Boun Bistro — Restaurant in Fort Worth

Something must have changed in the kitchen recently. I've been going to Boun for close to 3 years now and the last two times something was off about the food. The wait staff, as always, was great. They are always very friendly and provide good service. I really can't say enough positive things about the service. The food on the other hand has seemingly changed a lot recently. Pad Kee Mow is one of my favorite Thai dishes and it has a very distinct flavor that Boun did wonderfully for a long time. Today it tasted nothing like Pad Kee Mow. There was some odd spice in it that didn't belong. While I'm not an expert on Thai food, I have had this dish many times from many different places including Boun in the past and what they are calling Pad Kee Mow now is no longer that. The flat noodles, thai basil, tomatoes, etc. were present but the flavor of the sauce was way off. My wife ordered the Pad Thai which also has always been great in the past, but the last two times again something was way off. When I tried it, the distinct flavor of ketchup mixed with fish sauce was present. I don't know if there was actually ketchup in it, but the flavor was pretty distinct. Also, it seemed like the Pad Thai noodles were mixed into a thick sauce making the entire dish kind of goopy compared to literally just about every other Pad Thai I have ever had. All Pad Thai I've ever had is usually a thin red sauce with peanuts that coats the noodles and the kind of gets absorbed by the noodles. The red in a Pad Thai sauce most certainly should not be from tomatoes but rather from chile and chile oil.

Overall, I'm just very surprised to see a place that was once really good go from pretty distinct iconic recipes to some sort of approximation. Maybe they got a new chef who doesn't quite know the iconic recipes that are expected with this type of food.

I really hate to give this place 2 stars, but I just don't understand how it can go from good iconic recipes to something that honestly doesn't even taste like Thai...

This place is delicious, literally the best pad see ew I've ever had. And I actually like their fried rice, which i normally do not like restaurant fried rice, i usually find it lacking flavor, but not theirs! Theirs is full of warmth and flavor. Their phos are also full of flavor, especially the chicken pho, which I've never tried until I tried here. The fresh spring rolls were exactly as described, super fresh, and the dipping sauces incredible. The size of them was huge, and I could have had them for lunch if I didnt share with my family. Theyre very filling. The crispy rolls were delicious and even ordered to go were still crispy and fresh by the time we got home. The slushes with popping Boba were the best I've ever tried. So fruity and delicious.

The staff is friendly and helpful, and very patient as we had 3 kids that were not in the best moods.

The prices are also great for the large portion, and fresh food you get.

Their menu is clearly marked for vegan and gluten free, which is a plus, and the spicy is actually spicy! My husband ordered a 1 and at most Thai places i usually get a 2 or 3 and he usually gets a 5, but here our mouths were burning with a 1! So if youre a spice lover, this is the place for you!

The only downside is how hot the inside is. As kind as the staff are, I'll only be ordering to go until this texas heat decides to give us a break.

But you can bet I'll be back, and ordering to go often, pad see ew is one of my favorite foods and its been so hard to find some that tastes as good as what I had in childhood. This...

FOOD INSTAGRAM: @northtx.gemz •••• 🍒 WHAT THEY’RE KNOWN FOR: @abhoan recommended this to me 🥰 🍒 THE VIBE: very spacious inside surprisingly! The area is a bit sketchy with a lot of unhoused people walking around but you can’t really control that lol. I saw a lot of people ordering to go than dine in actually. 🍒 PRICE: ~$45 🍒 WOULD I COME BACK? Yes. •••• Overall Rating: 9/10 Another great Thai food place that also has Laos cuisine! I love Thai food but have been trying to understand the flavor profiles of Laos food to expand my palate and this place was amazing! @abhoan suggested an order with their original chicken wings but I didn’t get to get it bc my mom eats relatively healthy but next time I’m going with friends to try her order: original chicken wings, Basil fried rice, pad see ew/flat noodles, and yellow curry! However, the chicken larb we got was excellent! It’s just ground chicken with lots of spices and you can eat it as a lettuce wrap too. Since my mom doesn’t eat spicy we got mostly everything level 1 but they have their own house made chili oil I had on the side and OMG I am obsessed! You can actually purchase a jar of it too but it is actual perfection. It’s SO spicy but I love how small the peppers are! It made the meal 1000% better. Highly recommend everything in my order except the Tom yum soup omg it was so sweet...