Chai’s Noodle Bar & Bistro

My brother and I were nostalgic for bubble tea at Chai’s Noodle Bar & Bistro. Their bubble tea menu listed five flavors — Mango, Milk Tea, Green Tea, Taro, and Thai Tea but the cashier said they only had Milk Tea and Green Tea so we got one of each. The bubble tea was sweeter than what I remembered it to be. The tapioca pearls seemed overcooked as they were hard on the inside and soft on the outside. In my opinion, the bubble tea wasn’t worth $ 4.

If you’re really hungry and nothing else is opened its adequate… Not memorable. I can’t think of anything else to say but if I don’t write more it won’t leave a review. Try Six Plates in the same center. Great small plates.

Warning: This is not a true sit down restaurant. Order at the counter, get your own drink, then they bring the food to you.
We visited after purchasing a Groupon. Ordered the spring rolls for an appetizer, which were okay, very fresh, but I would rather have the peanut sauce that is standard. DH had a spicy chicken with basil on wide noodles, which was OUTSTANDING. Great flavor to the sauce, but not spicy at all (no problem — sriracha sauce is on the table). I tried to order my favorite — lo mein — but they were out of lo mein noodles that night (what?). Anywhoo, the chicken pad thai was pretty tasty, though a little on the sweet side to my taste.
Prices were very reasonable especially considering the larger servings sizes (we both had leftovers for lunch).
If this place was closer to home, we’d probably become regulars, especially for take out.

I am lucky enough to work in the building right next to Chai’s, so I frequent this place 1 – 2 times a month.
I love this place. It’s very clean, the service is fast, and the staff are friendly. I have ordered several different dishes from here and none have disappointed me.
Recommendations:
Thai Noodle Salad
Chicken Pad Thai
Chicken Noodle Soup
Chicken Walnut Rolls

This was our second time visiting. My meal was actually good. But the other things that I look for in a restaurant were missing.
The restroom could have been maintained better. The paper towel dispenser was out of order and the entire roll was placed on top. I do not like to touch an open roll that others have touched who may not have properly washed their hands. And I don’t want to eat a meal cooked by someone who touched that open roll of paper towels either. My wife says the women’s restroom wasn’t the cleanest either.
We sat at the bar area to eat. The manager cleaned a table and placed the cart right next to us. I don’t want to see or smell that while eating.
And for goodness sake, maintain the soda dispenser and keep it stocked. Also, check your tea kegs and brew some tea fresh tea when they become empty or near empty.
Again the food is pretty good. However, those nuances can make or break a restaurant. Get it together.

I come here often for lunch because it’s so convenient during the weekdays when my coworkers are craving Asian food. I used to come here in college too because our Food Points could be used here, but the food seems even better than I remember from my college days years ago.
I’ve tried multiple items off their menu:
Basil rolls (lettuce, carrots, shrimp wrapped in rice paper) served with peanut hoisin sauce. These were really refreshing especially because I came here on a really hot day. The filling has more vermicelli/​carrot than shrimp though.
Chinese chow fun – flat noodle stir fried with broccoli and carrots, brown sauce, with choice of chicken/​beef/​tofu. This is pretty similar to pad see ew, though the brown sauce is a little sweeter than I expected. Still, I really liked this noodle dish!
Thai coconut curry rice bowl – my coworker swears by this and ordered it 3 times in 1 week! The portion size is pretty big and they give you plenty of rice too.
Pad thai-​egg, onions, peanuts, and choice of meat. This was delicious, although also a tad bit on the sweeter side in terms of the sauce.
Singapore noodles-​curry vemicelli noodles stir fried with veggies and meat or tofu. I loved this – super light, not oily/​greasy, and great flavor.
I also tried the taro boba this week which was awesome – cold smoothie packed with taro flavor, and tapioca bubbles at the bottom. The tapioca bubbles could have been a little softer/​chewier but it’s probably one of the better boba we can get in Durham!
I’d love to try some of the hot noodle soups (phở, udon) on a colder day!

I liked the Japanese udon stirfry that I had. A savory sauce with a hint of sweetness. They have lots of noodle options, which I like, but don’t think there’s anything that stands out about this place. It’s a good local option to have when I want a quick Asian dish, but I never crave it.

Probobally the worst red curry I’ve ever had.
Sauce was very thin medium spice but tasted watered down. Have had better curry in my frozen entrée. Very disappointed.
Service was quick but not so friendly

Very good selection food is generally very good. Pad Thai a bit greasy but other dishes were very good. Inexpensive, quick service.

Spicy Thai Basal Chicken: way too salty, couldn’t even finish. No spice at all.
Bubble Tea: was feeling dangerous and wanted to try another one of Durham’s typically poor renditions of my favorite Asian drink but they «ran out» during lunch time… what?

I’ve ordered delivery from Chai’s several times before. The food has been decent; it hits the spot when you’re craving something different but fails to be much more than the typical inauthentic Asian food that was prepared with a heavy hand on the salt and oil.
Just as a heads up to Duke students who order on food points: the total that you see BEFORE tipping actually ALREADY has an automatic 15% gratuity added to it. After a recent delivery, the driver had forgotten to detach the receipt from my bag and I noticed this. I find it extremely dishonest of Chai’s to essentially deceive students into double tipping on delivery orders. For that reason, I most likely won’t be ordering from them again.

Reasonable prices. Great variety of food. Outdoor seating. Friendly staff. Close to Duke University and hospital.

A friend and I decided to order in from Chai’s using Duke’s merchants on points program.
General thoughts: delivery time was more than an hour which was kind of a disappointment, so be prepared to wait.
I ordered the buckwheat soba noodles for which the noodles and the soup arrived separately, a nice touch. Decent in terms of quality and taste but nothing spectacular. My friend was definitely not a fan of his udon. The yakitori (chicken with sweet glaze) was almost inedible because of the sauce’s strange flavor. In total my noodles cost $ 9.20 and the chicken was $ 4.60.
Like Diana X. says, interesting selection of Asian food but probably would not order from here again.

I definitely have had much better Asian food in the Triangle area. The stir fry dishes are all pretty Americanized and didn’t really satisfy my cravings for Asian food at all. The bubble tea was more like a smoothie, and the last time that I went, they were out of bubbles. My friend had the chicken phở, which wasn’t very good either. I enjoyed my tofu lettuce wraps to an extent, although the tofu itself wasn’t cooked as well as it could have been. Overall, a pretty mediocre restaurant. If you are in the area, there aren’t any other Asian restaurants close by, so give it a shot.

Absolutely absurd. Ordered a delivery for dinner and after waiting for 1.5 hours, the delivery guy showed up. I was already paying for delivery fee included in the bill that I didn’t think of tipping the delivery guy. As soon as I returned the card reader to him, he tells me, «Let’s try that again with giving me some tip.» and returns me the card reader, telling me to refund myself and pay again with tip. I was shocked and flustered at the time, and the more I think about it the more ridiculous it is. I had waited for an abnormal amount of time for simple delivery food already and I was paying a delivery fee. Now, I wasn’t aware whether the delivery fee goes directly to the guy or if he doesn’t receive any, but it would have much nicer for him to ask in a different way for some tip instead of demanding refund and tipping again. Overall I thought he was rude and didn’t deserve any tip at the end, but I tipped him anyway.
Onto actual review of their food — I’ve tried a couple of different dishes such as pad thai and spicy thai basil, and while the food comes hot, it’s nothing amazing. I find my pad thai overly sweet with noodles too dry on the top and too soaked with sauce at the bottom, and spicy thai basil way too dry and oily (it is spicy enough to my liking though).
The only reason Chai’s gets 2 stars is because it’s on food points for Duke students. I might occasionally order extremely mediocre Thai food on campus delivery, but I’ll never go out of my way to visit this place.

I think if I were a student at Duke, I would eat here all the time. The portions were large and the food delicious. I finished all of my spicy Thai basil noodles and the curry that my friend got was also very good. Pad Thai that her family members got also looked delicious.

I’ve been looking to try this place for a while and finally got around to it. On this occasion, we ordered the:
Shrimp yakisoba
Thai iced tea (we were disappointed that there were no bubble teas available)
Porkchop
While the food had good flavor, I did notice some discrepancies… the veggies were unevenly cut, which made for awkward eating and there was a large amount of sesame oil left over after consumption of the shrimp yakisoba. I guess for me, food aesthetics pre– and post-​consumption is important.
All in all, the food seemed very much like a mom-​n-​pop fast food and didn’t really hold my interest.

Reasonable prices and decent Thai/​Asian food, but nothing to go out of your way to visit for. It’s one of the best options for Duke students who want delivery to campus, which typically takes about 30 – 40 min. The appetizers are somewhat overpriced, but their specialties such as the Kalbi (Korean style short ribs) are fantastic.
CONS: (1) Thai fish has too much sauce, too sweet & salty, (2) basil rolls have too little shrimp.
The variety of items on the menu is pretty good, and includes Asian favorites such as soba noodles, Thai curries, and even wings. A decent place to visit if you happen to be craving different types of Asian food and are in the Duke Hospital/​campus area.

I was a regular customer at Chai’s when I was an undergrad here 2005 – 2009, and back in the day the regular orders were pad thai or thai spicy basil rice bowl. Nothing too special but reliably good and relatively cheap.
I took a break from Chai’s for a couple of years and I was pleasantly surprised when I went back to see that they have added a couple of amazing specials. I ordered the chinese bbq ribs and my friend ordered the vietnamese porkchops for $ 10 each — two of the best dishes I’ve ever had. And that really says something considering I’m chinese and my friend is vietnamese.
Chinese bbq ribs were crispy on the outside, tender on the inside, and lathered with a delicious sweet and sour sauce. Vietnamese porkchops were equally well cooked and came with a relatively authentic fish sauce. Both entrees also came with a good helping of rice and pickled cucumbers on the side for a nice contrast of flavor.
They do have some dishes that are frankly not their forte. We went back the next day for phở and jjampong, and neither impressed me too much.
Lastly, they still have the reliable stuff: pad thai, rice bowls, and old specials such as korean skirt steak and mae ploy chicken. Ask for a spicy level if you want an extra kick. They do a 1 – 10 scale. I heard their salads are pretty good too, but I haven’t tried any.
Overall, Chai’s is a pretty good restaurant for their old reliables as well as their new specials. The chinese bbq ribs and vietnamese porkchops are MUST tries if you ever visit. They have a lot of different sauces for their rice or noodle bowls, but my favorite is the thai spicy basil for the variety of vegetables and a more refreshing flavor.

Chai’s is one of the better Pan-​Asian restaurants in Durham. I’m gonna let that sink in.
Their food is cheap, portion sizes are decent, and flavor combos are good. I usually get the thai basil stir-​fried noodles with tofu. Tastes better than most Thai noodle dishes I get at sit-​down restos for double Chai’s price. Their tom yum soup is nothing to write home about, but it still is on par with most Thai restos in Durham.
Chai’s set up is simple. You wait in line, order, pay, and get a number. Wait around 5 minutes (there’s a lunch rush, though) and someone brings your food to you. When you’re done, you leave and someone will clear the table. But other than that, there’s no waiter service. It’s self-​serve beverages, etc.
I’ve never had bad service at Chai’s. Mostly because it’s so minimalist. But the manager & cashiers have always been friendly and easy-​going.
Honestly, I’d recommend Chai’s for a cheap, tasty meal or a casual get together over any other Asian restaurant in Durham.