Nam Jai Thai restaurant 🇹🇭 — Restaurant in Ghent

The waistress was extremely extremely rude . We went for dinner, there were 4 of us . We ordered 2 drinks - only 2 of us wanted something sweet. The other 2 only wanted mineral water and they have their own bottle . We wanted to order 2 mains- we were afraid portions are huge and didn’t want to waste food as previous places we’ve been to we can barely finish sharing our mains . And one of us was still full from eating waffles . Then we wanted to try one of the appetiser , So we asked how many pieces are there . She said 4. So we were like okay we can share one appetizer to try . - not like we need it . But why not just try to see if it’s different from where we came from. Then she said you want 4? Then we were no 1 . Then her face and tone started changing. Waistress started saying that we have to order one main course each and insisted it’s the same as every restaurant . I was shocked when she said that as previous restaurants we went to, we were able to share . So out of curiosity I mentioned it to her . She could have answered nicely but she replied “ if you want to share go to ?little Asia”- from the looks of it , it looks like a cheaper Asian restaurant . We came to your restaurant as we saw that you have great reviews . We knew the price range . And if we couldn’t afford it we wouldn’t have went in . Heck if we couldn’t afford to eat in your restaurant we wouldn’t be on a holiday . There are nicer ways to speak to your customers . You say that everyone must have a main, and appetizer doesn’t count . Does that mean that if we come in a group and someone in the group doesn’t want to eat anything , we are all not allowed to eat in your restaurant ? Not everyone has the same appetite. Some can take huge portion . And some can’t . You can always tell us your portion is small and it wouldn’t be enough if we ordered 2 mains . Instead you wanted to chase us out to go to another cheaper restaurant . Like we can’t afford to eat in your reataurant. If you have these rules in your restaurant why not put it out on your Instagram or Google then people will know not to come if they want to share food . Not to mention her facial expression and tone when we ordered one appetizer . We wanted to leave but we already drank our drinks so we decided to stay. - if we are rude we would have left without paying . The green chicken curry and the lamb curry was good . The Tom yum kung doesn’t taste like Tom yum AT ALL. The other stir fry chicken with beans was okay. Food was okay overall. But isit worth it to be treated like this just for the food...

Dissapointed in this Thai restaurant. As an Asian chef, I often like to try new restaurants without looking at any reviews beforehand. Sadly to say, I never thought this would be such a bad experience. The staff was Thai, the overall ambiance was Thai, but a Thai restaurant should serve Thai food. We ordered as per usual, one common dish and one that could be a fusion. Phat Kaphrao is usually simply made with minced pork, holy basil, chili and garlic based paste, green beans and a sunny side up egg on top. Any variations could be applied but it should look fairly simple. I went for Duck Phat kaphrao thinking it would be minced or at least diced duck made in the same manner as mentioned above, to my surprise, I got the most dissapointing stir fry before me. Red and green paprika, some beans and onion tossed in a wok with a base of oyster sauce, fish sauce, pepper and starch water to thicken. The basil was regular basil. As for the duck, just the run of the mill fried duck and as a garnish they topped it off with pea shoots. My jaw dropped to the floor and I asked for Prik nam pla (basic Thai fish sauce with chilies) to save the dish I was eating. The price was €26, as a chef I would never ask this for this exact dish knowing the food cost it has, but then again, it's their restaurant. Needless to say, at least serve a proper Phat Kaphrao. I always give a restaurant a second chance, but reading a few reviews and seeing my point already made a year ago from others just validates the bad quality of the menu. Thus, telling me that there is no improvement on their part. Please take more pride in Thai food. As Asians, this has always been a big part of our culture. Don't represent it any other way than it should. For people looking for authenticity, this is not the place to be. For people wanting to eat "Farang Thai" food, sure, give it a...

The tomyam soup tasted like soy sauce. The staff here are extremely rude. As a first-time tourist, I was shocked by how the waitress told us to go elsewhere just because we asked if we could share a dish. I understand if the policy is one main dish per person, but the attitude was completely unacceptable. When I asked for a recommendation, she just said “everything is nice” in a dismissive way. Please train your staff to treat customers with basic respect.

Additional remark and reply to owner:

You can already feel the owner’s attitude just by reading their reply. Instead of apologizing or trying to understand the customer’s point of view, the response is defensive, dismissive, and even ends with “please do not come back.”

When i visit other restaurant , all the staff are very friendly and recommend which is nice, so i am expecting i will get the same response and it’s normal for a new customer to ask for recommendation. It’s not just about the “one main dish per person” rule — it’s about the tone, the lack of hospitality, and the unwillingness to communicate with basic respect. As a tourist, I was simply asking a question, and being told to go elsewhere was shocking. I hope this review helps other visitors set their expectations.

Btw, we ordered 4 main dishes after she informed us even she is such impolite, which i got the worst experience after visiting so...