I came here on the weekend for a nearby art show, and was very disappointed by this place in the Union Market. The Thai tea, which I believe was $5, was watered down so much, it tasted like sweetened water. The place is heavily understaffed with one person working there during a crowd. The papaya salad with shrimp was also pretty disappointing, and had no taste. It had a lot of liquid that had no flavor. I had to wait 40 minutes for the food, and the wait was not worth it. Also it's already difficult to find spots in Union Market to sit down, so waiting for food while standing is a pain.I don't plan on getting food from here again.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 1
Service: 2
Shoshana Sommer
Honestly some of the best tofu pad Thai I've had in DC. I don't go often, but it's been consistently excellent when I am there. Pricey, but so is everything in DC these days. Also love the Thai ice tea. I've not had anything else on the menu, so I can't speak to any other dishes!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Essete Getaneh
The most rudest customer service ever. The lady that works there had the most horrible attitude. I ended up not even ordering because of how rude she was even as I approached the counter.
Service: 1
Matt Farris
Superb Tom Yum soup! Very spicy yet so savory ? Great on a cold
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 3
Emma Voorhees
Best khao soi I’ve eaten since being in Thailand!!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Khao Soi
Alexa Louis
Just downright delicious.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Chicken Wings
Father Hood
Looking at these reviews sheesh but guess what it's always good to know for yourself. Placed a small order to go and although they didn't take cash the gentleman accepted and scanned a payment for me.This was my first time trying the dish and don't recall the name. It was very flavorful and the fish sauce was strong but evenly displaced throughout the dish.Try for yourself I didn't have a bad experience and would order it again.
Food: 4
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Papaya Salad
Jack K
Khao Soi is a homerun! Customer service is painfully bad as they are understaffed and prioritize their breaks over the customer experience. Now, before that gets me in trouble, I want to state that everyone deserves a break. That being said, don’t stop serving the customers who have been waiting in line the minute your break is scheduled. It is rude and completely unacceptable. The food is not cheap and we left feeling like we are doing them a favor by trying to order.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 5
Service: 1
Recommended dishes: Khao Soi
Grover B.
Som Tom not good for the tum tum. Inedible. I ordered yom tom (lemon grass soup) - it was greasy and so expensive almost $10 for a small container
Dustin Walsh
The Pad Thai chicken was extremely dry. I wouldn’t recommend this place at all.
I implore you to take heed of the poor reviews and question the glowing reviews this place has. Union market is nice overall and when walking by the food smelled good but maybe some other restaurants food was wafting over. I ordered the chicken pad Thai and my sister ordered the tofu pad Thai. Both were EXTREMELY dry and I do put an emphasis on extremely. I could have possibly gotten over that had the flavor been good but the chicken tasted old like it had been heated up over and over and had a weird after taste and the pad Thai which at this point was a block of noodles had a really weird sweetness to it. I honestly wish I had looked at the reviews and avoided this place before I wasted any money here. Avoid if you’re hungry because I couldn’t even stomach finishing this food and I’m still starving. Just eat whatever you have at home. Ramen noodles would be better.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 1
Service: 2
Dravel P.
I will start by saying the young guy at the counter was very polite and understanding. I only had veggie spring rolls. They taste unique. like potato korma or something. unique texture unique taste just don't expect a normal spring roll. I rate the spring roll 0/10 for my tastes but I don't think the spot sucks that bad just go in more informed than me
Nathan S.
Almost not consumable food. All bad food is too expensive and this was very bad. What did they put on the fried chicken wings? Had to be tiny rocks. I will stop here.
Pg E.
This is arguably the worst Thai spot I've been to. I was overcharged, the food was mediocre at best, the service wasn't great, and the cleanliness was so disappointing. Unfortunately, as someone who doesn't eat pork for religious and health reasons, I was given pork spring rolls over the veggie option I ordered. I am paying for the one bite I took on the way home... in a "not so friendly" way. Try at your own risk ...
Aarti B.
The Kao Soi may not be available or the restaurant could be closed preparing dishes, so definitely have a back-up plan especially on the weekdays I can see why this place only gets 3.7 stars with fresh authentic food served with a sour dose of stand-offish service. I visited Union Market twice during my lunch break from Chinatown specifically to try the Kao Sao and failed miserably! Skip the weekdays, only go on the weekends to Som Tam, as it may not be open or full menu isn't available. The website states the restaurant is open Mon - Sun from 11am - 8pm - this isn't true. The 1st time I went on a Tuesday around 11:30am and the owner/cook informed me the restaurant was closed as they were busy making dishes and told me to come on Thurs. So a few weeks later, I came on a Thurs a quarter of 12, and the same owner/cook abrasively let me know the restaurant isn't open until 12pm. I went back 15 min later, and the Kao Soi wasn't available! The cook was going to make it later that afternoon. While I was shocked and disappointed (I wasn't going to leave empty-handed after 2 visits!), I relented and tried the Kapow. The best time to go on the weekends from Fri-Sun after 12pm when the full menu is available. The Kapow has a heap of crispy, tender cubed tofu in a chili sauce and green beans. It was bursting with flavor and the heat/spiciness wasn't overpowering. There wasn't a morsel or trace of tofu left! I wasn't a fan of the clumpy purple rice and would have preferred regular sticky rice. The cold slices of lettuce didn't do anything for me. When I picked up the food, the cook gave me a nice smile, but didn't say anything. I don't expect great service and truly appreciate the labor of love for cooking a fresh meal, but after 2 failed attempts to try the signature Kao Soi dish - I'm throwing in the towel!
I came here on the weekend for a nearby art show, and was very disappointed by this place in the Union Market. The Thai tea, which I believe was $5, was watered down so much, it tasted like sweetened water. The place is heavily understaffed with one person working there during a crowd. The papaya salad with shrimp was also pretty disappointing, and had no taste. It had a lot of liquid that had no flavor. I had to wait 40 minutes for the food, and the wait was not worth it. Also it's already difficult to find spots in Union Market to sit down, so waiting for food while standing is a pain.I don't plan on getting food from here again.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 1
Service: 2
Honestly some of the best tofu pad Thai I've had in DC. I don't go often, but it's been consistently excellent when I am there. Pricey, but so is everything in DC these days. Also love the Thai ice tea. I've not had anything else on the menu, so I can't speak to any other dishes!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
The most rudest customer service ever. The lady that works there had the most horrible attitude. I ended up not even ordering because of how rude she was even as I approached the counter.
Service: 1
Superb Tom Yum soup! Very spicy yet so savory ? Great on a cold
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 3
Best khao soi I’ve eaten since being in Thailand!!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Khao Soi
Just downright delicious.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Chicken Wings
Looking at these reviews sheesh but guess what it's always good to know for yourself. Placed a small order to go and although they didn't take cash the gentleman accepted and scanned a payment for me.This was my first time trying the dish and don't recall the name. It was very flavorful and the fish sauce was strong but evenly displaced throughout the dish.Try for yourself I didn't have a bad experience and would order it again.
Food: 4
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Papaya Salad
Khao Soi is a homerun! Customer service is painfully bad as they are understaffed and prioritize their breaks over the customer experience. Now, before that gets me in trouble, I want to state that everyone deserves a break. That being said, don’t stop serving the customers who have been waiting in line the minute your break is scheduled. It is rude and completely unacceptable. The food is not cheap and we left feeling like we are doing them a favor by trying to order.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 5
Service: 1
Recommended dishes: Khao Soi
Som Tom not good for the tum tum. Inedible. I ordered yom tom (lemon grass soup) - it was greasy and so expensive almost $10 for a small container
The Pad Thai chicken was extremely dry. I wouldn’t recommend this place at all.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 2
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
I implore you to take heed of the poor reviews and question the glowing reviews this place has. Union market is nice overall and when walking by the food smelled good but maybe some other restaurants food was wafting over. I ordered the chicken pad Thai and my sister ordered the tofu pad Thai. Both were EXTREMELY dry and I do put an emphasis on extremely. I could have possibly gotten over that had the flavor been good but the chicken tasted old like it had been heated up over and over and had a weird after taste and the pad Thai which at this point was a block of noodles had a really weird sweetness to it. I honestly wish I had looked at the reviews and avoided this place before I wasted any money here. Avoid if you’re hungry because I couldn’t even stomach finishing this food and I’m still starving. Just eat whatever you have at home. Ramen noodles would be better.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 1
Service: 2
I will start by saying the young guy at the counter was very polite and understanding. I only had veggie spring rolls. They taste unique. like potato korma or something. unique texture unique taste just don't expect a normal spring roll. I rate the spring roll 0/10 for my tastes but I don't think the spot sucks that bad just go in more informed than me
Almost not consumable food. All bad food is too expensive and this was very bad. What did they put on the fried chicken wings? Had to be tiny rocks. I will stop here.
This is arguably the worst Thai spot I've been to. I was overcharged, the food was mediocre at best, the service wasn't great, and the cleanliness was so disappointing. Unfortunately, as someone who doesn't eat pork for religious and health reasons, I was given pork spring rolls over the veggie option I ordered. I am paying for the one bite I took on the way home... in a "not so friendly" way. Try at your own risk ...
The Kao Soi may not be available or the restaurant could be closed preparing dishes, so definitely have a back-up plan especially on the weekdays I can see why this place only gets 3.7 stars with fresh authentic food served with a sour dose of stand-offish service. I visited Union Market twice during my lunch break from Chinatown specifically to try the Kao Sao and failed miserably! Skip the weekdays, only go on the weekends to Som Tam, as it may not be open or full menu isn't available. The website states the restaurant is open Mon - Sun from 11am - 8pm - this isn't true. The 1st time I went on a Tuesday around 11:30am and the owner/cook informed me the restaurant was closed as they were busy making dishes and told me to come on Thurs. So a few weeks later, I came on a Thurs a quarter of 12, and the same owner/cook abrasively let me know the restaurant isn't open until 12pm. I went back 15 min later, and the Kao Soi wasn't available! The cook was going to make it later that afternoon. While I was shocked and disappointed (I wasn't going to leave empty-handed after 2 visits!), I relented and tried the Kapow. The best time to go on the weekends from Fri-Sun after 12pm when the full menu is available. The Kapow has a heap of crispy, tender cubed tofu in a chili sauce and green beans. It was bursting with flavor and the heat/spiciness wasn't overpowering. There wasn't a morsel or trace of tofu left! I wasn't a fan of the clumpy purple rice and would have preferred regular sticky rice. The cold slices of lettuce didn't do anything for me. When I picked up the food, the cook gave me a nice smile, but didn't say anything. I don't expect great service and truly appreciate the labor of love for cooking a fresh meal, but after 2 failed attempts to try the signature Kao Soi dish - I'm throwing in the towel!