Pinto Thai Cuisine

Not a bad place, but I think I was expecting more as a co-​worker had talked it up quite a bit. I thought the food was good, but nothing extraordinary, and the lunch special menu was pretty limited on choices (maybe a dozen items to choose from). The specials were about $ 7 a piece, but didn’t come with a whole lot of food. I think I’m used to the American diet, where I’m not happy unless I’m stuffed and go back to work feeling uncomfortable. But I do think there are other Thai places in the area that give you more for your money. Maybe even enough to bring home for later.

This place is now called THAI JOINT. New ownership sign in window.
Stopped by today while my dog was being groomed at Dirty Dog and had a bowl of Side Walk Noodle Soup which came with a small bowl of house soup, tiny salad, a two fried triangle things that tasted good, but do not know what they were called. All was pretty good and I would go back to try other items.
Pinto Thai’s web site has a Terrasanta address so maybe they moved there.

This place is great. Better than typical Asian service, nicer ambiance than what you’ve probably come to expect (unless you’ve been to only higher end fusion joints. Small tables and pretty cozy situation, but I like that about it.
The regular setup for myself and the lady is a soup and some random entrée. Last time we ordered a to-​go soup, they gave us the wrong one and we didn’t discover it until we got home. Called them up and they made it right with apologies for the inconvenience of having to come back.
Might not be the best food in the city, but for a normal night out when you’ve got no energy to make it yourself and cereal selection is running low, it’s a solid option.

Very nice little place in Normal Heights. Love the quaint feel, very small and very comfortable setting. The Thai Iced tea is fantastic.
The menu has enough variety, but does not feel too stretched. Love the duck curry! The service is great and I felt very comfortable in eating my meal.
If you want a more intimate, not too crowded venue for Thai and happen to be in Normal Heights, then this is your place.

4.25 — 4.5
I enjoyed this place. The food is good, but I particularly enjoyed the Thai Iced Tea. =P I think one of the few things that docked this place a star in my book is that it’s rather tiny (not really their fault, but it does affect dining table space) and the service was kind of spotty. We ordered some sticky rice at the beginning while the waitress was taking down our order, yet we had to ask 2 more times for it after the food came. Apparently they mistakenly took it as an order for sticky rice dessert. Pad See Ew was fresh tasting and the 2 other chicken dishes ordered were pretty solid. Overall? I wouldn’t mind coming back.

Skinny: MEDIOCRE food. GREAT service.
Food: Expect wilted vegetables in everything from the spring rolls to the rice dishes (ice berg lettuce, cabbage, etc.), skimpy portions of the «expensive» ingredients in your dish (this not only means meat but includes eggplant! There was 4 small pieces in my Spicy Eggplant dish. wtf!)) but there’s tons of lettuce to go around. =/​. Also, they dont ask you how spicy you want your dish. Everything comes out mild.
Service: This, along with their reasonable prices, were the only reasons preventing the 1 – 2 star rating. The service was great. Very attentive and everything was served with a smile.
Summary: I won’t be back. This place has a lot of potential. Just use fresher ingredients! Don’t be cheap and skimp on key ingredients in a dish and try to cover it up by packing it with (wilted) ice berg lettuce.

I was in the mood to have something different for take-​out and realized that I had not tried this Thai place since it opened up. It always looked busy, so when out on a limb and decided to order from the menu online.
We ordered the Chicken Noodle (pan fried noodles with chicken, egg, and green onions), the beef eggplant stir fry, and the duck Pad phring-​king (sp). It all came with white rice.
I was floored that in 15 minutes after ordering and for a reasonable price we got some of the most delicious food I have ever «taken-​out» ever!
They were friendly and efficient in and out in about 5 minutes.
Love, love, love this place!

Not mentioning any names but maybe «Sara» will want to have Thai with me soon so I can sample more of their wares.
What have I had so far? Let me tell you my friend.
Eggrolls — I give them props for the eggrolls. They’re a little «different» but in a good way. I can’t really put my finger on it but I’d like to put a dozen of them in my mouth right now. And for Pete’s sake, DIP THEM IN THE YUMMY SAUCE!
Panang curry — I think next time I’ll go balls-​to-​the-​wall and get it spicier than I have. You have to be careful with the number system. Another Thai place that I go to looks at me, the white girl, and does a 6 with kid gloves. Another place I know of tries to burn my face off with a 6. I heard Pinto isn’t lax on the spice so I ordered a 3. Next time I’ll order a 5.
Cashew Chicken — I liked it but it didn’t make me leap out of my chair and rip off my shirt. It was chicken. It was cashews. It was average.
You know how they say «location location location»? That’s probably THE best thing I like about Pinto. They’re close to my hood and you can always walk off all the food you ate by walking around the area.

What’s better than great tasting food? Great tasting food plus personalized friendly service!
How is it that MONTHS after I last visited, the waitress still remembers me and my usual order? Ah, it’s nice to feel welcomed.
By the way, the thai iced tea is even better than I remember. SO GOOD.
(Sidenote: AT&T reception is terrible in here… it makes checking in on Unilocal annoyingly difficult! haha)

The Pinto was a small Ford car that was known to burst into flames during a rear impact.
At Pinto Thai your mouth may burst into flames during your dinner.
My girl and I have been to Pinto two times now and have very much enjoyed the ambiance, service and food.
Looks:
It’s a small narrow cozy space on Adams Avenue that features subtle cream colors accented with dark woods and couple pieces of Thai decorative art. It’s clean and attractive. Not a good place for a large group, better for couples. They have a good selection of wine and a few beers, but I highly recommend the Singha beer.
Sounds:
If you sit near the kitchen you’ll hear lovely sounds of the Thai cook and staff along with the nice sounds of a sizzling wok doing its work.
Smells:
The smells wafting around the place serve to induce hunger pains to all to venture in. Sweet Thai basil, fish sauces, and hints of different colored curries all promise a great meal ahead.

Food:
My girl has an asbestos coated tongue that can take major levels of heat, and many times she is let down when asking for extra hot dishes at other places. (Like at Tao, hear me Eric?)
She decided on the Pad Kee Mao with seafood (spicy wide noodles) at an extreme heat level of 12, and they delivered. This dish was packed with flavor of fish sauce, hints of brown sugar, and loads of red pepper. Bits of squid, 2 large green lip mussels and shrimp make up the seafood. The burn was slow at first but came on strong after a couple bites. I recommend a Singha Thai beer to go with this.
Hot and Sour Prawn soup was very fragrant and well balanced, it’s a simple thin soup but very flavorful and pungent, a nice start as it’s not too heavy or filling. Shrimp were medium size. The large bowl is enough for 2.
I tried the Red Curry with Duck. This was a good red curry not too hot and had a good amount of sliced duck in it. Lots of carrot, tomatoes and green bell peppers as is common in a curry dish. The duck is a play between moist meat and some skin with a fat layer that melts in your mouth.
The menu is vast and has a good sample of Thai classic dishes and a couple of in house specials that all look and sound really good.
We both agreed that this place will be added to our rotation of places to eat in our hood and good addition to the Adams Avenue scene.

Came here yesterday for lunch because I forgot Tao is not open on Mondays. I got the Bangkok Thai Pepper Steak lunch special and it was okay. I do like the fact that the lunch special comes with soup, salad and fried wonton wraps. The beef on the dish was a bit dry. I was kinda shocked they didn’t have any noodle dishes for their lunch specials. Most Thai places I’ve been to usually have Pad Thai and Pad See Ewe as a lunch option.
The service was good and our waitress was prompt with refills. It wasn’t my absolute favorite Thai experience in SD, but it did fill my appetite.

We went here for the second time tonight and both times have been quite delicious. I have absolutely no idea what i ordered as an entrée the first time because it was like a year ago, but I do remember getting the tofu spring rolls and they were quite delicous.
This time we decided on the veggie samosas and they were crispy golden deliciousness with some yummy sweet and spicy sauce. I couldnt really decide between the pumpkin curry or the ginger perfect tofu, and this is one time i dont regret going ginger. The boy got the pumpkin curry and it smelled and looked really yummy too.
There was a weird thing where the lights would kind of flicker every once in a while, but ghosts happen. Also i can see some people being put off by the… quaintness of the place but even though its small i didnt really feel crowded either time.
As far as service goes I’m pretty easy to please and I didn’t wait for a year to get my food or go without water at any time so I was satisfied. It’s definitely not a wait on you hand and foot type of place, but thats more to my liking anyway. I’m not a fan of being asked how my food is every 5 minutes.
Cute, yummy and im pretty sure I saw some drink specials on my way in. Winner.

Went there today during the Adams Art Walk.
Low key, reasonable price, yummy food and great service.
The Coconut Milk Soup is OFF THE HOOK (I got it with tofu). Also had the crispy duck on a bed of spinach and side of broccoli… the duck was cooked to perfection with a crispy, crunchy skin, and tender, juicy meat. Had a wonderful peanut sauce on top.
Really enjoyed it

I’m going to break this down by number:
1) Good food, reasonable prices, attentive staff
2) You can bring your own booze since they have no liquor license (this means you can control the price and quality of your adult beverage)
3) This place is closer to my house than Amarin, so it wins on my lazy nights
4) Did I mention you can bring your own booze? Yesh!

— chicken with lobster sauce — A-​Mazing. FULL of flavor.
— delivered to the Irish Pub 2 doors down we were celebrating at.
— learned Thai thank you:
Korb Kun (Krub) or (Ka) depending if you’re a girl or a guy

Tiny.
Pinto is well named if they were refering to either the diminutive horse or the car.
Pinto is not well named if it is a reference to the quality of the Ford product (one of the biggest lemons in history?).
Pinto is very very good.
When attempting to get to Bangkok Spices and finding it closed (quite oddly) on a Tuesday … but everyone needs a day off I guess … we ventured to Pinto to satisfy the Thai urge.
Yay. It was, indeed, as stated here and elsewhere, tiny, but not underwhelmingly so. Seating is spaced effectively and it manages to keep privacy for its patrons in spite of its size.
The food?
Delicious.
Tom Yum soup? Wows. Served piping hot and delicious.
We shared the Yellow and Green Curries which we ordered Medium (and with Chicken). Both were delicious and flavorful. There was a significant spicing variation on the two, as the Green was closer to Hot and the Yellow was quite mellow and maybe a Mild. Not quite to order, but delicious and good compliment for us as flexible diners.
No alcohol served (a negative with Thai), but you can stop across the street at BLAH or drop into Olde Sod for an after dinner pint if you like.
Yay for Pinto.

I’m glad I don’t have to travel far to get decent to pretty good Thai food.
From soups, to curries, to noodles, to fried rice, to their appetizers, Pinto has managed to make everything taste fresh and savory while somehow dodging the trap that some Thai places fall into by making their food super greasy.
The portions are generous enough to keep two people happy or one person well fed for a couple of days.
After numerous visits and take-​outs from here, I’d be remiss not to mention how fantastic their customer service is. Really nice, happy, smiling people, whether you’re calling in an order or eating in.
Keep in mind, there is a $ 35.00 minimum for delivery orders.

Okay, I’m really hoping this is a fluke.
Last couple times we’ve been here, I haven’t been impressed. I tried a new dish that had always caught my eye — the pumpkin veggie stir fry. Tasty, but not fabulous, rather bland, and the pumpkin was nearly raw. Husband had the usual favourite of spicy eggplant, and it just wasn’t Pinto perfect.
We still like the place, and the staff, so I won’t write them off yet, but please let this be a once-​in-​a-​lifetime thing!

I’m so behind. Went here for the second time last night and it was great! They are consistent in food and service. The inside is a little small, but adequate. The tables are a little small, especially if you order more than two dishes. The overall vibe is nice and they have a small patio out front which is nice if you’d like to sit outside.
Not knowing where to go for dinner, we decided to come back here and scored rock star parking right in front. There was a man on his cell arguing with his wife? lover? boyfriend? LOL!
He: «I’m not saying you’re a burden. I just need some space.»
That’s the beauty of cell phones… other people’s conversations. Sometimes I have my students do an «Eye Spy» and listen in on conversations and then write about what they heard. I tell them if they are confronted, tell the person it’s a free country and I can listen to anything in a public place.
Okay, now the food… panang curry, pad thai, and our new favorite, garlic and black pepper. We ordered all with chicken. The pad thai noodles aren’t as sticky as some we’ve had in the past. We also ordered tofu spring rolls. The portions are generous, except for the rice, but I’m sure they’ll give more if you ask.
The people are very friendly and efficient. I like the very tall glasses that the Thai ice tea comes in. This place has become a new favorite, but I feel like I’m cheating my other favorite, Thai Grill. However, it’s good to try different places and your favorites will always be there.
They’ve been open for 8 months, but we only just discovered it this past week. That whole area is undergoing some changes, which is nice.
Dang.I just noticed I said «nice» a gazillion times… gotta work on my adjectives…

Bomb tastic!
I have been driving by this place for a while and wanted to try it for some time now, and finally made it. This place is quaint and the attention that you get is wonderful. The service is excellent, my water glass was never empty and they also were on top of checking in on us.
We ordered way too much food but it was nice to munch on them the next day and the flavor had set in and it was even more tastier. We ordered the Tom Yum soup (Family size) and it was some of the best hot and sour soup that I have ever had. A huge portion and the next time I am feeling under the weather this will be my «chicken soup» so to speak. We also started with the Satay Chicken. The peanut sauce that came with it was delicious! Next on to the entrees. We had the Chicken with Lobster sauce and the Pad Kee-​Mao (spicy noodles). They were both a large portion and seriously they were both so good. Some of the best Thai that I have had in San Diego.
We were seated promptly and our food came out in a timely fashion. I felt very taken care of and I felt like I was a guest at their house and not a restaurant. They wrapped up our food for us and also gave us extra rice to go.
I wanted to try the mango sticky rice so I got one to go so that I could wait for my tum to not be so full. It was a nice treat later on in the evening.
They have delivery and take out as well and I saw that they have good lunch specials too. The price was right and not too expensive and all in all I loved this place.