Pailin Thai Cafe

There are about four places to get Thai food in Rancho Bernardo; a north San Diego hamlet, known for geezers and tech companies.  Pailin consistently has the best Pad Thai, that I can tell you!

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Pinto Thai Ramona

Recently we put OrangeCrate through their paces and ordered from two different restaurants at the same time. It’s great that we can do this because Gail and I often disagree (lovingly) on where or what to eat! She was able to get her favorite meal from Boll Weevil and I satisfied my Asian desires with Pinto thai Ramona.  From Pinto, here’s a Pad Thai Noodles dinner made “combo” style. It includes an assortment of shrimp, chicken, pork and beef. It’s sort of “house special” style if you’re familiar with Chinese menus. These Asian dishes hold up really well under take-out conditions. It was overall outstanding, but I will say the chicken and pork were fairly dry, overcooked and somewhat tough. I would love to get this with just beef and shrimp.

I have to say, I was amazed. Both restaurants quoted a 60 minute delivery estimate to SDCE. The Orange Crate driver had both meals picked up and delivered in 36 minutes!

Erawan Thai Cuisine

Good Pad Thai, although not the best in Rancho Bernardo. Soup/salad with lunch special, terrible. Felt like I was eating lunch in a funeral home.

Pailin Thai Cafe

Still the best Pad Thai lunch special in SoCal!  Especially prepared with the BBQ pork.  Even the spicy Thai soup appetizer is tasty.  If you’re ever in the Rancho Bernardo area, this place is well worth the visit!

Pailin Thai Cafe

Still my favorite Pad Thai in SoCal!  This time with chicken.  I could eat this everyday but Lady FoodObs would get upset pretty quick.  

Pinto Thai Ramona

After last weeks disappointment I had to get over to the new Pinto Thai to try their lunch specials. I ordered my favorite, Pad Thai (with shrimp). Lunch special prices depend on your protein of choice. Shrimp or beef is $8.99, chicken or pork $7.99. There’s a few other options as well, including vegetarian, combo, seafood, mock this or that, etc.The Pad Thai here was really good. The shrimps (4) were plump, fresh tasting and cooked just about perfect. Not all overcooked and tough. I always held Thai Time Pad Thai in high regard. This one came close, but not quite 100%. I will say it was remarkably better than what I had last week at the other place. A much bigger serving too.  

Lunch specials here are served with soup of the day, house salad, Thai vegetarian egg roll and fried wonton. The soup was pretty good, came out nice and hot, contained cabbage and some mushy zucchini. The “salad” was just three thin slices of cucumber completely submerged in some sort of dressing, crowned with some shaved carrot and cabbage. The wonton looked more like a small empanada. It was filled with some kind of curry paste type substance. I didn’t care for it. The vegetarian egg roll was mushy inside and had an unpleasant texture.  

Love the new interior! Gone are the dark, heavy booths and tacky decorations. Now it sports a much more bright and homey vibe. So comfortable, I could just hang out there!

I recognized some of the old staff, they’re always nice and bubbly. Although after my food came out they were aloof and distant. 

Anyway, it was an enjoyable visit – can’t wait to go back and sample a curry dish.

Lemongrass Thai Food

Lunch special Pad Thai at Lemongrass. $6.95, made with your choice of chicken or tofu. Since I prefer animal proteins I chose chicken. I usually don’t go all negative, but there’s really not much good I can say about this lunch special (other than the service). I actually wanted to check out the new Pinto Thai but their parking lot was all jacked up!It’s a very conservative portion of Pad Thai that is oddly served with a side of rice. Usually noodle dishes are not served with rice (the menu even states this). Instead you just get a bigger portion along with maybe some crispy won tons or fried spring roll or something. This Pad Thai today was very loose. The tamarind sauce should tighten up somewhat when being wok fired. I eat a lot of Pad Thai throughout SoCal and this one was pretty sad.

Charm Thai Kitchen

Outstanding Pad Thai lunch special at CTK!  I just wish they put the salad on a separate plate.  It unfortunately tends to sympathetically absorb warmth from the hot food. 

Panya Thai Kitchen

Outstanding Pad Thai at Panya.  And so beautifully presented as well in lunch special form.  Very much like what I get at Pailin Thai.  I think these restaurants might be run by the same owner.  Very similar menu too.  

Pei Wei Asian Diner

Here’s a new sushi thing at Pei Wei they call the Kung Pao Shrimp Sushi.  It was outstanding!  The Pad Thai on the other hand is always loose and haphazardly constructed.