Not so Thai — Restaurant in El Nido

Updated Review:

I originally gave this restaurant a 2-star review, but unfortunately, it wasn’t received well. Instead, I was accused of posting an “AI-generated” review.

The feedback I shared was honest, constructive, and intended to help, not to criticise unfairly. Sometimes, the truth can be uncomfortable, but it’s part of growth.

I take time to write thoughtful, detailed reviews based on my personal experiences. I certainly don’t need AI to speak for me.

Wishing all the best to your restaurant, Not So Thai.

Visited Not So Thai with high hopes, but unfortunately, the experience didn’t live up to expectations. The name turned out to be quite fitting, the food wasn’t very Thai at all.

We ordered the chicken pad thai, vegetable spring rolls (burnt and oily), khao soi chicken, bun bo xao salad, and massaman beef. While everything was presented nicely, the flavors across the board were underwhelming and quite far from authentic. The massaman beef, in particular, lacked the rich, fragrant depth and slow-cooked tenderness you’d expect from this classic dish.

The pad thai was bland, the khao soi lacked its usual creamy spice, and even the bun bo xao salad felt like a missed opportunity.

As someone who has dined at Thai, Vietnamese, and other Asian restaurants in various countries, I found this to be a disappointing experience especially considering the higher-than-average prices.

Unfortunately, I wouldn’t recommend this place if you’re after genuine Southeast...

This place was quite disappointing tbh. It’s rated very well on maps but the food is not authentic tasting and honestly not very enjoyable to eat. We had to wait around 15 mins for a table which is not a bad thing but the food is defo not worth the wait.

Not saying the food wasn’t edible, but it’s far from what a red curry or yellow curry should be. The red curry tasted like it had ketchup in it. Additionally you don’t get much chicken and the beef was super stringy and fatty not a lean cut.

Plus points for making it spicy when I told them to and the saving grace was the lumpia which was stuffed with a lot of pork and tasted good.

Service was ok, they were busy but did a good enough job. The restaurant has a good interior.

Maybe I’m over critical having spent 3 years living in Thailand but seems like the good reviews are from people who have never eaten proper Thai food. If you’re looking for a genuine Thai place there’s another one in el nido centre with good tasting food which we went to the day after.

Edit: was a 2, now a 1 after restaurant response. not promoting the other business at all I didn’t even leave their name. it’s unethical to...

probably the most underwhelming thai food I've ever had. we ordered pad kra pao and tom yum goong. the pad kra pao was too sweet and is closer to chicken tocino. the tom yum lacked depth which was quite evident since there weren't much spices in the soup. the shrimp was also overcooked. it was closer to sinigang than an authentic tom yum. there just wasn't that oomph, that je ne sais quoi, that richness and depth that thai food is known for.

they also charge 5% service charge which would've been alright if the service were okay lol. the bottles of condiments were broken and dirty. they didn't automatically give small bowls and ladle for the soup. and lastly, the most appaling, is asking for our honest feedback TWICE and just wanting to hear "it's okay" anyway which is evident in how this restaurant responds to negative feedback here on google. we were giving the server a constructive criticism but she just smiled and said "but it's still okay, right?" to which I responded "could be better" and she just walked away lol

in short: pricey, waste of hard-earned money; cannot take constructive criticism; not so good and not so...