy to refund or make it again. I asked if I could try the beef combo pho instead. Holy moly its my new go-to. Ate all of it. Was fantastic and fresh ingredients great broth and everything you want in pho. Will be a regular for sure! read more

My first time here I'm a consistent pho eater. I thought something was off when I added hot oil to it. It has a thick white cloud on the top I couldn't tell if it was impurities from the bone broth but I could not it eat. I did call and ask if the broth was supposed to be like that the lady working said it was oils. I did go back for a refund because I could not eat the white thick stuff at the top. When I got there and showed the worker he was shocked and even said it wasn't supposed to be like that. Offered to make me a refund but I lost my appetite thankfully I got my refund because it wasn't good broth. I'm not sure if I got old broth and maybe it was stuff from The bottom of the pot but definitely disappointed for my first time. read more

I have been looking for an inexpensive sticky rice dish for a while and I found this place. I ordered the pork belly with sticky rice and a side of egg rolls. I was not let down at all. This place is an example of what a good whole in the wall restaurant is supposed to be! I can't wait to come back! read more

Lao Cafe 2 - Front entrance - Thai Near Me - Fresno, California

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One of my favorite go to spot for Lao food..area is a little sketchy but worth the try. Place is small with very simple and minimum decoration and staff services is slow but with just one person running the show it was expected. My all time favorite dish here has to be their Nam Kao read more

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Holy fk that was delicious!! I like my beef Laaab RAW, bitter with a kick and they nailed it right in the coffin! Supreme authentic Lao food right here guys! I don't think the beef intestines and Lao steak sauce was on the menu however they made it for me! Just ask! Very nice workers here! This restaurant is Truly a hidden gem! read more

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I called to order for pick up, and food was ready by the time I got there. I got the lao sausage and nham khao, both very flavorful and delicious. I can tell how authentic the food is and will try different dishes next time. This is definitely a place I would order from again when I crave Laotian food! read more

Food is as authentic as it comes and service is friendly. However i have to deduct 2 stars for sloooooooow service. Our 2 hungry kids became restless after waiting 30 minutes for food that yet to come. This place is not suitable for dining in. read more

A hole in the wall restaurant, but the food is delicious! Plus, the service was friendly! Will be returning in the future!

We went there for the beef laab with medium spicy, med bitter & medium well. We also had the combo papaya Lao style. The beef laab was delicious but the papaya wasn't that good. read more

My first interaction with them actually was an Uber Eats order. I was excited to see there was a Lao restaurant that was serviced by Uber Eats. Unfortunately, without being able to check our order, it seemed they had left out the side veggies to eat with our nam khao, which was part of a pretty large order (larb, papaya salad, egg rolls, nam khao, sticky rice, and 2 Thai teas). Perhaps it was our driver but on our return visit to get more larb, they hooked it up with an extra bag of veggies. Now that is awesome customer service. Food was overall decent but the larb is what takes the cake for me. Love how it is cut (hand-sliced not ground) and customized to each customer's desired flavor (bitterness, spice). Thank you, Lao Cafe 2!! read more

Y'all- This is THE spot for Lao/Thai soul/homey food goodness. I have not had a dish that disappointed yet. Still working through the menu, but the Thai boat and curry hit the spot. Of course, we could not not order the pork belly. I can never say enough great things about this spot. Please continue to support this local restaurant. read more

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It was my second time here, I had a bad experience the first time but I thought I'd give it another go: We ordered the Lao sausage, super tasty and the portion was generous. We also got the Pad Kee Mao (drunken noodles) that was also delicious. Service was ok. read more

My husband and so came here a few days ago on a whim. I was craving Kao Piek ( chicken soup with hand made noodles). We have been here many many times before and the food has always been delicious. Not quite sure if this was an off day or if this place really has just gone downhill. The soup was flavorless, even with me adding condiments into the soup, it still didn't make a difference. Still bland. The red curry had too much coconut and the flavors were not what we are used to. I ordered sinh lot. Again, I remember it being super unami.. but this was not. It was over cooked and difficult to eat. We also ordered a papaya salad combo that came with noodles and crispy pork belly. It was quite delicious, but I would forgo the noodles- they were not fresh at all. It had that day old-stayed in the fridge overnight texture that vermicelli noodles get when it's stored over night and re-rinsed or heated up. The noodles were not soft and broke apart. We got complimentary nam vanh which was good and ordered egg rolls to go which were surprisingly good ( I'm not a huge fan of egg rolls). I wish I didn't come here because I want the last memory of me dining here to be a good one and it was until a few days ago. Maybe they got a new cook? Who knows. But the service was great and I can tell the gentleman and the waitress/host are great people. I wish the food made a better impression on us. Don't think we will be returning. read more