Sawasdee Thai Cuisine

Amazing!!! Delicious food comparable to actual Thai food found in Thailand. Everything is delicious. Can’t go wrong.

One of the better Pad Thai dishes I’ve found in Sacramento, but still not quite the perfect Pad Thai. it’s missing a certain tang in my humble opinion. Service was quick and pleasant, portion size was generous but also commiserate with cost
There’s also a special for a free Thai Tea with a Unilocal review if you dine in, which I wasn’t able to take advantage of. I’m only mentioning it because I didn’t see it anywhere other than reviews so I want to make sure future patrons know to ask for that (and let me know how it tastes)!

I’ve been on a midtown food eating spree checking out some of the top eatery’s in the area. As I am a huge Thai food fan, I decided to check this restaurant out due to its awesome reviews. (But really, the option for free Thai tea drew me in. Haha!) On a side note, this location has changed from a Mongolian BBQ, to a Vietnamese food place, to possibly another type of restaurant. Hopefully this place stays here for a bit though.
I came here on a somewhat busy Sunday, but my friend and I were able to get seated right away. Sat down and was promptly helped by our waitress who was very friendly and full of smiles. We decided to order our usuals… Chicken Pad Thai and Chicken Yellow Curry.
The Pad Thai was absolutely flavorful. I’m a big critic when it comes to Pad Thai, but this one was pretty damn good. Not too sweet, but definitely more than enough flavor. The Chicken Yellow Curry was pretty on point too!
Overall, had a great experience here and considering that it’s walking distance from my apartment, I will definitely have to come back and try other things on the menu. When you come, don’t forget to ask about how you can get your free Thai Tea! Any free stuff is worth asking for, right?! =)

Came with my co-​workers for lunch. It was ok. Not as crowded as I thought it was going to be. My colleagues ordered spicy basil chicken and I got the Bangkok noodle bowl. Will try something different next time. For the free tea you have to show them your Unilocal review. No wonder there are so many five star reviews.

This place has quick service, and room for large groups. They were very accommodating. The food was good.
The salmon panang was on the small side, but delicious. The Thai iced tea was large.
I’d go again next time I’m in Sacramento!

Great Thai food in Midtown. They were able to accommodate our party of 10 with little notice. Tom Ka and crab pad Thai were yummy.

Ordered the Crab Pad Thai– huge plate, lots of crab! Flavor was alright.
Staff is great and accommodated our 10 ppl group on short notice.

Let us bow our heads in a moment of silence, as we remember Mongo Mongo BBQ, a restaurant sorely missed and sadly replaced with some mediocre Thai restaurant called Sawasdee.
How this place is so popular eludes me. It must be the location. There’s no way this food merits five stars. Four at best. We got the appetizer sampler and pumpkin curry. Everything on the sampler was exceedingly average. Spring rolls, chicken satay, even my favorite pot stickers were just lame. How do you mess up pot stickers? The curry was fine but definitely did not earn its fifteen dollar price tag. Pumpkin is not worth an extra two dollars. They didn’t get my order right the first time which seemed simple enough (no bell peppers). They fixed it though so that didn’t affect my rating. But they never asked how spicy I wanted it so it wasn’t at all. Come on now.
Maybe it’s just that I’m in a shitty mood from yet another argument with my mother. Maybe Thai food actually all sucks equally and I only just noticed it. Whatever it is I don’t think I’m coming back.

I love Thai food and especially seeing the great Unilocal reviews, I was even more excited to check Sawasdee out!
Sawasdee is located on J street and there is no parking lot, only street parking. My bf and I had made reservations the day before for a party of 5 just in case we needed it because we had an event to attend to right after dinner. We were planning on dining there with our friends. When we walked in, the restaurant was not busy at all. There were maybe only 2 other tables that were occupied so we didn’t mention anything about our reservation.
We were all seated immediately, given menus, and our drink orders written down. My bf and I ordered the Avocado curry and chicken Pad Thai. We ordered both of the dishes as Thai spicy hot. My friend ordered Crab Pad Thai and some Spring Rolls.
The food came out in a timely manner and the customer service was excellent. There were no problems with that at all. The Spring Rolls were okay. The chicken Pad Thai that we ordered was honestly probably one of the worse Pad Thai I’ve ever had. You know how Pad Thai usually has a sweet flavor to it? This one didn’t have that sweet taste or anything for that matter. It was just bland. There was no flavor. All I tasted was noodles, oil, and Thai chili flakes because we ordered Thai spicy hot. I thought I was going crazy until my bf said that he didn’t like the Pad Thai because it had no flavor. I asked for more lime wedges to try and give the dish some flavor, but even that couldn’t save it. The waitress brought out some condiments in case we wanted to add it to our Pad Thai. Now I’m not so sure if we just got a bad batch of Pad Thai and the cook forgot to add some ingredients in there or if their Pad Thai is supposed to be bland so that we can add the condiments in there? Who knows, but I couldn’t eat it.
Thai spicy hot was more like medium spicy level. My nose didn’t run and I wasn’t huffing and puffing.
The Avocado Curry actually had flavor and was not bad at all. It was okay. I’ve had better at other Thai restaurants, but unfortunately, this was considered the best dish out of all of the dishes that were ordered that night.
My friend didn’t like her Crab Pad Thai at all. She barely ate it and was actually digging at her bf’s dish since she didn’t like hers. I tried the Crab Pad Thai and didn’t like it either. It just didn’t taste right using crab as the protein for Pad Thai.
Overall, the service was great, and everyone was super nice. It was the food that just didn’t quite meet my standards. I just wished I received the food that everyone else has been receiving that gave the place rave reviews.

Came here on a Sunday night around 8:45p and the place was pretty empty. Had tom kha, massaman curry, sriracha fried rice, and spicy drunken noodles. Definitely more than enough food for two people and leftovers were taken. The tom kha soup was delicious, very rich in flavor. It was my first time ordering tom kha soup and won’t be my last. The drunken noodles were very spicy (got the level above medium) and that spice was just intensified in the leftovers. The sriracha rice was okay, not as much spice as I would have liked. I was not impressed by the massaman curry and don’t think I’ll order curry here next time.
I do not like that you have to leave a review on the spot to receive the free Thai tea, I like to ponder my reviews before leaving them (and also have my food first), they also don’t have fountain soda and charge $ 1.50 for a can.

I’m writing a review for the free Thai tea (though their sign says you can get either potstickers or Thai tea, apparently 12pm is too early to get the potsticker option for some reason).
AMBIENCE: We came here around noon on a Sunday and we were the first party to come. There was a nice painting along one wall with a relaxing gradient and silhouettes of jungle animals. The rest of the décor was very lowkey and nothing too notable.
FOOD: They can not sub food items and extra vegetables cost $ 1.50. On weekends, there is no lunch special, only dinner prices.
$ 14 — Drunken noodles with chicken. Very moist noodles with broccoli, bits of basil, and bell peppers. The flavor was like most drunken noodles I’ve tried but with a little less chicken than other nearby restaurants
$ 15.95 — Mango Salmon Curry — There is a pretty good ratio of mango and salmon in it. Pretty tasty and for the omega-​3s, I suppose the price was worth it.
$ 6 — Panic IPA, it’s a pretty light and hoppy IPA. I generally don’t drink beers but it was pretty bomb
One great plus is that this location has all the authentic spices that should be given on a spice rack; jalepeño vinegar, dried Chilli, Chilli sauce, chilli oil, and Thai Chillis in fish sauce.
OVERALL: I would rate this place a solid 3.75, the food was pretty good but not notably better than other Thai places for a more expensive price. I would come again if I were around the area.

I was in town for a concert and was hungry, all I wanted was Thai food. I found this place and with all these reviews, I was skeptical but decided to give it a try. Service was good, not super friendly but nice enough. But the food was so good! Wow some of the best Thai food I’ve ever had! We ordered the coconut soup, tea, Thai tea, drunken noodle, sweet & sour vegetables, and the fresh spring rolls.
I have had a lot of coconut soup in my life — but the flavor of this was incredible!
The drunken noodle soup was spicy, our noses were dripping — I was surprised t was medium — but oh so good! So, so good. I’m making myself hungry again for it. If you’re in the area definitely try it out! Parking is on the street and was super easy around 5:30!

I came here on a Thursday evening as a dinner party of 4. This place caught my attention due to its 1200+ reviews.
The décor of the place is cute, but not noteworthy. The place is good for group dinners, not recommended for dates. There’s an outside patio which appears to be for outdoor dining, but no tables or chairs. Street parking can be a pain, I would recommend parking at the nearby BevMo lot.
In terms of service, the waitresses got mine and my friends order wrong. My vegetarian pad Thai was supposed to come with tofu, but they forgot it in my dish. My friend asked for it added in her chili sauce dish and they forgot for her as well. Where’s my tofu? They did toss in tofu upon request, so I suppose that was fine.
The second friend ordered the steak (who orders steak at a Thai place, right?). He was not asked how rare or well he wanted the meat. The meat was part medium rare, part medium well. It was lacking spice but the tables have plenty of spice racks, so disaster averted.
The third friend ordered Thai curry, which was very runny, but had great flavor. The chili sauce with eggplant was super spicy and good as well. My pad Thai was below mediocre in flavor. (I judge Thai places based on this very common dish). I do not recommend the Pad Thai here. I do recommend the Thai assorted platter for the appetizer, the fried spring rolls were great. The Thai tea was generous in serving, oddly served in a flower vase.
They brought out the check before we were done eating, didn’t ask to box our stuff, didn’t offer dessert. Etiquette is lacking here.
On the upside, they’re open until 10pm while other local Thai places close at 9pm (which is how we ended up here). Will be trying out other local Thai places next time!

The Thai tea is so delicious, I would come back for that just alone. I had the pad see ew and it was a large serving so there were left overs. It’s a small restaurant the service could be better.

I’m sad writing this review considering the really good review score but it just wasn’t good. A telling sign that a Thai restaurant isn’t good is the number of bell peppers in their dishes. In Thailand, they do not use bell peppers. Why do they in America, I have no idea.
My husband ordered his curry Thai level spicy and it was watery and not spicy at all. The other two dishes we had were oily with decent flavors but not 4.5 Unilocal caliber.
The only good thing was that the food wasn’t expensive and rice came free with entrees.

Cute Thai restaurant, a fairly quick detour from Tahoe, offers interesting specialties like avocado curry and crispy pork belly. Loved that there is easy parking (and free on Sundays!), and that food came out lightning fast! What drew me in initially were the high volume of great reviews, but it was clear after a lackluster visit that the Unilocal reviews are due to the free Thai Tea or Potstickers deal.
Pad Thai ($ 14) 3 STARS — Expensive but large portion of very bland pad Thai. Noodles were decently al dente, there wasn’t much chicken.
Potstickers 2 STARS — free with Unilocal review. 4 very mediocre potstickers.
Mango sticky rice ($ 6.50) 5 STARS — AMAZING. So delicious, perfectly sweet and chewy rice.

FOOD
— Avocado Curry: chicken, avocado, red & green bell peppers, green beans, and basil in green curry. Tasty with a slight kick. The meat was tender enough. 3.75÷5
— Basil Chicken: ground chicken, onions, green beans, and red & green bell peppers with a side of white rice. Tons of flavor, ever so slightly salty. Medium spicy is pretty spicy. My nose is starting drip. Lol. 4.5÷5
— Drunken Noodles: flat rice noodles, eggs, broccoli, red & green bell peppers, basil, and added shrimp with a side salad. Very tasty but salty. Again, the medium spicy was a little too spicy for me. I guess it works out because it’s freezing in here. My food is definitely warming me up! Lol. ⁴⁄₅
— Thai Iced Tea: fresh and sweet. Free if you complete your Unilocal review before leaving. 4.5÷5
SERVICE
We were greeted and seated immediately. The server was friendly. She checked on us once during our meal. ⁴⁄₅
FINAL THOUGHTS
I would come back to try other things.

In case you were wondering, the free thai tea is promised if you write a Unilocal review on the spot for them/​by the time you pay. I wasn’t super down to do that so I’m writing it now — but this totally saves you from asking! YAY.
This place is in an old car garage — it’s pretty cute location wise! Very open space with lots of windows and light!
I thought the customer service was decent, the food was nothing special to write about, but I thought the food came out fast and our server was really polite!
I had the mango curry with salmon and I just felt that the flavor of the curry was there but it was waaaay too watery. I ate about half my meal and took it home to eat for lunch the next day and it tasted a lot better once it sat for a bit — thickened up and the flavors developed! The thai tea I ordered was good, it came in a fairly large carafe and had a nice strong flavor!
So overall, I’m going to come back and try something new because it’s promising, but not amazing yet! Price point is decent, the customer service and ambience is great, but the food just isn’t too great to me so far — but I’m going to try it again!

Co-worker’s recommendation led me here. I walked in, got a table, looked about at the House Special sign and then menu. I finally settled on Pad Thai with seafood combination and, thanks to this promised Unilocal review, a free Thai iced tea.
Soon after I ordered I got a small cup of soup. Looked like a vegetable chicken soup. Was disappointed it was lukewarm, but flavor was very good. And the free Thai iced tea that came out, HOLY MOLY it’s delicious; So, expectations raised!
Food came next and as you can see was very pretty. And turned out to be delicious and especially important to me, HOT! Temperature hot, that is.
I also liked that the bean sprouts, coleslaw –looking stuff, and ground peanuts weren’t just dumped on top, but instead to the side. By putting those things to the side I was able to enjoy bites in different combinations (e.g., with or without peanuts, with or without beans sprouts, etc.).
Anyway, the spice rating on the «stock» seafood combination Pad Thai is very low to low, however, all that was needed was to ask for hot sauce. And voila! instantly a carousel of hot deliciousness was presented – word to the wise, the little peppers (probably Thai) in liquid may not seem like much and maybe don’t sting much at first as you chew ‘em, but they WILL.CATCH.UP and there will be hell to pay!
I dunno what you get packaged up in to-​go orders, but given the ambiance, service, and carousel of hot deliciousness (see pic), I recommend you do yourselves a favor and dine-​in.
Pretty sure I’ll be back.

During my visit at Sawasdee I ordered their red chicken curry. The red curry had a nice aroma and wasn’t overly flavored with coconut milk. Very delicious and satisfying.
The service at Sawasdee wasn’t as impressive as the food. Little attention for follow ups during the meal. There was an exception to this, a Thai looking guy waiter who ended my meal was great! Very polite, water refilled, storage containers, and also brought the check immediately.