Tin Drum Asian Kitchen & Boba Tea Bar - Decatur — Restaurant in Scottdale

New Update (2025): I've eaten in person at this location a few times now because it's convenient for me, the prices are reasonable and I love Thai food in general. Sometimes it's good, and when it's good I'm happy. However, it's very hit or miss. Seems like a variety of ways dishes are made, even what flavors they use. Maybe most importantly, I've noticed most of the people working there don't seem happy to be there. This may sound "woo-woo" but I honestly think how much joy and love someone puts into their cooking makes a difference in how food tastes, so this may be why sometimes the food is better than other times. That or some of their chefs are just more skilled than others. Also, their rewards app doesn't work very well.

Previous Update: I ordered again, and not only did they again ignore the request for no utensils that I wrote three different times on my order… The food was not as tasty this time. The Pad Thai noodles were a different size, the sauce tasted different… Very sad for me (although maybe good, because it will prevent me from eating there too much?). I may try one more time, since the food was so good the first time. Will try to remember to update if anything changes.

First review: Delicious, relatively healthy, lots of great options, good prices, hearty portions… Love the Citrus Pad Thai (with double veggies & vegetarian sauce!!)

I wish I could give five stars but there was no actual Boba in my Boba tea (I ordered through Uber Eats and there was no option to click for Boba, but since it was listed as Boba tea I assumed it would have Boba in it)… and that was one of the main reasons that I ordered from them!

Also, I made it clear that I didn’t want utensils and they put utensils. This is a pet peeve because I hate wasting things, especially when I know it’s so bad for the environment… and they use plastic containers, which I understand and it still bums me out, especially at a place that is otherwise very conscientious in many ways (I love all the modification options when ordering!!!).

All that said, their food helped make my “Single’s Day” (AKA Valentine’s Day) a lot tastier. I plan to order again and if my order is as delicious and correct this time, I will try to remember to come back and give...

It was around 9PM and it was the only place open for a quick bite after a long night at work. I walk into a bright and boldly colored walls and IKEA-like seating. It is the typical chain with a small menu and quick to order Asian style food. My expectation wasn't too high for the food, but was certainly not low enough for the quality of service.

As I get to the counter, I'm greeted by a cold, young hostess who hands me a menu containing a tiny selection of similar items. I order a pad thai with shrimp and a fountain drink to go, but decided to eat it there. A few bites in, the food was OK, but nothing to write home about. It was just another tired noodle shop where a quick buck can be had by stir frying a tiny selection of cheap ingredients in different combinations. The vegetables were sparse, the noodlege was generous, but meat decided to play hide and seek. I counted one, small shrimp buried in the pile of noodles. I asked one of the gentleman there, who was courteous and personable, if I had indeed ordered shrimp. He offered to take my plate and correct the matter. A moment later, he came back with my plate and said the shrimp was under the noodles. I excavated the heap to find my prey, curled and hiding in fear of being devoured. I took a few sips of my Fanta soda and it had a strong hint of perfume-like taste. I asked the same gentleman wether this flavor was normal. He tasted a sample from the fountain and said he didn't taste anything out of the ordinary, but mentioned that some customers find that it tastes different.

By this time, the hostess looked annoyed by my presence. As I was half way through my ho hum meal, she coldly informed me that the restaurant was closed. I quickly began to gather my belongings. She stood over me as I cleared my table. I asked for the location of the trash and she pointed to the opposite wall. You'd expect someone who is so anxious to have you leave to at least offer to handle the trash for you. As I walked to my car, I felt a sudden unease upon the realization of our modern, dystopian society where a modicum of hospitality and service is considered luxury even after...

I do not normally give reviews because I describe myself as an easygoing person especially about my expectations from a restaurant since I worked at one in the past and know how things can go too bad when the kitchen is overwhelmed. However, last week we stopped by the Tin Drum in Decatur after work with my wife while it was not really busy. (there were around 7 customers 5 of them were already served). After ordering our food, we started to wait and after around 30 minutes we started to wonder when will our food be served. We were okay until the ones before us not be served yet as well but things started to change when all customers before us served along with a couple of new customers (who we saw ordering at the counter, not online). My wife wanted to check with the girls who were serving and preparing food for take-outs. When she asked about it, they checked the screen and never responded back and instead started to laugh. After seeing this, we decided to ask for a refund and leave. Things went very interesting from this point again, when we approach to the counter to ask for a refund, the employee (normally) called the manager to deal with refund processes. When he came he apologized for our bad experience and told us the refund is provided to our account while we were expecting to use our card again for this process to be done but did not think about it much since he said it is done. Another point about this is, the food cost around 30 dollars, we tipped some amount on it, but the refund he mentioned at the point excluded the tip which was weird because why are we tipping for a service that we never got? But we did not want to discuss any further since we know under what conditions these employees at restaurants work so we were okay with the amount he mentioned. It is been a week since then and we did not still get the refund so I called the store today, and I just learnt we need to be there to use our card to get the refund. And this urged me to write this review, because I kind of feel not okay about how they handled this refund issue. It is very unlikely for a manager to skip that process...