Papaya Thai Bistro Review

What does Papaya Thai Bistro have to offer?  Delicious and tasty Thai cuisine, fast customer service, and friendly atmosphere. If you’re someone who thoroughly enjoys the blast of flavor that Thai food is best known for, then Papaya won’t do you wrong.  The restaurant, located in the busy Diamond Jamboree center in Irvine, has everything a Thai cuisine fan could wish for.

I entered on a busy Saturday night, in search of a quick, filling meal that would satisfy my taste buds. Usually there is no wait line, but the restaurant is fairly full. If you do have to wait, it’s never long. The place is clean, decorated colorfully and my family and I suited it comfortably. We shared Pad Thai, chicken fried rice, and Tom Yum Koong soup. Their food portions were more than enough to feed our whole family of four, for we left the restaurant with food comas and exhausted tummies. The Pad Thai was the best I had ever tasted, bursting with its sweet and salty flavor and delicious noodles. The chicken fried rice was good as well, enticing us with its fragrant aroma. As for the Tom Yum Koong soup, it couldn’t have represented itself better. Usually my family and I can handle the spiciness and sweet and sour flavor of the famous Thai broth, but this particular one had us beat and reminding ourselves next time to order it without the overwhelming spiciness.

In addition, their fresh Thai tea was just as I imagined it would be, sweet and refreshing. I have been a frequent customer for the past year, also trying the fish cakes, chicken satay and beef salad, which were different from other Thai restaurants, but we all know that variety is the spice of life. Their menu is filled with many different entrees, lunch combos, drinks and dessert, including ice cream. They serve pho as well, which impressed me because it was surprisingly delicious. Unfortunately, I haven’t tried any of their desserts because I never seem to have enough room left in my stomach.

I’m still puzzled as to why Papaya never has as much customers as other restaurants, like their next door neighbor BCD Tofu House, who always seems to have a long wait line. Papaya’s waiters and waitresses are always helpful give recommendations on which dishes to try, especially for newcomers. I suggest that if you have a big appetite, go for this place. Otherwise, share a plate with another person or order your own smaller combo plate. It’s a pretty satisfying and solid A experience for me every time, although I don’t enjoy the bloated feeling after finishing my meal. I can’t ask more of this restaurant!