Cafe Thai Restaurant & Tapas — Restaurant in Calderdale

☎️ Booking: The online booking was easy to do. The website isn’t the easiest to navigate. There are two restaurants on the webpage to the downstairs venue on the street and to the Tapas venue which we booked - this is upstairs above the (old) main shop which I now think has moved a smaller takeaway premises 3 or 4 shop windows adjacent to the building.

We booked online, and then I hadn’t realised I booked the wrong day. Thankfully, the restaurant called me up when I thought I was arriving and happily changed to the correct day. Very polite and friendly. Excellent first impression 👌

🚶‍♂️ Arrival: We felt like a spare part as we arrived upstairs, standing by the till. There was no one there to say hello, and welcome us, even though the space was small. Easily fixed with a simple, “Hello. Sorry. One minute and I’ll be with you…” is all it takes to make a customer feel welcome. The restaurant had two busy tables when we arrived (Friday 5PM) and it was full when we left (6.30).

👋🏻 When we were greeted, the waitress ‘waved’ us to the table with a ‘silent hand gesture’ - that way - and we had to find the table ourselves. Again, table service easily fixed with a “Let me show you your table.” It takes 10 seconds.

🪑 Table: We booked a table for three, and we sat on a raised sitting/table area by the window. They have lovely red brickwork, but because it was the winter, there was small bits of unpointed brickwork which let small drafts of cold air through, so it was actually quite cold to sit there.

In true Thai style, you have a spoon and fork 🍴 to eat with - no knife - with a napkin. No table sauces sadly.

🍽️ Service: One of the waitresses was fantastic. She made us feel very welcome and talked us through the menu. Nothing was too much trouble. She celebrated each dish and offered recommendations when we needed it. Overall, the table service was excellent but it could be improved by reducing the amount of different waitresses coming to our table asking us the same questions: “Can I take this?” “Are you ready for XYZ?” All very well considered, but easily fixed by the restaurant if assigning one person to a table.

🥘 Food: the food was stunning! It was a great choice, plenty for children to eat, and authentic Thai/spicy quality. It was always interesting to watch the chef cook the food, traditional Thai kitchen with lots of cooks, made in seconds, and delivered in true Tapas style - as and when ready. When the dishes were cooked in the kitchen, wasn’t busy, all the cooks would just simply stand there and chat, which is funny, and if you understand Thai culture, that’s how they do it, but as a business, it’s probably not conducive for productivity. There was one waitress who kept popping behind the kitchen and eating for all to see. Whilst this is harmless, I don’t think it’s hygienic or good for customers to see.

The only thing I didn’t like - despite eating them all - was being asked if we wanted some prawn crackers. A small bowl for £2.50 is a steep addition when really these could be complimentary in the grand scheme of things considering how cheap they are to make.

However, the food was fantastic. I’ve been to Thailand 🇹🇭 12/15 times and loved the rural culture.

It’s probably one of the best restaurants in terms of taste and cuisine we have tried in the area.

🍷 🍺 Drinks: All the usual things on offer; draft beer and spirits. Although my wife was disappointed when they didn’t have Gordons gin in stock.

💰 Value: we left £30 deposit online, which wasn’t itemised on the bill, but we were told (thankfully I asked) that this would only be used if the customer doesn’t turn up and refunded to the bank account.

Two adults + one child, we spent £104 on lots ~10 dishes and 3 drinks. Our table was full of dishes; we didn’t finish them all. We were stuffed 😃 and carried 3 dishes home.

🚨 I’m super interested in food and service. I want to see local businesses succeed. Despite my detailed review, this was a great evening/food.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Overall, fantastic food and we...

Im going to start by saying but I believe in totally honest reviews. Often you get positive reviews for the sake of appeasing etiquette. SO upon arrival at cafe Thai we were greeted by a lovely waitress who was extremely helpful. We were shown to our table and our drink orders were taken immediately. When the drinks were brought to our table by the waitress. I had concerns about out the meals that I wanted to have contained gluten on the menu. I asked the waitress if she could find out what it was in the curry that contained gluten. She went above and beyond the Call of Duty to find this out and quickly came back to the table and informed me that the meal that I wanted to eat the chef would prepare it gluten free. This alleviated my anxiety to such a degree but I decided to review This 5-star, (6 star if I could) The food was unreal. This is a bold statement however it is completely true. This is the best Thai food I have ever eaten, this includes travelling around Thailand and Southeast Asia. nicest flavours and richest ingredients were amalgamated to create such aromas that the nose comes alive with the tongue in a almost euphoric experience. Staff: amazing Food: five star Setting: next to the window so the experience was even better. Beautiful, clean and in all, perfect.

Would recommend and I'll be back before you can say "west vale"

De he...

Great Food, Appalling Atmosphere & Absent Management. We used to love this restaurant, but our recent visit was a disaster. We booked for 5 PM on a Saturday to celebrate a birthday, hoping to miss the brunch crowd. Instead, we were seated next to an incredibly loud bottomless brunch party that made our meal unbearable. ​We couldn't hear each other speak, and the group's behaviour—including foul language and constant moving around brushing past us ruined the entire evening. Our request to move was met with an unworkable offer (we'd have to give the table back in 45 minutes). When we finally complained to our waitress, she informed the manager. The manager's response was to leave the building. ​Leaving the waitress to tell us nothing could be done because the manager had "gone home" is a shocking abdication of responsibility. In the end a 10% discount to the bill was essentially a free drink. Unfortunately we will not be back, as I wouldn't want to run the risk of a similar experience. I understand this probably won't be 99% of people's experience, but be aware...