Pailin Thai Cafe

Im not one to write reviews much. Im of the industry so I am Pro Commerce for the hard working people of the Hospitality industry.
a bit about me. I have been a Chef for over 35 years, had a house in Thailand, needless to say I have spent quite a bit of time there ok,
it was a sunday evening 8:15pm I had just moved into a house in the vicinity, and had noticed at night there is quite a bit of traffic in this seemingly office complex. I had checked out a couple of the places in the same plaza, but thats another story.
This Pailin Thai Café was empty. I mean Crickets, 3 people eating… with a seating capacity of around 80, im guessing. I walked to check out the other places I had not been to yet like RB Sushi,. they where full, in fact all of the food service establishments in this plaza where full. I mean to like 90% capacity. so I was reluctant to go into Pailin… but I figured I would give them a try.
I ordered Yellow curry Duck, and Larb… Tea and it was just terrible. the mint in the Larb tasted like it was from a long Freeze, there was nothing fresh, nothing vibrant or remotely flavorful…
so I tell the waiter,. he is not quite what I would called shocked, he tells the boss,. the boss aint having it… I ask for the check, have them pack up the food,. (I wanted to leave it there) but I dont want them to buy this for me and detest waste. I will give it to someone I dont like much. Upon cashing out… I informed the owner that the food was NOT GOOD, he just smiled, Thus the review…
when someone tells you your food is shit… do something about it. .show some shred of concern… that smile of his will surely be gone very soon when the place closed.
I don’t expect complete authenticity… but for gods sake taste what the hell is being put out of the kitchen. My guess,. there is No one Thai cooking or tasting.
Sorry. dont take my 25.00 and smile at me with zero problem resolution.

Fresh, good and as spicy as you like. The scallops in yellow curry sauce is a favorite of ours. We’ve been there a half dozen or so times and enjoyed every tasty meal. It gives you much more selection that just pad thai. Good service, hot meals and spice from the chiles. Yum.

I must admit, other than pad thai noodles, I was fairly new to variety of Thai food when my friend introduced me to Pailin Thai Café. After dining here and at several other Thai restaurants over the past year, I must say that this is my favorite. The food is delicious, the staff is very friendly, and the dining room decorations create a pleasantly relaxing atmosphere. I will certainly continue dining here and placing pick-​up orders.
Some favorites are: Tom Kah Koong (soup), Princess Duck, and many others!

Great Thai restaurant overall.
³⁄₅ stars for environment. Walls and decorations a little run down and old. Floors are laminate and creek.
⁵⁄₅ stars for service. Excellent. Very attentive.
⁴⁄₅ stars for food. We had the pad Thai and chicken Penang. Very good. However be careful about how spicy you order it. If you say 8 on spicy, it will come back a 10. I was fine with that, but a little hot for my wife’s sake.
4.5÷5 stars for price. Pretty affordable for this quality of Thai food.
Overall good experience. I will return.

I finally got to eat here. I came here for an early dinner on a Sunday evening around 5 pm. I walked in and there was no one inside dining. We were seated right away.
Our waitress served us water with a piece of lime in it. Some had lime in the pitcher of water and some didn’t. I saw the photo of the chicken pineapple fried rice which everyone raves about. I ordered that. It came out in a half cutout pineapple with mini umbrellas decorated on top. The rice was fried mixed along with cooked chicken and diced up pineapple. I scooped out some on my plate and tried it. It was so good! The rice was cooked to perfection. The pineapple pieces were sweet. The chicken was soft. So good.
I also got to try some drunken noodles that had a spice of number 2, and it was already burning my mouth, so I suggest getting a 1 or no spice if you are not into spicy food. I highly recommend this place. I liked the décor and service was excellent!

Tonight I ordered the Spicy Noodles with Chicken. Another excellent dish! At spice level 8, I was glad I ordered a Thai Iced tea which tasted good and cut the heat a bit. I would order this again.

My friends and I came by here after a hike up Iron Mountain. The staff was so friendly & our food was amazing! I recommend the Chicken Coconut Curry and the Hawaiian Fried Rice.

They are so friendly and nice, I accidentally ordered to spicy since all restaurant vary, they just took it back and remade it for me with no fuss… great experience and the boyfriend loved the frog legs ;-)

Amazingly flavorful food. My daughter had the half stuffed pineapple and I had the yellow curry with brown rice.
Loooooooved it!
The crowd is very international with many colorful languages being spoken all at once. It felt like a UN luncheon!

Good place for lunch specials. I believe they do most of their business during lunch with all the corporate places in the area. I’d like to come here and try dinner as well. It’s a nice place decorated comfortable and a little dark. The service is perfect. I had to take advantage of their lunch specials and got the gai curry with duck and a regular iced tea.
Out comes a small cup of tom kah kai soup. It filled my craving because I love this soup. But they cut some corners making it. I’m curious if they do a cheaper version for the lunch specials and another if ordered as a bowl or meal. Out comes the dish. Presentation looks beautiful. The plate consists of a small portion of gai curry, salad, spring roll, fried won ton and steamed rice.
The gai curry sauce tastes great. The vegetables were OK, and there was hardly any duck. I think I got 2 very small pieces. The salad was fresh with nice dressing. The spring roll was lack luster, but a nice extra. The fried won ton was average and the steamed rice was perfect. Good place if your in the area and need some Thai food. I will be back soon because they have a few interesting dishes I want to try.

They serve slightly Americanized Thai food, but the taste is good enough. I noticed that the use serrano chiles or jalepenos instead of Thai chili peppers in my dish — there was also an obvious lack of basil. Pick your heat level between 1 — 10. I chose 7 (and I like spicy food) and it didn’t disappoint. Their curries are delicious; however, pad see you was a little drier than what I’m used to. However, bonus points for great customer service and fair prices!

I Love Jane and Pete! My Wife is Thai and she is so picky. So happy we Found our new hot Thai spot!

The food lacks color, but it’s tasty. It is very typical, and nothing was special or amazing. Everything just could be heightened a bit in flavor. If looking for a quick and simple thai meal, this spot is good, just nothing memorable.

Great food and service. The ambiance was lovely. I had the stuffed pineapple with shrimp and chicken — delicious. My guest had the spare ribs which were tender and juicy. They serve generous portions and the price point is perfect. I’ll be returning again and again when I want that thai spicy food!!!

Out of all the thai restaurants in RB, I highly recommend this place. Their dishes are good and flavorful. So far I tried their pad thai, pad see ew, panang curry, and eggplant basil. They have lunch specials at a reasonable price. I do not have anything negative to say. But overall, the food and service meets my expectations.

Overall 3.5. Located just past the freeway it’s where El Toritos is located in RB. First of all, to me, even ok thai food is better than most restaurants.
They have lunch specials which is nice. The one pictured here is their tofu vegetable spicy mint. It comes with soup. The SOTD was a coconut milk soup, which I didn’t like… but that’s because I don’t like that kind of soup. $ 7.95. for chicken it’s $ 8.95.
Spicy level is 1 – 10. I got 2 which wasn’t spicy enough. My friend got 4 and it was spicy. Next time I’ll get 3.
I love how u can get brown rice instead of white, no extra charge. Service is friendly and they gave a pitcher of water on our table. That’s bonus for me, cuz I’m always thirsty.
I’ll go back with my hubby and order more dishes… and if it’s a different soup that I like, and it’s spicier, then I’ll update to bump up my rating. Oh they get bonus for being open on Mondays. Lol all the other thai places close on that day.

We stopped by for dinner there. The pad Thai was awesome — it runs spicy so Oder accordingly. (I generally get spicy, and a 6 here was perfect for me)
We also go Parag curry — it was good, but could have been better. The curry was not as thick and that’s the only reason I’m giving them 4 star.
Great ambience and good staff. Will def. visit again

I don’t think this place is bad, but it doesn’t look like they get a lot of business. I’ve never seen this place full. We came in around 6:30 pm for dinner, which should’ve been dinner rush, but there were only 2 other groups in there.
The service here was alright. When we sat down and they brought us water I noticed that only one of the 3 glasses had a lime in it. I looked around and no one else had limes in their water but no one in our group asked for a lime in their water either. I just thought it was kinda weird and inconsistent. We ordered and we got all our food pretty fast. When i told her that it was my plate in her hand, she set it down in the opposite corner of the table. Not even the opposite side. The opposite corner. So I had to reach over everyone else in order to grab my plate to put in front of myself.
I got the Vegetarian Pad Thai Noodles spicy level 2 ($ 10.95). It’s actually pretty good. It’s a little bit sweeter than other places but I didn’t mind it that much, but my mom doesn’t really like things that are too sweet so she’s more sensitive to them. It has a lot of sauce on it so it doesn’t really get too dry or sticks too much together when it sits out there longer.
We also got the mixed vegetables in red curry with chicken. It was only spicy level 1, but I’m not sure if that affects the color of the curry? I always thought that red curry by default was already red, no matter how spicy it is. When we got it, it was all white. I honestly wasn’t sure if it really was because it was spicy level 1 or if they did give us something different, so I didn’t deduct any stars/​points for this. However, the curry here was super runny. I’m used to having runny curry, but this one had the same consistency of water, so when I tried to mix it in with the rice, the rice just fell apart and separated and I couldn’t get a good hold of the rice with my spoon anymore. That’s how runny the curry was.
The spiciness scale in this place is a little underestimated. I only ordered a spicy level 2 and I could taste the burn of it a little, but it wasn’t so much to overwhelm the entire plate, which is exactly how I like it. I remember the first time I came here I ordered spicy level 4 (because that’s what I usually get) and it was uncomfortably spicy for me. So, if you’re not a big fan of spicy foods, or sensitive to them, I would go for a 1 or 2 to start with, just to try it out first.
It’s really quiet in here. When we first got here there was a large group that was talking quite loudly and could be heard throughout the whole place. I think that if they were at a normal, casual restaurant, they would’ve been fine, but since this place is normally quiet, their conversations and laughter echoed throughout the place. Once the group left, all you can hear is this soft music, and everyone else would be trying to keep their voices low.
This place is okay, but for what they charge regularly for each plate, I think that I would rather go to other places that are better for cheaper. I think that the pricing for the lunch special is reasonable, though. I believe it’s under $ 10 for a soup, a salad, 2 mini egg rolls, 2 wontons, and an entrée. It fills you up a LOT, so if you do go, go for lunch. The lunch special ends at 3 pm.

The Papaya Salad is amazing. We ordered 4-​level spicy. They peel a green papaya into long thin strips, mix with nuts, grape tomatoes and green beans, and cover with a clear sauce that packs a punch! The overall flavor is very bright and light.
The pad Thai with tofu is good. We ordered a 7-​level spicy that was borderline too spicy for me. Tofu and egg were nicely fried.
I thought the Hawaiian fried rice was just okay. We ordered it without the chicken. It had cashews, pineapple chunks, shrimp with the tails still on, and scallions. It was lighter than what I was expecting which is good for my waistline but not necessarily my tastebuds. :) The presentation was outstanding, though. Served in a carved out pineapple. Really fun.
We’ll be back!

My office just moved from Sorrento Valley to Rancho Bernardo and I was in search of a new thai place for lunch. A coworker recommended this place and the reviews looked pretty solid so I thought I would give it a shot.
Lucky me it is only a mile from my office! I l ordered pick up through the app which was very convenient. I received an email that let me know the status of me order so I wouldn’t have to wait around for my food. I ordered the chicken pad thai lunch special ($ 8.95). It comes with a salad, soup, 2 small egg rolls and 2 wontons. My pad thai was the perfect level of spicy and everything was delicious. I can’t really comment on service as I did not dine in but the woman who checked me out was friendly and thanked me for coming in. I will definitely be back again soon!

Was trying to eat at another restaurant in the same plaza, but it was too packed so we decided to give this place a try.
Doesn’t get too busy or packed.
We came here on a Saturday night and there were plentiful of tables open.
They have quite of a variety on their menu to choose from.
Angel Wings $ 8.95
These are basically deep fried stuffed chicken wings. It was pretty meaty and nicely fried, but the inside was a bit dry. The sweet dipping sauce was good though. It was my first time having angel wings so I didn’t know what to expect. But my friends didn’t like it.
Beef Pad Sew Ew $ 10.95
Unfortunately these were the worst pad sew ew noodles we have ever had. The noodles were very soggy. The meat was very dry. We barely ate any of this.
Siamese Spare Ribs (Sizzling) $ 12.95
(Pork spare ribs marinated in garlic and pepper sauce)
This dish looked and tasted the best, but most of the meat was dry as well. But it was a very large portion. Good flavor.
Pattaya Pineapple $ 15.95
(Stuffed pineapple with chicken, shrimp and cashew nuts in house special sauce)
The presentation is beautiful because it is served inside a pineapple with an umbrella. The food had some good flavor, but the quantity was lacking. It’s an okay dish.
Plus service was very slow. They never came by to refill our waters so we requested to have a water pitcher. And when they came to get our bill, they didn’t ask me if I needed to-​go boxes. But after I asked them, at least they boxed up the food for me.
Overall, the food here is just OKAY. Nothing worth remembering.

I lived in Singapore for 5 years, and would fly to Bangkok intermittently. I know what good Thai food should taste like, and the food here in this restaurant is as authentic as it can be, here in San Diego. Tastes great, authentic, and fairly priced.

The Sarah Pailin Thai Restaurant is pretty much the same as Spices and even has the same décor. The staff was short handed but very hard working.
Now to the food… It was very delicious though a little bland compared to what I’m used to from other Thai spots I frequent. My wife and I started with their calamari as an appetizer followed with their shrimp pad Thai noodles! The last part of our meal was an addition entrée, the halibut filet with curry and a level of 2 on the spicy side. I prefer spicier but I was with a light weight hahaha.
When it came time to pay they mixed up our bill with another family.
The parking lot in this area is full and always difficult to get a spot.
All in all this is a decent restaurant that was just too busy to earn a 4 or 5.
I’ll give them a try again and hopefully they’ll be better staffed.

I’ll give this restaurant 3.5 — 4 Stars. The food is serious authentic and delicious. The customer service is very good and friendly. I like their lunch specials. Watch out, very big portion. It’s next to where I work, so very convenient for me. Check it out! I recommend their lunch, prices are very reasonable.

We probably eat here once a week with our co-​workers (and without), and we love it. I’m not a Thai food connoisseur, but I know what I like, and I like this place. The chicken Gai Curry is delicious! I’m addicted to the sauce, semi-​sweet, and very tasty. The portions at lunch are generous and I generally have enough leftover for a small dinner.
While I can’t speak to the «authenticity» or anything like that, I can speak to the customer service, which has always been exceptional there. Every staff member we have met, from hostess to the server bringing our water, has been extremely friendly and genuine.
We will definitely keep bringing our business here.

I think I may have found my go-​to Thai restaurant in San Diego. Thank the heavens.
We ordered the satay chicken appetizer and I seriously cannot get enough of that peanut sauce! The chicken comes in skewers and it tasted like the chicken was poached first and the grilled at the end to get some nice grill marks. It was so juicy and they serve 6 skewers! It would probably be good as an entrée along with some fried rice. Might have to try that next time, as I didn’t get a chance to try any of their seafood fried rice dishes.
I ordered the pad Thai with beef as per yooj with a spice level of 5. It was the perfect level of heat… I know, ’cause I kept reaching for my water but I wasn’t in pain. You could see jalapeño seeds throughout the dish! I judge pad Thai based on 3 key factors — how it smells when it comes out (it has to smell literally as it tastes…), how generous they are with the crushed peanuts (I always need a crunch factor), and how big the dish is because let’s face it, part of the pad Thai experience is being able to eat leftovers literally 2 hours after initially stuffing your face. Hehe
The service was very good– my water kept getting refilled, they boxed our food for us, and our waiter and waitress were very kind and attentive.

This is one of my favorite Thai restaurants. The food is consistently tasty and the service is friendly. I’ve dined in for lunch and dinner and even ordered take out before.
My favorite dishes are the crabmeat fried rice, Pad Thai, yellow curry, papaya salad and angel wings. The fried rice has plenty of fresh crabmeat and the noodles are cooked perfectly in the Pad Thai. The yellow curry has just the right amount of coconut milk without overpowering the curry flavor. I love pouring the curry sauce over rice. The papaya salad is very refreshing and is served with cabbage, tomatoes, and carrots. The angel wings are fried boneless wings stuffed with chicken, crabmeat, and noodles served with a sweet and sour sauce. They are absolutely delicious. Just thinking about them makes me want to go back soon!