The Zen

Had the chicken lemon grass soup and asked if I can add rice noodles to it. They agreed and I got exactly what I was looking for. It was good but nothing overly special.

Excellent Thai food! The place itself is small, nothing special, service is ok… but the food is fantastic and so are the prices.
We had the spicy thai noodle and the crispy ginger beef, both were great. We went there at lunch time and ordered them from the $ 7.95 lunch menu and the portions were huge!
Definitely going back!

Decent food. Good portions for the prices we paid for dinner. I would be back if I couldn’t think of anywhere else to go.
Appetizers: The spicy calamari was a lot spicier than I was expecting it to be but the sweet and spicy sauce that came with it helped cool off some of the heat. I don’t think I would order it again though. Along with that we got the lemongrass soup. It was delicious and definitely fixed my burning tongue from the spicy calamari. The soup was flavorful and gave a fair amount of shrimp and mushrooms in it. The medium bowl served approx 7 small bowls. I would come back just for the soup if I was craving it.
Main Dishes: The seafood chow me in comes with shrimp, calamari and crab. The chicken calamari comes with chicken and shrimps. Both were cooked well and had a good balance of meat-​to-​veggies-​to-​noodle ratio. The noodles are made soft with plenty of sauce (I like a bit of crunchy ones at the top but it’s still good). What I really liked was the Zen Chicken (made dry). It was spicy and flavorful served with a bowl of rice. I would order the zen chicken again or maybe try the zen fish next time.
Service: The waiters were very friendly and attentive. The food came out fairly quick for a dinner service. No complaints about the service at all.

Pretty good service, Ive been to the Zen a total of three times, and each visit has been exceptionally successful. The location has plenty of parking, and the restaurant has lots of seats available, even at dinner, which is rare in many establishments. The first time I came to the Zen was a long time ago, so Ive totally forgotten what I ordered that time. The 2^nd time I ordered the honey garlic chicken, which was delectable but not remarkable in any way. During that second visit, my friend ordered the curried goat, which I found to be very delicious despite my lack of knowledge in the Caribbean food department. Regardless, it was actually the curried goat that inspired me to come once again, this time bringing yet another colleague of mine. This time I had the intentions of ordering the curried goat, but was saddened to learn that they had run out. My alternate order included an appetizer of spicy calamari and the general tao chicken. Once again I found the food to be banal as far as Chinese food goes, yet delectable nonetheless.
In conclusion, the Zen is unremarkable, yet there is a cozy ambience and noticeable attention to detail that is made with every dish. The atmosphere is relaxed and the service is just fine. I recommend this location to a person who is looking for simple Chinese food and is not expecting anything too over the top. You can be sure that what you are ordering is going to taste great, but it may not be anything too fantastic or out of the ordinary. The Zen is great for getting your Chinese food fix, or maybe even for spending times with a group of friends or significant other, due to its intimate and pretty quiet setting.
Here at the Zen, you can’t go wrong, but everything is just «alright» :-)

Excellent service, truely some of the best food ever. The crispy ginger chicken is to die for. Just can’t go wrong here!!!

After a year i have yet to be disappointed by the quality of food and the excellent service at The Zen. Since my last review i have tried many different foods and always find them being my favorite compared to anywhere else.
Every time i go here i am greeted by courteous employees and they remember me every time. I have had nice conversations with Steven (hope that’s correct spelling), begging him to open a store in Peterborough so i can enjoy the food more often.
Some of the foods i would recommend are the Chicken Pakora, any of the Pad Thai, Manchurian Chicken Fried Rice and the Goat Curry. There are so many other delicious selections though.
If you are looking for something different or just looking for a new spot to eat i highly recommend The Zen.

I was really excited when this place opened up. I’m a Thai guy (not a thigh guy, don’t get that confused) and was really hopeful that a better alternative was opening up when the crap n’roll went out of business. I don’t really know what they were thinking opening here, the ever-​popular reigning champion of Asian food in the Brooklyn-​Whitby Area is Tangerine (undeserving of its popularity, as it is also horrible but that’s a different review!). I was hoping that competition would help bolster quality in the area, instead they decided let’s go cheap and hope people in Whitby are desperate enough. The average household income in the area is 182k according to MLS so I think people are willing to fork out $ 15 – 20 for good Thai. The food is just awful, so awful. Mushy noodles, mountains of salt and enough garlic to kill a vampire! That’s not the point of my review, there are plenty of Asian joints with terrible food in Whitby, Tangerine, Go For Thai, iThai, Tatemono, etc. but I mean come on it’s basic business sense! The customer is always right and the customer wants fresh local ingredients, prepared thoughtfully using traditional and modern Thai techniques and recipes! There are hundreds of farms in Durham region, and yes I know it comes at a cost but this area can afford it. I give this place 2 more years tops and then it will be in the same hell as Wok n’Roll.

I’m just so sad. I’ve tried every approximation of Thai food in Whitby and have come to a conclusion.
Thai food is dead in Whitby.
Melodramatic? Yes.
True? Sadly, yes.
Good Thai food doesn’t exist here. Heck, I’ll even settle for average. Mediocre! Alas, they’re all terrible.
My recent craving for Thai made me desperate. After my last debacle with iThai, I ordered from The Zen. Nothing adventurous. Just regular old Pad Thai with Chicken and Shrimp and Red Curry Chicken.
Upon opening the containers, the Pad Thai was O.R.A.N.G.E. WTF. It was sweet. It was mushy. I couldn’t tell whether they were sliced onions or rice noodles. The chicken and shrimp were non-​existent.
The Red Curry Chicken wasn’t red or curry. It was an off-​white watery sauce with tiny and chewy pieces of chicken and a lot of veggies thrown in for volume.
You know what else gets me? How are you charging extra for rice when most Asian restaurants give the rice for free. This slop wasn’t cheap! The two dishes came up to $ 26.
Seriously, I give up. No more Thai food ordering in Whitby. I don’t think I can handle another disappointment.

This place has the unique distinction of producing the absolute worst excuse for pad Thai barre none. We got a huge lump of bright orange mush and some Inedible chicken. God awful. Barely edible. The rice was dry. The green curry — gloopy and tasteless. I would rather eat at Go For Thai and risk finding another staple hidden in my food. See that review for the stapler surprise.
Eat here to lose weight.

Wow, Nice food. the fish pakora is to die for. The food is so flavorful here. i also had a few more dishes and there awesome too. The staff is great and the place is clean. give it a try. im sure you like it :). i also have a vid i filmed but its not up yet. i ll post it as soon as i can. visit my you tube to view vids thank you.

The only thing postive was the large portions. I had the pad thai and it was very bland. Bought three serving for family and ended up throwing most if it out.

This is my updated review, after returning several more times…
Everything seems to be better here now. Food, especially the crispy ginger beef, is outstanding. Springs rolls are not greasy, and hakka noodles are delicious.
The value still remains strong at $ 5.95/$ 6.95 during the weekday lunch hours. Overall, a great lunch spot.