I have been to Da's many times and the food has been very good and very fresh. I have raved about it to many friends. While the service has never been stellar, last night's visit was a let down. Maybe it's an influx of new summer help, but for the price ($155/5 people) the staff should be a little more well trained. First: We asked the server how many curry puffs and dumplings came in an order and she said 6. When 4 arrived, we mentioned it and she said she had made a mistake. We asked if we might just get one more of each do everyone could have one. She said she would ask the manager. She (not the manager, which would have been nice) came back out and said we would have to order another order of each. Had we known there would not have been enough, we might have ordered something else. Second: The food did not come out all at once. 3 in our party sat there for 15 minutes while 2 had their food. The duck we ordered had  been sitting behind the line because it promptly (and conveniently) came out (cold) as soon as we mentioned that the other orders had not yet arrived. The final 2 dishes arrived hot. Three: The final straw was that we were overcharged for one of the items on the bill!!! Again, the server apologized but no apology from the nebulous manager. I'm not the type who is  looking for freebies, but after supporting this restaurant and Yelping photos and Check-ins every time I eat here, it would have been nice for the management to seem to care. I think I will be taking a break from Da's for a while while hopefully they get their act together.
Review Source:Da's has gone way downhill.. I overlooked the Pricey menu many times because the food was decent for the area but they are just too disorganized and there is no consistency. The chicken beef and pork are all tough and dry and for $24 entrees I expect everyones food to come out on time.. 3 people in our party waited a good 20 mins for their food to arrive.. The manager couldn't be bothered to come out and even apologize.  This was my last time Da's   Your just not up to par anymore.. Hopewell has much better options..
Review Source:There are many many Thai restaurants in NJ to choose from, and I do like Da's especially for their duck dishes. It can be very busy on weekends, and this place is loud & bustling. Not a great date place if you are looking for a quiet romantic spot. That aside, if you want delicious, fresh-tasing Thai food, and you don't mind the busy ambiance, give Da's a try.
Review Source:I've now been for lunch a few times, and gotten take-out a few more.  To say that for the $50+ that we spent tonight for two entrées and appetizers we were expecting more pretty much sums it up for me.  Maybe I haven't had better Thai food, but I'm going to keep looking. Â
The curry puffs were very nice (albeit a small portion for $9) as was the squid phad nam prik pow. Â The pad pik khing (with shrimp) was kind of disappointing - mostly broth and a few small shrimp that didn't pick up much of the dish's flavor.
I really really want to love this place, but as another reviewer had put it - I'm waiting to be wowed. Â Phone number (466-THAI) is awesome.
I've now been here twice and have to be honest that I'm still waiting to be wowed. Â The food is decent and the staff is friendly. Â Â It's a little frustrating to call for take-out because they don't always pick up the phone on the first try so you have to keep calling back until you get someone (this has happened to me both times). Â I will go back to Da's because I'm incredibly hopeful that I will share in the experience that others seem to rave about. Â Also, I know it took a lot of time, effort and planning to get Da's Kitchen up and running and I'd love to see it become and remain a smashing success!
Review Source:went here for the first time last week after hearing a lot of good hype. Â
the good: interior/exterior are very nice and clean. Â service is good, green papaya salad was de-lish.
the "meh": pad thai was nothing but bean sprouts, a couple noodles, and barely anything else. Â tasted OK but not what I was expecting.
would give it another try.
I'm giving this place one star. It should have none in my opinion. Â We had dinner here on a Friday night in July. Â We were sat outside and had no silverware or glasswhere. Â After the third time of asking and still nothing, my wife went and grabbed some herself. Â We asked for wine glasses...nothing. Â We asked for water...nothing. Â We went to the bus station and grabbed them ourselves. Â Then It took them over an hour and fifteen minutes to bring us our food...and that was just the begining...After a couple of days I checked my bank account and noticed that I was over charged. Â We left a $2.00 tip because of the horrible experience. Well the waitress charged $7.00 instead of $2.00. Â We called the owner and asked for a copy of the recipt that he had on file. I had a copy of mine as well. Â Sure enough the waitress changed the 2 into a 7 by putting a line through the 2. Â Granted it wasn't much money but it was the principal of the matter. Â Especially after our experience. Â On top of that the owner insisted it was a mistake on our part and that it was our bad hand writing. Â He never apologized nor took blame for his horrible wait staff. Â Instead of refunding us the money and apologizing he gave us a gift card to come back saying he is being more than genrous. Â We never wanted to come back to begin with. Â Nor will we ever. Â The owner thinks he knows everything about everything with little regard to customer service. Â My wife and I have worked in every position in the restaurant industry for years. Â We know the tricks, the scams and the lies. Â We love it when waiters and restaurant owner try to pull crap on us and others and think they can get away with it. Â I hope the owner reads this. Â If you are reading this then I wish you luck because at the rate you are going you will be out of business real fast. Â Everyone else I recommend you stay away. Â If you do decide to go don't say I didn't warn you. Â Good Luck!
Review Source:I'm giving Da's a 4-star review on the basis of the good dishes we've had here. When Da is spot on, she makes the best Thai food in the area. Unfortunately, some of the dishes are really just not very good. For instance, I'm a big fan of Papaya Salad, and I really disliked her take on it.
That said, when she's good, she's fantastic. The Tom Kha soup is, hands down, the best I've ever had. The Pad Se-Ew (wide noodle) is absolutely delicious. The Pad Woon Sen (glass noodles) is really quite wonderful. We also love the Massaman curry. The sauteed dishes have all been very good as well.
I haven't found an appetizer that we really loved yet. The curry puffs and spring rolls are good, but not great. The fresh spring rolls were tasty, but a bit overpriced for a salad wrapped in rice paper.
We get take out from Da's with some regularity because the dishes we like, we absolutely love. We've dined in a few times, and the reviews about the service aren't wrong. It's a bit uneven and often slow. Having dined in, I realized that the problem with this location is that it's usually full and Da is doing most of the cooking. I think it's just too much for her to handle.
But, criticisms aside, we're fans of Da.
We absolutely loved the food at Da's Thai in Princeton. Â It was fresh, tender, & flavourful. Â Over the past 2 years since they've not been at the Y, we were hoping they would return.
Last summer there were some issues with their new spot in Hopewell, but they're now open. Â
Inside the space is warm and welcoming. Â The staff is friendly, everything spotless. Â No one batted an eye when we brought in our daughter, who is 17.5 months old.
Our favourite Thai dishes are crispy duck and whole fried fish, followed by beef salad. Â No duck or fried fish at lunch time today. Â No worries--we'll have the spring rolls, tom yum goong, tiger's tears (their version of beef salad), and a green curry with squid.
To put it bluntly, Da's food has changed, likely to cater to their new customers. Â I was reminded of our first few dozen visits to restaurants in Princeton, with overcooked food. Â The spring rolls were crispy on the outside, but mushy on the inside--not the filling, but the skin. Â The beef in the salad was inedible--chewy & tough--even though the sauce was spicy enough to my liking. Â The chicken in the soup was overcooked--kind of mushy and chalky--even though the broth had a really good flavour and the vegetables were tasty. Â Then came the green curry, this time with overcooked, chewy & rubbery squid in an overly sweet, almost soapy broth, which my daughter spat out.
The staff is really nice, the atmosphere warm & inviting. Â The other tables were filled with couples nearing or at retirement who seemed to enjoy themselves thoroughly.
The worst part is that we were so excited about Da's opening. Â I hope these are just some kinks from the delayed opening and that their food returns to the mindblowingly amazing food they had from the tiny kitchen at the Y.
$55/lunch for 2.5, including tax and tip
Was really hoping to love this new outpost of Da's. We had been several times before it closed at the Princeton YMCA but the Hopewell location needs some work. When we came in very early on a Monday night and asked for tea, the water was lukewarm. It took about 20 minutes for them to bring out hotter but not HOT water. They were waiting for some big steel contraption to heat up but they could easily have boiled the water in the kitchen! Then my husband asked about the Massaman curry described on the menu as "beef traditionally slow cooked for hours in seven spice Maasaman curry sauce", we ordered this and the waitress said, Do you want that with beef, chicken, tofu..etc so we tried to clarify, Was the beef cooked for several hours and got a confusing reply but ended up as yes. When the dish came out, it was obvious that the beef had not been slow cooked for hours as it was tough. Service was very spotty, although friendly and like I said, it was early on a Monday night. We left around 6:30pm when it was getting more crowded and I hate to think what the service was like then.
PLEASE Da's! Strighten out your service issues, do not misdescribe your food on your menu and learn to have hot water available in the middle of winter for people who want hot tea! We want to return to your place as we love Thai food and think you did a fabulous job making the place look pretty. But after an experience like we had, we're less wanting to return!
Went there this evening and had a lovely time. The food was fantastic - we had a pad thai, tiger's tears salad, tom yum soup, and khao soi curry. The khao soi was the clear winner of the evening, with a marvelous, complex sauce, perfectly-done noodles (so tender, with just a bit of bite!), and moist, delicate chicken... absolutely loved it! The tom yum was also great, and using the king mushrooms instead of generic white button mushrooms was a really nice touch. Yum, yum! One of the previous reviews must have had a bad night - this soup had a great lime flavor, with hints of ginger and lemongrass and all of the things it should have. I also loved the Tiger's Tears - it was right at the upper limits of my spicy tolerance, and was a delicious mix of tastes with the chile, lime, and mint. The pad thai was tasty, but nothing exciting - at another restaurant it might stand out, but the other dishes here were so flavorful and interesting that the pad thai didn't really compare. If you're feeling adventurous, I recommend branching out and skipping the standard pad thai in favor of one of their specialties.
I'm not surprised at some of the reviews about negative service, since the restaurant was packed when we were there, but we had no issues at all. Service was attentive and friendly and our food was ready pretty quickly. We got lots of water refills and our plates were cleared promptly. Also, I am allergic to bell peppers (but not spicy peppers) and they happily altered my meal to keep it bell pepper free! (This can be surprisingly hard to accomplish at many restaurants.)
The only negative thing I can say is that the dining area is a little bit cramped and rather loud. It's not a great place to go for a romantic, candlelight-type dinner. (If that's what you had in mind, set a nice table at home and get takeout!) I'd also be hesitant to bring a large group here without a reservation.
I loved my dinner here so much I almost ate myself sick. Not even at Christmas or Thanksgiving was I so tempted to gorge myself into such a stupor, which is unfortunate, because I wanted to try the dessert! I'm sitting here, the thought of food nearly making me ill, but still thinking fondly of our meal and looking forward to going back ASAP!
Look, there's no doubt about it -- Da serves up the best Thai food in this country. Yes, that includes NYC. If anyone can recommend where to find more authentic Thai food, please do so. Once this place settles into its new digs and sorts out any service issues, it will be a truly divine experience. Ultimately, it may just be wise for her to raise the prices...there is clearly a very strong demand for the uniquely delectable food that's created here and it might be wise to just do a more focused job of catering to a smaller clientele.
Review Source:Welcome to the neighborhood Chef Da! A new business venture can indeed be daunting. I apologize for the delicate dilettantes who demand perfection on your first few days in business. I understand that you are a team of humans with a wonderful vision and I appreciate your gentle kindness and your willingness to share your art form with our community. Do not be discouraged by mean spirited comments. I look forward to you working through your opening week challenges. So far, we have had take out three times this week and were very pleased with our meals. We celebrate your opening and we will continue to support you. Thank you for feeding us!
Review Source:Let's just put the brakes on the mania that is being orchestrated here by people who have only ever posted a couple of reviews: this place needs to close down for a few weeks and sort its shit out before opening again. That's not going to happen because it is the high-season for restaurants, but it is the right thing to do.
We ate here tonight and without a doubt it was the worst dining experience we have had in years (dining out ~1-3X/month). The service was unbelievably slow, with people all around us sitting with no food and peering back in to the kitchen to try to figure out where the food or their server was. Our server took our order frantically and she didn't return to the table the rest of the night. In fact we only even saw her once over the next 1.25 hours. The water was never refilled, and the empty BYOB bottles and appetizer plates were never cleared. Despite the bottle of wine sitting on the table for 30 mins we weren't given wine glasses so we dumped one water glass into another glass and then used a water glass as a wine glass and shared it. From the time we sat down it took 40 minutes for our appetizers to be delivered, and it was 15 minutes between when we finished apps and when our entrees were delivered. Meanwhile bag after bag of take out orders were being delivered to the non-stop stream of smart people coming in the front door.
The spring rolls were unevenly packed, so we didn't realize they contained any herbs until we were half way through them. The sole bright spot was the tasty Thai dumplings. The tom yum soup was almost nothing like the tom yum I've had at least a dozen times at several different places on the west and east coasts. It had no sour/lemon/lime aspect, no chili aspect, no mushrooms (even though they are listed on the menu), no fresh cilantro, but tons of raw green pepper (wha huh??). It included 5 shrimp, even though it was a $17 hot pot portion including $2 extra for shrimp, and according to the menu, was intended to serve 2-3 people. We raised these issues with the house manager and he took the soup off the bill, which was very nice of him and we appreciated it. However, to deliver our bill, the same manager leaned across the host station and threw the bill folder through the air so that it hit the table and bounced to a stop.
The place was packed and the seats are really close to each other, and for most of our visit the lights were on full blast. The food coming out of the kitchen was extremely slow all around the room. The server sucked. The busboy/runner was really nice and trying to keep up--four starts for that kid--but he just couldn't do it all.
They were doing a TON of take-out orders and I can see why. The dining room experience is awful--why sit there getting shit on when other people are zipping in and out with their dinners?
We'll probably try again in a year or so, just because the Thai choices are sparse around here.
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