phu thai esarn

this is the best thai in wellington i have found that is affordable and delish! the staff arefriendlythe food comes out fast and is always amazing.
my partner and i go about once a month, and when we have family visiting we always take them there and everyone always loves it.

in fact we are going tonight just the two of us, and going back on friday night with my sister and her kids.

love it!

gotta love consistency. i've been here over 5 times and each time i leave full and satisfied.

the penang curry is a nice ballance if sweet with a hint of spice (though slightly too liquid). the pad thai still has a slight chew, which i appreciate. the amount of seafood they provide makes each dish value for money. and the vegetables are not overcooked (which is what happens a lot with asian food).

the sticky rice is moist and the roti crispy. they don't make fresh roti but i don't mind the package stuff (i buy it myself).

its byo but i generally get the red metal merlot. not the best pairing but a solid wine to sip on.

staff arefriendlyenough and the atmosphere is pleasant.

it's in the entertainment book, which is an added bonus.

came here with four others for dinner.friendlyservice and pretty good serving times. clean plain decor.

food was fine; red and green curries were rich in flavour with emphasis on the coconut milk but was on the salty side. the deep fried prawn and carrot salad was very good (as a papaya substitute), very spicy and tangy.

down side was the lack in range of beers and wine.

three yums

went for lunch. ordered basil beef. yummy. generous amount of veges. i like the crinkle cut of carrots and cucumber (or maybe zucchini im not sure) doesnt take long for the food to come out.friendlystaff. lots of seatings available.

myself and three friends dined at phu thai esarn last night and thoroughly enjoyed our experience! we loved the service - our waitress was attentive,friendlyand totally onto it. we were particularly impressed that she kept refilling our water without us asking, regardless of how busy they were. our fourth person arrived just after the three of us had ordered and the waitress came over and took her order rather quickly, and her food came at the same time as the rest of ours. speaking of, the food came so promptly and all came at the same time.

as a vegetarian i love the amount of choices provided by phu thai. the fried vegetarian spring rolls were an excellent entree - they were perfectly crispy on the outside but moist on the inside.
my khoa pad tofu (veggie fried rice) was delicious but too big of a portion for me to finish. if you're starving, you'll probably manage it and it's excellent value for money. i had a taste of my friend's red curry todu and it was delicious - i know what i'm getting next time! the general portion sizes are large, so great for sharing or for hungry diners.

the atmosphere was perfect with the dim lights and the decorations,friendlystaff and delicious food. byo is a bonus, definitely making this a top restaurant in my book!

dined here for the first time the other evening with friends and i can't believe i have never been before. the food is so tasty, fresh and reasonably priced. the fresh spring rolls as an entree were just perfect. the staff are so courteous andfriendlywith such lovely smiles. the decor is wonderful, cosy yet bright and welcoming. being byo is also a bonus. i will definitely be back.

great thai food. very tasty every single time. the staff arefriendlyand attentive. the fact that it is byo is great. the mussaman curry is spectacular.

my one complaint is that you have to pay for rice with a meal however at least the mains are reasonably priced at around $15-$20 for really great quality food.

i highly recommend.

my wife and i had an another very enjoyable and tasty lunch at the phu thai esarn restaurant, ordering the pad see yew and chicken pad thai meals respectively at $10.00 lunch special. the place was quite a-buzzing when we arrived and was more so by the time we left, a a large group of ten came in midway through our meals.
our poor young waitress was continuously rushed off her feet literally......but she did her job admirably, always smiling and cheerful. my only criticism of the place was its rather uncomfortable well overused chairs ( which should all be replaced immediately) and sharp broken glass top corner of my table (which could render unlucky diners a serious injury).










review by: phil1618 (14) on 20th august 2010
total 7.3
food 7
dessert n/a
presentation 7
service 9
environment 7
toilets 5

we had the lunch special at the phuthai esarn restaurant today.
this consisted of a pad thai chicken meal with a side plate of a large round piece of roti bread (with a yellow coloured sauce) and a cup of chinese tea costing $15.00 in total.
the pad thai chicken meal was quite nice and enjoyable but a bit on the sweeter side i thought.
the roti bread was okay but a little dry i thought. i would have preferred my usual peanut sauce to dip the roti bread in.
the service was excellent. we were well looked after by a veryfriendlychinese-thai waitress.
it wasn't very busy for lunch there today, so our meal arrived very quickly.
if there was any criticism, i thought the restaurant itself was somewhat over-cluttered with too many tables and chairs, making ease of movement quite restricted.
overall it was nice simple lunch at a reasonable price in a a very pleasant thai restaurant.
we would like try the phuthai esarn restaurant again for dinner one night