We went here on a Saturday night and the place only has 8-10 tables. Luckily we made reservations and were sat right away. It just went downhill from there. The service was awful. It took them 30 minutes just to ask if we were ready for appetizers. Once we ordered it took another 30 minutes just to get them. One of our appetizers was forgotten and brought out after dinner was served. Dinner was another issue all together. They brought my wife's entree out 15 minutes before my entree was even ready. She didn't want to eat without me but I convinced her that it was ok. That to me was very tacky and unprofessional. They were swamped with only 8 tables and needed more help, along with better servers because it really ruined the whole experience. FIX YOUR SERVICE ISSUES!
Next, the food was just ok. I've been to many Thai restaurants in the city because it is my favorite food and this place was nothing to write home about. The appetizers were bland and over done. The Panang Curry dish that I got was ok and it was much better at Opart Thai House right down the street. I wanted to try this place because of the great reviews but they were definitely not accurate. You can't judge a book by it's cover and this place proved yelp reviews can be misleading.
Did not receive the royal treatment at Royal Thai...
Arrived at Royal Thai at around 6:30 to a relatively empty dinning room. Placed a conservative order for two of panang curry, sesame chicken, and some chicken egg rolls for an appetizer.. After 20 minutes with no real service to speak of, the restaurant began to fill up and we still had not received our egg rolls, so I asked about them. 10 minutes later we got our egg rolls, after another table had received both their entrées and appetizers even though they got there after us.
Another 20 minutes roll by before our waitress brought us another plate of egg rolls, apparently forgetting that we had already got them. 10 minutes later another table received their entrées after getting there long after us, and at that point my girlfriend and I had enough, and got up and left.
Their food is, I'm guessing, good, but since we waited an hour for nothing I really can't contest to that. However, waiting an hour for no food, no explanations from the staff, and being absolutely starving, earns this restaurant one star.
Fix your service issues.
Okay, so what do I do when I want to try a new Thai place around the area that I'm going to be. I YELP it, duh!! And that is what I did and we stumbled upon Royal Thai Restaurant with 4.5 stars, so I'm thinking, this must be a winner. Well it was like half a winner in my book and I'm kinda disappointed we went afterall. The place is tiny, like half the size I was thinking, maybe 7 or 8 tables total. That wouldn't normally discourage me, but just something I noticed. Our server was good, not particularly smiley or friendly but she didn't mess up any of the orders and everything was brought out super fast. Now onto the important stuff, the food, we got our usuals and also tried some new stuff just to get an overall taste of this place and overall consensus was eh.
-Crab Ragoon-Kinda small pieces and kinda bland tasting. I mean no crab, which is fine, but the cream cheese was kinda tasteless so not happy with it.
-The Pad Thai-It is the most raved about dish in this restaurant so we thought it was going to be phenomenal. It was a-okay, but lacked any sweetness that an authentic pad thai should have. The portion was generous, not too huge, but I wish they put in a little sweetness to it.
-Spicy Basil Noodles-The noodles were wide and served crunchy kinda like pad see eew and lots of veggies, but I felt like there could have been more noodles in the dish. It was spicy but I would have liked additional flavor in it.
So overall, we left feeling blah, it was okay, and I don't regret trying it, but I would probably not be back since Opart Thai on Western is 2 minutes away and has a plethora more flavor and the best Crab Ragoon I've ever had. Sorry, although I love all things Royal, this thai restaurant just didn't do it for us.
BYOB. Â Perfectly priced and incredibly delicious. Â Go to spot when in the mood for great Thai. Â The Royal Thai noodle and Sesame Chicken is outrageous. Even the basic fried rice is done right and we usually get the combination fried rice to supplement the white rice. Â
Chicken egg rolls are a great starter.
Great place for the price!
Ordered: Num tok (beef salad), panang curry
Ambiance: Very nice clean restaurant with dark furniture and sturdy tables. This place certainly has a nice dinner feel although we came here for dinner. Service was friendly and prompt although we were only one out of 3 couples here.
Food: The beef salad was pretty enjoyable, the beef was not over-cooked and drenched a lime dressing that was slightly sweet. If you don't like tons of red onion though you might want to steer away from the Num tok because that forms the bulk of the dish. The panang curry was very simple having chicken and bellpeppers but the flavor was spot-on. It was sweet and savory but really could have used some heat, i'll make sure to order it extra-spicy next time. Portion-size wise everything decent and I finished my meal comfortably full.
Overall this place gets 4-stars for food as it was unimaginative but well-executed and beating out most run-of-the-mill thai places. At ~8 bucks a dish, though, this place is a steal for the portion-size and quality. Combined with a nice setting and the friendly service, this place gets bumped up to 5-stars. I'd highly recommend this place if your craving some thai but aren't looking for something mind-blowing.
Royal Thai is truly great, across the board.
The food is well made and delicious. Ingredients are fresh, and they will cater the dish to how hot/spicy you prefer.
Their Tom Yum is my favorite soup in the city. I can't say how a wide variety of the menu is, because the Panang Curry is so good I have trouble considering ordering another dish - but I can say everyone I have been to Royal Thai with has really enjoyed their meal. Plus, they offer brown rice (for a small charge)! The hot/sweet ginger tea is a delicious.
The service is responsive, accommodating, and kind.
Fairly easy street parking on Montrose, and some neighborhood parking nearby.
I am a CA transplant and I had never had bad thai food until I came to IL, no joke. But this place has redeemed the state :) Royal thai is small and the service is aloof but the food is just lovely. All of the complexity that Thai food is supposed to have with fresh ingredients and nice presentation. It's BYOB as I have seem others BT (thier) OB but don't expect to have an intimate night out.
Review Source:I always feel like crab rangoons can speak volumes about Asian restaurants. Â This rang true for this place. Â Probably some of the smallest and blandest crab rangoons I've ever had - EVER. Â They weren't bad if you like cream cheese and barely any crab. Â They were fried pretty well. Â But the sauce that came with - GROSS. Â It's obviously diluted with something to thin it out - sweet & sour sauce isn't supposed to be watery. Â It had some sort of weird tinge/taste to it, so much so I couldn't use it. Â
We also got some cucumber salad (again - watery and weird sauce for this), an entree, and the chicken egg rolls. Â Everything we ordered was below average. Â
If you want amazing Thai - go to Opart Thai House on Western. Â Unfortunately they don't deliver to my house, which is why I had to venture out with another Thai place that delivers. Â Next time, I will hop in the car and pick up from Opart.
This place is INCREDIBLE. Wow. As a NY transplant, I had never heard of this midwest concoction called "Crab Rangoon," but I was persuaded to try it at this fine establishment, and now I'm certain to never order it anywhere else, lest it not be as delicious. Because it was. Delicious.
Spring rolls were off the charts, noodles were delicious, fried rice was great. I honestly don't know all the dishes that we got, since we let the waitress choose (recommended). Great, friendly service. I love this place.
I've been enjoying the Royal Thai experience for over 5 years now and it just keeps getting better. From the delicate crab rangoon to the fiery papaya salad to the sumptuous whole red snapper, Royal Thai delivers excellence during each course. The strip of Western that Royal Thai is adjacent to hosts some of the finest Thai food in Chicago. Royal Thai is - and always has been - Â a worthy competitor to any of those fine establishments.
Review Source:I found myself craving Thai food earlier this week and decided it was time to try one of the many Thai restaurants in my neighborhood that I had not yet visited. I chose Royal Thai due to the restaurants proximity to the library.
The restaurant itself is small and cozy. As soon as I opened the door, I was greeted not just by a smiling young woman, but also by the intoxicating smell of food cooking. Mmm...if I wasn't already hungry, then I would have been as soon as I stepped inside.
The food was excellent. The pork pot stickers were perfectly cooked and very flavorful. The garlic scallops were delicious, and the golden noodles that I got to take home for lunch the next day were tasty and exactly what I wanted.
I will definitely be visiting Royal Thai again. The service was great, the food was delicious, and the prices were reasonable. Add BYOB to all of that, and Royal Thai is a winner!
I wholeheartedly give this restaurant 5 stars. The food was amazing, with the most tasty curry that I have had in years. The service was very friendly and attentive. Even though they were very busy, the staff kept coming and apologizing while we waited, and  always checked on us while we ate. It is clean, cozy and relaxing - as well as affordable.
Review Source:3.5 stars. Â Really.. Yelp, get on with changing this feature.
I came by here because Bobby P. recommended the crispy pad thai for me. Â I never had that either or saw it as an option at any of the other Thai restaurants I've been to. Â Thus, came by with a friend for a quick lunch.. and I gotta say, I was disappointed. Â Service was quaint, appetizer was good, but the main entree was a disappointment. Â I just don't think pad thai being fried is its best form. Â I felt that by being fried, the flavor was more intensified than it should be and we all already know that thai food is already heavily seasoned. Â Overall, I still think this a decent thai restaurant but it missed the mark for me on the main entree.
Been lacking on the reviews but thanks to Bobby for getting me back on it since I was told I eat a lot *ahem* Bobby P.. and the rest of the world :P
Just picked up Carry Out, didn't eat in the restaurant. Â Inside it's small, but adequate/ Very Clean & Cozy! Â Was greeted by two very nice young asian girls who promptly processed my order. Â The food was very good! Â Only tried Beef Pad Thai and Crab Rangoon.. Ya, I know but that's usually a good gauge before you blow $100 on Carry Out and it's no good!! Â Have to say, the Pad Thai was def the best I've ever had and the Rangoon were great as well!! Â Can't wait to try their whole menu/ Definite "Diamond in the Rough"! Try it for sure.. GTFJD
Review Source:I was impressed with this place and I will be back. I always order Panang Curry at my first visit at a new Thai place, and this curry did not disappoint. Flavors and spice were right on point. It was delicious. We also ordered Tom Yum soup with shrimp which was delicious and their house noodle dish, which wasn't my favorite, but it wasn't bad either.
I'll definitely order from here again!
Royal Thai started out as "Hey! we are hungry what Thai places are still open around here!?" - our roommate then chimed in suggesting this joint. Man were we glad we actually listened to him because after checking out the menu (Thank you Menu Pages) we discovered Crispy Pad Thai noodles. Our take out experience lead to dining in (see there doing something right). Upon walking in its a small space. Some would say Cozy. Not ideal for big parties....well maybe....if you move a few chairs around...or some walls. The decor is nice. The music is a tad bit odd for my taste. Yeah they need to work on it. The food is great. Location is great. Parking is possible.
Review Source:I can't get enough of this place. Â The servers all know me since I come here that often. Â Parking is not much of a pain off of Montrose. Â The food is always consistent - I DIG consistency. Â Thai Fried Rice with chicken, Chicken Panang Curry, Pad See Ew (it's growing on to me, seriously), and their Chicken Satay with their ever-so-addicting peanut sauce. Â Their peanut sauce is ridiculously wonderful and savory and sweet and scrumptious. Â Yum, yum, yum.
I thought I couldn't find another Royal Thai outside of Orlando... boy, was I wrong! Â I was on my way doing some errands, and saw this restaurant at the corner of my eye while I was passing through Lincoln Square. Â While this restaurant shares the same name of the best Thai restaurant that I thought I would always be in love with, this place actually exceeded my expectations. Â The restaurant itself was very cute and quaint - clean, and the attention to detail as in refilling our water, quick in service, and the extreme politeness and respect we received as customers were great. Â To start off as appetizers, I had ordered the Fried Eggrolls, which were basically vegetable-filled thinly wrapped rolls fried to a good crisp. Â It came with a tangy sauce I was not all that fond of, but, dipping it into the marvelous rich peanut sauce that was served with the Chicken Satay was ridiculously insane. Â The chicken satay itself was greatly grilled meat on kabob skewers, and just dumping it into the peanut sauce (which they give you a generous plateful of) was orgasmic. Â This chicken appetizer also comes with a side of fresh cucumber salad with a little bit of vinegar which is forgettable. Â For entrees, I had ordered the famous Chicken Panang Curry. Â This comes with a small bowl of rice; you might think the portion was incredibly small by just looking at it, but it was a great portion for someone who already ate a couple of hours beforehand. :P Â You can get your liking of the spice level, and I had medium. Â It had jalapeno slices as well as basil leaves, but the chicken itself was juicy, the curry itself had a great spicy kick to it and thick; I preferred a little bit more rice, but I was full nonetheless. Â My boyfriend ordered the same with the addition of Pad See Ew, which he believed was the best one he's ever eaten, hands down. Â I also ordered a glass of Thai Iced Tea; it was a little sweeter than I'm used to, but it was good and refreshing - my bf thought it was pretty darn good as well. Â Although I miss the Royal Thai in Orlando, I have found a great replacement (which I probably will frequent more). Â This is a fantastic find, and I am very happy!
This is the best Thai place I have encountered in Chicago and I have been to a lot! (~ 20-30) Pad Thai is one of my favorite foods and my "fastball" in the kitchen. Â This is the only place that compares to my authentic homemade recipe. Â Yes I know Pad Thai may be "boring" but I can't help but order that first whenever I try a new Thai place. Â That dish tells a lot about the restaurant as the sauce is complex but the preperation is simple but prone to stupid errors especially with cooking the noodles. Â In addition the crab ragoon here is AMAZING as well. Â It's funny but crab rangoon is a pretty good indicator on how much TLC a place puts into their food and they hit this one out of the park. Â Honestly, I haven't had any other dishes here because I love the Pad Thai so much.
I lived in Roscoe Village for three years and my only regret was I didn't discover this place sooner. Â I recently moved to Wrigleyville which is just far enough away to be inconvenient and Royal Thai is what I miss the most. Â I even miss it more than Famous Taco Burrito on Western after a long night of drinking. Â To add a little more perspective, Wrigleyville (I live next to the stadium) has many decent/good Thai places but just terrible Mexican places and I still miss Royal Thai the most. Â
FYI - The taco place under Redline Addison stop is pure garbage and I notice it even when I've drank all night. Â True I still go there. Â I point this out because it has four stars on Yelp which made me question my reliance on Yelp but I got over that ;)
- The Rambler
Terrific Thai BYOB* in North Center.
We'd just picked up 2 bottles of She-Wolf, the Half Acre and 3 Floyds IPA collaboration, down the street and needed somewhere nearby to eat and drink. (Thanks, Yelp app!)
The food, in a nutshell, is delicious. More specifically, we had the crab rangoon, Royal prawns, tom yum soup with veggies, Panang noodles with chicken, Royal Thai noodles with tofu, and ended with mango with sticky rice. Thai food party in my mouth!
First of all, you can customize any dishes with the little pepper to your spicy level - hotheads take note. I think my regular order is going to some crispy noodle dish with tofu, extra spicy. Second, their tofu is ridiculously awesome. Vegetarians and meat-eaters who like tofu (like me!) will be very happy here. J, who is usually not too excited about Thai, cleaned his plate - there's a reason everyone talks about the Panang noodles in their review. The crab rangoon filling is so smooth and creamy, and the dipping sauce is a nice light contrast. The Royal prawns were a highlight for me - boiled shrimp topped with chili, garlic, mint, and some sauce - packed full of flavor, well-balanced, and a non-fried appetizer option!
Royal Thai is really tiny, so I would recommend making reservations. The service is very sweet. They are really great about bringing glasses for beer and bottle openers, and our waters were constantly filled.
When we got the check, I did a double take and had to check our receipt. $37 for ALL THAT FOOD. 3 appetizers, 2 entrees, and dessert.
*Hint: go pick up some beer from Half Acre down the street before coming here.
Have one of those long days at work where after you can hardly lift a muscle, much less a butter knife to make a single peanut butter sandwich?
*Raises hand*
I wanted to stay up and watch Usain Bolt conquer the Olympics, rather than slaving over a jar of Skippy.
Coincidentally, Boyfriend was craving curry.
This was perfect!
We ordered, took a walk in the beautiful park across the street (Had a little Sound of Music moment in the gazebo, too sweet) and 15 minutes later were devouring the fresh spring rolls with peanut sauce, I had the the crispy pad thai wide noodles, he had the curry (mmm spicy and creamy and coconutty!) So delicious, lots of veggies and the portion size was perfect- not too huge, not too skimpy. Yum.
My one doozy of a complaint- NO CHOPSTICKS in my takeout? Really? At least throw a spork in there... Please and thank you!
Mr. Bolt can keep his Chicken McNuggets- in terms of fast take-out, Royal Thai is yummy, full of pretty brightly-colored veggies, healthy- as long as they remember my chopsticks- because It's hard to try to be romantic with curry rice without any cutlery.
My wife loves this place for their sticky rice with mangos, and I must say it is good. Â The main menu is not bad, we ate there for lunch in the $35 range, seems a little pricey for what we ordered.
My only real complaint is the crappy smooth jazz music they play, that is a deal breaker for me. Â What's the deal?
This place is just amazing. I'm here at least once every couple weeks. Do NOT leave without ordering the vegetable dumplings, best appetizer I've ever had at a Thai restaurant in Chicago.
Have tried probably 5-6 of their main dishes, everything has been fantastic. I eat (mostly) vegan and have never felt that options are lacking.
BYOB. And if you have room for dessert, the mango and sticky rice is great.
It's a small restaurant. We first ordered some pork potstickers as appetizers. You can asked for them to be steamed or fried. We got them fried. You get to drip them in soy sauce with sesame seeds. Those were very yummy. Then we got a lemonade and a blueberry tea. They don't allow refills on those by the way. The blueberry tea kept getting darker through lunch, but it still needed splenda for each cup because without it, you can't taste the blueberry in the tea. I ordered the beef Royal Thai Noodle, which is noodle soup basically. My mom ordered the sesame chicken entree, which I wish I had ordered instead. Don't get me wrong. The Royal Thai Noodle was tasty, but the Sesame chicken with brown rice is better. The Sesame chicken was also fried.
Each table has a jar of hot, sweet and sour sauce. It's very hot! Eat at your own risk. For dessert, I had thai custard and mom had coconut ice cream. The thai custard was amazingly delicious. It was hot when I ate it so you have to let it cool first. The custard and the ice cream taste delicious together.
The waitress was nice and patient. The bathroom was clean and very small. The whole restaurant was small too, but they have very beautiful art on the walls. Go and see them.
Best Crab Rangoon in the city. Â The sweet, lightly fried shell oozes melted cream cheese and crab. Â None of that nasty celery or filler.
The Pad Prik Khing served "Thai Hot" was the best Thai entree I've had in Chicagoland. Â The meat portion wasn't overwhelming, but the quality and texture of the chicken and green beans were outstanding. Â The sauce a was slow-burning, deep, and garlicky paste.
Royal Thai Restaurant has easily displaced Thai Aree as my #1 Thai Restaurant in the Chi.
Royal Thai got me out of a jam. A huge one. I stumbled into my house two hours late for dinner with my wife. I played Golf in the morning and headed to Wrigley for the Cubs-Sox game in the afternoon. it must have been windy that afternoon. This gust of wind kept blowing me into every bar I passed on the way home. Needless to say, this gale-force storm did not sit well with my wife. My lovely Wife was angry and hungry. Â I knew the only thing that would save me was good Thai food. I'm usually not a fan of Thai, but this place served up some delicious grub. I have to admit, I really enjoyed it.
We ordered Chicken Satay, Egg Rolls and for my entree, I went with the pepper steak. When we walked in, my wife looked like she wanted to stab me in the eye with a chop-stick. As the meal went along I could see that look fading. By the end of the meal, I was out of the danger zone. In a nutshell, Royal Thai saved my life.
Here's the bottom line: Royal Thai serves up some delicious Asian grub at a affordable price. I'm not a huge fan of Thai food, but I would come back to this place anytime. The food was delicious, the portions are huge and the price was right.
A small place serving really good food. The tiger prawns were great. (Psst....don't ask them to spice it up too much.....if u do so, you might run out of water at home and still not beat the heat.)
The basil fried rice and the green curry were good too. I will definitely visit this place again.
Conclusion - Highly recommended.
I am so surprised I have not reviewed Royal Thai to date. Been coming here for several years now with our friends Duane and Gisselle and love it. It is smallish inside but the food is outstanding and the service is great as well. It is BYOB and parking is sometimes a challenge but heck, this is Chicago. We always get 3 or 4 appetizers all of which are great but my hands down favorite for an entree it the pan fried Idaho Rainbow Trout served with a Tamarind Sauce and a variety of pepper such as jalapeno and tri-color mix. This tops it off very nicely and I never leave a bite on my plate. The soups are also outstanding but my favorites are either the Tom Yum or the Tom Kha.
Try this place and you won't be disappointed!
No doubts why this restaurant is recommended by Michelin in 2012!!! As I'm a real fan for the "Thai Foods", this restaurant really WOW me for the taste & quality of food. I'm pretty sure they are the best one amough many Thai restaurants in this area and also the top range in Chicago.
My favorite dishes are Pad Thai, Pineapple Fried Rice and Panang Curry. Also, their Peanut sauce Spring Rolls is very delicious and fantastic. It really makes my day after I come to this place.
Services are great and it's plus BYOB too. OMG...ROYAL THAI, YOU ROCK!!!
My friends suggested this place for a Saturday night dinner before going out. We had a group of four without a reservation and were seated right away. We started out with crab rangoons, wonton prawns and steamed mussels. Everything was very flavorful and delicious! I had the hot pot for dinner and loved it. I requested medium spicy and it was pretty hot! Everyone liked their meals and the portions were just the right size. We did not have any leftovers which was good since we were going out after.
Oh and they are BYOB!
I will definitely be back! I hope they deliver to Wrigleyville.
I stopped in here for lunch with my stepdaughter and son in between running some errands. Â It was empty, as in for a while, we were the only table. Â I was kinda surprised, because the food turned out to be pretty good. Â
My stepkid ordered soy sauce noodles and I had panang beef. Â Both dishes were very good. Â My one complaint is that I stressed over and over to our server that I wanted the panang beef very, VERY spicy... as spicy as they could make it. Â She promised it would be. Â It really wasn't. Â Unfortunate. Â
The reason it didn't get 4 stars is because even though we were the only ones there in the restaurant, our server didn't seem to give a crap about our table. Â Not a single smile was cracked and she was inattentive which, since we were the only ones there, seems odd to me. Â
Maybe next time we'll go in for carry out and avoid dining in.
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