Friends Cafe

I was impressed, but skeptical of all the four and five stars, but now I see why. Friends is tucked into a 1960s strip mall, but the restaurant itself is very cheery inside. We had only two dishes, but both were great. The pickled ginger salad is unlike anything I’ve had before, with tasty (not overpowering) match-​sticks of pickled ginger with an assortment of peanuts and some type of fragile beans. For vegetarians, note that there is a bit of fish sauce in the dressing; for non-​fish sauce folks, it is very mild– you wouldn’t know its there if I hadn’t told you. OK, now the main course, the whole fish in tamirand sauce. We got the sea bass (probably a bit more expensive that the tilapia or catfish; prices are «market», so I’m not sure), but it was beautifully presented and very tasty. I will definitely go back — there are a lot of interesting sounding Burmese dishes. For those a bit tired of the standard Asian places, this is the place to find some new and interesting dishes. Friendly service too, at a leisurely pace.

Went to Myanmar in November and delighted to get some of those flavors here at home — and everything we had was delicious!

These folks know Thai! The food is great! The authentic flavors are enhanced by the Thai heat! The staff is genuine, and the prices are great. What more could you ask for? Check out Friends Café!

I have been here many times and looooove it! My favorites are Golden Egg curry and Shrimp and Eggplant curry. Affordable takeout, nice portions, great for those cold days when you need comfort food

This place is in the hood right next to Pawn America and the inside décor reflects this. That being said the food is great, reasonably priced and comes in large enough portions that even my friend Fat Sean leaves full. Whenever I feel like I am getting my man period I always go for a big helping of there Pad Thai with crispy pork or shrimp. Check em out if you’re in the market for some Asian comfort food.

We stopped here on our way into town, looking via Unilocal for a Thai restaurant near 35. It is a hole in the wall in a strip mall, but the food is fantastic! Everything we ate was really top notch. The service is friendly, fast, and efficient. Great value.

Best pad Thai I’ve ever had, but the crispy noodles in gravy was terrible. My husband really loves their green curry.

The food was tasty, but too salty. The service was so-​so, atmosphere was lacking. The tofu pad thai was bland. The catfish with tamarind sauce was very good, but there was a lot of oil in it. I will come back, just because I liked the flavors and the interesting dishes that you can’t find elsewhere.

The food here is really good! I’ve been here a few times now with my husband and friends. Everything that I’ve had of theirs have been great! I would’ve given them a 5 star rating if their décor and ambience was better.

On this visit, our first, we focused completely on the Burmese dishes. All I can say is WOW!
Part of me wants to tell people not to visit so that it won’t get overrun and cause my family long wait times in the future, but I have to be honest and say that the food here was absolutely delicious!
The pickled green salad had an array and depth of flavors that were unlike anything I’ve ever had. One component was pickled tea leaves, something I honestly didn’t even know existed. when that was mixed with the crunchy peas, peanuts, and various vegetables, the result was incredible. I had trouble even taking a breath between bites.
The curries have a familiar look, but the taste is better than anything I would have expected. The fish balls together with the pork, coconut milk, and various vegetables had a perfect level of spiciness and made me want to keep eating more and more.
I have to say, this is one of the best surprises I have found on the St. Paul side of the Twin Cities. I hope everyone gives this a try; it’s worth it!

This place is absolutely amazing and if you are considering trying it, please do. It is well worth the time and effort.
We got the Burmese Beef stew and Burmese Shrimp and Eggplant Stew. Wow. The flavors for amazing and the dish was absolutely stunning.
Service was fast, friendly and so sweet.
I am going to be going back. Its right in our neighborhood and such a hidden Gem.

Many, many thanks to Unilocal for my wonderful lunch today at Friends Café. I found myself needing to have a lunch in Roseville, found this place on Unilocal,made plans and had a wonderful lunch and meeting here!
I followed prior advice and ordered the shrimp spring rolls (so so fresh and delicious!), the ginger salad (out of this world and I would have probably never ordered it even though I love fresh ginger). We also had tempura shrimp and a shrimp curry dish. All were excellent.
Small, unassuming excellent food! Five stars! Boom!

I love their eggplant curry dish, I’ve been looking for a place for curry dishes and this one serves them well. Went to this place on a whim and loved it.
Very quiet atmosphere and friendly staff.

Went here for dinner on a whim with my sister. Had to try the shrimp and eggplant curry since the dish got so many good reviews. We were not disappointed at all. Our first time trying Burmese food, the curry had a very good distinct flavor. We will be definitely going back to try more goodies.

We went out with our family to celebrate a great event and wanted to try some Thai food from the area. We tried a couple of things
1– red curry — it had great flavor and the medium and a good kick
2– salad– sadly I do not remember the name but it was horrible– we only ate 2 bites and threw the rest away
3– spring roles– great, wonderful sauce
4– ice tea– not at all what you would expect, much more of a thick cream

Gee, Unilocal dumped my already-​written review when I logged in. .. so this will be shorter than before.
We stopped for lunch. Service was slow: one waitress and a cook for ten or so tables.
I ordered egg rolls and the intestine and stomach soup, which was billed as «spicy.» It was not spicy, and in fact the broth was totally flavorless. There *was* a large variety of intestine and tripe, and even some beef and tendon. The egg rolls were not great, served with a slightly spicy quite sweet sauce. About $ 16.
My buddy ordered «chicken roti» and tom yum soup. The roti were more like samosas in form factor (deep fried triangles) and were described by him as «okay, but mostly potato.» The tom yum was apparently better than my soup, but he wasn’t blown away. About $ 13.
Overall, I don’t think we’ll bother to go again. Sample size was four dishes, and none were (in our opinion) worth ordering again.

Popped in on recent weeknight since neither of us felt like cooking. Glad we got there when we did. Not a large place at all and the night we were there they had 2 big groups — 6+ people at each of the tables.
This place is located in a small strip mall and I know it’s been a couple different things in the past few years. I hope this place stays.
We ordered egg rolls and chicken roti puffs to start. Both weren’t too shabby. The roti puffs were a bit too greasy for my liking, but tasted decent. Husband liked his egg-​rolls, but really now, he loves most egg-​rolls.
He had the green chicken curry and I had thai basi pork. We ordered both medium and I’m not much of a spice person, so I should have ordered mild. Both dishes were good. Mine was full of veggies and had a decent about of pork. His was served in a bowl and had lots of juicy curry sauce that he loves.
I will remember this place for some decent Thai food to go next time I say, «hmmm, where to now?»
I kid you not — my fortune roll, which was nice, crispy and coconut like had this inside, «Everybody should have at least two friends, one to talk to and one to talk about.»
Ha! «Friends.»

Wonderful Thai food! Springs rolls are so fresh with flavorful sauces. Pad Thai had a lot of flavor. Really hits the spot on a Monday night.

As others have said, the interior is nothing special. Especially on a cold, MN day, the chill can blow right through the place.
But how can I complain when the bang-​for-​your-​buck goes this far? Really, Friends Café is a great deal. You get authentic, delicious, flavorful Burmese cuisine for very affordable prices. What’s not to love?
We had a fish soup, green curry, and eggplant/​shrimp curry. Everything was wonderful and the portions were generous. Ever order a seafood dish and let disappointed by the quantity of actual seafood in it? This is not a problem at Friends Café.
I love hidden gems like this, and you should too. You won’t be disappointed.

Visiting Friends Café was like meeting new friends in the house where old friends used to live. The dining room still had the same furniture and crane mural, but there were new small pictures on the walls. The bathroom had a fresh coat of paint (and the same picture on the wall). The service was friendly, and the food a wonderful surprise.
I had the Burmese rice noodle fish soup, and my husband had the Burmese egg curry. We never had Burmese food before, so it was a real treat. The fish soup had layers of flavor – fresh cilantro, fried beans, coconut milk, fish sauce, fish balls (like Japanese kamaboko), boiled egg, and a thick soup with a bit of a kick. Just in case the kick was not enough, however, they provided a small jar of hot pepper to add. The egg curry was delightful, with a sunny tamarind flavor. The rice, as I had hoped, was cooked nicely, hot with the grains separated and not mushy. I also had Thai-​style samosas (served with a sweet and spicy sauce), and Thai iced coffee. The coffee had a deep, freshly-​roasted flavor.
The meal ended with a Thai-​style fortune cookie. (I never saw one before. Another made in USA tradition?) My fortune read, «You don’t get harmony when everyone sings the same note.» How true, and well said at a little ethnic restaurant a couple of doors down from Dairy Queen, and across the street from Burger King, Caribou, and a fried fish place.
It seems the locals like the place and want it to stay. I was surprised to see the place almost full for lunch on an ordinary fall Saturday. I also saw chairs by the entrance, so I imagine at times there might be a wait. A very good sign.
I was so sad to see E-​Noodle café go, because that was another unusual and tasty food experience. I’m so glad to see a new unusual business take its place. I’ll definitely be back!