Chiangmai Diner & Bar — Restaurant in New York

I don’t usually write reviews but really felt compelled to do so. I was excited to try this place and thought the food and drinks were good. However, the encounter with two staff members after paying my bill completely ruined the entire experience for me and for that reason I will not be returning to this restaurant. After paying my bill and was packing up my leftovers to get ready to leave, the waiter that took our order came to the table to ask me if the service and food were good. I replied yes. She then went on to say oh because you gave $0 tip. I was so stuck that I proceeded to say "I know." And "maybe because I couldn’t." She then proceeded to repeat herself and pressure me to give a tip. I then begin to feel very confused, taken aback, and upset and asked her do I need to? (And in my mind thought what is this, what’s going on, did I do something wrong, is that a law?) It’s interesting because I’m actually a very kind and understanding person however it’s all about the way something is approached. I was willing to let what happened with the waiter go and just leave but then she went to speak to another staff member, and he then came to the table to ask why I didn’t give a tip, begin to make me feel like the worst person in the world for not leaving a tip and then said "But we live off tips." Okay here's my opinion: I think it’s very very wrong to pressure a customer to give a tip when it’s one’s personal choice to do so, unless there is forced upon gratuity already in the bill (in which in this case there was not, which means it was a personal choice to leave a tip) which in my option at times is truly outrageous. Also, if I paid my bill in full (which was a bit expensive already and what I planned to spend within my budget) why should I be approached and pressured by two staff members about not leaving a tip? How dare you? You don’t know my situation just as well as I don’t know yours but please learn from this review that it’s absolutely not okay to try to force, embarrass, and pressure a customer to leave a tip when that’s a personal choice. If we’re being real here, there are plenty of professions with workers earning low incomes or high incomes that are not allowed to ask for tips and do not receive tips. I understand many people may believe in the culture of giving tips and I do not knock or judge anyone however the way I was treated was both shocking and just really unacceptable. It takes a lot to make me upset and I was so upset that I vented to a few people after leaving the restaurant and am also writing this review in hopes that it helps the staff members. Again, I do not know your situation as a service worker and you don’t know anything about my situation and what I can afford so please think about that especially in this economy and do not do something like that again. The experience also made me feel like they were only being kind and courteous in order to receive a tip. But again let’s be real here. One walks into a restaurant to receive food and to pay for that food isn’t that a business transaction? When one is hired for a job isn't there a job description with duties one is to perform? Isn’t and shouldn’t it be an intrinsic part of the job role to be kind and courteous while you perform that job? Just the way everyone else within the same profession or other professions should do (because it’s your job and not solely for a tip)? It reminded me of greed and this has only happened to me once before with a delivery man when I ordered Chinese food. After I gave a $2.00 tip, he said to me only $2.00? But anywho, I’m just appalled and I will not be returning to this restaurant. It truly truly ruined it for me. I wonder if the staff does this to customers coming in for pickup orders… I still can’t believe I was treated in that way. Especially to be served by a woman as a woman then to have another staff member (a man) to come and approach me about the same thing. And both had completely different attitudes before they saw that the payment did not include the tip. Smh...

I was doing laundry and decided to try Chiangmai.

I thought I was going to grab a quick stir fry to go (90% chance) and run home (basically right across the street) and throw it down my gullet while spring cleaning my apartment.

But I walked into an oasis and sat down. I was ready to order very quickly and they were right on it and the kitchen was also very quick.

The prices for dinner entrees ranged from $17 to $20 (not much more than quick stir fry) but the photos in the menu showed some of the best looking food I have seen.

I am a protein machine and it is very difficult for me to find places to eat in Williamsburg because everything is 90% bread and rice with a tiny portion of meat.

This was PARADISE for protein machines!

I ordered the Chef’s favorite dish (I forgot the name but it was a very tender melt in your mouth piece of pork). The price was not much more than a bowl at Chipotle.

And there was a beautifully presented basket with a perfect amount of sticky rice, which complimented the generous serving of pork and vegetables over a (banana?) leaf on a gorgeous plate.

There was enough meat for two people and it was DELICIOUS. Sweet but not too sweet. The textures and temperatures of every component were perfect.

My only regret was coming alone. It would have been great to have five or six peeps and try several entrees family style.

The servers were top notch and the atmosphere felt very welcoming. I got in and out in well under 30 minutes (and will still come by even if I am in a hurry considering the prices are so reasonable) but I was rushing them because of my laundry (and they could read me like great servers do).

But I think you should try it when you are not in a rush because it should be savored and enjoyed (both the food and the room).

I rarely leave reviews, only when overwhelmingly surprised. Try it I bet you...

Always looking for new Thai places to check out and was excited to see this as an option. Ultimately, we enjoyed our meal and I would consider coming back vs. getting their lunch takeout special.

We started with the fried salmon belly, a dish I hadn't had before. The crispiness was shocking when you then bit into such smooth salmon-a really jarring juxtaposition of texture. The sauce it came with was fine but not terribly special. We had also ordered the fish bomb but were told they ran out (we didn't need it).

We got three mains:

1. Larb kua Chiangmai: Larb is one of my favorite Thai dishes and this was my favorite of the night. There was a generous portion of meat that was very well seasoned and spicy without being intolerable. The crudite was whatever for me but I did enjoy making small lettuce wraps with the meat and some rice.
2. Gaeng Hoh: This is a noodle dish I was not familiar with and ultimately didn't love. I do enjoy glass noodles but I didn't quite enjoy the flavoring of this-a bit too sour/fermented. This may just be what this dish is supposed to be. I don't understand totally why a noodle dish is served with sticky rice, though.
3. Khao Soi Chiang Mai: We love a good khao soi and this was a really nice dish. The noodles were delicious, the broth just right, and the beef so pull-apart tender. Always appreciate the crunch noodles on top.

We made a reservation so got seated fairly quickly. The place itself is deceptively huge, which means that the environment is a bit loud. The decor is fun, tons of lights hanging with decorations on the wall. Because it was so crowded the service was, while super nice, a bit lacking (took us a while to get more water, for example). But the dishes came out surprisingly quick. Overall, a...