Village Thai Beyond

Inexplicably closed.

Closed. I’m sad.

* This small hole-​in-​the-​wall thai joint has has ‘home-​made’ written all over it. The place has has 4 – 5 tables with a cozy and simple ambience.
* All the dishes we ordered had a great flavor. We once ordered the Thai Red Curry and were surprised that it didn’t look like Red Curry as we have known it but once we started eating, we didn’t need any more explanations. The reason is, the chef doesn’t use a lot of food color to make a red curry look red, like a lot of restaurants, and that can only be better and healthier.
* One can customize ‘spice’ levels and if you’re like me and like ‘spicy’, then you won’t be disappointed — the spiciness is not boosted with just crushed red pepper but in other more traditional ways including fresh sliced green chillies.
* This is a one-​man operation so the service can get slow, but the gentleman who runs the restaurant is very courteous and makes customers feel comfortable.
* Call in advance to order if you can (the menu is listed on seamless) and expect some wait — every dish is made to order.
* This has become one of our regular take-​out joints.

gross. bbq pork sandwich had old lettuce, cheap deli bun, meat chewy and not fresh. tom yum watered down and oily. go somewhere else.

Chicken coconut curry with rice was $ 8 and it was very delicious. The guy made my food in a matter of 10 minutes. If you want something fast and not pizza this place offers some great options

Summary–
Note: 1.5 Stars
Pros: Cheap, Dumplings were tasty
Cons: Everything else wasn’t tasty
When this place popped up on Seamless, I decided to give it a go. Can’t hurt to try a new place, so whenever a chance to try new takeout pops up, I grab on! I got 2 sandwiches, the Peking Duck, and the Korean BBQ Beef sandwich, and an order of the pork dumplings. The GF got chicken pad thai. It wasn’t too expensive, so thats nice.
When the food came, the dumplings went down first. They were actually pretty good, and we were feeling good when we started to eat the mains. The good vibes quickly turned bad however. The chicken pad thai was easily the worst I’ve ever had in JC, it didn’t taste like anything really. It was wet and soggy, and bland beyond belief, like someone boiled some rice noodles, threw in some dry chicken, and forgot the rest. The sandwiches were a little better, but way too much bread, and the sauces the meats were tasted a bit off. Like… kind of sweet, but in a funny tasting way? Not the worst thing I’ve ever had, but not something I’d ever care to order again.
Suffice to say, half of everything went in the trash, and we won’t be ordering again unless we want lots of dumplings.

Worst Thai i have ever had! Dont go by the reviews on Unilocal,saw 4 start so thought will try a new thai place. The curry was watery with no flavour, drowsed with chilli flakes to give any flavour, no thai vegetables, just cauliflower and capsicum.
Terrible food.

I can’t say enough about this wonderful neighborhood Thai restaurant. The ambiance and food make you feel like you’re sitting in the kitchen of a culinarily gifted and generous friend. The owner is friendly and kind, and after you order he hurries off behind a curtain to cook what you ordered. Delicious smells ensue.
The food is comforting and tasty – big pieces of vegetables and meat in complicated-​tasting sauces. The Tom Yum soup and green curry are divine. Did I mention it’s also cheap!!! I feel so lucky to live close to this neighborhood gem.

Last month, I stopped by this place in the afternoon, but it was closed even though the posted sign indicated that it should have been opened. I thought the place went out of business. Last night, on my way home, I saw that no, indeed it was open! I dropped in to get the Korean BBQ sandwich ($ 3) that I had read about here on Unilocal and a red thai curry with chicken ($ 9) to go. It looks like this is a one man show with a very tiny kitchen. The chef was preparing multiple orders for the person ahead of me in line, and while I was there, a party of 4 came in and sat down. After I had given my order, I was told to come back after 15 minutes. I did, and it was then that I noted the chef asked those sitting down what they wanted to order. So for those expecting fast service this may not be a good place. However, I must say that the gentleman was kind and friendly; he offered to make my dish spicier if I wished and took the time to explain two of the dishes instead of getting frazzled etc. The place smelled really good with all the curry and spices — not overwhelming or nauseating but inviting.
Okay now for the food: for $ 3, the sandwich was pretty good. Pieces of beef, peppers, onions, lettuce on a hot dog bun. I would have liked a tablespoon more of the sauce, but like I said $ 3 for a sandwich — that’s great!
The thai curry was pretty good as well. No extra veggies or herbs, just the curry and chicken, but if you’re looking to satisfy that Thai craving, it’s sufficient. The portion size was comprable to what one would get a Wild Fusion or Sawadee but a few dollars less. I’ll definitely drop by in the future.

Coconut rice is awesome.
Great prices, good food, and quick service. The Korean BBQ sandwich is worth trying and is under 5 bucks.

Ok, so I want to give this place 3.5 stars — please Unilocal!bring on the half stars, it’s just not fair!
So this place is BYOB — awesome. This place is smaller than my dream walk in closet. The man behind the curtain is a 5 star man. I wanted to hug him post dinner but my friend insisted that would be inappropriate.
So I may have given this place 4 stars but my friend who I was dining with doesn’t do red meat or pork… really? (This is a whole other conversation). So, potentially other items like the korean bbq beef sandwich are most likely amazing and would have bumped this bad boy up to 4 stars.
We went with the steamed veggie dumplings (meh), the chicken asian sandwich (better) and the green curry with chicken (delicious). The green curry was $ 7, yes $ 7. Amazing. However, you got $ 7 worth of food as in a scoop of rice and a little bit of chicken. Again, I eat like a 200 – 300 lb. man so, I was hungry after licking the plate clean. But, on a side note I was going to get some drinks after so I felt great and not like I ate too much, which worked out well.
I will come back to this place for some takeout to sample some of the other offerings and reassess but, for right now this place is A-​OK.

I had the korean bbq sandwich which was very delicious and affordable at $ 3!!! For appetizer, the fried pork dumplings were nicely seared but it was steaming hot so let it cool before eating & the sauce on the side compliments the dumplings very well.
The owner/​chef was very hospitable & nice. Small restaurant with random pieces of art work on the walls & cash only. Overall, tasty & affordable! :)

I walked past here a few weeks ago and told myself that I’d have to check this place out soon. I had heard about a fantastic $ 3 sandwich so I stopped in a couple days ago when I didn’t feel like cooking.
My first impression was that it was a cozy little space with a small simple menu. I knew I was going to try a sandwich but which one and how many? I asked how big they were because I wasn’t expecting much for $ 3 and the chef/​owner said, «it’s a small sandwich.» So I decided to get three. I went with a Korean beef, an Asian pork with oyster sauce and a duck.
I was surprised when I got home and opened the first one. This was a serious sandwich! One would have been plenty for a meal. All came with lettuce, sauteed onions and peppers on them on a fresh, soft mini torpedo roll. These things were loaded with meat and toppings (not like some other shop that used to be in the neighborhood.) I’d rank them duck, pork, then beef. Heads up though, the duck may be too fatty for some tastes but I loved it.
Hands down, the best cheap eats in downtown JC and the best $ 3 I’ve ever spent on a bite to eat. I can’t recommend them enough. I’m looking forward to trying their other dishes.

I was craving a banh mi last Thursday when I realized that all the Vietnamese stores in Jersey City don’t actually make them until the weekend. Plan B: Village Thai Beyond’s Korean BBQ Beef sandwich. It took less than ten minutes for the friendly owner/​chef to step behind the curtain (yes, this place is tiny) and cook up marinated beef, onions and peppers with lettuce and tomato on a soft bun. And for $ 3 you can’t beat that!
I’ve also had their beef stew in a cup with a roll and it was exactly what I wanted — soft stewed meat, potatoes and carrots in a rich sauce.
Like other reviewers have said, it’s not the biggest or fanciest place, but if you’re looking for a lunchtime bang for your buck, then this place is it!

Not sure why the first reviewer gave such a high compliment. Ordered green-​curry with chicken and chicken w/​basil and they both ended up looking exactly the same. The chicken w/​basis didn’t even have any basil in it. What a disappointment! This place has a so much potential as a cute hole-​in-​a-​wall restaurant. But fire the cook, he doesn’t know what Thai food is.

This is a preliminary review, since I’ve only been there once, but I was pleased enough with what I had that felt compelled to come on Unilocal and share.
I got the ($ 3!) BBQ beef sandwich and was very satisfied with the taste as well as the size. I ordered it, did a bunch of errands and came back twenty minutes later, so the soft roll had lost some structural integrity due to soaked up (tasty) juices, but I don’t count that against the restaurant. The sandwich consisted of sauteed peppers and onions, some fresh lettuce, and the beef, which was flavorful, tender and nicely proportional to the veg. It was a sort of sweet, savory, vaguely peanut/​coconut taste that had more than enough flavor to be interesting without being overwhelmingly spicy. The scent that wafted from the bag was awfully tempting as I went about the rest of my errands. (I always consider it a good sign when I take my takeout to the pet store on Jersey/​Newark and the little dog follows me around, snuffling at my bag).
It’s not super fancy, but *very* tasty, and immediately leapt to the top of my ‘cheap, stomach filling meal’ list. I’m very much looking forward to exploring their other sandwiches and (when I’m slightly less broke) their $ 7 – 8 entrée selection.
As for ambiance, well, it’s a hole in the wall with a couple rickety tables, so I’m seeing it as more of a place for take out than a place to dine and linger, but if the freshness, portion size, and taste of that sandwich was any indication, I look forward to exploring the rest of their menu.
Sadly, I stopped by at about five till noon today and they weren’t yet open for lunch (and they don’t seem to have set hours, either on the door or the menu), but I’ll be stopping in around dinner to try one of their other sandwiches.
ETA: YUM! Their peking duck sandwich is so good (same bread/​dressings as above) that I’m afraid to describe it because I’ll probably have to use NSFW words.
EATA: (6÷29÷11) Argh. Have to adjust to a 3.5 (but leaving 4 since it’s still tasty/​cheap). Out of the last six times I’ve walked by during reasonable business hours (between 12 and 6), it’s been closed a full half of the time. Two of those times I’d gone there specifically. D: I know it’s a small operation, but more regular hours would be nice.