Cafe Michael 2

Adelaide, Australia

3.1

Closed now

16 reviews

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Telephone:
+61 8 8223 3519
Website:
www.cafemichael2.com.au
Address:
204 Rundle St, Adelaide, South Australia, 5000
Adelaide
Nearby public transportation stops & stations:
470 ftStop S1 North Terrace - South side
470 ftTemporary Stop Frome Street - East side
490 ftStop B2 Pulteney Street - East side
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Bussiness info

Takes Reservations
Yes
Delivery
Yes
Take-out
Yes
Accepted Cards
Credit, Debit
Accepts Bitcoin
Yes
Good For
Lunch
Parking
Street
Wheelchair Accessible
Yes
Good for Kids
No
Good for Groups
Yes
Attire
Casual
Ambience
Casual
Noise Level
Loud
Alcohol
Full Bar
Outdoor Seating
Yes
Wi-Fi
Free
Has TV
Yes
Dogs Allowed
Yes
Waiter Service
Yes
Caters
Yes

Today

Today 11:00 am – 2:30 pm
5:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Closed now
Local time (Adelaide) 00:37 Sunday, 1 June 2025

Business hours

Monday 11:00 am – 2:30 pm
5:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Tuesday 11:00 am – 2:30 pm
5:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Wednesday 11:00 am – 2:30 pm
5:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Thursday 11:00 am – 2:30 pm
5:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Friday 11:00 am – 2:30 pm
5:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Saturday 11:00 am – 2:30 pm
5:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Sunday 11:00 am – 2:30 pm
5:00 pm – 10:00 pm

Description

Specialties

Café Micheal 2 — Award Winning Authentic Thai.

our green curry is the best one. Authentic Thai Food. Try some of our customers favourites from our delicious Drunken Noodles to the Red Duck Curry. Be infused with our House & Chef Specials a bold taste of Thailand hitting you each month. You won’t be dissapointed!

Finalist in the 2012 Restaurant & Catering Awards for Excellence in the ‘Thai’ Category.

Finalist in ‘Pad Thai’ Category in the 2012 SBS Feast Magazine Food Awards.

Runner up at the Restaurant and Catering Awards for Best Thai Restaurant in 2010.

as well menulog award 2014.

History

Established in 1982.

Serving award winning authentic Thai since 1982

in Adelaide’s cosmopolitan East End, Rundle Street.

Since 1982 there has been one restaurant that has been serving Adelaide authentic award winning tastes from Thailand, Café Michael 2.

Out of a passion for travel in Asia, a palate for the fresh tastes, and a desire to share the intrinsic flavours with family and friends, our family owned and run restaurant Café Michael was born. Opening at 36 Rundle St, Café Michael moved to it’s current premises and was renamed Café Michael 2 in 1992.

Our wines, paired with the superb tastes of Thailand’s urban street food ensure our customers, our extended family come back time and time again.

We look forward to sharing a little bit of Thailand with you and invite you to delight in the culinary skills of our Thai chefs at Café Michael 2.

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16 reviews of Cafe Michael 2

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Place rating: 2
Adelaide, Australia
Yuck.
Our glasses of wine were warm and our meals incredibly bad. My Phad Thai was dry and I’ve had better instant dinner versions by far. My wife took the opportunity to try something different, the chefs special of Yellow Curry. I should have seen the warning signs when she asked what mixed potatoes meant for the curry and was told there are red potatoes, white potatoes and brown potatoes.
She left most of her dinner and we went off to our show hungry and with no intention of ever returning to pay $ 65 for a poorly cooked over priced meal of 1 drink and 1 main each for 2 people.
Place rating: 5
Adelaide, Australia
The Rundle St precinct for me has always been dominated by Mediterranean food, late night kebab joints and crazy loud clubs with expensive cocktails on big group drinking binges.
However, this unplanned evening turned out an absolute treat thanks to the great hospitality and fun time we had at Café Michael 2!
We (my wife and I) crashed a pre-​booked table of 7. I know first hand how annoying it is to get a change of booking when a group of patrons walk in; However, CM2 were extremely gracious and polite and shuffled a couple of table to fit us in. Great job right off the bat team!
Our food order was a tough choice and as much as we wanted it to come out quickly we wanted to spend just as much time arguing about what we would have… a fairly standard issue when there are 9 adults involved. We eventually opted for the banquet for $ 34 a head and it was perfectly matched to the quality and quantity you’d expect for that per head.
I loved it all, especially the pad thai. my wife was sad because for some reason she didn’t get to taste the pad thai but she also wasn’t overly impressed with the chicken.
Service was tight for a fully packed restaurant on a Friday night in the middle of the Fringe season. The staff were friendly, polite, sharp and best of all, when I checked in on the Unilocal appl Boom! we got 20% off the bill… although the T&Cs meant we didn’t get the discount on the banquet (fair call and actually unnecessary as the banquet is good value () all in all we all had a great time and I’m looking forward to getting back soon! Cheers CM2! :-D
Place rating: 4
Adelaide, Australia
Went here for a very rare date night a few months ago now so the details are a bit hazy.
What I do remember is attentive, friendly service & Thai food that actually tastes like it does in Thailand!
My partner & I both agreed that we hadn’t had Thai that good since we were last in Thailand. It was fresh & spicy with no hint if MSG ;)
The serving sizes were really big too — we couldn’t finish it all!
Will definitely be back!
Place rating: 3
Bethesda, MD
Good service but the food was just okay. I had the red duck curry and I thought it was lacking in curry and spice and the duck was clearly boiled rather than roasted first.
Place rating: 2
Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia
Very boring food was there on a Monday night the waiter was ok mind you had to ask twice for water and wasn’t busy The food wasn’t amazing it’s something I wood make at home the rice was gluggy and the presentation wasn’t much to rave about me personally would go back unfortunately Café Michael 2 has gone down hill won’t eat there again
Place rating: 3
Adelaide, Australia
Wowsers, there have been some terrible reviews for Café Michael 2 lately, so when my partner suggested we head there with his folks for his birthday dinner I was a little hesitant. But, it was his birthday, and so I went along to see if the reviews would sit true to my experience. Finding an online discount voucher that gave us 4 entrees, 4 mains AND a bottle of wine for $ 89 was also a bonus!
Starting with the service, I have to say I do see where people are coming from. The waiter was really lovely, but he was a bit all over the shop. We were sitting for a while before he addressed us, he brought out our mains before clearing our entrée plates, and trying to get his attention to settle the bill was difficult, despite the fact that we were the only table left in the restaurant, and we’d finished our mains quite a while ago and he still hasn’t cleared our plates.
All that aside, the food was tasty, the portions were of a good size, and the vegetables generously distributed, and fresh and crunchy like they should be in good Thai.
All in all, I was happy and would return if I could get another special deal. I’m not sure I’d be as happy paying full price as the service really wasn’t great and paying more than $ 20 – 25 for a Thai main without impeccable service just isn’t something I’d be keen on.
Place rating: 1
Adelaide, Australia
First and last time visit for me — terribly slow and unenthusiastic service, dirty tables and dishes not cleaned from previous customers and the cramped and noisy conditions all made for a very unhappy experience! Food was mediocre at best.
Don’t bother going if you are mobility limited, as their only «flat» access is around the back, down a lane way that is full of pot holes, bumps and a very unstable drain pipe!
Never again shall I eat here.
Place rating: 1
Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia
I ordered on the phone seafood Pad Thai for $ 16.50 and a coke zero can for $ 3.90 which should be $ 20.40 in total when I went to collect the meal and pay for it.
The owner who I found to be very rude and not only lacks customer service and professionalism but also dishonest, tried very hard to charge me $ 26.50 instead of $ 20.50 insisting that I have to pay that much when I refused and told him I don’t want the meal anymore. He offered to charge me the correct amount and became very agitated calling me names. I told everyone I know about this restaurant to be careful on how much they charge.
I wonder how many more customers they rip off?!
Also, I found their food to be quite average nothing fancy compared to many Thai restaurants I’ve been to and the place wasn’t the cleanest.
Place rating: 3
Seaton, Australia
Lunch specials were great and were the initial drawcard into the restaurant.
Upon entering however, where was everyone else? I was hoping we came at a quiet time and that we didn’t enter some sort’ve boycotted restaurant.
The food is relatively cheap, especially at lunch and it’s alright for the price.
Not the BEST Thai in Adelaide and certainly and odd vibe from it’s interior.
Place rating: 2
Adelaide, Australia
I’m not sure if I was eating at a completely different restaurant to the other reviewers, however my experience at Café Michael last night wasn’t exactly amazing.
The aroma of varnish mixing with chicken greeted us as we walked through the door — I could have easily forgiven the varnish smell as I’m all about progress however there were simply no redeeming qualities to make up for it.
We ordered a hot and sour chicken curry and a beef Thai basil stir fry, along with rice to share between two.
The food appeared quick enough but that couldn’t save the fact that the flavour just wasn’t there. The Thai basil stir fry was bland and this is usually one of my favourite dishes at other places. The veggies in both dishes seemed as if they had just come from a packet out the freezer — and they had certainly had all the goodness cooked out of them. The chicken curry, at least had some flavour however the sauce was very runny and watery — not thick like one would expect from a tasty coconut based curry.
Even the rice was flawed — it was gluggy and sticky, I’ve certainly been served better rice in my time.
Although the staff were friendly, it certainly wasn’t an experience worth returning for. Split between two, we ended up paying $ 20.90 each — and our meals were certainly not worth even close to that!
Place rating: 5
Adelaide, Australia
If I had never stepped foot inside Café Michael 2 over ten years ago, my love affair with Thai food may have never began. You see, I wasn’t lucky enough to grow up with parents who were ‘adventurous’ with food (adventurous for my parents was adding some paprika to a casserole, I’m not even joking), so ordering something as exotic as a Green Chicken Curry was a little scary to me. Was it going to be too hot? What if it tastes like crap? Good news, the one from CM2 was none of those things. It was perfect. As if the clouds had opened to the sounds of angels singing!
Fast forward a few years and it’s still delicious. Mi amor and I regularly order the Pee Pee’s Island for two from their take-​away menu and for under $ 30 we can get 3 – 4 serves from it. Oh so huge and tasty!
The Pee Pee deal includes 1 x Green Chicken Curry (perfection), 1 x Phad Thai (bloody good) and 2 x Vegetarian spring rolls (delish!). Sure they are not the most attractive looking dishes (a bit on the brown side), but my goodness do they taste good!
I hear they also do some great lunch deals, so really, what are you waiting for?! Let your love affair begin :)
5 stars with love x
Place rating: 4
Abbotsford, Melbourne, Australia
Café Michael was a staple takeaway Thai joint for us going back a couple of years.
The larp chicken yum thai salads were always freshly prepped and really refreshing to eat on the run.
Penang beef was fresh and hearty. Obviously heavier than the salads. The beef had been cooked down with the sauce, unlike some places where the sauce and meat is cooked separately then combined.
Curries were fragrant and fairly mild heat wise. Could have done with more heat on most occasions. Thai green curry is particularly nice.
Over time I’ve had a few inconsistent takeaway sizings (the protein component of the dish always) served up from Café Michael 2. And once or twice their dishes haven’t been up to their normal standard; usually when they’re busy.
Otherwise it’s a fairly safe bet with some clean, fresh and well sized meals to suit all diets.
Place rating: 4
Adelaide, Australia
I first went to Café Michael 2 after a friend highly recommended it to me. We went together for lunch and ordered from the lunch specials menu, which is extremely well priced ($ 9 — $ 13 for a meal).
The service staff were polite, friendly and quick and we had our meals served to us without waiting for very long. I was really impressed with the size of the meal — at some restaurants you are served far more than you could possibly eat, but at Café Michael 2 the serving size was just right. I ordered the beef curry with noodles and it was delicious.
Convenienty located, with good service and well priced, delicious food — I’ll definitely be back for lunch again soon!
Place rating: 2
Adelaide, Australia
I’ve always thought Café Michael 2 was somewhat overrated. This may be due to my first time there being preceded by a gushing friend who adored it and promising I would too. Perhaps no mere restaurant can live up to that kind of hype. For me this one never has. It’s not bad but for the fact we’re dealing with Thai food, that is renowned for its flavoursome spice, the palate just isn’t there. I don’t know if it’s simply not freshly prepared, or the chef is tastebud-​challenged, but nonetheless that’s my experience. Akin to other eateries on Rundle Street it’s not exactly cheap either, which only adds to my ‘not really worth it’ sentiment. The décor is pleasant, the wait staff are pleasant, just not pleasant enough to overcome the food issues. In a nutshell-there’s better Thai elsewhere!
Place rating: 5
South Australia, Australia
This has always been my favourite Thai restaurant in Adelaide. Situated in the middle of busy Rundle Street the café/​restaurant is always buzzing and noisy in a good way. The reason it is called Café Michael 2 is that there was an original café (one) that was more of a take away café which then evolved into the restaurant that it is today.
I have been coming here for many years and have never had a bad meal. The service is always great and the waiting staff are usually lots of fun. My two favourite dishes here are the Basil Chicken and the exquisite Red Fish Curry (whole fish). The flavours are amazing. After the fish is devoured we usually end up soaking up all the delicious sauce with the left over rice.
Tip: Try and book a table at the front part of the restaurant as the back part can feel a little bit isolated from the general atmosphere.
Place rating: 3
South Australia, Australia
Café Michael 2 has, in my opinion, close to the best Tom Yum Soup in town! I come here frequently and the Tom Yum is consistently tasty, with the right hint of spice (you can choose mild, hot or extra hot). The same goes for the curry puffs and fish cakes.
Some of the mains, on the other hand, are not as amazing. There have been times when the vegetables are not as fresh and the phad thai is not as tasty, rather slightly dry and plain. Considering it is a fairly pricy restaurant, I would expect much better.
However, the curries are nice. I find them not too overwhelming with just the right amount of flavour.
Service is great, location is convenient, and the interior is warm and cosy.