Authentic Thai Kitchen — Restaurant in Phoenix

I wanted to love this place, however, I came for early lunch about 1130 am and was the only one there so per the instructions I rang the elephant bell. Someone came right away and when I asked if I could eat in he said there was no server so just take out..I was bummed but ok, could i see a menu? Side note, there was a ton of boxes and stuff piled to the right of the door like they were moving or doing inventory 🤷🏻‍♀️ it wasn't very welcoming and I just found it odd. Anyway the man I originally talked to left me waiting for awhile and I didn't have much time for lunch. Finally I ordered Pad Thai with crispy tofu - my order I always get at any Thai place to see if I'll like the restaurant. I also ordered hot tea.

Finally my order came, it was a little bit of a wait but not too long but then he says we're just waiting on the water to warm up for your tea and a little bit later brought the bill. I was already in a rush so I signed it and left, I never got my tea so I guess that's their tip?! When I went to eat my meal (and I was starving!) there was no crushed peanuts or bean sprouts, the broccoli was mushy, it had a faint odd smell (tried to ignore) and not a lot of the usual pad Thai flavor that makes pad Thai delicious, it was just spicy not much else. The tofu was a bit overcooked as well. So depressing 😕 I just ate what I could and threw the rest. I hate wasting food so this speaks volumes. Will not be coming back. I hope they get the staffing they need and clean up the seating area or just turn into...

Fantastic flavors is what to expect, service was very genuine albeit strained, likely due that it was NY Day, and it appears that there was just the husband and his wife working. They were pretty overwhelmed with à la carte customers and those calling in for To-Go's. They definitely needed some extra hands that night, but I'll chalk it up as the challenges of owning a restaurant, and managing holiday service periods. I would definitely return with the anticipation that our visit was an anomaly from their intent on providing service. I have a restaurant myself and know first-hand how tough it is to staff appropriately during the holidays. My son lives here in Phoenix, and the location is walking distance. Décor is appropriate and we'll thought out, food was awesome and service was sincere and genuine.

I wish this restaurant the best as they deserve to succeed and encourage everyone to enjoy their efforts. Might be prudent to allow yourself a little extra time in the event they're bogged down, it's worth the wait.

Not sure if they've applied for a beer/wine license, I asked and she indicated that it takes a lot of time to process, so I'm uncertain if it's in the works; they didn't have any options...

This place is not for me. The outside looks very nice and the inside at first glance looks similarly nice. Their parking lot appeared to be full when we arrived, but one other patron was parked sideways taking up 3 spaces. The manager asked him to park differently to accommodate others. Cool.

The first booth we sat at had lots of ants on the wall. I was pretty chill about this, it's not possible to completely eliminate pests such as ants. We moved to a different table. All better.

The menu seems to have some good variety of interesting, but traditional Thai dishes. Ordering was difficult for me because, unlike most Thai and other Asian cuisines, they were unable to make most things vegan. The sauces all contained fish that could not be removed. I got veggie delight with tofu, subbed cashew sauce. My wife got a noodle dish with tofu. She isn't vegan, just likes tofu. Both dishes tasted very salty. Some may like that, but we did not.i asked for level 4 spice and mine was not spicy at all.

All in all, if you aren't vegan and like a lot of salt, then check it out. If you like spice, start at 5.

I won't be back, but it...