Southeast Kitchen — Restaurant in Wilmington

I’m giving 1 star to this establishment because of the service. The food was AMAZING but the service was garbage. And I mean literally HORRENDOUS. I went with 2 other friends of mine because we wanted to try this place out. I got grilled shrimp as the appetizer and Fried Lemongrass as my main dish. Both of those dishes were made to perfection. However the waiter’s attitude in serving us was not welcoming at all. Unfortunately I did not catch his name, but one of my friends got an appetizer (the salad) that was not what she expected and things like that in restaurants happen all the time — where you want things to be sent back — so she ordered the pad thai with tofu as the protein. Firstly, the waiter gave a hard time in sending this dish back to the kitchen and secondly, he was not informative.

This friend of mine is vegan so she was deliberate in ordering things that do not have meat in them. He did not mention that the pad thai is usually made with egg so when the pad thai was brought out, she was visibly annoyed. By this point I had to tell the waiter that we needed ANOTHER appetizer without the egg and with the tofu steamed (because they fry the tofu in the same oil they fry the meat) the waiter treated her as if she was being difficult when all he needed was to communicate. He proceeded to make my friend uncomfortable by talking about us to his fellow coworker. He did not check up on us to see how we enjoyed the food (all things considering), and when he did it was to see if we were ready to leave. I believe as a waiter, you signed up for serving another person. It will come with ups and downs but never should you make a customer feel guilty for asking you to do your job.

This was not a great first experience to this restaurant and I probably will not be...

Finally got to try this place which is in the heart of the Wilmington restaurant district along Delaware Avenue . Parking is outside in the street wherever you can find it. There is no atmosphere because you have to stand outside this restaurant and someone comes out to you to serve you outside as you cannot go inside. What used to be the dining area is now filled with kitchen utensils and boxes. I ordered over the phone and went there to pick up the food. I got drunken noodles with beef and one other dish with shrimp curry .The drunken noodles were good but the wrong cut and grade of meat was used (low select grade beef ) was used so it was tough as old boots. The food sauce was neither Thai nor Chinese and it tasted quite odd to say the least. I write with the knowledge of these foods because I have lived in these countries and enjoyed their traditional cooking but I am afraid this place doesn’t serve quality ingredients hence the prices of each dish at approx $18 might attract the audience for this type of food and that explains some of them giving high ratings for this kind food which is no comparison the authentic food you get in decent Thai , Chinese, Korean and other Asian restaurants. You get what you pay for but if you are an experienced foodie who also cooks well this is not the place to go . I will certainly not be returning here because the beef that was served with the drunken noodles should never have been served . The quality ingredients are missing and the flavors are a mishmash which leaves you wondering . Large carrots are used and they...

I am new to the area and delight in the discovery of an eatery that manages to produce a reasonable facsimile of the culinary delights I enjoyed as a child in southeast Asia. My experience at Southeast Kitchen insured many a return visit. The dining room was clean, tastefully decorated and comfortable. The wait staff was friendly, efficient, and attentive without being overbearing. The fare was tasty and reasonably priced. I had the pho with flank steak. It satisfied my craving with a hearty, flavorful broth that expanded my sinuses and engaged my salivation to tuck into the fresh, toothsome ingredients with a fervor that simmered unabated until the bowl was purged of the last drop and morsel. From the thinly-sliced beef, to the steaming noodles, to the green and yellow onions, to the fresh bean sprouts, basil and jalapeno, it was a veritable orgiastic titillation of the palate. The only things separating this pho from its authentic, southeast Asian forebears was some tripe, some mysterious gray meatballs, fish sauce and perhaps a touch of star anise. Nonetheless, my craving was sated and I give Southeast Kitchen my enthusiastic stamp...