Jasmine Rice — Restaurant in Philadelphia

My wife and I recently visited Jasmine Rice on 306 S 16th St. in Philadelphia. It is the second time we have eaten at this location.

With a very intimate setting, the ambience brings a nice setting to our eyes.

We started our lunch with their Thai Iced Tea.

What a beautiful sight this Thai Iced Tea brings to our eyes, imagine a glacier on Mars. We did not want to drink this creation, because of its allure. So I took a picture of it to keep in my memory if I ever became senile.

Once we tasted the drink, we both could not keep the glass on the table. I love this beverage in general, but the Thai Iced Tea here really tasted well and the portion was definitely good.

Then, we ordered two dishes: Fried Jasmine Rice (Beef) & Ginger Garlic Stir Fried (Beef)

We were in awe from the vibrant colors shared with us by their chef. Such an artistic display for something we "have" to eat. What a difficult task it is. But we definitely started to eat and from our first bite, we knew the plate would be finished. How better to show the chef our feelings towards his creation? The flavor was not overbearing, like with all exquisite art forms. Never pushing it's taste to a person. The healthy greens with the rice and beef really found out an incredible experience taste wise.

Then there is the owner of Jasmine Rice, Tom Jamavan. It is the second time we had the pleasure to meet with him, the first being his other restaurant location (224 Market St.). Such a humble and tactful person Tom is, being so happy to be a small business owner. His kindness to everyone around the restaurant really makes a customer feel like our business is not being taken for granted. To have an intimate setting, an incredible chef, and a really cool person as an owner of a restaurant is quite rare, that is why we wholeheartedly recommend anyone in the area and visitors to try out Jasmine Rice. You definitely will feel like a family...

We were going to see a show at the Academy of Music and wanted to eat beforehand. We saw the proximity of the restaurant to the theaters and parking garage. It was definitely a plus.

We ordered an appetizer, green curry mussels and two main dishes, Pad Kee Mao with beef & red curry with chicken. I have to say the green curry was divine. I wish I would have ordered some rice to go with the broth or have piece of bread so the sauce/broth would not go to waste. The appetizer was delicious and I would order again. Typically when we go to have Thai, we order dishes to share, a noodle dish & curry dish. Both Pad Kee Mao and Red Curry were delicious. We didn’t have much time since we needed to head out to see our show. So we didn’t ask for more rice with the red curry to take home with our left overs. That could be my recommendation if you enjoy red curry broth/sauce. The spicy level we ordered was medium. In the photos you can see the pepper flakes on top of the Pad Kee Mao. I always order a Thai iced tea to help cut the heat if entrees are spicier than expected.

The restaurant has a lot of seating. There was a large group (10+) at a group of tables. I have to say it may get a little loud if the restaurant is full. I don’t necessary think it’s a bad thing & unavoidable in some of the smaller restaurants that have limited space. However, it may be difficult to hear your dining partner. Also, if the restaurant would be full, it could be harder to navigate to the restrooms in the back.

Overall my dining experience was nice on all areas, quality/taste of food & service. I would recommend the three items we ordered. I would also return to the restaurant if the opportunity...

My friend and I were looking forward to eating here after a play this past week. We were very disappointed. I am on a budget and only have so much to splurge with every two weeks and this was money ill spent. I ordered the Pad Thai and it was without exaggeration, the worst that I ever had and at $18.00!!. It was one gelatinous mess. It was cool, not hot, and I could have picked it all up with a fork stuck in the middle. There were no bean sprouts or crushed peanuts as indicated on the menu and you could barely see the egg with the naked eye. It was boring and monotonous. We shared the house salad which is usually called the Thai Salad. It only included lettuce, chunks of tofu, and cucumbers, with the most unusual peanut dressing I've ever tasted. That was $9.00! We also had the Crispy Spring Rolls. They were fine but unremarkable. The server never came back to refill our water glasses. The service was minimum. Very disappointing indeed. Looking at the reviews now, it looks like it has been hit and miss for a while, maybe different chefs on different days. I felt very disappointed and a bit cheated out of my hard earned money. This was our first visit at the Olde City location and it will be our last. As an aside, one review commented on microwaved food and canned products used. I wonder myself as we never smelled any glorious aromas coming out of the kitchen or heard the sounds of pots and pans or food prep coming from...