Karta Thai

This is a great Thai restaurant that offers affordable and delicious lunch specials and some even better seasonal choices!
I have been coming here since they first opened and have tried much of their menu. I love bringing people here for business meetings, mostly because I get to expense the meal! That’s because the only way to make the food better is to get someone else to pay for it.
They have several great lunch specials, Green and Red Curries, Pad Thai, and a Noodle Soup that is wonderful on a cold winter day. I love their Pra-​Rham and often choose that. The nutty, coconut curry is my favorite regular menu item. The two seasonal specials that I highly recommend are the Pumpkin Curry and the Coconut Curry. The pumpkin is served in a pumpkin that they have cleaned and carved while the Coconut is served in a young coconut. It’s not the beautiful presentation that makes these so good. In each case, the Curry is a wonderful blend of spice, veggies and protein of choice that keeps me looking forward to each season year after year.
The décor is bright and cheerful. They have art from local artist on the walls. There is street parking and free parking in the back as well. They have added a second location, but I have never made it. I seem to like the original, I guess I’m just old fashioned that way.

I have been a fan and advocate of Karta Thai for years. However, my last two visits have been disappointing. I get the same few items every time I go and recently the quality of those dishes has been poor, the portion size significantly reduced while prices remain the same and the service subpar. I discussed my feedback with the owner and I hope to experience the amazingness of Karta once again. For now, however, it’s sadly just «meh».

I had finally found a new place to try their cream cheese wontons. I knew my boy Jonathan loved this place, so I figured I would give it a try. I already picked up takeout nearby, so I decided to add the appetizer from here. I thought it was strange that on a Sunday afternoon no one was eating inside. Luckily for me that meant I got my food quickly! I will admit, the inside had an indescribable funky smell.
The wontons were about ~$ 5 for 6 pieces. There was about a full tablespoon size of cream cheese inside a thin, yet crispy triangle pocket. The edges were crispy, yet the inside was not mushy or doughy. The taste was sweet and smooth. I would give these a 3.5÷5 stars! Definitely worth ordering again, not too heavy or cream cheesy!

The only thing I can hold against this place is the lack of a duck curry (and I’m not talking about mock duck. I’m talking about the real fowl). Can’t hold it against the place, as that doesn’t seem to be a common offering at Thai places in Minneapolis.
The menu contains all the selections you would want from a Thai place — curries, tom kha soups, rice dishes, pad thai, and drunken noodles. The most interesting thing one can order would probably be the pumpkin/​squash curry which comes out in an actual squash.
The serving sizes are quite generous — I was well tided over before finishing the plate. Flavors are quite good, not greasy or bland. All in all, very solid Thai food. Also tried the Tom kha soup, which was quite nice with clean flavors and a solid amount of spiciness.

Glad to have ethnic food in the neighborhood, but the pad thai tasted like it had ketchup sauce and the massumum beef curry was tough and chewy.

Yummy was very good. Tried the pumpkin curry with vegetables. Was really good. I also liked the presentation of the dish which was in a pumpkin. Pretty cool.

We normally go to amazing thailand in uptown but decided to try something new this weekend. Walking into this place I thought it was going to to a legit thai place.
We ordered the thai noodles which weren’t very «thai» at all… It was more like phở. The broth was good though. My boyfriend got the basil curry fried rice which was alright. The papaya salad was super dissapointing and the spice level 5 was still bland.
I wouldn’t come back here… Super americanized thai food :(

Kept it simple and order chicken Thai fried rice medium spice. Flavor and spice was great! Rice was just a little mushy.

Yummy, yum, yum! This place is excellent hole-​in-​the-​wall Thai, with really good service and lots of vegetarian friendly options on the menu.
The only complaint that I have about this place is the furnishings. They need to invest in a different décor other than «liquidation sale from a Roy Rogers» motif.

The papaya salad was definitely spicier this time. Still not as flavorful as it should be, but, much more flavorful than compared to Sen Yai Sen Lak Thai across the street. The price point is also much more reasonable at $ 7 for papaya salad versus the $ 10 at the majority of other places.
The restaurant is narrow, dark, and has a divey feel, probably due to the open kitchen where you can overhear the cooks. Although it feels divey, it’s very clean and comfortable. The service is very warm, welcoming, and kind. It’s a great family owned local business, and I definitely would return to support it.

I recommend sitting at the from of the store or the back because it’s very hot.
There’s also free parking in back, watch your steps on the way in if you park in back though.
We got the beef red curry and chicken pad see iew.
The beef was very chewy. the broth was really good but it was also very liquidy.
The pad see iew had a bitter after taste. .
I really wish I could give this place a better rating..

Is there any better food in the world than Thai food?
Wonderful food in a great atmosphere. The best thing that I think can be said of any restaurant is, «I will be back.» I will be back.

I would list no stars if this were an option. SERVICE IS TERRIBLE! We requested to see a menu and the waitress gave me a look and pointed to a stack of menus in the corner. No greeting, no smile, clearly not welcoming. Although it was empty and therefore the service should not have been suffering from any type of staffing challenge, my husband still wanted to give her a chance so we asked to be seated and that’s where it turned for the worse.
The waitress we asked to seat us ignored us for about 10 minutes, wiped multiple tables, all before deciding to seat us. When my husband thanked her she ignored him and walked past without eye contact or even an acknowledgment. My husband and I are both black and I rarely «play» the race card but it was clear that non-​Asians and non-​whites are not welcomed in this establishment.

Me and a date came to Karta Thai a few weeks back after it was highly recommended to me by a co-​worker.
The restaurant was a bit deserted on a weeknight about an hour before close, but the waitress was quick to help us, and our food didn’t take long at all.
I got the Massaman Curry, and my date the Pad Thai. I didn’t have a chance to try the Pad Thai, because my date smothered it with hot chili sauce, which is a bit much for me. My Massaman curry was JUST the right about of hot though. Makes your nose run a bit, but fortunately I had a cold, so clearing out the sinuses was just what the doctor ordered.
The portion was enormous, I had enough for lunch AND dinner the next day.
Overall, a hidden little gem, that satisfies my thai food cravings.

I used to love this place but the last few times I’ve been here hasn’t been all that good.
The beef and pork look like mystery meat.
The noodle soup tasted like dish soap.

I’ve really tried to like this place. I’ve gone multiple times and for a while I even convinced myself that I did actually like it. Until I realized that what I liked about it was the convenient location and speed of service.
I’ve had many items on the menu and overall the food is just OK. The entrees are a good size even when ordering off the lunch menu, but they are just not that great. The appetizers are definitely the best items on the menu when it comes to taste and quality. Fair warning their noodle soup is a mediocre version of Phở, so if you’re craving Phở, it’ll likely fill that need but you’ll ultimately be disappointed.
The atmosphere is a little lacking and there are times when I question their overall cleanliness. However there are plenty of tables and they never get all that busy so no need to worry about having to wait. As a side note they do have parking in the back with a rear entrance which is actually handy in this part of town.
Bottom line though, there are just so many better Thai restaurants in the cities. But if you are just looking for a quick lunch stop stick with the appetizers. It’ll be plenty of food and you’ll have a better experience.

Review is for delivery (food) only. The chicken pad thai was dry and lacked much flavor — definitely not in my top 10 pad thai experiences. The green curry dish and spring rolls were better but probably just on par with with expectations.

So excited to try based
On the reviews

I’m a big fan Karta because the food is flavorful and the service is fast. Definitely your typical mom n pop shop but some dang good thai food. The décor is super random, it’s kind of dark in the restaurant, and I’m pretty sure there’s no AC… but this contributes to the charm of this place. You can tell it is as authentic as it gets since they literally give you the option to order whatever thai food you want even if it’s not on the menu.
My favorites include the green mango salad, papaya salad, chicken wings, green curry, and thai basil fried rice with chicken. The fried rice is by far my favorite… the basil is so fragrant and the rice is the perfect consistency.
If you like spicy food, this is definitely the place for you. I made the mistake of ordering something «hot» and my mouth felt like it was on fire the rest of the night. Low heat is already flamin hot cheeto hot so gauge it from there.
There’s parking in the back or else on the street in the front.

I’ve ordered from Karta Thai about 10 times over the last year and a half — or whenever they first opened on Central Ave NE in Minneapolis. I absolutely love their food, not to mention their prices are extremely reasonable compared to other Thai food restaurants around the area. (Example: True Thai, Amazing Thailand and Pad Thai on Grand in St. Paul — all far more expensive) Things we have eaten at Karta that are all amazingly delicious:
Green Curry (with Chicken) Try their Shrimp, $ 2 more, totally worth it! Divine.
Red Curry
Pad Thai noodles
Mango and Sticky Rice (Soooo goood!)
Cream Cheese puffs
Thai Crispy fried egg rolls
Chicken Satay
Spicy curry peanut sauce — WOW — $ 1 extra per cup, I order about 3 at least. Goes on everything!
Medium is quite hot. Go for Mild or Spice Level 2 if you think you can’t handle it hot. I get mine Medium or level 2. And it’s still very flavorful.
I order from Bite Squad or just go pick it up myself. It’s a small restaurant inside, so take-​out is just fine for me. Love this place!