Saeng’s Thai Cuisine

When I’m in Kailua and dying for some Thai food, Saengs will do but it’s not my favorite. I tend to be disappointed everytime I get take out here. The food is overpriced, in my opinion, and is usually pretty good but not my favorite. They don’t seem to add spice even when asked either. The pad thai is pretty delicious but the curries have left me wanting more so far. I did have the thai iced tea and that was pretty delicious. I’ll likely be back for the convenience but not so much for the food.

I truly believe that if this place stuck to one cultural cuisine and focused solely on perfecting it, it would do itself a favor. Trying to be Japanese, Thai and Vietnamese– all out of one kitchen is not a very good idea. Get it straight you’ve been CHOPPED!

First off, I love this place. I get takeout from here often. In my opinion this is the best Thai food on the Windward side. Very cute ambiance and friendly staff. The only reason I’m giving 4 stars is because of my last experience here (I won’t go into details because it was an honest mistake and it was remedied but it was very disappointing) and I’m doing an average of my visits. I think they would benefit from having more staff on during busy times. Also I do think that for the prices, the food should be in more of a family style portion. Their pad Thai is to die for, the pineapple fried rice is the bees knees and I can vouch for all of the apps as well!

The servers were all very nice, but the service was very slow and unorganized. The food was fine, but not outstanding enough to make up for the slow service. I think it would be greatly improved with better organization.

Food took too long for a place that was not busy. Amount of food was small for the price. Not going back.

I ordered the pad Thai. The chicken was not fresh. It was fatty and tasted like it had been refrigerated for two weeks and reheated. Also the place smelled like a wet dog and dirty fish tank combo. Don’t go.

First place I ever tried Thai food and it was delicious!!! I’m not one to try new foods, but my friend suggested it and I just had to try it!
Stuff fried chicken wings! Yum yum yum!!! Love their curry, and they give sticky rice in bowls, giving more portions than other Thai restaurants I tried after this restaurant.
With their curry, you can always choose the level of spice and the servers always ask what level you prefer. I noticed after going to other restaurants, they automatically give you mild unless told otherwise.
The restaurant ambiance is unique, very Thai authentic. They also have an upstairs for bigger parties that also have a TV and a karaōke system, great for parties!
There’s also a bar and you can also order sushi, never tried the sushi.
The food are within the $ 10 – 15 price range so it’s fairly affordable.

I don’t know what to say. Appetizer never came, our entrée came out over 30 minutes, then we told them our appetizer never came yet and that took another 30 minutes for an appetizer, mind you the restaurant was only ¼ filled (4 tables, really?) Foods good, but i don’t think they understand how to service the restaurant. I ordered Thai hot and the dish had no spice at all, not even a single chili, ironic for Thai food with no chilies. Will never ever come back, period! I love Thai food but it’s not worth the crappy service at all. Over all, one star cuz the food is decent or ordered properly.

This place is delicious, the food is killer and i highly recommend the coconut tofu soup. Its heaven in your mouth. Want meat with it? Just ask. Price is very affordable. I think their apps are overpriced but the meals are solid and good portions.

Great food but slow service. We were able to make reservations for our party of 8 but it took a long time for our entrees to come out. We got our drinks and then appetizers a little while after ordering. Not many refill requests without flagging down our waiter. Water refills was ok though. We ordered spring rolls, veggie Sushi and a few of the vegetarian dishes like pineapple fried rice, tofu vegetarian noodles and evil Prince with vegetables and added tofu. Rice is extra. The sushi was very good which was a surprise to find at this Thai restaurant. They have a full sushi bar in their drink bar! We ordered seconds! The veggie roll had cucumber, avocado, shredded carrot AND asparagus. Ordered dishes with medium which was a nice warmth but HOT was definitely HOT.

Mediocre for take out.
I don’t know if the food is better if you dine in. Sometimes that is the case. But we ordered the pad thai and the vegetarian broccoli noodles, both with tofu, and took the order to go to an outdoor evening picnic.
When trying a new Thai place we pretty much always get the pad thai so we can gauge how good the place is compared to others we like (or dislike). These dishes were ok, but nothing special. The noodles seemed a bit overcooked and clumpy. Saeng’s is on par with Bangkok Chef, which is a shame because the interior of the restaurant shows they are trying to create a nice experience.
I doubt we will be back again because there are other places we prefer in the area, but you never know. If ratings from other Unilocalers improve, perhaps we will give it another go.

Great ambiance – reminds me of my trip to Thai land. Food is always good (even the sushi which at first was an odd surprise). After checking out all the other Thai restaurants in Kailua town, this one is my new favorite!

This is one of the nicer «small» Thai restaurants that I have been to. It is traditionally decorated and had a very warm feel. The menu has everything Thai you could want and is easy to read and understand. There is a fair selection of appetizers, salads, main course, sushi, as well as deserts. The food was prepared quickly and brought out by a very friendly waiter. It was a very nice lunch.

We stopped in before a hike and absolutely loved it!
The red chicken curry was fabulous! My boyfriend had never had Thai food before (didn’t think he liked it) and this won him over. We don’t know when we’ll get back, but we know we will because this is now our benchmark for good food, service, and atmosphere.

I’m a new ‘fan’ of Thai food. I don’t know how to order properly and probably never will actually put an effort into learning all the dishes. Chicken panang and pad thai are the 2 main focus dishes I will only look for on the menu.
Anyways, about Saeng’s.
Boyfriend’s family chose to eat out last night and we landed at Saeng’s. I thought the décor was really interesting, found that they had a second floor, though it didn’t seem to be in use. TIP: they serve sushi (sashimi, nigiri, rolls, and donburi). We ordered some sticky rice, chicken panang (mild, medium, or lao hot?, you can chose level of heat upon ordering), spring rolls, spicy tuna roll, dymanite roll. Food was good, I left nice and full, very satisfied :)
3 stars because the service was awkwardly slow. It took such a long time to get sat first off where we had servers walking around, look at us and walk to their table. When we were finally sat, empty water glasses were not filled for some time. After ordering. it felt like forever until we received any food. Spring rolls came first. We were hungry, and well that went pretty quickly even with feeding a 3 year old. My boyfriend also ordered a beer to go along with his sushi, but that beer was served before any food was at the table and it seemed that the waitress really could not remember who ordered what (the entire meal). Beer was warm by the time the sushi arrived so it definitely did not compliment the way it should have. All main dishes were served and well I know I’ve mentioned this before about my spice tolerance… I had to drink a lot of water. Had 1 refill and ended up drinking all of my boyfriend’s water too. It wasn’t until desert was served that we got a second refill and it was kinda pointless by then. Desert orders, 2 mudpies, 1 tapioca. They only had 1 mudpie left so replaced with macnut ice cream. Mudpie served to wrong person, macnut served wrong person. No sign of tapioca (which was for the 3 year old) so someone was jealous of all the other deserts on the table. Had to ask who I thought was a manager for it. Once served it was warm… a little odd but I do not know much about tapioca.
Since it was a family outing with child we did give a nice tip, but my mind was going crazy… not wanting to give that full 20%. I hate to be that person but tip is given for food AND service, not just food.
Maybe lunch time is better… not crossing them out of my book just yet.

I LOVE Thai food so I don’t discriminate trying other places. I personally just like their beef salad. I tried their Evil dish (forgot the rest of the name) and I must say, it was pretty bland. The sauce tasted like nothing, maybe just water. I was so iffy to try their other dishes due to the reviews but thought I’d give it a chance. But I think I’ll just stick to getting the beef salad.

We just left this place as we were waiting for a table. What I think was possibly the owner/​manager just berated and belittled a man in a wheel chair upon asking for a table for his family. The manager’s hospitality was extremely unwelcoming, basically he refused to accommodate a disabled customer. It was the most uncomfortable scene. We left before ever getting seated. Horrible experience ever!

Noodles are very good! So much better than typical Thai restaurants. And the Tom Yum Talay (spicy seafood soup) is good too. Portions are well sized, prices are reasonable, service is friendly and attentive. Don’t be fooled by it’s strip mall location. It’s a cute little spot with tasty Thai food.

Food: I had the Evil Prince pork fried rice. It was good, but it wasn’t spicy at all like the waiter said it would be. The portion was also pretty small. So I was a little disappointed with it not being spicy… I pretty much ordered it because of the name. :)
Service: I think it was a one man show when we were there for a somewhat late lunch. There were a few tables occupied besides our party of 5. Even by himself, service was adequate. I did however had to get up to get napkins for the table.
Location: The restaurant is located in a small strip mall. It might be a little hard to find a parking spot. We were pretty fortunate to find a spot right in front of the place.

Ok, so I took a look at the reviews but I have never had a problem with my order… like EVER. I have eaten here a few times, and each time my waiter was prompt and helpful and nice. I’m kind of shocked to hear that this is an anomaly. Regardless, I shall continue on with my 5-​star review.
Why 5 stars? 1) I LOVE THAI FOOD. 2) FOOD IS BOMB. 3) SERVICE IS BOMB. I have not had a bad experience to date. I love their curry dishes (I order them every time). I love their red and green curries. I love that you can increase the heat based on your preference. I love things spicy, so I got the hottest option. I was pleasantly surprised. I remember a few times, at a couple Thai restaurants in NYC, when the food literally made me sweat due to the heat of the dish. This time, it was just right (actually, almost a little too «medium» from my taste). The curry is super rich and yummm. I also adore the calamari here; crispy and hot and just right.
I love the décor of the place too. It’s festive enough to go on a casual date or for a nice lunch. I love the ornateness of the place. Puts me in the right mood to eat Thai! Overall, I recommend this place for a quick bite to eat. I will keep going again and again.
Recommend:
— Calamari
— Red Curry with Beef
— Green Curry with Beef