Cambodian Thai — Restaurant in South Bend

I've loved Cambodian Thai for years, starting in my undergrad days, so it definitely has a touch of nostalgia for me. I haven't been back in years and my hopes were high for a delicious meal reminiscent of my youth-- and for the most part, my expectations were met!

I went with a party of 10 people and we were quickly seated. The service was excellent-- our waiter was young and seemed to be the only server but moved as fast as she could and was very attentive. As other reviews have mentioned, due to the short staff the service can be slow, so be prepared to have a leisurely meal. The atmosphere isn't the nicest, but the best meals can come from the humblest places. There's chipped paint and very basic table settings. I am happy to report THEY ARE USING REAL CHINA!! No more of the styrofoam and paper plates so reviled in the recent reviews!

We started off with spring rolls, papaya salad, and chive dumplings. Al were fresh and delicious. My favorite was the papaya salad, very refreshing. I used to LOVE the chive dumplings in undergrad, but unfortunately the flavor was a bit lacking.

The entrees come with a spice level from 1-10. My party ordered anywhere in the range from 1 to 9! For the most part, the ratings rang true, although the lone brave soul who opted for 9 reported it was not that spicy (perhaps putting on a brave face). I had the basil fried rice with tofu rates at 7, another nostalgic meal. Again, not quite as flavorful as memory served, but still delicious.

As a bonus, the waitress let us know the restaurant is entirely family run. Her mom and dad own the place, and her Cambodian mom adapted the Thai recipes from ones she learned in a refugee camp. Her brothers found out the staff. Great story and great to see a South Bend treasure (hopefully) thriving.

Overall, great food, great service, will...

The food was decent but not what I would call authentic Thai. I ordered basil fried rice with shrimp. It had No basil. I'm used to Thai rice dishes having vegetables, egg, visible spices, etc and especially basil hence the name. It was plain fried rice with broccoli and the shrimp . Tasted no different than what you would find in. A take out Chinese restaurant which is not something I eat or enjoy . I asked the waitress about it and she said "I think it's a basil SAUCE that's why you don't see anything in the rice". Me knowing that this makes no sense , I asked her to bring me this sauce on the side so I can add it. She says "I think it's the type of stir fry sauce" and went to the back to grab said "invisible basil sauce". They finally admitted to not adding anything in it and said that this was not the type of Thai restaurant that has eggs , onions, peas etc in the rice but still didn't apology for my BASIL fried rice not having basil. I then order curry fried rice to avoid them from just taking my plate and adding basil in it. It was decent. I asked her to add basil in the curry fried rice . You would think it would be a courtesy being that they screwed up my first order , NOpe. Think again! I was charged$1.00 for them to add a few fresh basil leaves to my SECOND order even though it was missing on the first. Whatever. I still paid and tipped 15% just knowing I...

A hidden gem in downtown South Bend. Took my boys out for dinner and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. We started with the Chicken Satay, Potstickers, and Pork Egg Rolls... all of which were very flavorful, cooked perfectly, and priced well. My youngest son especially loved the Potstickers. My older son couldn't stop talking about the Satay. The boys shared a chicken fried rice which came out in a timely manner and with good portion size. The boys said it was some of their favorite fried rice ever. I had the Red Curry (Level 5 Spice). It was very good! Good portion, great flavor, and spice level was just how I like it - HOT. The waitress was very friendly, very attentive, and even helped with suggestions and sizing. My only less than positive critiques are that it would be nice to have fountain drinks (with free refills) instead of bottled drink. But pricing was ok. And atmosphere was run down and tired. Paint coming off walls and cheap tables and decor... but frankly I'd take good food and service over fancy decorations any day... but an update to the place and fountain drinks would make this a 5 star place (and I suspect a LOT busier). If you like Thai, don't miss out on...