Basil Thai

So sad such a great little restaurant closed!!! I LOVED this place — the food was fantastic.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE this Place! I’ve been to at least 10 plus Thai places as I work On convoy street, and all it is out here is asian food! I think the food here is GREAT! the lunch specials are awesome! the place is cute not very large the staff is nice! I recommend all the currys, the tom yum or tom khar soup! oh and the chicken cashew! Delicious FOOD!

Excellent customer service. That is what I always look for. The staff was so friendly even though we were there past closing time and they even let us use their restroom. The food was good too.

We came here for lunch on a Saturday afternoon after driving around looking for something to satisfy our Thai food urges. I admit that we were a little reluctant since the place is in a little corner of a shopping area right off of Garnet. Inside it was a different vibe though — being very welcoming and quaint.
We ordered two lunch specials. The salad you get comes with fried tofu and a yummy warm peanut sauce, which is a really nice bonus, being that most lunch special salads are just a small medley of greens with basic sauce. The entrees were both good but we liked my basil chicken better. They used good choice white breast meat and it was cooked really well. I would’ve preferred a bit more spicy though.
Okay, so it’s not the best Thai food in San Diego but it’s far from the worst too. This place gets four stars in my book for their prices, quality, good service and comfy ambiance. We’d go back any time when in the area and will probably do so just try them out some more.

Despite the location, the inside is actually pretty cute. The food is so-​so. We haven’t found «our Thai» place yet in PB and sadly, this will not be it. Don’t get me wrong, it will satisfy your craving for carbs/​noodles/​spicy, but you won’t walk away craving it for days.
We started with the cream cheese wontons and beef salad. The wontons were pretty plain and lacked cream cheese. The beef salad was very tender and came with fresh cucumber, tomatoes, lime and mint. Very tasty. I had the spicy noodles with chicken which were pretty good. I ordered a 7 and it wasn’t very spicy tho. My BF had the tiger cry steak, which was nothing special and pretty chewy. The steak in the beef salad was way better. On the other hand, he ordered a $ 12.95 steak… at a Thai place, so I’m not sure what he was expecting.
Not a bad place, not a great place, but if you live in the area and are too lazy to go elsewhere it’s worth stopping in. Service was pleasant as well.

I’ve been here before, but honestly not worth it to come after the 3^rd time.
This was today’s visit 11March2013:
1. The male host/​server/​order taker speaks English, but broken enough where I had to have him repeat what he said a few times.
2. I ordered two things — lunch combos which comes with soup when you order an entrée. One was Drunken Noodles & Pad Thai. For the Drunken Noodles, the guy asked me how spicy I want it. I said not spicy at all. He said there is only two choices, not so spicy or really spicy. Well I told him I’ve ordered it before and have asked for it to be NOT spicy and it wasn’t. He said that it’s really not that spicy. I told him I still don’t want it spicy at all. I also said no eggs & no onions with my order.
3. Receiving & eating. Drunken noodles — SPICY! LIARS! Not so spicy my arse! I couldn’t eat it so I gave it to my co-​worker. She can eat spicy & loves spicy food… even she said it was too spicy to eat. YEAH… sorry buddy you must not have any palates on your tongue if you said it’s not that spicy. & the food had ONIONS on it when I specifically ASKED for no onions.
4. Taste. The food had little to no flavor. It’s OVER greasy. I understand the rice noodles can be oily on it’s own, but no need to add the extra oil. Especially the soup. I had the Tofu soup which has the glass noodle. It’s NOT glass noodle, it’s only clear vermicelli noodle. IT’S NOT THE SAME! The soup was also a little on the oily side with no flavor to it either.
I definitely won’t be coming here anymore. I gave it three chances & that’s enough. Food is NOT worth the price either. *GAG*

Surprisingly pretty decent! I’ve had my fair share of thai food and although this place isn’t in the loveliest locations, it was better than I thought it’d be!
Their lunch special is a good deal: $ 6.99 for soup or salad and an entrée!
Will be back.

Strange place. First off, the place was freezing cold but the servers insisted on keeping the door open, even when we asked them to shut it. The worst Tom Yum soup I have ever had (wasn’t necessarily a terrible soup, it just wasnt Tom Yum) was followed by a terrible green curry. Sickly. Terrible paste. I would doubt there was any Thais in the kitchen, but if there are it is a disgrace. The walls are coated in dust. Generally dirty.
Can’t believe some of the good reviews on here. Urgh.
Wont return.

My goal is to try every Thai place in SD. This one is good. We always order the cliché favorites: yellow curry chicken, pad thai, and some beef dish. This place was good but not the best. This place is in a fun location though and the food did not dissapoint me.
Pros: Good food. Fair Price. Great ambiance. Dim/​romantic lighting. If you are having a fugly day go here your date wont notice– you’ll look good.
Cons: None really. Just not superb food. Just good.

eeeeh-​ok. Nothing horrid, but def nothing to shake a chop stick at. There are equal to better Thai places in the area. The pic of the pineapple fried rice on here looks pretty delish… I may need to give ‘em another shot.
Spice 9 for life!

Came here after some terrible service at World of Curry. I’m glad I did!
At first I was skeptical because it looked small and empty. But after skimming some reviews, my sister and I decided to try it out. The ambiance is very romantic and they had very nice glasses on the table. The wait staff was friendly and accommodating. We were seated right when we walked in and our order was taken. The waiter even put the napkins in our lap!
I ordered the Chicken Panang Curry (level 7 spiciness) and my sister ordered the Chicken Pad Thai (also level 7). Both were pretty good and not too spicy. The Pad Thai was a little oily for my taste but had good flavor. We also ordered the coconut ice cream and it was AMAZING! I’ve never had it before but now i’m sure I’ll be ordering it everywhere I go! There was fresh coconut in the ice cream and it was just amazing :)
Our bill was only $ 25 which was worth it! I would definitely come back and recommend you try it!

This is a great place for a business lunch or a date. From the outside it looks a little like a run down strip mall, but this place has some real charm on the inside. The black leather booths with Thai decorations including Thai wood paneling along the entire inside give this place an authentic foreign feel.
I went here for lunch and was impressed with the prices and the food. For $ 6.99 I got a soup (Shrimp Kha) and a great chicken green curry. I asked for spice between medium and hot and they got it just right. I was also able to substitute brown rice for no extra charge.
The portions were ‘normal sized’ and I couldn’t finish it all (see picture). The service was great, but I have to admit we were the only ones in there at the time…
Overall, I give this place 5 stars for ambiance, quality, value, and service.

This place is ok. Not very memorable, but I like coming here because it has a parking lot… It’s very difficult to park in PB I’ll have you know.
There are better Thai restaurants in SD… I’ve gotten the pad thai and the curry here. The inside is decorated nicely. Their bathroom is in the kitchen… kinda scary to go in there lol.

Went with my friend today to basil thai, had pad thai chicken and hot basil it was super good! We love thai basil and the waitress is very great and very helpfull… we will come back:)

Excellent! I love finding places like this. I think it deserves a 4.5 but i’ll give it a 5 because they gave us a free desert for our friends birthday. Overall the food was great, price was great, atmosphere was great, and service was great.
If you judged this place on the exterior or name, then you failed to see what really matters in a restaurant.
The food was delicious. I ordered the Tom Khar soup and it was soooo tasty. The only think i found strange about my visit was that they put chunks of tomato in the soup which threw me for a loop, but it didn’t affect the taste. I asked for spice and they brought me a tray with 4 different spices so i can flavor my own food to my desire.
I ordered the chicken pad thai. It was better than expected. The noodles were cooked well and it wasn’t too saucy. Portion size was average but they did not skimp on the good stuff like many do.
My friend had the Duck and raved about it.
For dessert we had ripe mango (perfectly ripe at that) with sweet sticky rice.
I don’t live in SD, but if i’m in the area this place is worth traveling out of the way as it seems very difficult to find decent Thai food in Orange or San Diego county.

F.Y.I: If you’re looking for a diamond in the ruff… then check out Basil Thai Kitchen in PB off of Garnet & Fanuel. This restaurant is in the same plaza as a 7 – 11, mexican restaurant, and tanning salon… so I could see why this place is missed by so many.
I have been here several times and the employees are always so friendly and the service is great. The décor is very appealing to the eye w/​cultural touches to compliment its simplicity and the employees are dressed in authentic Thai clothing. Basil Thai Kitchen has awesme lunch and dinner specials. They offer a 2 for $ 20 deal during dinner where you can choose 1 appetizer and 2 entrees. I have tried pad thai w/​chicken & shrimp, drunken noodles w/​chicken, pad se ew w/​chicken, and spicy noodles… And all are Mmmmmmm good! The winter shrimp is also quite yummy with plum sauce as well as the spring rolls. The large tofu soup comes in a bowl with fire (who would have thought eating soup could be so exciting!) The thai iced tea is SOOOOOOO GOOD and even after finishing the large glass they give… it makes you want to get another… only suggestion to the thai iced tea is to add Boba :)
If you ever get food to go… just call ahead and your order will be ready within 10 min after you place the order. Overall this place has definitely become one of my favorite Thai restaurants… great service, great food, great times! Honestly its hard to come by restaurants that can offer all of that in one dining experience. So stop on to Basil Thai Kitchen and get your pad thai on! Until the next review… Stay Gold Unilocalers. Stay Gold!

While the food was good, I won’t be back.
The place was empty except for another table. This table had two children. (There’s a reason I’m mentioning this).
My friend and I arrived with my 8 month old son. He is a well behaved baby so I’m comfortable taking him to some places… and we all know not every place is appropriate for children.
I asked the server for a highchair and they told me they didn’t have any. Hmm. ok, I went to the car, grabbed the stroller and we had a lovely lunch.
At the end of lunch, I used the restroom. As I’m drying my hands, I glance over and there are 3 highchairs in the restroom– all perfectly functional.
I’m speculating that they do not want children in their restaurant. The other table could’ve used one high chair. Their meal would have been way more enjoyable if they weren’t juggling one child.
Nope, I won’t be returning.

Open until 3am. Perfect alternative to late night Mexican food.
Delicious whether sober or drunk.

No city is complete without a restaurant called Thai Basil or Basil Thai… seemingly every city I’ve been to has a place with an iteration of this name from Sacto to Paso Robles. Any how, the Pacific Beach version is fairly standard compared to its ubiquitous cousins. The food that we ordered was the Pineapple Fried Rice and the Chicken Pad Thai. The dishes were on-​point with the familiar savory, sweet and tart flavors and the serving size of each were satisfactory. They hit the spot and here was enough of the fried rice to bring home for a second meal.
Aside from the food, we dined here early on a Friday night surprisingly the place was pretty empty. While waiting for our dishes to arrive I just noticed that the lighting was a little dark, but ample enough to see everything in front of us and that the A/​C was pumping a bit too high. Seated by the window, I was able to see that the Mexican place next door was very busy in comparison. If you want to try Basil Thai, try to arrive when the tanning place is closed, because there isn’t much parking available.

I would actually give them 3 and a half stars, but since this is one of the better Thai restaurants in San Diego (I’m from Sacramento), I decided to round up.
The best thing about this place is that it closes really late! It closes at 2:30AM so instead of the usual Roberto’s or Denny’s, my friends and I go to Basil Thai! Their thai tea is cheap and comes in a huge glass so you definitely get your money’s worth. I tried their Yellow Curry and it was delicious. My friends tried their Spicy Noodle and Pad See Ew and were satisfied with their order. It’s spicy (like it’s supposed to be) and the portions are pretty average (enough to fill us up). My friend and I are planning to go again TODAY for their lunch specials! ;)
The ambiance is casual yet elegant. However, one time I went, the workers hooked up a karaōke system and started singing in (I’m assuming) Thai. It brought a more cultural experience so no one was bothered by it. They even asked if we wanted to sing!
The customer service is great! They’re really courteous and since the restaurant is somewhat small, they’re really attentive and quick with requests. I feel that the language barrier (that I’m reading from other ratings) isn’t really their fault. I’ve never had any miscommunication problems with them, they’ve always gotten all our orders right.
***Note: the picture above is NOT of Basil Thai, this Basil Thai is also on Garnet but it’s right next to a Seven Eleven, across the street from Wells Fargo.
CON: Don’t get their Pad Thai! That’s the only con I can think of.