Pinto Thai — Restaurant in Chelsea

Update (11/23/23) Ownership has changed over the past couple of years. Even though the food has gotten even better there is an issue that I fear is a sign of the spiraling down of the restaurant.

On my last visit on the date listed above I went alone for dinner. I got my favorite dish (Phad King) and an iced tea. The dish was, as always, excellent. However, my glass was not refilled by my server while I dined. After going for a while with nothing to drink I asked her for a refill of iced tea. She took the glass but quickly came back around the corner with the empty glass in hand. She was apologizing but said that the owner (chef) had just recently changed his policy that each glass would be charged for. The price for a glass of iced tea (which in NOT a large glass) is $3.95. I told the server that I would settle for water for which there was no charge. I told her that I was not willing to pay $8.00 for iced tea at one sitting.

I hate that he has done this. It is very short sighted on his part as he will alienate his customers. He considered me a 'regular'. Now he will find I am a FORMER customer.

I regret that this is the case as I truly enjoy this little restaurant. But there is a limit as to what I am willing to pay. There are too many other choices.

Complicating his situation on both of my last two visits as I always dine in and not take it to-go. On each occasion customers not familiar with the restaurant have walked in and asked if some customary Thai dishes were available. They were told that they were not. Moreso, the restaurant has historically offered sushi. In my presence he turned away business that came in wanting sushi.

These are signs of a dying establishment. I hate it for him, myself and for the community. There is a market for his product but he is either unwilling to meet their needs or unable to financially. Either way lookl for this location to become available to another company soon.

Original Review My wife and I go there less often than I'd like. The food is great and we love the very cozy atmosphere. I will caution you to one thing and it's the only reason I don't give them five stars. They take forever preparing the meal so don't go when you're in a rush. Over the past couple of years we've seen a few get up and leave not realizing the time it takes. I attribute the time to a large offering and variety of dishes, it is a small, family owned and operated business, and, each selection is made to order. The wait is worth it when your food does arrive as it is hot, fresh and delicious! It's one of the more expensive choices in our small community but the quality of food and the uniqueness of offerings make it a jewel...

After being closed for a while, I noticed this restaurant was finally open again, so we decided to try it for take out. While I am not an expert on Thai food, everything that we tried tasted very good. When I went to pick up the food, I ended up speaking with one of the owners of the restaurant and he was very respectful and happy that I came to try their food now that they are under new management. He told me that he was a 20-year Thai chef and they recently moved here for the business. After some small talk, I picked up my food and took it home. My daughter had the Bang Bang shrimp which were battered shrimp with a slightly spicy sauce. Although the sauce was not very spicy, if at all, the shrimp were battered just right and were very tasty. We asked for her sauce on the side in case she didn't like it, but she ended up using the dipping sauce and saying she loved it. My wife had the B08 YUM NUER, which was supposed to be a tossed salad with sliced, grilled sirloin steak and a spicy lime sauce. Again, the sauce was not very spicy, but my wife really enjoyed the flavor of the sirloin steak and greens with the lime sauce. She was originally hesitant to eat Thai food, but she changed her mind after she ate the salad. I ordered the Tom Kha soup which had chicken, coconut milk, tomatoes, lemongrass, mushroom and cilantro. When I opened the container it came in, the smell of the soup was different than what I imagined, but it was very tasty. We will be eating here again in the...

In our little community of Chelsea Alabama there is a dirth (lack) of "fine" dining. PINTO THAI is probably the closest thing to it as the food is fresh, cooked to order, unique and served in a quaint, decorative and pleasant environment. The quality of food is excellent and consistent. The tastes are unique and not only to Chelsea. We love it and highly recommend it. My only reason for not rating it 5 stars is due to their use of a young girl as the primary hostess and server who is not emotionally nor mature enough to do her job well. She wears her mood on her sleeve and often that mood is that she wants to be elsewhere or doing something else; anything else. When she brings and item to the table and we thank her for doing so her redundant reply is, "no problem." "Your welcome" or "my pleasure" along with a smile should be the reply. Not by this young lady. I do not think we have EVER had her smile while serving us. She is probably a family member and not someone who wants to be there doing that job. Regardless of why the situation exists they do themselves a disservice insisting that she serve in her current capacity while it puts a big downer on the visit to the diner. I do not mind tipping a server well and more than what is customary as long as they make an effort. In her case the best she's going to get is 10%. Let's hope she or they do something to correct the situation so that each future visit will be as great from the service side as...