1577 King Ave
Columbus,
Columbus, OH 43212
Miller-Stein Ranking
Our food experience | 2.2 Buckeyes
Quality | 2.0 Buckeyes
Cost | 4.0 Buckeyes
Character | 2.0 Buckeyes
Beverages | 1.0 Buckeyes
Service | 2.0 Buckeyes
Pad Thai Vegetarian | $6.75
Pad Thai Chicken | $6.75
Located in Grandview off of King Avenue, Thai Tia is a fast food style Thai restaurant. Known for its fast service and good quality food, Stein and I decided to check out Thai Tai one evening after school and work. As we walked in we were surprised that we were one of two couples in the restaurant. We ordered “fast food style” at the counter.
Stein ordered the Chicken Pad Thai and I proceeded to order the vegetable Pad Thai. The cashier proceeded to ask me if I was “a vegetarian,” perplexed as to why he would ask that since the food I was ordering shouldn’t even touch meat, I paused for a moment and said no. Because of the pause the cashier asked why I didn’t answer right away. I didn’t feel like explaining the fact that I was thinking in my head “what are you planning on cooking it with, animal lard?”
We didn’t have any trouble finding a seat and were only sitting for about five minutes when our food came out. Stein’s dish came out sitting in a bed of liquid; almost a soup underneath his noodles and mine came out animal free without the sauce.
Stein seemed to think that the sauce at the bottom of the noodles made the dish somewhat soggy and didn’t allow for the flavor to stay on the noodles. The chicken pieces were very large, and looked a bit unappetizing. Stein explained that this Pad Thai was nowhere close to the caliber of Pad Thai he has had in the past.
My dish looked very similar to Stein’s but had a bit more color with the veggies. The vegetables varied in the dish; some were overcooked and soggy while others were undercooked and tough. I mostly avoided the veggies, not quite sure what I was going to get, and made my way through most of the noodles. Every once in a while we would both bite into some sort of spice that was a heat explosion and we couldn’t put our finger on what type of spice it was or where is was coming from.
Once we were finished we gathered all the dishes together and put them on the counter. The workers just seemed to stare at us as we left. We think they were mad because we didn’t leave a tip. It was just awkward; do you tip in a fast food style restaurant? I think it’s safe to say Stein and I would not order the Pad Thai if we visited Thai Tai again, but we’re not too sure we’d dine at this restaurant in the near future.
A negative review! Appreciate the honesty. I wouldn't tip at that kind of place.
ReplyDeleteSomething has happened to PS Thai Tai. This spring there was a death in the family that owns/operates the restaurant and since then the food has become progressively worse. Before the spring, the food was fantastic and the ingredients were fresh. Starting in the summer, however, the quality dropped. Service also suffered. Before, even after 2-3 visits in a month, the cashier or the cooks might wave or say hello when they saw you. Recently, it seemed like customers were bothering them for even ordering food. At the moment, the restaurant is closed. It starting closing at strange times in August and I think it has been open three or four times the entire month of September. Such a shame.
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