Thai Spice Kitchen — Restaurant in Jacksonville

I’m completely surprised I’ve never left a review of this place because I’ve been coming here for probably a decade now. My first time trying Thai Spice was actually a delivery order to the Tiger Woods area/neighborhood of Jax which is pretty close to the restaurant. I loved it so much, I knew the next time I tried, I needed to actually go in, and experience how delicious the food is first hand.

This Thai restaurant is pretty nostalgic for me. I really love bringing my closest loved ones here for their first experience - Friends, family, significant others, etc. Each time they leave loving it just as much as I do, while also mentioning just how fair the prices are at Thai Spice. I feel like I need to mention that too bc that’s pretty much unheard of in 2024. (Thank you Thai Spice for keeping our wallets in mind)

Do you Love Thai tea? For the addicts out there like myself, Order Thai tea Here! I don’t know what they are lacing this specific tea with but hot damn it’s good! It’s some of the best in Jax that I’ve ever tried.

The spice levels for food range between 1-4. Usually when ordering they will ask, but sometimes unless you mention specifically what you would like heat wise, the dish will be not spicy, or it will be a mild 1. I order my dishes at a 2-3 and it’s tolerable. It’s a solid medium at 2, and a spicy, more intense medium/hot at 3. You will go through a fair amount of water ordering your food at a 3; it’s good.

This past visit, we ordered roti, steamed dumplings, Tom kha soup with chicken, Laab beef salad, and volcano chicken and rice with a large Thai tea. Ya know how anyone and everyone who has been to Hawkers talks about how good their roti is ?, ok, here… same deal. The roti is something you definitely should order and try. It’ll come with 2 large pieces of paratha. You will have dip/sauce leftover, and it goes really well with entree selections (like drenched on your rice) . You could of course just order more paratha (bread) when ordering the roti as well if you would rather eat more of it as an appetizer. (Personally, this roti is way better than hawkers, but that’s just my opinion)

Salads get a bad rap. Normally I do not order salads when dining out because I hold a high standard for crisp, clean, fresh veggies; but at Thai spice, I will always order the Laab. The cilantro, lettuce, red onion, fresh mint, is all so crisp and fragrant, it’s a ten out of ten every time I order it. The flavor they toss everything in is amazing. Get it a lil spicy to give it some zing. A level 2 or 3 is perfect. Honestly you can go a lil spicier for this one since you have the crisp iceberg lettuce to wrap all the ingredients in. (Notice how you see zero white iceberg pieces on that plate - that deserves a mic drop alone)

Give this lil hole in the wall restaurant a try. The service, food, experience...

Summary version: I love Thai food, and this restaurant has the best Thai food I’ve had. I hope they never change their recipes. The food is fantastic — I have ordered many things on the menu and all of them have been fantastic, and the people who work here are so kind.

I do not know why it took me so long to leave a review of this place. I used to work about 5 minutes away, and I would get takeout from here a couple times each month. I could honestly eat here everyday, their food so delicious. I haven’t been in the area for a couple years now that my work has changed. We live about an hour away and were in Jax for errands, and we decided to come here for dinner. So glad we did —and now we’re planning to come here every time we have to come to Jax. It was just as good as I remember it from a couple years ago.

I got a small bowl of tom yum soup (level 2), and then pad kee mao (level 3), both with tofu. My husband got the duck curry (level 2) and a side of roti. Tom yum: Perfect balance of sweet, sour, and heat. Pad kee mao: So flavorful, texture of tofu and noodles (with just a little char to them — perfect!) just right. I really want to try the khao soi next time we are in town again….but I love the pad kee mao so much I’m not sure if I can order anything different. Duck curry: He said that the duck was very well-prepared, but that the curry flavors were strong enough that, if you’re looking to have duck because you specifically want to taste “the flavors of duck,” you should probably get the roasted duck entree instead. He loved the spices and heat of the curry and said he will probably get the red curry next time with beef or chicken, because he enjoyed the red curry so much. Roti: My husband liked the roti so much that he said he would probably get a larger order (the app size) next time and use it to mop up the extra curry sauce.

Portion sizes are generous. It was just the right amount of food for both of us.

Heat-wise, if you’re trying to figure out which way to go: I like more heat to my food but not so much that my mouth feels like it’s on fire, and my husband isn’t crazy about much heat at all. The level 3 is right on the line for me — I definitely need some tissue because my nose runs while I’m eating, but I wouldn’t dial it back, because with the heat comes so much flavor. He said the level 2 is right on the line for him, but for the same reason as me, he will likely stay at level 2 when we come back. I hope...

I am new to the Jacksonville area and came here yesterday based on the positive reviews on Yelp. I ordered a Khao Soi with chicken which is listed on their menu as "Chiang Mai Soup." The dish did not seem right to me. The broth was very watery and not all that flavorful, and the noodles and the toppings seemed really off to me. The chicken was chicken breast which was totally bland and lacking in flavor. I have had much better versions of this dish elsewhere in the U.S. For a truly delicious version of this dish please go to a Thai restaurant called Lung Yai Thai Tapas in Miami, FL, and you will know what I am talking about.

I was very disappointed in my meal. I think my server could sense that, and as result, began to treat me worse. There was only one server working there last night when I went there. The service at times took forever especially when I had to leave. I was thinking about getting an order of their Roast Duck Curry and Bangkok Fried Rice to go because of all recommendations on this website but eventually decided not to.

I think the people who recommended this restaurant don't know what really good Thai food is. I would not recommend this restaurant to anyone. In fact, it's probably best to avoid any Thai, Indian, or any ethnic restaurants in Jacksonville despite the recommendations and positive reviews on...