Regent Thai Cuisine — Restaurant in Washington

A place does not have to get everything right to earn 5 stars. But it does need to get a lot of things right and "The Regent" scored well on multiple fronts. This was my process of choosing a restaurant as my wife and I found ourselves in DC over the past weekend. Find a place which is open late (past 10 p.m.), isn't not too far from the hotel we were at (the Hilton, DuPont Circle), and has decent to good reviews. The Regent fit the bill on all fronts and it certainly didn't disappoint.

Here are some things I liked about the place: The place was open until 11 p.m. and they accommodated our dessert request even though we placed it at around 10:50 p.m. or so. Not all places seem to do that. Ultimately, the most important criteria in my mind when rating a restaurant is taste. My wife and I ordered the Plaa Pow (their whole rainbow trout, stuffed with Thai herbs) and the Pad Gra Prao and found both dishes to be flavorful and unique in their tastes (the Plaa Pow in particular). For dessert, having looked at the reviews, we went with the sticky rice with mango and it was a highlight of our dinner. Even though I come from a part of India which is well-known for its many different desserts, I found this dish to be unique and flavorful. We also experienced good service. For example, the Plaa Pow comes with a spicy dipping sauce and my request for another helping of the dipping sauce was accommodated graciously by my server. My wife had the Pad Gra Prao and her request to substitute the squid, scallops, and mussel with shrimp was accommodated as well. They even charged us $14.95 (as opposed to $16.95) for the dish because we chose not to have the squid, scallops, and mussel! Portion sizes were adequate. We were hungry but by at the end of our meals we were full. At the same time, we didn't need doggy bags. Value for money - We found prices to be reasonable for the quality of the food and the location of the restaurant. The Pad Gra Prao came with more shrimps than I think I have seen on any one single dish ever. Last but not the least, they had outside seating and I think both my wife and I greatly enjoyed being able to take in the sights and sounds of the city on a warm spring evening.

All in all, I definitely enjoyed my visit to this restaurant. If I find myself again in the area, I wouldn't hesitate for a moment to make a trip to The Regent and experience the many unique tastes and high levels of service it...

This was the absolute worst Thai food I have ever had in my life. Completely disrespectful to serve this so called Thai food. If I could leave negative stars I would. Dont waste your time here. I rarely leave negative comments but this place must be exposed. My step mother is Thai and I grew up eating with the family my entire life. If you truly enjoy Thai food don’t ever come here.

10/15/23: (response to your message) We are a company ourselves and work in the garment industry. So not a competitor of yours at all, just a dissatisfied customers. But I will list my concerns below. If anyone is to google what Pla Lad Prik traditionally looks like, they will see that the photo I attached of yours doesn’t look like it at all. Usually Pla Lad Prik is a whole fish not a filet. You can tell by the amount of sauce to fish ratio. The fish tasted like it came straight from the freezer not fresh at all. The vegetables were tough and not steamed well. And the sauce was nowhere near thai hot. The thai basil rice, was extremely bland and nowhere near Thai hot. The onion was the only hint of original flavor in the rice. And again was a very small portion. Most Thai entrees are for communal eating, not undersized individual plates. I came to DC from the Hampton Roads to visit family/friends and was going to cook the meals myself but I got off late. I figured I’d order what I was going to make so we can still enjoy it. You can only imagine my disappointment when I got to the house and opened this up. Spending $50 bucks on this quality makes no sense.

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I never write reviews but I was just in love with this place and I had to share it with others. My wife and I were traveling to D.C. last weekend with our family and granddaughter when we came across this fantastic restaurant. The service was exceptional. He really went out of his way to make sure we were having a great dining experience. There were mosquitos outside where we were eating so he had bug spray available for us to use. Who does that? He let us relax and enjoy our time together and did not rush the bill. The food was exceptional. My granddaughter is a picky eater but even she loved it. I can't remember exactly what everyone ordered but they all really enjoyed it. I am not a person who takes photos of my food but my wife and daughter in law did. Unfortunately, I do not have their pictures to upload. We ate outside because it was a nice evening but the inside of the restaurant is very nice. It felt very comfortable and authentic. In fact, that is how I would characterize the entire experience. Authentic. I would definitely go back the next time...