Singha Thai — Restaurant in Kettering

Before I start out.. I’m fully aware that they have been open for a week. I’ve worked at restaurants on the opening weeks and am fully aware of the trials and tribulations that take place during those grueling hours. So I’m very mindful of giving a lot more slack to them solely because they are still testing the waters. Having said that.. here’s my honest opinion of Singha Thai.

My wife and I went in to place a takeout order greeted by a very friendly waiter/hostess/maybe the owner’s relation somewhow/only person running the front of the house. There were three tables and 1 person waiting on a carry out. Jackpot. We got there at the right time (5:20 in case you’re really wanting to follow along). We place our order of 2 appetizers and 2 noodle entrees. The aforementioned hostess/FOH lady tells us it’ll be ready in 15.. scratch that.. 25 minutes as a guy from the back runs out in a panic and directs her to tell us it’ll be longer. We are told there are 10 carry out orders ahead of us. We take a seat at one of the 12 - 2 top tables near the corner and wait on our food.

Then it happens. The phone rings but isn’t answered as a wave of 6 people come in the door. 4 more people come in to place or pick up their take outs. The phone rings again. No answer. Home dude from the back is now in full panic mode, bringing out one or two measly take out orders as the orders flood in. We watch all this happen for about 30 minutes as the place slowly fills up with roughly 10 people still either waiting to be sat, get a glass of water or awkwardly make conversation in the background. No one in the take out “waiting area” (half the restaurant which is equivalent to 8 chairs) has moved an inch as we are now going on 40 minutes in this Thai purgatory.

As people come in for dinner looking for a place to sit, home dude from the back comes out and tells my wife to get up and stand near the kitchen while we are waiting. Not a big deal right? Sure, had she not been over 8 months pregnant (and very visibly so). We didn’t want to make a scene and considering we’d already paid for our food, there was no point in complaining. This staff was over their heads and it would get us nowhere. The couple who was given our table (god bless them) felt so uncomfortable for having been given my wife’s seat that they did everything they could to overcome the guilt that home dude from the back had bestowed upon them. They offered my wife their seat, asked us what our name was so they could help us hear when our order came up. But it was all in vain. They ended up walking out 10 minutes later, along with about 8 other people who’d given in at this point.

Update on the original 15.. no 25 minute quote. We are at 50 minutes. Now standing at 8 months pregnant. Ten minutes later, our food comes out with an apology for the longer than anticipated wait. Thanks guy.

Ok well the food has to be worth it bc that’s what the reviews said right? Not so much. My tofu pad Thai was burnt, cold and congealed. Like when you burnt something in a pan, cleaned it out but didn’t get the char out of the bottom? Kinda like the char that’s usually so delicious on the pies and pints baked wings but in a cold, congealed pad Thai flavored package. My wife’s food was decent, but mine had clearly been waiting on hers, but still cold. The crab Rangoon and egg rolls were mediocre at best and came with the orange duck sauce from Chinese restaurants. The stuff that no one eats.

Needless to say, we are Uber disappointed and won’t be going back.

One hot tip though Singha. When the kids run out from the back, could they at least put shoes on? The sound of smacking bare feet in a restaurant has a funny effect on what that does to...

I don't think I have ever given a restaurant quite a low review, but I hope this gets their attention enough to help them grow and consider how they interact with their customers. People go to restaurants because they want to enjoy the company, the atmosphere, the food and have great service. I think most would agree that service and food rank up there in terms of satisfaction. For me it's service. I don't care how good the food is, if you are rude and disrespectful, I won't return. Our waitress was phenomenal. The woman who came and gave me my dish and worked the cash register with short balck hair, should consider how she treats people. She has no idea what people are going through and her remarks cost her a loyal customer. My husband and I LOVE Thai food. We enjoy eating it. It's probably one of our favorite cuisine. It was our first time and our last time eating here. I was recently diagnosed with a gluten allergy. So it has been a tiring time remembering what has gluten and what doesn't. And I get anxious going to restaurants as it is especially if it's my first time trying it out. I was hungry that day and out of an automatic response upon seeing the menu, I saw they had vegetable dumplings. And without even thinking I ordered it. Then I ordered my main dish. Then I remembered to ask if they had gluten free options. Just to prove how easy it is to overlook what is gluten, my husband, myself and the waitress forgot that the dumplings were gluten. I'm not saying it's her fault or my husband, my point is, it is easy for people to not realize what is or isn't gluten free. We don't think about it if it isn't something common to our diet. I don't fault anyone for that. The waitress was wonderful and very sweet. She did her best to ensure my main dish was gluten free. The server (maybe manager) came out to give me my dish. As she put the plate down she remarked, "You are gluten free, but why did you eat the dumplings. They aren't gluten free." I was a little taken a back by the accusatory question, that I honestly felt like I had to defend myself for my choice. My husband responded for me cause he could tell I was a bit taken back. I felt like she was implying that I was lying. And she did this with other tables in ear shot, which was embarrassing to me. It's already bad enough to have an allergy that has renovated my entire life, but to have someone accuse you for lying because you made an honest mistake is disrespectful. Maybe she could have said, "I noticed you mentioned you are gluten free, but I see you ordered the dumplings. Did our waitress mention it wasn't gluten free?" To which I could have responded by telling her that it wasn't the waitresses fault and I would have taken full responsibility for my decision and would have thanked her for her thoughtfulness. And my entire experience would have been different. Kindness goes a LONG way. I hope they read this and hopefully learn a lesson of being kind. In terms of the food - my main dish was good. The dumplings weren't that great. My husband's soup...

True Score- 4.55/5 Stars

Walked right in on a Saturday for lunch and had a table. We were greeted with waters, however it took a while for the waiter to come take our orders.

Food: We started with the steamed pork pot stickers, and they were probably the best I have ever had. The special soy dipping sauce really sets them off with flavor. My girlfriend ordered the crunch Pad Thai, and I ordered Pork Basil Fried Rice. Both dishes were great, and had very large servings. One thing we both noticed, was that despite the large servings, the ingredients were so high quality and cleanly made, we had no bloating. It was incredible. Both dishes tasted very good, and the high quality ingredients is what made the flavor shine. For dessert, we ordered the mango sticky rice, and it was also excellent. Very, very flavorful and sweet. I don’t really even like Mango and I loved it! Before we left, we ordered 2 Thai Teas, one with lemon creamer, and the other with milk. They were both good, but I far preferred the Lemon.

Price: Now, to price. All of that mentioned above, made appealing on the dish and with high quality ingredients, was 40 dollars. That is great. I over spent for a lunch, but that is excellent pricing for a sit down and eat experience. And thats with an appetizer, 2 entrees, dessert, and 2 specialty drinks. I did dock .1 point here though, because I don’t believe there was any lunch options. So entrees may be a bit pricy for most looking for lunch options. If there were lunch prices, I did not see them.

Service: The service was good after we initially waited long after being seated. The server was very personable, offering me his recommendations on their best food and drink. And, he delivered! They were all good. They also box your leftovers for you, which is a nice touch.

Facilities: The facilities were very clean. A+ here. However, it was very small. I can see dining in being a huge issue at dinnertime. Thus, loss of points. However, what they do with the space they have is incredible.

Satisfied?: I was very satisfied with this experience, and will be back. Will also be recommending to just about everybody I know!

NOTE: Star rating based on my own formula consisting of flavor, cost, facilities, service, and overall satisfaction. Reviews are subject to change based on...