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cityweekend

Thai Something New

The sparkling new modern design and great service make a good first impression. The menu covers all the bases and while the wine list is expensive (YY300 minimum per bottle), it's well chosen. Garnished betel leaves (YY32) were a positive start, as were the delicious Issan sausages (YY42). Massaman lamb curry (YY68) was creamy and tasty but too timidly spiced for our liking. The Pad Thai was perfectly cooked however one large prawn does not justify a YY58 price tag, nor did the supermarket roti for YY12. Finally, a substitution of shrimp for pork in our broccoli dish (YY42) would have been more welcome had the crustaceans not been past due date. Overall it's pricey for what is being offered. --Michael Elliott

 

Most Recent Reviews

msecchia

I went to Naam Thai the other day and I really liked the service. The staff was not pretentious, and actually seemed to want me there. In particular there was one server that was actually smiling genuinely when serving me. It felt refreshing to be greeted and served like that. Mark

2 months, 1 week ago

clairebared

Went and had lunch here over the weekend and I was mighty impressed. The green vegetable curry was absolutely delicious and it was full of fresh veggies and tofu. I also loved that they offered brown rice on the menu.. I would definitely go back again.

 

4 months, 1 week ago

ndub

I've eaten in Thailand a lot and I have always hated that here in Shanghai Thai restaurants all seem to be working off the same menu. Green Chicken Curry, Tom Yam Gong, Pad Thai.... basically the burgers and fries of Thai cuisine. What's worse is great Thai food in Thailand is so affordable, even on the high-end.

I purposefully avoided this place because of all of the bad reviews, then upon a friend's recommendation we ate there last night. It was great. Dishes like crispy pork in tomato sauce were aggressively spiced (the way they should be) and served on a piece of crackling. Think about it "Pig on Pig", what could be better? Another Bangkok favorite of mine that doped up the menu in a big way, Smoked eggplant. It was a generous portion of smokey, spicy, sour egg plant with peppers, minced pork and boiled eggs. I've had this in Bangkok at SOUL FOOD (owned and operated by former Shanghai food writer Jarrett Wrisely) where the dish was matched up with duck eggs and bacon. That one was better, but Naam Thai's more classical approach to the dish was still super tasty. I only have two criticisms of the place. First the decor was boring and not in line with the pricing but that is forgivable, I'm there to eat. That being said, my second scratch is for their roti, which was basically a slab of crappy butter you could eat with your hands. I love rich foods, but that was way over the top. I finished it just to see if I could. Consult your cardiologist before ordering.

I will go back, after having given up on Thai food in Shanghai years ago. The food is good, authentic, generous and well executed. The service was good, which in Shanghai is worth bonus points. I wish their pricing was a little lower, it is still fair for what you get just not in sync with the decor. They could spend some more pink backs on a reno or shave 10% off the prices and they'd get four star out of me.

 

11 months ago

chinarab

Food was tasteless, overpriced, and to sum it up horrible. Do not go here, and do not fall for fake reviews posted by the unscrupulous management. Clearly, they have to utilize these methods to compensate for the horrible quality of the food, "decor," and service.

 

1 year, 3 months ago

eric_sh

This place is a mess; female manager walks around with an attitude and has obviously affected her staff who act in the same way. A ruined saturday afternoon 2 weeks ago. The too small portions, too high prices, and flat taste did not help eather. Too many fake 1st reviewers here, always after a bad comment. Great manager she shows what a dumb this place is by placing these fake reviews.

 

1 year, 4 months ago

bazhuatu

Took my wife to this place to celebrate our anniversary as she has a Thai tooth. We ordered green chicken curry which is her favorite dish. I couldn't say more but it tasted really good. Not too spicy and with coconut milk combination. To our very surprise the friendly waitress even complimented us a small cake at the end of our dinner. I only randomly mentioned it was our anniversary. How thoughtful. We had a lovely evening. Most of all, my dear wife was so happy. Thank you, Naamthai Thai!

 

1 year, 4 months ago

waderand

Naam Thai looks nice - the completely empty restaurant should of told us not to give this place a try. The food was tasteless. I ordered dishes that I know and can order in Thai if need be. What I got was nothing of what I expected. Avoid this place - boring and expensive food.

 

1 year, 4 months ago

aif

Beautifully understated decor. They had a good selection of vegetarian options that were helpfully marked on the menu. The mango and cashew salad was deliciously spicy, as was the tofu curry. The pad thai was a bit lacking in flavor. Service was friendly and attentive.

 

1 year, 6 months ago

lucipher

Tasty food, cool table sliders (the piece of wood in the middle of the table with condiments can slide back and forth, which i entertained myself before we started the meal, way to squeeze my daily exercise in, heh!) The wait staff is friendly, the food was great. However, it took forever for them to bring out the drinks we ordered, but this was fixed when we started ordering our next drinks when they brought us the first.

Strongly recommend the fried spring rolls, shrimp balls, the caramelized salmon, and this one daily special we had with lychee in it.

 

1 year, 10 months ago

allaalla

Best Thai in town. Enjoyable experience, if you are not familiar with the menu trust the service there, they put together an excellent dinner for us. Outdoor sitting for al fresco dining is very comfortable in this season, friendly service. Do not miss this restaurant.

 

1 year, 11 months ago

schuchart

Does anybody of you have ever used the tooth brush not to clean the teeth but to brush the tongue, because there is such an nasty feeling on it? Yes? Did you like? No? Then better avoid this restaurant. This must have been not just the worst Thai food I ever had but the worst restaurant I have ever been in. I had the tom yung gong soup and the soft shell crap. Both dishes were far to tiny for their price and unbelievable salty. So salty that I didn't finish and got that bloody feeling on the tongue that I mentioned earlier. Then there is the place itself, there are always at least two Sherpa's drivers in the restaurant picking up dishes to deliver. I mean it's nice that the restaurant does deliver but if there are anytime some food couriers coming and going give's this restaurant the appeal of a fast food restaurant. The menu is completely unhandy. Cosidering that there million other much better Thai restaurants in the city I really cannot think of a single reason to go there again.

 

2 years, 2 months ago

benjamin7

Best Thai I've had in town. Ambiance is not warm enough though - one big open room!

 

2 years, 3 months ago

angelinachen

we ordered a chicken satay...it was NOT cooked, still pink. we complained about it...and saw a sour face, saying, "What do you want me to do?" ...uhhh..how about apologizing and bringing the chef and talking to us and....

anyway, the food was average at best, service??? has a lot of room for growth.

not sure if there will be a next time.

good food is very easy to get, service, personal contact is what brings the customers back.

I do wish you a successful business, after all, it's the expo.

yours angelina chen

2 years, 5 months ago

timpmurray

This is a great place to sit outside for lunch on a Sunday. The food was outstanding. We had the vegetable curry, stir fried seasonal vegetables and Mango salad. Just like Thailand. Service was friendly and efficient.

 

3 years ago

ericajoy

Last night was my first Naam Thai meal, and I liked it. The green vegetable curry was delicious -- spicier than I expected but really good. My bf, the chicken satay junkie, liked the satay but rated it below a couple other places in town. The food seems modern in that there are numerous vegetarian options, healthy options like brown rice and unsweetened Thai iced tea, organic wines on offer, and some unexpected flavors on the menu. I am not a Thai food expert and can't speak to the authenticity of the food, but I found it delicious and the atmosphere pleasant and inviting. It is a little more pricey than some but worth a visit if you're in the neighborhood.

 

3 years ago

billyjoe

I tried this for Gourmet month! Amazing deal and great outdoor seating!

 

3 years, 1 month ago

utensils1977

We decided to indulge in Thai last night and decided on checking out Naam Thai.

From the outside, we noticed that it was empty and our first thoughts were, "The food must be bad.". Typical. However we had already come this way and having an entire restaurant to yourself in Shanghai is a rare find. So we entered.

We ordered the green curry chicken, thai omelette and stir-fried seasonal vegetables. The latter turned out to be rather spicy - not complaining though! The green curry sauce was good and my favourite was the thai omelette. I get berated all the time for ordering a cheap dish like fried eggs at restaurants but I thought the RMB52 was worth it (I love eggs so I'm biased, I know).

We washed the delicious food down with coconut juice (I wish they did the young coconuts instead - softer flesh & sweeter juice) and guava juice. All very tropical choice of beverage.

Noticed on the menu board that they served weekend brunch for RMB198 so might return to check it out.

Overall, Naam Thai hit the spot for us and would return again (knowing that it's managed by the group that runs T8 kinda elevated its status in my mind a bit - all psychological, I know :))

 

3 years, 2 months ago

elaineguo

went there with my husband for a long and lazy sunday afternoon...the food was authentic and modern thai food...taste was a little chinese oriented...more easy to accept...loved this way much more...the mango cheese cake was terrific!!! also the crunchy water chestnut dessert...very creative and fancy...worthy a good try...one more thing we'd like to go there again is the deco...very simple yet chic...quite refreshing...make you in a tidy mood...

3 years, 4 months ago

scorpiodragon

The ambience is nice - pleasant on a sunny afternoon but seriously, I can't say the food was great. Every dish we ordered seemed to be a waterer-down version of the real thing and all the dishes lacked that "kick" or "oomph" you kind of expect when dining on Thai. But then, service was attentive and overall an OK experience. Would go there again for the atmosphere (& dessert) but there are better options for Thai food in this city!

 

3 years, 4 months ago

sxy

I LIKE it ! What can I say. Too many wannabe food critics around already. I will be seen there more often from now on. That should give you all the right message. And very pleasant staff as well.

 

3 years, 5 months ago

casperxx

Me liky..me liky a lot !!

Plus u can sit outside and watch all the model(wannabees) strut their stuff.

The waterchestnut deserts alone are worth the trip to Naam Thai.

 

4 years ago

cockroach_killer

been there again for a small wedding party of meraging of chinese and american... excellent ambience and right portion/flavor of food for locals and expats...small suggestion would be adding some unique scent to make the place more distinguished...

4 years ago

mbe

Yeah, real jungle curry is usually pretty thin and spicy and herby if I recall... can be a bit aggressive. Will have to try it next time. Sparkling new modern design and great service make a good first impression. The menu covers all the bases, I found the wine list limitingly expensive (300 rmb min/bottle, few choices by by the glass if I remember correctly) but it’s well chosen. Having a bottle of wine on every table (to try and sell it) is really really tacky. Garnished betel leaves like the ones in the picture (#7, 32 rmb) were a positive start, nice contrast in textures/flavours, not something you find at SH's other Thai places. Issan sausages (#6, 42 rmb) were pretty tasty, maybe need a bit more fat. We liked the Massaman lamb curry (#25, 68 rmb) creamy, our onions were well cooked, but the spicing was really wimpy and the portion could have been a bit more generous. Pad thai was perfectly cooked however one large prawn does not justify a 58 rmb price tag, nor does a side order of saucer sized supermarket roti for 12 rmb. Finally, a substitution of shrimp for pork, they ran out of pork, in our broccoli dish (#37, 42 rmb) would have been more welcome had the crustaceans not been mushy and past due date, although the brocoli was nice. Service was pretty good, able to recommend dishes.

Pricey for what it is.

4 years, 2 months ago

hookim

authentic thai food. one must try is chef recommended dessert!

 

4 years, 3 months ago

cockroach_killer

went there 2 nights ago with my cousin, a morden yet cozy place to have a casual meal, surprisingly authentic thai street dishes and reaseasonably priced, like the depth of the flavor, agree with upstairs that the jungly curry was a bit strange, owner says that's how it suppose to be .. my ignorance it is then...guess at least they tried hard enough,,, a place for grown- up thai food lovers...

oh will be back for their valentine special stuff, looks hot...

 

4 years, 3 months ago

evo

Ouch! struck a nerve - thats moosique to my eyes. If the place didn't look nice, it would only have one star.

The problem with Shanghai is that are too many restaurants that rely on good looks rather than real gastronomic substance.

BTW - I also mispelled (mispelt?) unsatisfying

4 years, 3 months ago

moosique

I'm not gonna write huge 'lets pretend to be a professional food critic' essays about each individual dish, but I will say this is probably the closest any restaurant in Shanghai has come to reminding me how food actually tastes in Thailand. Decor is smart and the service is excellent. It's my new favourite lunch venue.

Finally, I'll sign off with a big question mark over the credibility of Evo's entire review above. Who would ever say a place looks great and then later say the decor scores one star? Someone who can't spell Massaman I guess ;o)

4 years, 3 months ago

evo

This joint looks great when you walk in, and it was a great place to watch snow flakes falling, but the food was completely lacklustre and uninspiring. A vege jungle curry was watery and spicy with no body and contained more inedible (or raw) stuff than veges. Masamam was a bit better but onions were uncooked and crunchy releasing an acidic biting flavour aganst what should have been a sweet creamy curry. The prices here are expensive and the servings small and unstaisfying. I stayed away from "Fusion" dishes because they can never be trusted...anywhere.
best thing was a fried chicken wing and cucumber infused water. one star for food and one for decor. Why can't anyone get thai food right in this city?

 

4 years, 3 months ago

jonesluo

the provider of fresh, contemporary and fuss-free Thai all day dining experience in Shanghai

 

4 years, 4 months ago