Amarin Thai Cuisine

Last night in SD so we found this place on Unilocal.The reviews made it seem delicious and we’ve been lucky this trip using Unilocal so we gave it a shot. Bad choice.
Tom yum soup w/​shrimp– Waaay too salty. Tasted just like fish sauce water. No sourness at all.
Pad see ew w/​chicken– again waaay too salty. Noodles were hard, like they were old. Salt is their favorite ingredient I’m seeing.
Crab fried rice– Ok, saltiness was not overpowering. Crab did not taste fresh however.
Yellow curry w/​chicken– Surprisingly very sweet. But edible compared to the other 2.
Tiger prawns in black pepper– I didn’t have any but family devoured the dish.
White rice– Soggy.
Service was decent for us coming an hour before closing.
Would I eat here the next time I’m in SD? I will definitely pass.

I have eaten at Amarin Thai with friends many times and in my opinion it is one of the best Thai restaurants in metropolitan San Diego. Their soups are wonderful, creamy tom kha, and tom yum with an edge spiciness are my favorites. Main courses are always consistently delicious and nicely presented. I have enjoyed several dishes such as cashew nut with mock duck or tofu, pad Thai, and recently had gaprow which was also very good. Service is always pleasant and attentive, with many nice wait staff people serving you. I recommend the place very highly.

Amarin where have you been all my life! I’ve known of this place for years but never had I had the desire to try it until two of our close friends were like «Hey let’s go try it! There’s a deal in Groupon!» Let me just tell you… He’s very good at finding deals, however I procrastinated and was not able to get the Groupon deal, which was okay. When we arrived there was a 20 minute wait and it was freezing outside but we were already there and we waited. Once seated the place is very cozy and quite elegant looking. I placed my order for the green seafood curry as I’d never tried it before. Once it arrived on its own fire pit thingy I wasn’t too impressed… but that quickly changed as I put that first spoon in my mouth. It was the tastiest and most delicious food I’d had in a while. I shared some with everyone and they all agreed. This place is in my top 5 now. Totally worth the wait.

They accidentally charged me twice for one meal. The first charge was $ 133.40 and the second charge was for $ 1133.40. They noticed the mistake immediately but they only refunded $ 1111.17 for the second charge.
I called them at around noon and they didn’t pick up. I emailed them and I did not get a response. This is not the first time I’ve had poor customer service here.

Good Thai food in San Diego is hard to find. Glad to have been recommended this place.
I got a text from this woman I really fancy. Our schedules have been so busy we keep missing each other. She asked if I had eaten dinner and I said no, and we made plans to meet when she got off. Fast forward to 730 and I pick her up from work. I ask if there is anywhere she’s been wanting to try or any genre she’s craving, being the caring person she is, She ask what I’m in the mood for and I said «Honestly Thai» and she smiles and said that sounds great. I mention Taste of Thai and she ask if I’ve been to Amarin and I said no. She insisted we go as the food is great.
She was telling the truth. «Wow».
Disclaimer, it may have been the lovely sight across the table that enhanced the meal but it was one of the best meals I’ve had in months. I ordered the pad Thai with mussels, shrimp and calamari. 9.5÷10. Spice level 7 was mild. Flavor and noodles were on point. She got a pad Thai with cilantro, chicken and shrimp. Really tasty as well.
Staff is great, not fancy by any means but the booths on the heated patio are winning and earn bonus points.
2 killer Thai places nearby. That is a win for sure.

Came here on a date and so Stacie can try Sticky Rice for the first time.
Groupon recently had a fantastic deal for Amarin, where you got $ 30 worth of food for $ 17 (I got an extra $ 5 off because it was my first time using the Groupon app). I had been to Amarin several times before and always loved my experience, so this was a sweet deal.
We ordered three entrees between the two of us (Drunken Noodles, Bangkok Fried Rice, and the Basil Eggplant). If you are the kind of person who orders appetizers, I would suggest getting an entrée instead– it doesn’t cost that much more and you get more food.
Seating in the restaurant can be kind of cozy on busy nights, but it’s not bad. The staff is really nice and helpful. Also, for those of you who love some heat to your food, the 1 to 10 rating is legit– so unless you eat chili seeds on the reg, don’t even think about going pass 8.
Bottom line: would definitely come here again, even without a Groupon.
Full Disclosure: I was born in Thailand and lived there for 12 years– this place is the real deal

I ordered druken noodles and tofu spring rolls. The druken noodles were way too greasy and the taste was not good.

Amarin Thai never disappoints. Their food is consistently delicious. It’s a popular spot, so occasionally there may be a little wait list, but it’s undoubtedly worth it.
Their staff is always kind, accommodating and very polite. Their wine selection is nice and so is the ambiance. This is the restaurant I missed while being in Thailand, if that tells you anything.
Many people already described the awesomeness of this place, so I am just here to tell you: GO. This is THE place for tasty Thai food! ;-)

I thought no Thai place could disappoint me until I visited this place. I usually order Spicy Basil Fried Rice at any Thai restaurant but decided to try something new this time. I went for the chicken with garlic sauce spice level 6. According to the description in the menu, it had garlic sauce, onions and cilantro in top. I love every ingredient so I was sold.
It didn’t look great when it came to the table. But hey looks don’t matter as long as it tastes good right? Wrong. If it tastes good it has to look good. Lesson learnt. I am unsure if this dish is supposed to be tasteless or they forgot to put garlic in mine. The boiled chicken chunks were not seasoned, the sauce didn’t taste garlicky at all and I couldn’t see cilantro on top.
My husband ordered cashew with tofu and it was good. Guess I should stick to my old faithful spicy basil rice the next time.

I gave this place another try and decided to get an entrée sized portion instead of the lunch special. The entrée sized portion was generous and the noodles were delicious. The staff was very friendly. The Ka Prao noodles are a great and unique dish.
I probably won’t order the green curry there again or anything with beef because of my first experience of not liking it there, but the noodles and pork and chicken are great and the staff has been very friendly every time since.

I went here for the first time with my boyfriend last week. He had been here before and he recommended it. It’s very close to Balboa Park.
We went during lunch and we ordered from their lunch special menu (which is a great deal). I had the Pad Thai Noodles and it was delicious! My boyfriend had the Pad Pik Khing and he really enjoyed his plate. We also ordered two Chai Teas (no boba included) and for dessert we had FBI $ 6.99, which is fried banana pieces with coconut ice cream in center with honey glazed :)
The food and dessert and service were good. Although they accidentally charged us for 3 Thai Teas, which they changed as soon as we noticed that wasn’t right.
Their restrooms is the only thing that kept me from giving them 5 stars. The lighting was VERY dark and the door wouldn’t close right. Which I was unable to lock, making me feel uncomfortable. Other than that, this restaurant was great. Good food :) I will include photos!

Really nice place. The service was okay. The food was delicious. Definitely coming back here.

This place has wonderful authentic flavors. The service is bland. Some of the waiters and waitresses seem unhappy to be working there. We had to get up and ask for utensils, correct our bill, gave us incorrect mp– they just seemed stressed. We go here repeatedly due to outdoor seating & groupon. Not sure we would without it.

Three stars because the food was pretty good, but I called and ordered food to go and when I got there 40 minutes later, it wasn’t ready and the ladies at the register were rude. I was standing in front of the register to pay and was ignored while all the men were helped… uhhh ok? Anyway, I finally paid and was told my food wasn’t ready so I ended up waiting another 20 minutes. One hour seems like a really long time to have to wait for food.
The long wait and the rude cashier aside, like I mentioned above, the food was pretty good. The portions were also big which I appreciated since I was able to get a couple of meals out of it. My boyfriend and I split the pad see ew with beef, penang curry with chicken, and fried rice with pork. The fried rice was tasty, the penang curry was ok, and the pad see ew was pretty good. I’d give them another shot since I live close by, but we’ll see.

Ugh. Basic Thai. No toilet paper in bathroom… But let’s get to the truly bad part. I got the shrimp with eggplant for the lunch special, 2^nd bite in. I pull a shrimp from under the white rice (even though I told her brown rice!??) and there’s a HUGE black hair on it. I suddenly lost my appetite. Waitress took my food immediately after I called her over, and didn’t even say sorry or offer me to order something else she just quickly left. WHAT? I sat there, she served the table next to me and walked away so I had to shout «excuse me???» And asked if I could see a menu again. She asked if I wanted the same dish that had a damn hair in it and I was like um no, I said I’d like to see a menu. So I got Thai rolls with tofu. The shitty part keeps coming, 3 out of 6 wraps had tofu, the other 3 were missing tofu. Can this place get anything right?!
Will not be back

It was one of those chilly December nights when you don’t feel like cooking and you’re craving something delicious, warm, and comforting. What’s the solution? Thai food!
My girlfriends and I came to Amarin for an early dinner on a Sunday and we were not disappointed at all. Since we came so early, we were seated right away. Although we were surrounded by a lovely array of wine, we knew exactly what we wanted: beer pad se eu (stir fried wide noodles with sweet soy sauce, egg, cabbage, carrots, broccoli, and cilantro) and one of their signature dishes: mambo mambo chicken (stewed chicken with sweet mango chunks in a red curry sauce) served in a lovely golden pot. Oh man… we were NOT disappointed at all. If anything, we were quickly stuffed with so much good food that we had leftovers to take home aka midnight snack/tomorrow’s lunch!
Overall, I absolutely loved their bold flavors and they weren’t afraid to use spice. For those who prefer their Thai dishes with minimal spice, I highly recommend that you give them a spice rating of 0 – 1. For those who love the heat, go for it! :)

Last week, the friends and I feasted at another pescatarian-​focused Thai place that was pretty incredible. The only thing holding us back from declaring it our new fave Thai spot was the Mad Fish at Amarin (along with other cult favorites). Unfortunately, not sure if today was a fluke, the quality of Amarin Thai had seriously gone down. While our server was nice, the wait time and quality of door was lacking. We ordered drunken noodles with shrimp, some mixed seafood dish, pad Thai and the mad fish. We ordered them at medium spice level– but with the exception of the mixed seafood dish, everything was pretty lackluster and bland. Perhaps our expectations and past experiences got the best of us or perhaps the other really good Thai place has shown us what quality dishes look like– sad to say we’re retiring our visits to this place for any/​all Thai cravings.

This is a lovely restaurant with a dark wood and purple color scheme in a relaxed atmosphere. The restaurant is clean and the service is impeccable. Prices are a bit high, but the quality is as well. We once again aimed to order the lowest carb and fat we could find on the menu, so no noodle or rice dishes for us.
The jicama lettuce wrap was flavorful, but I would have preferred butter lettuce to the one they served. The texture could have been a tad crunchier, with the jicama, so I liked it, but I don’t think I will order it again. The portion was very large.
The shrimp spring rolls were very good, but also used that lettuce I’m not a fan of. I prefer the ones at the Asian Bistro. The peanut sauce was a bit runny.
The tom kai soup was delicious, but had no spice. We added some of the powdered chili and it was amazeball.
The chicken larb had great flavour! I always love that dish. The portion was smaller than the jicama chicken and the chicken was a tad dry, but it was good.
The green chicken curry was splendid! Full of perfectly cooked vegetable and delicious curry sauce. Definitely a favorite.
The lemon grass chicken was too sweet for my test, but the person who ordered it loved it. It had no vegetables and came with rice and a fried egg.

I’m all about the groupon thai food deals. This is one of the many thai restaurant deals I’ve purchased and is certainly one of my favorites — groupon deal or no deal, I’ll definitely be back.
I came here on a Sunday afternoon for lunch. The first stop in Hillcrest before hometown touristing onto the suspension bridge on Spruce street, Balboa, and downtown. Parking was easy peasy given it was Sunday. I was able to find street parking just across on a neighborhood street. Sidenote: Amarin Thai Cuisine is sandwiched between the dive bar Alibi and a neighborhood. And the «Before I Die» wall is right next door.
We were greeted by a less than enthused hostess who showed us to a middle table. She mumbled a half-​hearted accommodating response when we asked if we could have the table by the window. There was plenty of indoor and outdoor seating, so I didn’t see why it was such an off-​putting request to ask. This odd start continued when a couple, who was seated after us, had their order taken before us. Given previous reviews applauding the wonderful customer service, I shrugged it off and attributed it to change in shift trying not to have it spoil my afternoon or appetite.
We ordered the tofu basil eggplant and organic thai bbq chicken. Being a pescatarian, I was even tempted to try the bbq chicken. It came out sizzling on a hot plate, emitting a rich smell of thai spices and lemongrass. The waitress poured some kind of yellow sauce over the chicken when she presented it on the table. Did i mention it was a HUGE half chicken portion? My boyfriend took the leftovers home and eventually made three more meals out of. He said it’s a definite recommendation.
My dish was wonderful as well. The tofu was cooked perfect, not too crisp or spongy, and the sauce was spicy and liquidy — not the congealed sauce that is sometimes associated with basil eggplant dishes. Even more, the accompanying vegetables were cooked well and just the right amount of firm. The only reason why I personally wouldn’t order this again, is because I want to try all the other dishes first! It seems like you can’t go wrong with anything off the menu.
The outstanding food trumped the par service. Next time I’ll have to try the coconut ice cream, I heard it’s a popular order.

This is a great sit-​down Thai restaurant with nice décor to really set the mood. This place is great for a romantic dinner or a classy dinner with friends. The staff are always friendly and attentive, making sure to consistently check in on me throughout my meal.
I always come here to order the same meal — drunken noodles with shrimp. This dish is supposed to be on the oily side as it is cooked on high heat to char the vegetables. They seem to add a lot of garlic to it which makes it extra yummy. The vegetables tasted fresh and wasn’t overcooked. The shrimp were sizeably meaty and cooked well. In my opinion, this place has the best drunken noodles I’ve tried.
Their appetizers and curries are also good, but I always find myself ordering the drunken noodles here. So, if you’re looking for that perfect drunken noodle, look no further!
Tip: Check out for Groupon deals as they seem to be listed there often.

Great thai place is a trendy neighborhood! I’ve had food here a few times, but always picked up. I finally dined in and the experience was great! The service was quick and friendly and they had plenty of seats. I never realized they had an entire other room in the back, which is awesome.
We ordered the pineapple fried rice, which comes out in a real pineapple! Great display. I ordered the spicy green beans with tofu (all entrees come with either brown or white rice which is nice), and my boyfriend ordered some noodles. The other person we were with ordered the green curry. Everything came out together and quickly.
The only downside – parking can be tough. Also, the waitress who was probably just trying to be helpful, told my party of 3 that we didn’t need to order that because we already had enough food. Ironic, since waitresses are usually pushing food on people and telling them to order more. I agree, we did have more than enough food, but we are fans of leftovers (especially on a Sunday for lunch the next day).

I have a few standard Thai dishes I love, including green curry. It was pretty average here and I was surprised it didn’t come in a bowl… it looked more like a stir fry dish because there really wasn’t much of the coconut cream mixed with the curry. The flavor was okay but out of 1 – 10 on the heat index, I ordered an 8. I figured that would be spicy enough but it seriously tasted like they didn’t put any pepper into it at all.
Before picking this dish, I had originally wanted to order the panang curry but it didn’t come with any vegetables in it. They were going to charge me an extra $ 3 if I wanted veggies added. If shrimp costs $ 3 extra, why does broccoli? Pass.

Amarin is on my list of my top 5 favorite Thai places in San Diego. The only thing holding it back from a 5 star review is the consistency. The noodles, including drunken and pad thai, are consistent; but the curries and rices dishes are hit or miss. If you stick to noodle dishes, this is a great place to eat. They are open late on weekends too!
I love the décor, it’s relaxing yet elegant. The service is usually friendly and fast. I usually order a spicy level ⁶⁄₇ and it’s hot enough to burn but not quite make my nose run. ha!
Overall, I’m a fan and I’ll be back.

The Tom Kha is always one of my favorites.
I judge a Thai place based on their Pad Thai and Pad Kee Mao but they forgot my Pad Kee Mao order and the Pad Thai was good, strong flavors.
Yellow curry was okay but the rice was dry so I ended up just taking the curry home to eat with my own rice tomorrow, lol.
They’ve got a cute Halloween menu and if you like pumpkin spice + crème brûlée, you’re in luck!
The pumpkin spice crème brûlée was so good, I may come back tomorrow for an order to go.
Spicy level 7 is «medium.»

San Diego’s Amarin Thai cuisine is A quaint and cozy tiny little hole in a wall on the very residential Richmond St. Very understated and quite hidden from all the hustle and bustle, this location is known to locals for excellent Thai fare and we wanted to check it out to see what the hype was all about.
You park in front of houses and at busy times, it is best to take a lyft or über to avoid the frustration of driving around the houses, block after block, over and over, hopelessly looking for a spot to park your vehicle, like we did!!! Patience is a virtue and we had a large appetite to forget about the parking woes.:
We entered through what looked like a normal House’s door and inside we found a modern yet unpretentious décor. They have taken a Thai California theme and the wall art is an Interesting array of black painted wooden frames housing colorful hard-​cushioned pillows. The service is super fast and the menu is filled with detailed descriptions and elaborate photos to Insure the lack of English proficiency of the Staff is more Than compensated when ordering.
The hype was all true; every dish we ordered was memorable and authentic. The Tom Yum Soup with chicken was super loaded with chicken and was wow factor, lemony and spicy like it is supposed to be. The Shrimp salad roll was light and filled with shrimp, there was no skimping on this light and low fat appetizer. The steamed dumplings were very very delicate and tasty. After all these starters, we ordered the bbq chicken which came sizzling on a hot platter with two
Sauces; it was amazing, tender and juicy, bursting with Thai flavour; we kept things light by ordering a small side of yummy sticky rice and steamed vegetables.
Again super fast service is to be expected but aside
From big smiles, expect «you order we serve» experience from the staff as the menus are very detailed with accompanying photographs for added guidance.
We were way too full for dessert and the visit was very memorable; will definitely return when in town craving a Thai food fix!

Amarin Fish in a ginger lime broth for $ 16 is the most consistent dish at Amarin Thai in Hillcrest. This light and tasty dish is always a winner. However, Amarin Thai can be inconsistent when it comes to other dishes.
The chicken was tough on our recent visit. The chicken skewers were tough, and the chicken on my drunken noodles wasn’t tender either. Our group shared the Starter Combo for $ 14.99, but the quality was a bit disappointing. My Little Mermaid (shrimp) was fishy, and I didn’t finish it. My chicken skewer was tough and kinda chewy. My egg roll was decent, but the Thai wrap was kinda dry and flavorless. The Tofu Tod was the best part of the Starter Combo, as tofu is interesting when it’s crisped on the outside.
The Drunken Noodles with chicken for $ 9.99 wouldn’t win any awards this time. The bell peppers were a little too soft, and the rice noodles were a bit soggy, compared to the texture I usually expect from Drunken Noodles, which I often enjoy in many Thai restaurants. The chicken was tough and overcooked.
A glass of Italian Pinot Grigio was exceptionally good for $ 9. They have a nice wine selection at Amarin Thai. The atmosphere is casual enough for a gathering of friends, and yet nice enough for a date.
The staff has never once recognized any of my family or friends, even though we’ve been here numerous times. This makes the service efficient, but impersonal.
I debated between 2 or 3 stars for Amarin Thai. Since the price has gradually gone up, but the quality has gone down, 2 stars seems appropriate.