Thai Issan Cuisine

I’m bummed. I used to come here often, grabbing some dinner before shopping at Foodland next door for groceries (never shop on an empty stomach)! Came here a few times recently and was let down.
Portions definitely got smaller, and the quality of flavor seemed to go down as well. Most recently, in mid-​May, I ordered take-​out over the phone. An order of chicken Pad Thai, Eggplant Tofu, chicken Kee Mao (Drunken Noodles) and Tom Yum soup with shrimp. Did the terrible mistake of not checking my food prior to leaving, but I had never had incorrect take-​out orders from here before, so I didn’t bother. Should have, ugh.
The Kee Mao and Tom Yum came out wonderfully, with tons of flavor. Loved them both. However, the Pad Thai lacked the flavor I once remember Thai Issan having. Had to add some sriracha to give it some oomph. And my Eggplant Tofu? Wasn’t even what I ordered. I got tofu with some greens. Looking at their menu now, it seems they gave me Ong Choy Tofu (Chinese watercress, tofu, yellow bean sauce). Maybe I sounded stuffed up and «eggplant» sounded like «Ong Choy» over the phone? Who knows, it remains a mystery.
Might give this place a try again, but may have to venture to some other Thai places now.

This is one of my favorite Thai restaurants on the island, they make the food Lao style which pretty much means to make it spicy. All the food here is delish especially my favorite larb chicken and the cucumber salad, same idea like papaya but taste is different. I’m so happy that they are always busy means the food is awesome. Oh and a must try is the house fried chicken off the charts. The décor is a real Asian feeling you can tell they take pride in their culture.

I’ve had this place bookmarked for a long time! Finally, I got a chance to go when my pal, Jules, had a free night, so we ventured out!
Both of us had never been there prior to this, but we had seen the restaurant at Market City, next to Foodland. We had free and easy parking in the large lot on Harding Avenue. At 6:30pm, there were some open tables which filled up soon after.
We had the Garlic Shrimp, Eggplant Tofu, Yellow Curry, Sticky Rice, and Summer Rolls. Everything tasted great! It was challenging for me because of the spice level. Mild to me is Hot. I don’t enjoy pain — haha! So, the Yellow Curry helped me to consume ALL of my Sticky Rice quickly — LOL! Jules let me take home the leftover Summer Rolls and she took home everything else! I was able to eat a couple of shrimp and several eggplant and tofu with lots of water and delicious Thai Iced Tea! Yum!
The service was very friendly and attentive! They let us sit and chat in the corner for quite a while. We never had to ask for water refills! The interior was decorated appropriately with items and pictures from Thailand… beautiful!
Next time, I’ll play it safer and get the Pad Thai and Stuffed Chicken Wings! I’m sure I’ll be able to eat more! Yay!

Their portions have become noticeably smaller and the vegetables in their dishes seem spartan. There are also issues with food inconsistencies with regards to ingredients and taste
Perhaps the experienced cooks are being moved to their new location.
The appeal of Thai Issan was that it was a neighborhood restaurant that wasn’t fancy but served up really good Thai food with decent portions at a good price.
Unfortunately if they keep up what’s happening now, I think we will be better off finding another place and paying a little more. Small portions make them expensive for the small type of restaurant they are and the ambience that comes with it.
Service is ok, most of the time pleasant with the occasional rough service from a big tattooed male server.
I hope things improve and will return to give them another chance and will update my review if things change.

Went there for the first time today. I’ll just say my experience was OKAY. I ordered a Seafood Panang Curry, but received a Green Curry instead. I’m not one to waste food, so I just ate what I got.
Back home on Maui there’s at this little gem called Thai Spice in Paia. I wanted to compare this restaurant’s Seafood Panang Curry with Thai Spice’s Seared Ahi Panang Curry. After today, I’m just gonna stick to ordering Thai food back home.
The food was not as fresh and colorful as Thai Spice and our waiter dropped a glass next to our table. I’ve had some experience in the restaurant industry so I was surprised that our waiter didn’t offer us another table to sit at. The place wasn’t busy and we were practically the only customers in there for the next 30 mins (it was 3:30ish).
The waiter swept up the glass right next to us while we were eating and j just felt a little grossed out. I understood that it was a safety hazard, but he could have at least moved us to another table. I learned that you’re not supposed to sweep right next to people while they’re eating since all of the dust from the floor will be swept into the air and possibly get onto the people’s food. The waiter apparently married into the business, which explained why a tall Hawaiian-​Puerto Rican man was working in this Thai food business. All in all, I don’t think I’ll be coming here any time soon.

I generally LOVE this place, but after today I just may re-​think visiting this place. I ordered the king of chili pork ($ 9.95) and was utterly disappointed when I got home and saw my to go plate. I basically paid $ 10 for a plate of rice!!!

Always great food at a decent price. Great place for thai cuisine. The ladies are always so nice and friendly. Definitely would recommend.

Okay, since my first review I’ve had 14 check ins here, and half the time I just forget to check in here. But I really love this Thai place!!! After much trial and error, I’ve found things that are really delicious that I order every single time I get takeout here!
Tom yum soup with fish– get it extra spicy, or it somehow doesn’t have as much flavor if you get it mild.
Pad Thai with chicken or tofu– I always get two, one for me and one for my boyfriend. HUGE and always have leftovers.
Green curry with chicken and a side of sticky rice.
They’re always prompt about picking up the phone and having orders ready on time. The Thai iced tea is pretty bomb here too. There’s usually one girl serving and handling take out but she’s a multi tasking master. Love this place so much! I recently noticed it’s BYOB so can’t wait to try that out!

What’s with all the BYOB Asian places in Honolulu??? I like it! I had no idea that BYOB was a popular thing here but clearly all the locals are well versed in the art of boozing. Every table had a bottle of wine or beers to enjoy with their meals. It helps that there’s a Foodland right beside Thai Issan if you somehow forget to bring your own dranks.
We came on a Friday night and the place was packed. Luckily, we were able to snag a table quickly. One odd thing is that there’s no bathrooms inside the restaurant. Have no idea why they don’t have one inside but there’s one located outside. Other than that, service was warm and friendly. Pretty sure it’s family run. I spilled some water and there was a waitress there almost instantly to clean it up. It was like she had ESP or something. We decided to be a bit more adventurous and ordered a couple more «unique» dishes than the standard Thai go to’s. Not to toot our own horn but it worked brilliantly.
— Thai ice tea ($ 3.50) — Thai ice tea was absolutely delicious. Pretty much a staple of mine when we go out for Thai. Their thai ice tea with lime intrigues me.
— Pad woon sen (long rice noodles) ($ 9.50) — long rice noodles stir-​fried with young corn, onion, and bean sprouts in soy sauce. We asked for some extra veggies and they were nice enough to oblige us with some carrots and broccoli added on top. They also throw in egg to the dish so if you’re allergic, double check with them. The dish was tasty and well balanced.
— Sticky rice ($ 2.50) — legit sticky rice. Comes in a nice bamboo container.
— Pad ped hoi (spicy clams) ($ 11.95) — fresh Manila clams sautéed with bell peppers, onions, basil and flavoured with chili and oyster sauce. This is one of their house speciality dishes and it didn’t disappoint. Nicely sized clams and just the right amount of heat to them.
— Sweet chili scallops ($ 14.99) — juicy scallops sautéed in Thai spices with onions and basil then drizzled with chili sauce. Their description is right on the money. Super succulent scallops. Say that ten times fast. These were gone in a heartbeat.
If you’re looking for authentic Thai food that reminds you of Thailand, Thai Issan Cuisine is a solid, solid spot. Prices are reasonable, food is delicious and best of all, it’s BYOB. Happy we found this place to get our Thai fix in after finding out Opal Thai was closed for the holidays.

After years of seeing Super Unilocaler Kelly G’s check-​ins and tips praising this restaurant and having placed this place on my bookmark list, we finally made the effort to try this restaurant. We were excited to finally try the authentic flavors that so many other Unilocalers have raved about.
Thai Issan is located in the Market City Complex, in between Foodland and Finance Factors and on the street level under Win-​Sputino. The restaurant has large picture windows and is a larger than it looks from the outside. Its décor is bright and colorful with pictures and figurines from Thailand. There are two levels of parking lots available as this complex services several other businesses.
We arrived around 2:00PM, well after the usual lunch rush, and found just one other party of 4 women dining. The aromas of their food was intoxicating and immediately got our stomach juices worked up. Just by looking at their food order, we could see that the portions were good for sharing. We were greeted and seated immediately. Our server brought us glasses of iced water and menus to peruse. The menu is quite large and fortunately includes some beautiful food pictures to further entice your appetite. Thai cuisine is healthy and uses a variety of plant-​based ingredients hence, a wide assortment of vegetarian dishes are offered. We tried to contain our excitement and hunger while deciding on our meal.
THE FOOD:
–Thai House Combination Platter (appetizers): we were served a platter of chicken Sateh (satay)skewers, Spring Rolls, fish patties and golden brown calamari. Also on the plate was the house sweet and sour sauce, peanut sauce and sweet chilie sauce. Being that this was our first dine, we wanted to get a taste of «everything». This platter was a perfect primer representation of Thai Issan’s flavorful cuisine. $ 14.95
–Panang Curry: as our protein source, we chose pork. Other choices are chicken, beef, shrimp, scallop or fish and mixed seafood. The mild, thick Panang (its paste is made with dried chilies, galangal, lemongrass, coriander root, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, shrimp paste, garlic shallots and peanuts) curry was prepared with coconut milk and green beans. The sauce alone was a great complement to our bowls of steamed rice. $ 9.50
–Pad Kee Mao (Drunkard’s Noodles): as fans of chow funn (broad flat rice noodles), this dish hit our Chinese hearts! Pad Kee Mao was influenced by Chinese living in Thailand and Laos. A platter of chow funn noodles were sizzled in a wok along with soy sauce, fish sauce, garlic, scrambled egg, tofu, basil, broccoli, chiles and chicken was served. There are several stories about this dish’s origin but I won’t go into them. Suffice to say, Thai Issan’s preparation was spicy, salty, its vegetables were stir-​fried crisp while its soft broad rice noodles provided a tender contrasting mouthfeel. $ 9.50
Service was friendly, efficient and quick. Our server was demure and soft-​spoken as she gracefully moved in between the tables. There was a feeling of calmness and peacefulness as we dined. Through the picture windows, we watched drivers in their cars «fighting» for parking spaces or people hustling about with their packages… but we didn’t care! We were enveloped in the cool air-​conditioned space and focused on the great flavors and textures of our food.
We’ll definitely return for more.
#548

Wow I’ve been a regular here for a while, but sadly I won’t be returning. I dined in yesterday and there was a cockroach leg on my plate. Let it go. Got take out today, low and behold there’s a damn whole roach in my food. How disappointing. The food quality here is really good, but their sanitation– not so much.

Great restaurant. Located in Market City shopping center right next to Foodland. Their beef ong choy is pretty good! Everything looks delicious here so I want to come back and try more dishes. I tried their Lao noodle soup which o believe isn’t on the menu but wow it was pretty good! Great service too!

Wow! Really nice table by the window.
Food was fantastic! Tony our waiter was spot on in describing the menu making recommendations based on our tastes.
I had the seafood and veggie plate and my wife had A chicken ginger coconut soup that was off the scale of the flavor scale!
Can’t wait to come back for more!

If you are looking for good Thai food this is the place to come to. The service is great and atmosphere is very comfortable. So far in my opinion it is one of the best on the Island.

I am always on the hunt for Thai food– to go and eating in! It is always my favorite type of food and Thai Issan is a great spot!
I especially love their summer rolls– delicious fresh rice paper rolls with crunchy veggies. The perfect start to your meal!
Justin loves their yellow curry and swears by the amount of potatoes and carrots and meat there is in a thick sauce. Panang curry is my favorite and their’s is pretty good– not my favorite on the island though! The Panang curry sauce is too thin for me but does have a lot of good veggies in it.
Every time we have gone the service is good and fast. The food is consistently flavorful and their prices are comparable to other Thai spots.
Would love if they switched to a more eco-​friendly packaging though– styrofoam is so horrible for the environment :/

Green curry with seafood: 4 stars
Very yummy & delicious but could have used more seafood in it. This was great with the side of brown rice.
Garlic prawns: 4 stars
Chopped fried garlic pieces sprinkled on top of big tasty prawns which are set on top of cabbage.
Pad ke Mao with seafood: 3.5 star
Tasty fried mixture of seafood & fat noodles. This was yummy & had a kick to it but was a bit oily.
Green Papaya salad: 3.5 stars
A little on the small side & need to have some small shrimps sprinkled on top of it. Overall flavor was delicious & yummy.
Service: A
Very friendly & helpful, waitress helped me pick out some dishes. She even came to check up on us couple times to make sure we were doing ok.
Décor, simple but clean & comfy restaurant.
Overall, great little mom & pop place that has yummy Thai food.
I would definitely like to come back to try out other dishes on the menu.

My favorite Thai restaurant in Honolulu. Consistently good authentic Thai food. Family operation with warm friendly service. I usually get the «mild» level of heat. It’s quite spicy and I like heat.
My favorite item in the menu is the King of Chili. Your choice of jasmine or brown rice stir fried with choice of beef or chicken then topped with a fried egg. Ask for the egg a bit runny because it sometimes come out a bit overcooked. Great garlic, chili and onion flavors.
Can bring in your own beer or wine. The restaurant is conveniently located next to the Market City Foodland.
Usually lots of parking.

Um. Where have I’ve been? A Thai food lover, but still haven’t stepped one foot into…
THAI ISSAN CUISINE!
Well, wipe that «sucker» off my forehead because I finally made it inside. To sit. To eat. To enjoy. Yes, passed here a zillion times headed someplace or somewhere else. Just didn’t make it inside! Silly really, considering many of my friends like, Kelly G., Lori I., Lien V., Ivy Lou H., Daniel C., Peter Y., etc. All pretty reliable in the quality grub department LOVE it here! I mean even Brett B., Arizona Golden Elite & lover of all things Asian Persuasion, beat me to it! Dang! Oh well, only means I need to drop in here STAT!
Oh, I am happy camper that I finally made it in, and it was worth every passing day that passed me by. Yes, sometimes I annoy myself. Ugh. Hawaiian time, sometimes, I tell ya. Anyways, enough beating myself up and whining on being the last one to walk through the door… All that matters is I LOVED IT! Mmm!
THAI ISSAN CUISINE!
It is located on Kapiolani Blvd., in Kaimuki, next to the original Foodland. Yes, if you’re a regular in the area, you know parking can be a BISH here! But patience is a virtue, so sooner or later a spot will open up. Trust me, it’s worth it! Once parking is secured… Head on inside (great AC, btw), and if no one is waiting to be seated… You may seat yourself, but make sure to make eye contact, or at least do a sissy wave!
Once seated, my cousin and I peruse the menu. You are immediately struck that this place is legit! The myriad of Thai foods and faux Thai décor galore, plus the owners and staff seem pretty Thai to me! I mean even speaking Thai — whatever that sounds like! Our water glasses filled (no lemon), we order the following:
POR PLAH (SPRING ROLLS) — deep-​fried spring rolls stuffed with mushrooms, carrots, long rice, ground pork, & spices. You get six. The rolls are served with fresh cucumbers, mint, lettuce, & house sweet/​sour sauce. (A)
PAD WOON SEN (LONG RICE NOODLES) — long rice stir-​fried with baby corn, onions, bean spouts in soy sauce. Choice of meat and Spicy level! (A)
EVIL PRINCESS (MEDIUM EVIL) — bamboo shoots, long beans, Thai basil, onions in curry sauce. Choice of meat and Spicy level! (B)
THAI ISSAN STICKY RICE — Sticky Rice steamed in bag. Presented in bamboo type container. (B)
THAI ICED TEA — Absolutely delicious! Yes, I would know! Sometimes it’s watered down, but this one was rich in taste and a nice sized serving to boot! I survived an entire meal with only one glass! (A)
Oh yes! I was definitely pleased with everything I tasted here. See my pics — Sorry taken after we demolished the rolls! Pad Woon Sen was heavenly and quite generous; the Por Plah is a taste buds must and great in value; the Evil Princess was very good, but I would suggest the pork or chicken over the beef, IMHO; the sticky rice was good, but could have been stickier — seriously lol. I mean you pay more for it to be sticky, but it was only a step above steamed rice! Yet, all-​in-​all… I highly recommend…
THAI ISSAN CUISINE!
Nice and relaxing ambiance. Clean. Authentic. Not the friendliest service, but heck good enough! Also, almost an entire page for Vegetarians — great news for me, since I plan to bring Shelley H. & Shal W. here soon! I even had a baby girl in a high-​chair that watched every bite I made. Like. Every. Single. Bite. Cute at first, but unnerving after 50-​bites. Haha. All good, but I swear I’m not your Daddy!
OVERALL GRADE: 4.2-STARS! (SOLID!)

Ever since Champa Thai closed on 9^th avenue, I’ve been looking for a good Thai place in the Diamond Head area.
Found it!
The food was excellent! Great curry, great fish, great spring rolls, the vegetables were all fresh and the service perfect! Our water glasses were always full and the staff were quick to provide extra glasses for our byob.
If there was one thing I could change it would be the restrooms. They are located outside the restaurant, across the parking lot, and down a long filthy hallway. Restrooms were not clean. If you can hold it, I would recommend doing so.

I absolutely love Thai food. I love it spicy, salty, sour, whatever flavors they could possibly offer. My absolute favorite is Pad Kee Mow so you can be sure that I ordered that when we came to Thai Issan for dinner one night.
It was a Friday night and there wasn’t any wait for our party of 4, AWESOME. We sat down, took a few minutes to look through the menu and we were greeted by very friendly servers who instantly brought us waters without having to ask. Their menu is also very diverse and has all your usual Thai favorites; different types of curry, noodles, rice dishes, spring rolls. All are very reasonably priced. My party of and I ordered 4 entrée items off the menu and sticky rices and the bill came out a lot lower than I had expected!
As of course, I usually base my rating of a Thai restaurant on the deliciousness of their Pad Kee Mow (as mentioned, my fav) and Thai Issan did not disappoint. Deliciously stir-​fried, perfect amount of basil and meats, and the server even offered fish sauce for me to mix into the noodles. If you haven’t tried fish sauce, don’t be intimidated by the smell of it because frankly, it reeks, but it goes absolutely delicious with the noodles.
Overall, Thai Issan does great Thai food at prices that are fair for the portions. Definitely recommend checking them out, conveniently located in Market City :)