I have been here twice. The first time I ordered carry out for lunch. I was told it would be ready in 45 minutes. I showed up 45 minutes later to pick up my order and had to wait another 50 minutes. The food was fine and typical of Thai restaurants. The second time I went here with my family. The service is a joke. Every entree was brought out minutes apart. My entree came out after half our table had their leftovers in doggie bags. Our glasses were never refilled. I had to go and look for hot sauce. The funniest part of our meal was when my mother asked for forks. Â The waiter brought her one... but none for the rest of us?? When we received our bill we noticed that the tip was included. That was my boiling point. When I confronted the waiter he told me he included it so it was "easier" for us. There was 6 in our party not 8.... The waiter finally removed the tip amount. I will never return here. I thought we were on some hidden camera show.
Review Source:I was surprised I had not written a review for Lovely Thai yet. Â I have only been a take out customer, so I cannot really speak to the customer service here. Â But I have ordered both the lunch special and off of the regular dinner menu.
I was super excited to discover that the lunch menu is offered on Saturdays as well. Â I ordered the Red Curry Chicken. Â It was awesome! Â I ordered it with the Tom Yum Soup and the fried tofu appetizer. Â Yes, it comes with all of this for only $7.95! Â I was not a fan of the fried tofu... I would definitely substitute it for something different next time.
I have also ordered the Pad See Ewe with beef off of the regular dinner menu. Â I am a huge fan of this dish and it does not seem to measure up as well to other restaurants' versions. Â It has less flavor and they use regular broccoli instead of the Chinese broccoli I love.
I am sure I will return, I will just have to remember to get something other than Pad See Ewe!
Very nice place. Â Great food. Â It is a real toss up between Lovely Thai and Asian Bowl on which one I like the most. Â They are both very accommodating to a Vegan diet, both great food, and great selection on items to order. I do like the idea of being able to watch the cooks cook your food in Asian Bowl. Very nice touch. And a very relaxed atmosphere. Lovely Thai is a great restaurant but it comes down to the service for me there. Â There was only one waiter to take care of at least 6 or more tables and also he was the cashier. I really think we were having some of the cooks bring the food out to the table.
Review Source:First off, the food is quite good. I've had several of the pad dishes and they are always excellent.
Now the bad news.
It seems that many Asian restaurants have no sense of proper service in a restaurant setting (usually found in "family" establishments). Lovely Thai is a perfect example. I'm tired of excusing crap service because "Hey, the food rocked!"
Some simple service tips that apply to any restaurant but they are unaware of here are:
-Keep drinks refilled. If the customer is almost empty or empty, check with them right away. There's nothing as annoying as not being able to enjoy your food because you're thirsty.
-After the food is delivered, check back within 3 minutes to see how the food is and check if anything else is needed.
-If you want to boost your sales, at least ask about dessert before dropping the check.
-For Pete's sake smile once in awhile and act like your glad customers are there.
I've been here 3 times (2 for lunch and lunch waitress is NOT personable) and have had consistently bad service. It's borderline rude. I get the drink and then the food and the next contact is them dropping the check off.
Please, send one of your wait staff to Chili's or Olive Garden to learn proper service standards. They'll drill it into you. Also, while I'm not a big fan of 'perky', everyone at Lovely Thai could use some.
I consider myself picky. Â When it comes to Thai restaurants in the Chicagoland area there are a plethora. Â Most are just okay- a few I would consider excellent. Â I was thrilled when I stumbled upon this Thai restaurant in Grayslake on my way to visit a client. Â I had the lunch special that for $7.95 allowed me to choose an appetizer, soup and entree. Â I had potstickers, tum yum soup,and the Rama Chicken Curry. Â Everything was excellent. Â I was especially pleased with the Curry that included fresh broccoli, bell peppers and carrots. Â Yum! Â I will definitely will make this my go-to for whenever I am in the Grayslake area!
Review Source:I was at LT when it first opened; it was a pretty good lunch, but small portions.
Today I ordered 3 appetizers and a chicken pad thai and a pork pad thai.
Starting with the Lovely Rolls, these were very fresh and very good; I would order these again! Â (Spoiler Alert... it goes downhill from here) The next appetizer was the chive dumplings... they were so greasy we could not eat them. My third appetizer was supposed to be golden balls, but they instead gave me Fried banana and sweet potato, they were pretty good, but I would rather hope they would actually give me what I ordered.
The pad thai (pork) was TOO salty and had little other flavor. I am not a thai expert or anything, but I have had MUCH better anywhere! The pad thai (chicken) was a little better, but not much. We could not eat more than a quarter of our pad thai before I had to throw it out. YUCK.
I really wanted to like this place again, but there is no way I will get anything from here again (well maybe those Lovely Rolls only). I did like the Lovely Rolls, but I spent $36 and got one wrong item and the pad thai's only expression of flavor was SALT. If I want salty flavorless food I will eat at any fast food restaurant and still get better food. Next time I will save my money and go to Sammies and get a BIG Gyros with greasy fries and it will at least taste good.
Save your money and go somewhere else. I would have given 2 stars if I could have at least eaten my dinner. Instead I went to McDonalds and got two cheesburgers to eat. Gotta love Grayslake food.
My family and I were looking for something different than the cookie cutter Eastern take out joints in the local area, and stumbled across Lovely Thai on the way home from work. Not expecting much, we were very pleasantly surprised by this place's authentic take on Thai cuisine.
ATMOSPHERE: Truthfully, kitchy. Full of the fake dragons, rice paper artwork, and even the fish tank you'd expect, all here. Set in a strip mall, the space is small, and the tacky decorations kind of overwhelmed us, adding to the low expectations we had.
FOOD: Thoughtful, and unique. The menu is different than most anything you can find in the area, and makes me think this place should be set up closer to Chicago than rural Grayslake. There are different pairings, you can choose a main course with Thai noodles, white rice, or a curry dish. We had three, as follows:
(1) Ginger entree - Fair, far less exciting than the other dishes. It was simple, with expected flavors. A slight bit disappointing, in that it seemed to have more mushrooms than anything.
(2) Green Curry - Delightful. An unexpected blend of basil and lime in the curry made this dish fresh and amazing. The first taste is sweet, and your taste buds trick your mind into thinking it's TOO sweet, and then the chili hits as you swallow, and it's like fireworks in your mouth.
(3) Rama Curry - Also very good. A bit expected with the peanut flavor, but the dish was beautifully presented and tasted truly "Thai" (not the Americanized version most places serve).
SERVICE: Meh. We were there for lunch, and the hostess, who was also our server, could have cared less if we were there or not. She was efficient, but not friendly. She came to the table with her pen and pad out, said very little, just motioned to us like "what do you want". She wrote down what we asked for, served it, and cleaned up when we were done, brought us the check. I would have loved more water, or drink refills, but couldn't seem to find her when we were looking. Service has a long way to go, but if you're looking for great food versus atmosphere, you might be able to overlook this.
VALUE: Decent! The lunch special was $7.95, and it included an appetizer, a soup, and one of many entrees on the "main menu" to choose from. Lunch portions are smaller, but absolutely filling for what you get. Dinners, if you go, are around $9.95 a plate and have about 1/3 more than the lunch portion. Definatey value priced for the quality of food, and we will absolutely go back (even if it's only for take out).
Have lived in the area for 8 years and eaten here off and on...now going to be off. Â Usually very good but the last takeout we got was awful. Called 30 minutes before they closed, enough time to cook it right? Â NO! Â I don't know why they think they can shove anything lukewarm into a take out container and think it will pass as what was ordered..
Tom Yum was Tom Yuck--weak broth(no lemongrass) tough beef and straw mushrooms. Â That was it! Â Panang curry was very light on curry, had lots of chicken but only 5 small strips of red pepper. Â Really??? Â We may not be Thai but we are not stupid.
The topper was the hostess asked us to pay in cash since they had turned off the credit card machine! Â The reason was that they hadn't had a customer in 2 hours. Â Now I know why.
This place is awesome. Â Just recently went for a visit to IL to see family and we stopped off here. Â The chicken pad thai is amazing. Â Even the leftovers were so good that we made a 2nd visit to this restaurant the next week because I wanted more. Â Also delicious are the shrimp tempura, teriyaki chicken, golden balls, and the basil chicken.
Review Source:The only thing that could have saved this place was if the food was unforgettable...it wasn't. Â They need to hire more employees. Â The one lady could not serve all the people in that place. Â I stood at the door for five minutes before I was seated and sat at my table for five to ten minutes before she returned to take my order. Â She came back with my appetizer and I still had no water. Â It took so long that I had to ask for my check and a to go container when she brought my entree so I would not be late returning to work.
Review Source:Stoped by for their lunch menu. Had the best dumplings I had ever tasted, followed by a  tofu broth, that was out of this world. So flavorful, and clear, I was amazed that so much flavor was in that cup. The entree brought this beautiful, magical aroma that raised me from my IPad to the table. Warm red curry with a hint of coconut, chicken was a little overdone but that red curry was so intoxicating I was not bothered by the chicken. All this was under ten dollars, a small price to pay to be so rich in flavor. I can't wait to dine again.
Review Source:I went here with my husband a few months ago and we were seated right away. Then we waited...and waited...and waited...and someone came to take our order and give us water. Our food arrived fairly quickly and was delicious. Unfortunately, I ordered a spicy dish and drank all my water pretty quickly. I had to stop eating for at least 20 minutes before anyone came near our table and I could indicate that I needed more water. The phone rang and rang and rang for what I assume were take out orders and the staff were busy with a large party on one end of the restaurant. I'm torn about going back, the food was great but the service was mediocre and I'm not sure carry out would even be possible if the ringing phone we heard was indicative of a normal night there.
Review Source:I love this restaurant! My husband and I frequent Lovely Thai more than any other restaurant in the area simply because, for us, the food has always been fresh, delicious, and consistent. It's a small space, and servers are always friendly, some more than others.
I'm not much of a crab Rangoon fan, but LT makes the freshest and tastiest I've had. However, my new fav appetizer is the Golden Balls...make joke here. ;) They are crispy noodles wrapped around ground shrimp and pork "meatballs". See pic. They are yummy, unusual and plain fun to break into. Chicken satay is always good, as are all the curries, chicken panang is my personal favorite. My husband ordered the masamun curry with duck tonight and he was pleased. He said the duck was a tad overcooked, but not tough. He'd get chicken next time though. We always get a second side of jasmine rice because what comes with the entrees is a little small. We have noticed the portions seem to be smaller than before, but still more than adequate.
If you like mango, the sliced mango with sweet sticky rice is delicious for dessert. I HATE mango, but my husband loves it. I tasted his order tonight and it was delicious because it was so perfectly ripe. That was a huge surprise to me. Oh, and the Thai iced tea is delish, but I haven't met one I didn't like yet.
Give Lovely Thai a try. You might be surprised. We have yet to be disappointed  in all the years we've lived here.
Lovely Thai is what it is. I have been here many times, and it is your local Thai restaurant. Some things they do really well here- the spring rolls are excellent, and several of the usual dishes they serve up are not bad.
Don't stray very far off the beaten path, as the "specialty" dishes really are rather mediocre. This is a great place though when you are tired and the kids are running around and you want something easy. If you do takeout, inevitably it seems they are either behind or SLOW. Call way in advance. The service is really hit-or-miss.
Best Thai in the Gurnee/Grayslake Area. Â My kids love the Hawaiian Fried Rice w/ Chicken, which is better than any of the fried rice of surrounding Chinese area restaurants (unfortunately). Â My wife loves the Lemon Chicken, and I love the Basil Fried Rice w Chicken more than the regular Basil Chicken dish. Â Good tempura too!
Review Source:I live in the city and have had plenty of delicious Thai food. I must admit though, I do find myself craving Lovely Thai over these places at times. Mainly because their Garlic Chicken is my favorite. It has a great garlicky taste and you can easily see the minced pieces all throughout the dish. The one thing I appreciate is that this dish in particular is not boggled down with a whole lot of veggies. I don't mind vegetables in most dishes, but compared to the other Garlic Chicken entrees I've had from other Thai restaurants, I just like how this one is chicken, garlic, and sauce. They have plenty of menu items to choose from, and so far, everything I've had has been pretty solid and tasty. One of the better Thai places in and around Grayslake.
Review Source:I used to love Lovely Thai but stopped going back after a baby cockroach crawled out of my friend's folded napkin.  Another time, our server had an open cut  on his hand, only partially covered by a band aid - which touched my plate. This place has obvious potential but I worry about cleanliness.
Review Source:I came to Lovely Thai when they first opened and they knocked my socks off. Â I love love love their food. Â I haven't been back in the area for many years and had lunch here with my girlfriend. Â I was a little disappointed that their lunch menu had cut out a lot of the other foods that I used to love, like their won ton soup and fried sweet potatoes. Â None the less, the food was still great!
Review Source:Food is good if you get it at all. The service is slower than I have ever seen anywhere they seem to care about carry out more than dine in. You should expect to wait 1 hr for your food...to me its not worth it.
I have chosen to go elsewhere to the other Thai place in town you know the one with fast service and good food...
This place is amazing.
One Saturday night, my girlfriend and I went to have dinner with my parents. My dad wanted to go to Lovely Thai because he had gone the night before and he loved it. We ordered basil pork, curry fried rice, yellow chicken curry, beef pad see iew, an eggplant dish, and an appetizer sampler. Pretty much everything was great.
Fast forward one week, and my family invited us to dinner again. We all met up in the suburbs and decided to go to Lovely Thai yet again. We ordered most of the same dishes, but swapped the yellow curry for red and maybe added pad Thai, I don't remember. It was just as good as it was before.
This place is really great. My dad went there for dinner three times (each time his own idea) in eight days, so that must say something. My girlfriend and I will definitely make the trip from Chicago to Grayslake just for Lovely Thai, which also must say something. No joke, this Thai food is the absolute best I have had in years. It beats any place in Chicago that I've tried (a decent number) by a huge amount. It's just a shame it's so far away.
I was visiting from out of town recently with some family members and we decided to have dinner here one night (I had previously read the reviews of this restaurant). Â I have to agree with everyone that this is a good restaurant. Â I would go here again if I lived in the area. Â Very noticeable when you walk through the door is the fact this this place looks very clean and tidy - a big plus in my book. Â The service was attentive; our waitress took drink and appetizer orders promptly while we perused the menu. Â We ordered several dishes and all were quite tasty. Â My only complaint is that the one mixed seafood dish that we ordered had imitation krab instead of the real thing (although we were told that upfront so I suppose I really shouldn't complain...). Â Friendly service and good food make this place a winner!
Review Source:Just GREAT Thai Food, went there 4 times in the past 3 month. Looking through the menu you find many items and "surprise" they do taste different. Order any Curry dish and you get a great tasting dish, go with noodles or rice and the dishes taste different and really great. Price is right most under $10, very friendly service (maybe sometimes over extended) from Thailand! Also did bring own bottle and there was no charge for the set-up. HIGHLY Recommend it for an informal Dinner.
Review Source:We went here at 8:45 PM on a Friday night (they normally close at 10 PM). The place was deserted which worried me a bit, but the service was top-notch and the food was extremely tasty. Top it off with the fact that for seven people the tab came to $90 (with appetizers). I consider this place a great deal! I suspect they are not normally BYOB, but if you buy the wine at Wine Knows right next door they're happy to set you up with only a minimal charge.
Review Source:Highly recommended!
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I've eaten there a half-dozen times or so and I've never been disappointed with the service or food. The kitchen is most accommodating, in allowing you to make some substitutions, and in preparing the order with your desired level of spiciness.
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The restaurant is very clean and tidy. But with the exception of a few appointments, it lacks a Thai ambiance; if I were looking for an intimate, softly lit restaurant for that "special date," Lovely Thai wouldn't be at the top of my list. But then, when I'm looking for good Thai food, at a reasonable price, and with great service, Lovely Thai has my vote!
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I should note that, in cooperation with a local wine merchant, Lovely Thai occasionally conducts a multi-course set menu and wine pairing dinner. Most people don't associate wine with Thai food, but the pairings worked extremely well. You'll have to check with the restaurant to learn when their next pairing dinner is scheduled. If you love Thai food, and you love wine, it's a worthwhile experience!
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