Great food great service nice portions. We had a house green salad with tofu and peanut sauce dressing, drunken noodles with beef and eggplant sure chicken. Spicy level 5 (out of 10) might have been a tad much for us. We washed it all down with ice water and also Thai coffee and Thai tea. Would come again. read more

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This is a great casual Thai place located in pacific beach. It's a pretty small spot but they have tables inside and outside, we were seated right away upon entering. The waitress was friendly and attentive making sure to refill our water and check in throughout the night. I tried the wonton soup and green curry - both were hearty and packed with flavor. The wontons in the soup were huge and the bowl was a generous portion. The green curry had delicious flavors. I'd definitely come back and try out some other options on the menu! read more

This place is truly a hidden gem. I've been wanting to come here for the longest time, and now I honestly regret not coming sooner. The Tom Yum soup is incredibly flavorful it's like an explosion of goodness in your mouth. The Thai fried the chicken was tender! rice was so soft, super delicious, we didn't leave a single grain of rice on the plate because it was that good. We also ordered the beef eggplant, and I honestly don't even know where to start... you just have to try it for yourself! Honourable mention to the best side dish: peppers in vinegar. They were absolutely delicious and paired perfectly with everything. This is genuinely the best Thai restaurant I've been to, and it's the only place I'll be coming back to. The service was amazing. Min checked on us often and made us feel so welcome she was super kind, professional, and genuinely caring. Thank you, Min! The cultural decor is warm and cozy, and it honestly feels like stepping into another world. I seriously can't wait to come back! read more

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Great meal, very filling and good value for how much food you get. The food came out popping hot and relatively quick. I loved the soup - creamy but lite coconut base with delicious shrimp and the most flavorful little tomatoes. I personally handle spice well and thought the medium spice level was perfect. My boyfriend on the other hand had tears in his eyes . If you don't do spice go with the lowest level. Very nice staff and cozy little outdoor section which was great for having our dog. They even brought him some water which was very sweet. I'll be coming back! read more

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Came in here with a mid-size group last week on Saturday for lunch. The place was not busy and we were seated quickly. Service was a bit slow, which wasn't ideal but we were patient with as it seems like they do a fair amount of takeout ordering. Where I was most disappointed in our visit was the actual taste of the food. I ordered the drunken noodles which were supposed to be spicy and they had little to no flavor. I'm an avid Thai food fan and typically love how consistent it is but this food was just straight up bland. My buddies who got the same dish as well as a the Pad Se Ew both said the same about their meal. A few of the folks liked their food which is why the score isn't lower. Atmosphere wise it's not a huge place with just about 5-6 tables so keep that in mind when coming in. The design feels a little dated but authentic and was charming. Sadly just given the food I wouldn't rush back. read more

The Orient Thai Cafe - Thai Near Me - San Diego, California

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Ordered from DoorDash so can't speak for the service or the vibe, but this Thai food was pretty tasty. They definitely kicked up the spice level per my request and it was great. I like that the spice didn't overpower the flavor of the dish as a whole. I'll definitely order from here again. read more

The Orient Thai Cafe - Cashew Nut - Thai Near Me - San Diego, California

I love this place!! Everything was so delicious and they had accommodations for vegetarian, vegan, and gluten free. This is a cute little cozy spot in PB. There was not too much seating but they did offer both indoor and outdoor seating. They did an amazing job with the space they had, it was so well decorated. It really added to the atmosphere of the restaurant. Not only were the vibes great, but the food was equally as great! I would love to try every vegetarian option off of their menu. I personally got the pad see ew and wow, the vegetables were cooked to perfection. They had the perfect amount of crunch to cooked ratio. The flavor of the sauce blended well with the flavor of the vegetables and noodles and the salt was a the perfect level. 10/10 for that dish. My friend got the drunken noodle and she had the same review as me, you can not go wrong with either of those noodle dishes. The winter roll was also amazing, you could tell that it was freshly rolled to order. All the ingredients inside were so fresh and their peanut sauce was delicious. The staff were super friendly and accommodation. I highly recommend checking this place out! This place feels very "hole in the wall" vibes, so spread the word! Parking was the only slight inconvenience, the lot is shares with the surrounding businesses has minimal spots and fills up quick. Luckily there is some residential areas behind the restaurant when you can find street parking! read more

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Service and food here is pretty inconsistent. We've returned many times because it's close to us but we're considering driving a few mins down the street and check out other Thai spots. 1. Take out always takes a long time and we live a few mins away. Every time they quote us 20-25 mins we're waiting 45-50 mins. This is unacceptable. If you're waiting there you can see their system isn't organized. They'll fire up food for sit in customers first and let the to-go wait. We would order somewhere if they're upfront about it. And this is before dinner rush. 2. Very confused on their curry, the first few times I ordered yellow chicken curry they packed in a normal big size container. Another time I had someone else pick up my order and it was half that size. Then it was a big container. I've mentioned it to them but they have no answers. They skimp on the curry when you take it to-go. 3/8 times they'll put the curry in the half size but will charge you the same every time. Some of their dishes were okay. But favorites would be their curry and fried rice. Their inconsistency and service is the problem here. read more

I was very disappointed after reading all high reviews of The Orient Thai Cafe. The food was ok, but the service was dismal. The waitress seemed high and drifted over to take our order after 15 minutes. After dropping off our food, she never checked on us again other than to drop off the check before we finished eating. The green papaya salad didn't taste very fresh and was oddly served with a bunch of romaine lettuce. My Khao soi noodles had a very thin broth and the chicken was overcooked. My friend did enjoy her green curry with mixed seafood. There is a small parking lot. No alcohol served. There are a few other great Thai restaurants in PB. I would recommend The Orient Thai Cafe for a quick lunch only. read more

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Really solid spot for Thai food. Everything tasted fresh and well balanced, with great flavor and heat done right. Service was friendly and attentive, and the atmosphere felt relaxed and comfortable. Easy place to enjoy a good meal and definitely one I'd recommend coming back to read more

Had a satisfying meal here the other night! Stopped by without a reservation on a Friday night and were happy that the restaurant was not too busy. We were able to be seated right away before it was very busy. There was a rush right after we arrived, and the one server was definitely not prepared for the amount of patrons. It was a little annoying since our table sat right by the line of people waiting for a table. We ordered the pad thai and drunken noodles, which came out very quickly. Overall, we enjoyed our meal. We wish it could have had more sauce, both dishes were on the drier side, but the flavor is there and due to its proximity to everything in Pacific Beach, we will likely return! read more

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Ordered to go of Winter Rolls and Yellow Chicken Curry. The food was packaged well and hot. The Winter Rolls were good and loved the peanut sauce. The Chicken Curry was flavorless Ana was very sparse on carrots, lots of potatoes and onion with the Chicken. We ordered #8 for spice, on scale of 1-10. Not spicy and really no flavor. Would not return and we have had food from here in the past and surprised at how it's changed. Service was good for out. read more

Just came for a pick up but the lady working was not nice. The lady was rude when me and my boyfriend arrived. Food was good. read more

The Orient Thai Cafe - Good - Thai Near Me - San Diego, California

I love this restaurant, nice decor and cozy. the food is great!! I love the papaya salad and the eggplant with tofu.

I was surprised to receive a notification on Doordash that they have a $100 maximum on deliveries upon checkout... This restaurant just left an additional $50 on the table! After deleting some of the items that would have given us a taste of some our favorite Thai dishes, we were left with only 2 dishes, an appetizer, and a small side salad. The total bill came out to almost $100 for Thai take out from PB! My guest said jokingly, "It must be inflation..." As a native San Diegan, my recommendation is that this is not the right price point for the region. We started with the vegetable spring rolls, which were tasty, but very greasy. The sweet and sour sauce was light and the perfect consistency. However, the fried tofu side salad came with a very thick peanut sauce. You will need to dilute it 1:1 v/v with water in order to make it a dressing. If it was a dipping sauce for the tofu, then no dressing was provided. The Pad Thai w/ Beef was more sticky that traditionally made. You will need to cut the noodles with a knife in order to dish out a square of the Pad Thai. Also, the presentation was nothing to write home about. They could have topped the entire dish with scallions and chopped peanuts in order to make it more presentable. The Panang Coconut Curry w/ Chicken at a spice level of 1 was just spicy enough to make this dish palatable. However, they did not include the side of chili paste that I requested in order to increase the spice level, if needed... The Panang Curry was way too watery! This may be a form of "shrinkflation," according to my guest, but either way it ruined the dish. Overall, I was not impressed... This was a $50 meal at most, not nearly the $100 that was charged, and it was average and overpriced! I know of several other Thai restaurants in San Diego that have better food with more reasonable prices. read more

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Omg this place is better then food in Thailand service fasst so delicious I'm gonna come again read more

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Late afternoon hunger hit me hard and on whim I decided to grab a take out order of Pad Woon Sen. WOW is all I can say about the best version I've ever eaten. This is a seemingly simple dish. In reality more important that it's ingredients are very good and it's made with finesse to achieve balanced deliciousness in every bite. The pork was surprisingly tender and the flecks of garlic made for a delicious aromatic and flavorful dish. I love this particular dish so much and typically the protein is the forgettable part but not at TOT Cafe. You can taste the love in a simple dish. I'm glad I needed some noodles today. Because those were some really really really exceptionally fantastic and tasty noodles!! read more

Solid Thai spot in PB. I always get the pad see ew with chicken, cuz that's my jam. Like most places (it seems), the spicy scale leans higher than you'd expect. My first visit I got a level 3 spice for the pad see ew and oh boy was it still spicy. Even getting it at a 2 the following visit still had quite a bit of heat. Be forewarned. If you come on a Friday night, be prepared that it gets busy. I hadn't realizes you could make reservations. When we dropped by, there was only outdoor seating and it was a tad cold and unpleasant for that. Once a table opened up, our server invited us to move inside which was great. In addition to my regular choice, we decided to get an order of the kari puff apps, which were tasty. And also shared a bowl of Tom Yum soup because my companion was feeling a tad under the weather. You can chose between meat options, tofu, or veggies. We opted for the veggies which included a bunch of stuff like mushrooms, broccoli, carrots, cabbage. The soup has some heat to it which I thought would be great for any congestion. On first sip (It was my first time ever having Tom Yum) I said "this soup tastes like healing." My companion agreed. It just tastes like amazing nutrients and warmth and comfort. A delightful beginning. We got an order of drunken noodles with beef and it looks nearly like Pad See Ew but with a bunch of peppers instead of broccoli and a more sweet and sour type sauce. My pref remained with the Pad See Ew. I love broccoli. The staff is so very friendly here. It is very popular for take-out but I enjoy dining in. read more

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I'm super glad I stumbled on this place during a Friday night visit to Pacific Beach. Parking might be a little tough since the plaza only has a few spots, but there is plenty of street parking in Pacific Beach. The inside is decorated very nicely and the restaurant is very clean. You sit yourself down and look over the menu. For my go-to: this place does thai curries and pad thai very well, but rarely do I ever see glass noodles on the menu. I got the glass noodle dish with pork, and let me tell you, glass noodles is the perfect dish that when you finish, you feel full but not uncomfortably stuffed. It was absolutely delicious. Highly recommend checking this place out. read more

The Orient Thai Cafe - Glass noodles with pork - Thai Near Me - San Diego, California

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Ambiance: (3/5) See pics Food: (3/5) - Green Curry with Shrimp ($15.95)-- shrimp were perfect cooked. (4/5) Rice-- disappointing. Thai food, rice plays an important part. It makes a big difference to one's dining experience. (1/5) - Tom Kha Kai ($14.95)-- a little bit on the sweet side. (3/5) - Green Papaya Salad ($8.95)-- very subpar. Carrot should be eliminated. It's not part of the "Papaya Salad". Portion was small. (2/5) - Fresh Mango With Sweet Sticky Rice ($8.95)-- mango was not fresh nor ripe or sweet. Should not be served. Sticky Rice: sugar texture, coconut and rice were not good proportion. The taste was off. Not sure if the rice was fresh? (2/5 stars) Service: (5/5) Courteous and attentive. Note: The restaurant is in the same parking lot as 7-11, before Fanuel St. read more

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My fav neighborhood Thai place. Food is always on point! Authentic and delicious! The decor makes you feel you are in Thailand. Am a creature of habit so I always get the Tom Ka or Tom yum soup. Their curries are flavorful as well. Winter rolls with extra peanut sauce a must! read more

This food was so so good. Could say best Thai in the area and you would not guess from what it looks like from the outside! Definitely will be getting this more often, prices not too bad. No alcohol and can't byob either. read more

This is my first time writing a review to any restaurants.. This is my go-to place since it's very close by my work but earlier today I had brought my friend to have lunch here and when we finished and about to leave, one of the employee, the cashier chased us from our car and came knocking on our window demanding a tip and it caught us by surprised because tipping is up to the discretion of the customer whether she had a good service, pleasant and helpful and her pleasantness wasn't it and mind you this isn't the first time I didn't put a tip down.. I am beyond disappointed and I felt harassed when she came knocking on my car. read more

The Orient Thai Cafe - Thai Near Me - San Diego, California

Decent food. No working number to call. I found a different number than listed; they didn't answer. This has been happening for over a year. it's too bad. They're losing business b/c of this. read more

This is a very small Thai restaurant nestled in the corner of a plaza it shares with a yoga studio, a taco shop, and a 7-11. The outdoor patio and interior were both intricately decorated with Asian art and sculptures. When you walk in, there is a service window directly ahead where you place and pick up a to-go order. Instead of getting the usual pad thai or drunken noodles, I selected a different entree. The Kow Soi Noodles were made up of egg noodles in a spicy curry broth topped with crunchy noodles. I added chicken as a protein to make the final price $12. Supposedly, the dish was a northern Thai specialty. I asked for medium spiciness on the curry, and the kitchen obliged nicely. More egg noodles would have been appreciated as it seemed to be a meager portion compared to the amount of chicken. read more

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The Orient Thai Cafe is conveniently located in the heart of Pacific Beach, only a few blocks from the beach. The restaurant had a relaxing ambiance with its garden themed seating area and soothing water fountains. Focusing on traditional and vegetarian Thai food, the menu offers a wide selection of appetizers, soups, entrees, and even specialty dishes. To start, we ordered the Winter Rolls, full of lettuce, cucumber, carrots, and tofu all wrapped in rice paper and served with a side of peanut sauce. The dipping sauce is absolutely phenomenal (perhaps even the best part of the entire dining experience). I ordered the vegetable delight with jasmine rice which came with tofu and seasonal vegetables sautéed with a special blend soy sauce. The dish was flavorful and filling. My boyfriend decided on the orange chicken, lightly battered, deep fried, and sautéed in orange sauce with broccoli & carrots. While I would not personally order orange chicken at a Thai restaurant, he said his meal was quite good. Service here is always quick and the employees are very helpful and friendly! The Orient Thai Cafe is a great place for a date! read more

The Orient Thai Cafe - Winter Roll ($7) - Thai Near Me - San Diego, California

This is my go to Thai restaurant in PB! They serve authentic Thai food at a reasonable price. The portions are always generous. I love the exotic and eclectic vibe of the restaurant and it makes you feel like you are at a little beach Thai restaurant in Bangkok. My favorite dish is their Pad Woon Sen. There's only 2 Thai restaurants in the entire San Diego that does this dish right and Orient Thai Cafe is one of them. The noodles are not soggy or broken. The texture is bouncy and the flavor is great. You can choose to pair the glass noodle with your choice of protein and spicy level. They use thai chili peppers, so make sure you don't go too spicy if you can't handle it! In lot parking can be spotty depending on the hours of the day you go to. But there's plenty of street parking around the restaurant too. read more

The Orient Thai Cafe - Pad Woon Sen with soft tofu - Thai Near Me - San Diego, California

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Stopped by here for a quick Togo lunch, but I won't come back again. Pro: quick order because it's empty during lunch time. The noodle was hot and chewy. Cons: -Rude customer service. I ordered Togo, but I sat down just to open the box to check my order. She immediately told me that I can't eat here because I ordered Togo. It's a sit down restaurant, what if I changed my mind to eat here and will tip her? With her attitude face and voice, I felt so offensive and ofc I had to leave asap. - The chicken smelled like it was too old from sitting in fridge for a while. - There was no green onion, no lemon, barely any bean spouts. And no spicy for Medium spicy level. - A bit too sweet for pad Thai. -Asked for utensils but I had nothing to eat with. Had to borrow my co-worker's. read more

The Orient Thai Cafe - Chicken smelling bad - Thai Near Me - San Diego, California

Great customer service, fast service. My 2nd time here, Im hoping the chef just had a bad night but. The pad Thai was dry and bland. And the orange chicken was watery like soup. I think the chef forgot to add the corn starch. But the flavor was good. read more

The Orient Thai Cafe - Pad Thai - Thai Near Me - San Diego, California

This is my go to spot for pad see ew! Now, since moving away this is a must stop for dinner while I'm in the area! Still some of the best I've tasted. read more

Food: I haven't tried chicken basil before, but it was very good, lots of flavor. My wife loved her drunken noodles, the noodles were cooked perfectly. I was also surprised with the tofu rolls, and per previous comments the peanut sauce was awesome. It's not runny or anything, very good! Everything we ate was delicious. Atmosphere: The ambiance outside is nice, it just sucks that it's literally watching a parking lot and busy street. But the decor is pretty cool and the bathroom was clean/stocked (BIG PLUS!!!). Price: In this day and age, it's pretty standard to see 15$ for a plate so the price wasn't bad. But still, you should expect 40-50$ for a meal for 2. Service: Our server was very nice, no complaints there. She also did not come back every 5 minutes to check on us, which we like. Overall: We really liked this place and will be back for sure. I saw some stuff on the menu I had not seen in other places, so I have to come back just for that, at a minimum. read more

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This place is a secret hide away with amazingly authentic Thai food. We have a knack for finding off the beaten path spots with traditional (read fantastic) dishes. This one might just rank top for Thai in SD. Located next to a yoga spot, and a Taco shop, sharing a parking lot with 7-11, you would not see this place as the Mecca it is. (Did you see there is a parking lot, in PB!?! It's unheard of!) But since you got this far in my review, you trust me right?! So yes, next to a convenience store but once you walk thru the front entrance you are transported via all the senses to a quaint , family run restaurant deep in the heart of bustling streets of Thailand. The decor is ornate and purposeful. A mix of quirky English signage and Thai language, buddhas and shrines adorn the walls. Deep rich colors, shiny bits mixed with natural wood decor, it is truly eye catching. We eat a lot of Thai food, so we felt like we knew what to expect. But our goal in 2022 is to branch out of our typical choices, so while we were still at Thai, we forced ourselves to order something different than our standard fair. We were SO GLAD we did! We ordered the spring rolls veggie only which were a perfect starter. The peanut dipping sauce was creamy and perfect. The rice paper wraps were soft and pliable, obviously made fresh! Our first entree was the Panang Curry with chicken, it was delicate and delish! I literally drank the sauce like soup! Added the Hot Basil with beef, which was over the top great. Fresh crunch on the veggies, perfect cut on the meat, and overall flavor was deep and rich without being too heavy. We had to wrap with the mango sticky rice, because, did you even go to Thai food is you didn't order the sticky rice!?! The mangos were perfect, not overly ripe but sweet, my only suggestion was to use less sticky rice ;) but it's not really a bad thing to get a giant portion of that yummy gooey sweetness! This place is a gem, a perfect little spot. Give it a try, you won't be sorry! Pro tip: eat at the restaurant! they seem to be using delivery services which overly complicate their ordering system. Other reviews mention similar issues but in person, the customer service was fantastic! read more

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I was really hopefully coming into this place. The vibe seemed right and the customer service was there BUT the flavor of the food was lacking. My partner and I ordered the beef salad and orange chicken entrees. Salad was okay. The orange chicken itself had a sauce that was extremely runny and the chicken just didn't taste like much as well as hardly being battered. Just underwhelming.... read more

The Orient Thai Cafe - the interior of the restaurant - Thai Near Me - San Diego, California

Vibey little Thai spot. Very fast service and the best basil chicken you'll find in Pacific Beach

This place is such a little gem. I've never eaten here but collected take out a couple of times. The decor totally transports you out of PB. Super authentic and the prices are really reasonable here too! The food is so good - though they take their spices very seriously. Your mouth will be ON FIRE from a 7 (and that's coming from someone who loves spicy food and has travelled south east Asia for a year!) Be warned though they don't serve alcohol! read more

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Getting takeout from here was the best decision we've made in a long time! We ordered our food via Yelp and went to pick it up 20-25 minutes later. There's plenty of parking in the lot in front of the restaurant so picking up food was super easy. I've driven by this place so many times, always intrigued by the array of plants surrounding the exterior and I'm so glad we finally got food from here! Everything was so good! I highly recommend the Pad Thai as well as the winter rolls (rice paper wrapped with veggies inside + peanut sauce). Definitely some of the best Thai food I've had and I'm so glad I found a Thai spot in PB. My boyfriend and I will for sure be back to dine inside sometime because the interior of the restaurant is decorated beautifully and is very peaceful. read more

The Orient Thai Cafe - Thai Near Me - San Diego, California

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This is my go to spot for Thai food in Pacific Beach. The food is quality. They always get my orders right. The spice can be INTENSE, so order accordingly (on a scale 1-10). I've actually never dined in here but probably have ordered from them 50+ times over the last few years. My first experience eating at The Orient Thai Cafe was literally a decade ago and I remember it being good then too. Ambiance inside the restaurant is cute, but it is located next to a 7-11 which brings out all sorts of colorful people (so maybe dine inside once that becomes available again). I typically order the half moon ton (cream cheese and avocado wontons), the fresh rolls with tofu (peanut sauce is BOMB), the red curry (with Tofu spicy level 3-4), or Tom Kha or Tom Yum. Everything is good. My boyfriend who is a baby when it comes to spice gets drunken noodle with chicken at a level 0 spice. I usually eat all the onions, peppers, and rogue noodles that he leaves behind and it's pretty delicious. If i'm feeling like splurging, their pad se ew... you gotta do it. They also offer dessert. I really can't complain about any of the food here. read more

The Orient Thai Cafe - Yum!! Fresh Winter Roll - Thai Near Me - San Diego, California

I ordered kua noodles with pork. Meet was very tough, seemed like warmed over. I asked for soy sauce and pored over my food to add some taste but sauce was so salty making my food impossible to eat. The waitress was very rude when I complained about meet and salty sauce. The place is walking distance from my home but it will never see me again. read more

Probably some of the best Thai food in Southern California. I have been to Phuket Thailand a couple of times and this is very close if not the same in quality and flavor. Amazing shrimp fried rice and spicy eggplant. This place is a must try and I go here at least once per week. read more

I have lived in PB for 6 years and since trying The Orient some time ago, I borderline refuse to eat at any other Thai restaurant. This charming little spot is nestled in the corner of a strip of businesses on Fanuel and Garnett. Indoors and out are both extremely good vibes but it only seats a few groups so plan accordingly. This makes it even better for take out! I will often call in and pick up food on my way home. Some of my favorites are: pad Thai, drunken noodle, yellow curry, pad see ew, and the Tom Yum soup is the BEST you will ever have!! I haven't had a dish here I wasn't impressed by - Can't rave enough read more