Thai Pepper — Restaurant in Lubbock

We came here for lunch. My husband ordered spicy shrimp which he said was good. I ordered the Green curry and I was confused about my food. I have never seen a watery curry. It said it’s curry but it doesn’t taste like curry. I have eaten at numerous Thai restaurants and have eaten red, green, panang, and other kinds of curry and my food didn’t taste anything like it. We also ordered the Seafood Tom Yum soup, a soup my husband and I always order whenever we eat at any thai restaurant. Their soup tastes ok, but the shrimp and the squid has an aftertaste. It’s like it has been placed in and out of the fridge many times before it was finally cooked. It did not taste fresh. The taste is not good at all. The fried wontons were good with good sauce. I don’t consider this place as an authentic thai food place. Also, the set up is like a fastfood restaurant . You have to come up to the counter and look at the menu board to order. My husband asked if it’s ok to get a menu and get a table while we decide what to order. We were told “No. You can’t get a table unless you have ordered and are given a number. You can sit over there (referring to a short bench across the counter).” I didn’t like that tone as I felt like a child. I am there to eat food and I didn’t understand why i can’t look at the menu and decide what to order at a table. One good thing I like about this place is it is convenient and there is ample parking. I will never come...

These are my opinions on Thai Pepper:

The Good 👍 The best Pad Thai in a 300 mile radius Excellent curry, fried rice, and appetizers Take out available Near campus

The Bad 👎 Long wait times Crowded seating area Only open on weekdays Sometimes closed for extended periods of time Have to wait in line to pay when you leave $10 card minimum

There's no doubt Thai Pepper has amazing food, and if the food was all that matters this review would be five stars. Unfortunately I typically have to wait ~15 minutes to have a server bring the menu when dining in if they are busy, and they are always busy because they are hardly ever open. I love the food but I find that often when I plan to get lunch/dinner there with someone that we arrive and they are either closed or too full for the number of people in our group, which has led to annoying situations. Overall the cost of the food is reasonable and I would recommend coming here to anyone, but I find myself coming less and less because the hassle isn't really worth it.

Update: They renovated the interior, which is nice, but I waited for 15 minutes standing awkwardly by myself and still didn't get a seat 🙄

Update 2: I got there and they closed for the evening, likely just to spite me. Well played Thai Pepper, until next time (maybe never since I graduate soon)

Update 3: bumping to 4 stars, I went back, find me a better pad...

Whew, where do I begin. I want to start that I've been in Lubbock for 3 years and loved it until recently the service has declined severely. To being the overall ordering system is horrible, they take about an order every 5 minutes due to having walk in order at the register style. Along with this, the line is usually out the door so plan ahead at least an hour in advance just to order your food. Then, if you make the mistake like I did, and wait in the order line while trying to just pick up food from an online order you will be very rudely directed to the order pick up line that is labeled with maybe a 6 inch by 6 inch sign you probably missed when entering. It wasn't like this before, multiple times I entered and got my food from the order line however this time the staff wanted to run things different. The light skin lady at the front taking the order was rudely talking with the customers while the taller gentleman who had to deliver the food would apologize for it all. Not to mention, when you do get your food hopefully you got it to go. Due to the maybe 10 tables in the whole restaurant being taken, you may see yourself standing eating your food until someone gets up and leaves. We used to love coming here all the time for different occasions, but due to the abysmal service and price increases I can't see myself returning...