To Be Thai

I really do miss this place. Seeing Lek and his wife almost weekly was so much fun. The food was fantastic. Everything from the pad thai to the drunken noodle to the curry dishes. Ethnic thai made with soul and passion. Towards the end, portion sizes became smaller and the overall dishes lost size and a little bit of flavor. Knowing the owner and the troubles that he was facing, this was understandable…
I have 6 years of awesome memories in this place that I’ll never forget. Most of them were wonderful, the ups, the downs and through all of it was just a great place to share a dinner with a loved one.
Thanks for everything Lek and crew, I hope Northern VA gets to see a To Be Thai one day in the future!

This place closed due to the landlord jacking the rent up on the owners.
Shame on you landlord for not supporting a locally run establishment.
It’s over 6 months now and it’s still not rented. Hmmmm… great move.
Most other establishments in this strip mall have left.
Heard rumors that the property was being sold to Holiday Inn so maybe that’s why it looks like Detroit. Just sayin’…

WORST SERVICE EVER!!! Food was bland and not good at all and the owner argued with me when I said I was unhappy with the food.

This place is right down the street from me and I was craving some thai. I had reviewed their menu beforehand and wasn’t too crazy about their food prices. But I went ahead and ordered for takeout the vegetarian green curry entrée and the calamari appetizer. Curry was a bit on the salty side, not very spicy at all even though the menu showed it had an icon of two chili peppers and the person taking my order reiterated it. For almost $ 11, the portion was just enough to feed one person. Usually two people can share but not this one. It lacked coconut milk so I wondered why the dish looked oily. The breading on the calamari was quite thick and needed another minute to brown up a bit more. I liked the dipping sauce, I think it was a thinned out sweet and sour with hints of fish sauce. I might come back to try a noodle dish but I will wait until I have a coupon or a LS/​Groupon deal.

This place reminds me of a funeral home. Both aesthetically and due to the fact that every time I’ve eaten there, I’ve noted a significant lack of other warm bodies. Highlights of my last visit included bland curry, botched drink orders, and a waiter who did not speak or smile.

I am generally not a fan of Thai food, but I really enjoy To Be Thai. My husband and I used to live very close to the restaurant and would eat there a couple of times a month.
The restaurant is very quiet and rarely occupied, which is a nice change from the hustle and bustle of Old Town. The service is great.

Was looking for a thai place on my way home and passed all the amazing places in Old Town so I stopped here. Eh, it’s ok. Not my favorite. I had the spicy fried rice and asked for it mild (I know pointless but i like thai fried rice). Still pretty spicy but not unbearable. I’ve had it other places and it’s been amazing! I’ll stick with the places I know next time!

Food is very good but the portions are very small for the price.

If I could I would say 3.5 stars.
I agree with other reviewers — the food is good but not at spicy as normal Thai restaurants. I also agree that it would be a great place to take people who have never tried Thai because it is mild. I had the chicken pad thai and it was good. Nothing super special but a nice basic pad thai. I tried the spring rolls and they were just like any other spring roll you’d get at a Thai or Chinese restaurant. Decent. Hubby tried the Massaman Curry and he said it was decent as well. I wouldn’t say this is my favorite Thai place in the area but considering its proximity to my house, we are sure to be back.

Skeptical at first by the poor Unilocal rating and non-​existent customers, it turned out to be OK. First impressions was that this place was super fancy because of all the decorations. We were greeted and seated immediately but were not offered any sort of beverage, not even water! For our entrees we got the chicken pad thai and soya noodle (basically pad see ew). The pad thai was darker and had more flavor than most Thai places and the soya noodle was great. I’m used to having beef with this dish, but the chicken really complimented it well. So a slow start but a good finish.

Really adorable restaurant with consistently good service, just very mild.
Let’s say you have friends and relatives who’ve never tried Thai cuisine but perhaps aren’t usually open to spicy food — this is the ideal restaurant to take them to. The food is always very good and very fresh, and it’s very mild unless you ask them to make it spicier.
It’s not loud and boisterous like many Thai restaurants are, which might intimidate some people on their first adventure out. I really recommend Thursday nights when it’s pretty empty.

Excellent food, very different flavors than I’ve ever had in Thai food; cuisine feels much more authentic (generally less sweet), so I’m not surprised to see another reviewer mention the «family recipe». Not the best for Pad Thai or Drunken noodes, but the Panang, Red Curry and many other dishes are outstanding. It’s always nearly empty, so if you like calm and quiet this is the place to go, for me it’s just good for carryout.
I definitely wish they were in a smaller space, it would keep the prices down. I always feel like I’m subsidizing their huge unused space. They got rid of their website to cut down on costs, but still raised their prices last year.
Seems like the flavors aren’t for everyone, but I’ve served many a guest their carryout, and always get raves about it.

I too am kind of spoiled with good food.
the food is not bad, but not great. then they charge you a lot of money for the quantity you get. you will be hungry after you order their dinner. It’s probably $ 2 more for everything you order. If they charge more, least they can do is give you more food?
when i ordered drunken noodle, the amount I got was definately lunch size. I can’t afford to pay that kind of money and go home hungry? i don’t think so.
it’s really a shame, because they are in great location, surrounded by huge apartment complex. if it was good quality/​quantity, that place will be jamming with people coming in and out. when i went there during weekday nights near dinner time, it was absolutely empty. that ought to say something… I would drive farther and get better quality and more food!

Great décor in the restaurant, though service could have been a bit more attentive considering we were two of maybe 6 people in there. Food was good but the price was a bit steep. Would be pretty easy to walk-​in though and the ambiance is quite romantic. I wouldn’t be opposed to going again, though I’m not sure I’d seek it out.

Food was edible but certainly not worth the 15 bucks for such a small portion and it tasting reheated and not so fresh.
I work across the street so I decided to stop in. They should at least have lunch specials. If I paid 6 bucks I would be less upset… but I paid about 16.00 for a small portion of refried food.
I give everything two times bc everyone has a bad day so I might try it one more time before I give up on them.

I was very disappointed with To Be Thai. The service was spotty and the portion sizes were tiny. The little that we did eat was mediocre at best.
Disclaimer– I’m pretty spoiled when it comes to Thai food… for a couple of years I lived in New Haven, where there are 5 Thai restaurants within two blocks.
But even if I lowered my standards for this restaurant, it’s a terrible value for what you pay. We were not even full by the end of the meal, even with Drunken Noodles, which is usually one of the most filling dishes on the menu. The decour is beautiful, but that doesn’t really matter when you leave hungry.
The service was spotty– we felt rushed by the waiter even though the place was pretty empty. And the fact that it was relatively empty on Christmas Eve was definitely not a good sign.
In the future I will make the Viet House my default local Asian comfort food spot, where they have great service and excellent portions and food quality for the money.

Food — 3 Stars
Environment — 3.0
Price — 2.5
Portions — 2.5
Serve — 3.0
Bathroom — 3.0
Speed — 3.0

A thai place underneath a big apartment complex… not the place you would imagine a nice spot with great thai food. But that is what it is, great food and the price was very reasonable. I had the pad king and it was very tasty. Service was fast, with a smile, and worth the trip. Nice when you have a good thai place without having to go into old town.

It has actually survived in the huntington complex a lot longer than I thought, so it’s got to be good, right? Well, it’s decent. There’s a big dining room, but not many people. The service is reasonable and the host/​owner is fairly attentive.
The food was pretty standard. I got the panang with tofu and veggies. A friend got the pad thai. It’s definitely not a diamond in the rough, but if you are really craving some thai food and happen to be in the area, it’s not the worst place you could pick.

Quiet as a palace, with pleasant mild food, smiling head waiter, and knick knacks at the front door. The tofu dish was the best of our three dishes. It had a smoky black bean aroma. The other dishes were mild. My yellow curry chicken had al dente chunks of yam! That was kind of cool. The condiment salad is a nice touch. I love the sugary crunchiness of Thai salads.
The waiter was extremely smiley and he had that Thai polite way of being — giggling and friendly at the same time (made me miss my Thai friends). He told us that the dishes are not Americanized and that they are based on the palace food of a century ago. In other words, taste the B in subtle. If you want the fiery food that makes commoners SWEAT… it’s not here.
If you happen to be near this strip mall off Route 1, then this is a quiet place to get some food.