Kinn Kao Northern Thai Kitchen (NE Portland)

FINALLY a Thai place that makes their spicy food truly spicy!! From the first bite I knew it was going to hit the spot. Really great food and killer spice. Can't wait to bring my spice-chasing dad here.

Delicious northern Thai style street food served in a twinkly mirrored room. The loungy tables and music add to a discotheque vibe. (It's totally quiet enough for conversations though!) If you're familiar with Portland Thai food, Pok Pok is probably is probably most comparable, with the food at Kinn Kao being equally good, plentiful, and quite a bit cheaper. Looking forward to coming back for happy hour soon!

OH. MY. GOSH!!! 😍🙏 Kinn Kao, we love you! We are visiting Portland from out of state and had such a long, hard day of travel. We ordered takeout from you, and wow, where do I start?!! The FOOD!! The food is INCREDIBLE - we are Thai connoisseurs, and consider your food among the best we’ve ever had. Bravo. But ALSO..!!! The care you took in ensuring our order was fresh, correct temperature, and well-presented was nothing short of above and beyond (ice around the homemade mango ice cream to keep it cold?!). You have no idea what such thoughtfulness meant to us after such a hard day. Thank you 🙏 We’d give you 20 stars if we could!!

We walked in around 10:30pm on a Sunday. Felt like we had the whole place to ourselves. Beautifully decorated and very clean. I had to double check the location twice because we were going to Kinn Kao and the sign said Sweet Basil. The waiter made some suggestions right away and we settled on their Peek Kai chicken wings, duck larb, green curry, and their Trout with Mango Salad. All I have to say is that we have traveled many places in the US and Asia and this was probably some of the best Thai food we have had! Delicious drinks!

Raving about this place! First off, we are from Minnesota and have visited Portland several times. We love the diverse food scene here. We were searching for a place for Thai and it was close to 11pm when we walked in. First off, we were confused because they have a sign with 4 Thai restaurant names on it including Kinn Kao. We weren’t sure if we were in the right place. You HAVE to be able to climb stairs in order to access the restaurant. The restaurant was well decorated, light and airy. With white table cloths and nice place settings, we felt we were in a higher end restaurant. Later on, while enjoying our meal, it felt like we were having dinner in a Thai family’s formal dining room. I can’t say enough about the quality of the food here! We’ve traveled to Thailand and eaten all over Bangkok and Phuket over 10 days. While there, we often found ourselves enjoying the hotel restaurant food quality more so than most of what we found for sale on the street. Our American palettes are used to the rich Thai flavors we find here in the US. We had the pad thai, duck larb salad (duck is the best protein to pick for larb because it’s a fattier meat and the umami is on point), a chicken green curry dish, and a fried trout dish with mango papaya salad. I have been looking for a really good spicy green curry like you can find on most street corners in Bangkok and it’s been tough to find stateside. This one was pretty tasty. We were the only dine in customers this late in the evening but we saw at least 10 people come in to pick up take out! I believe they have a back patio but with it being winter and rainy, we didn’t view this area. I had one delicious rum cocktail that put me to sleep immediately upon arriving home. You should head on into this place when you’re in the area!

placed an order through doordash. the store gave my order to the wrong person. my dasher came in and told me they had already gave it away, and would not remake it. i called the store repeatedly to try and sort things out and they blatantly ignored me. letting it ring. the customer service was terrible on their part and my dasher even kindly offered to pay for it. i said no as its not their responsibility but i will not be coming here to eat given this experience. extremely let down on their poor planning. be wary placing take outs as they may not pay enough attention as to who they are giving the orders to.

Great Northern Thai food. They have a great little cozy lounge space in the back of the space and a happy hour menu through 7pm.

While I've had better thai food, this is the only place I've found in my 5 years of living in Portland that still makes their food spicy, recommend for heat lovers. Will return

好吃可推荐（汤类msg* ） 大部分时候都在边吃边点头 这是家有真东西的泰餐 整体好吃 但缺少令人惊艳的亮点 菜单出品多，往往难以做到真精。 【Pad thai】好吃 终于 找到不齁甜的Pad Thai 高质量的粉 弹滑不粘塌 高技巧的炒 清爽不油腻 锅气有功夫 不露声色均匀夹攒在齿间 【鸭肉咖喱】 好吃 鸭肉酥松，肉质柔软细腻 口感醇和 ，没有过度调味，缺点是鸭味不突出 咖喱酱醇厚 吃的到的新鲜杵出汁 调味热烈柔和并存 香料馥郁果味清香 【冬阴功】 不错 非常鲜爽刺激 层次丰富能吃到各式配料的可口鲜活 芹菜香茅味型突出 【冬阴椰奶】 不错 椰奶味淡，更强调原汤 没有盲跟美国主流泰餐的厚椰风格，坚持做自己的东西，椰汁柔和冬阴功的热烈 【烤猪肉】不错 甜咸适中 细嚼很有韵味，再加糯米入口在齿间细腻碾磨，增加米香糯感并且吸凝肉汁 非常妙，习惯了大口嚼肉的肉食者的可能疑惑肉柴无法欣赏 【芒果糯米饭】一般 甜度没问题 糯米粘作一团 芒果质量一般 看颜色便知果味淡 不甜不酸 口味整体还行 跟LA Sweet Rice 差距很远

They only had takeout as an option but my family and I came all the way from Seattle at 12am, they were kind enough to let us sit down just for the one time and eat on their dining tables. Food was amazing and host was so nice and kind. I recommend the House Curry.

Please open the dining room/bar back up! We loved having this little spot in the neighborhood.

Ordered ahead online and wait time was only within 30 mins on a weekday evening. Mind you that when we went the phone was ringing off the hook and there were already groups ahead of us so keep that in mind when ordering - generally a good sign in my book as well! We ended up picking up and they do share a space with other restaurants so you'll see the pick up location has multiple signs. It looks like they have a cool indoor and even outdoor seating area but they were closed at this time. Food was ready by the time we got there but if you're ordering online I would just look at the table with the orders as they might be busy updating status. | WHAT WE GOT | + Coconut Shrimp + 2 Chicken (Kai Todd) (comes with sticky rice and sauce) + Gang Hoh (Curry noodle with glass noodles) + Pad Thai (with chicken) + Thai Tea ____________________ Portions here are hefty and menu is extensive! The winners from what we ordered this time would be the fried chicken and curry noodle. The chicken had a nice seasoned batter and loved that it came with sticky rice and a side sauce that was like a curry as well. Two pieces were much larger than expected as well - I was thinking standard chicken wings. The curry noodle was also a unique entree that I've never had before. Great flavors and plenty of veggies to pair with the combination of proteins. The coconut shrimp was coated well and came with a side fruit salad but probably better fresh than after our drive back. The pad thai was solid but more on the dry side if you don't like it too saucy. Thai tea was great to wash everything down as well! ____________________ Although busy service was friendly and handled the busy rushes well during our visit. Be sure to check them out!

Not many Thai places have Happy Hours but the new and improved space below Sweet Basil Thai does. Kinn Kao has an intimate, quiet and romantic feel to it. As with most HH's you can order from the regular menu or HH menu. I opted for the HH Menu so I could try 2 different dishes. I had the Kai Todd and the Tom Kah. The Tom Kah was very good and a nice portion for $4.75. The Kai Todd was lacking a little in flavor and spice but good however. Pepper was the bartender and server and did a fantastic job. I look forward to trying many more dishes here. Cheers

We've only ordered takeout from this restaurant but every time we do, we crave it again immediately. Lots of wonderful dishes that aren't really found at other Thai restaurants. The Khao Soi, Northern Rice, and Chiang Mai Sausage are true standouts for us and their Crab Rangoon is some of the best I've ever had.

Excellent new menu in a long time appealing bar. I've always enjoyed the vibe here: the owner of the upstairs restaurant renovated the first floor that now includes lots of mirrors and cool seating. The large back room and adjoining nook are ideal for socializing. The Happy Hour menu rocks. They tout the fried chicken and it was very good while their version of Pad Thai is excellent. A friend ordered a dish with black rice and it's now on my must try list. Last week I returned a Thai Iced Tea at another restaurant as it tasted off. Here, it's one of the best I've had. In sum, this simple staple drink is not the same wherever you go. The first cocktail menu drink listed, a Thai Mojito made with coconut rum, was super delicious and ample. Love this place.

Friendly northern Thai restaurant slash bar located on the first floor of Sweet Basil, with daily happy hours from 5:00-7:00. My partner and I tried the fresh wraps (mixed vegetables, sweet basil, mint, cilantro, and tofu wrapped in rice paper and served with peanut sauce), the moo ping (skewers of barbequed pork shoulder marinated with sweet sesame sauce served with a spicy lime sauce and sticky rice), and the classic kai todd (Kinn Kao's signature northern-style fried chicken served with a hot curry sauce and sticky rice). Very good food undercut somewhat by the place's peculiar ambiance -- lots of mirrors and long lines of ceiling lights and cheesy '60s music ("The Girl from Ipanema"). Perhaps had we been drinking cocktails rather than beer the food and the decor would have made more sense. Still, tasty dishes and customer-friendly happy hours prices.

Here is what is impressive! We ordered take out one night and the food was not good. The owner reached out and offered to not only re-make the food but deliver the next day to make sure we had a better experience. It was a 100% different experience and truly was impressive. They showed that they really care about quality and the customer experience. I can't say enough about how truly impressive this was. Thank you!

I love Thai food and my husband and I keep coming back Sweet Basil to enjoy their wonderful traditional Thai cuisine for many years. And now Kinn Kao offers us another great flavor of northern Thai food. Khao Soi is one of my favorite noodle soup! I can't wait for ordering other dishes and exploring new delicious flavors. Highly recommend to all Thai food lovers!

My husband and I really enjoyed the food here at Kinn Kao! I had the Pad Se Ew and my husband had the Chaing Mai Thai Sausage with sticky rice and Jaeow Lime Sauce. Both were dishes were served quickly and we ate every last bite of it! Oh, And the Tamarind Margarita was SO delicious! To make things even better, our server Jonnie was so attentive, gracious, and kind! We've definitely found our favorite "after work" spot- we will for sure be going back!

This food honestly changed my life. I love southern Thai food very much, but, until Kinn Kao, I had never had northern Thai food. I dream about this food. Order yourself the Khao Soi and Kai Todd and thank me later. Delicious. Reasonably priced. Friendly staff. Highly recommend.

This restaurant has amazing northern Thai food. Very delicious and authentic. They even have happy hour from 5 to 7. I had their Yum Nuae Nam Tok (bbq beef salad)- which was amazing. And the Khao Soi (norther Thai curry with egg noodles) was incredible.

Sooooooo good! The deep fried pork belly is my FAV! And their lime spicy sauce is the perfect blend of tart and salt! The drunken balls (fried basil chicken) are also a huge favorite! Awesome vibe in the restaurant as far as decor goes as well, very cute for dates or for solo book reading by the window. It's hard to find a place that can cater to both!

Kinn Kao is a great spot for Northern Thai food..yuuum! Their fried chicken is to die for as well as their pad thai and sticky rice...soo many dishes to try. The staff and lovely as are the owners who are a valuable asset to our community. They have Authentic chefs from Thailand and we are so fortunate they really know their stuff. Cant wait to go back!

Kinn Kao Table and Bar was really disappointing due to it's poor service and quality of food. Service: The host/bartender didn't seem to have it together. He frequently would yell across the restaurant to other patrons about their drink order or how they would like their food. He tried to deliver food to us that clearly wasn't ours (we ordered like a minute prior) and overall, just seemed forgetful. Additionally, our plates and silverware had crusty rice stuck to them. The meal I ordered was horrible. Cooked completely wrong and lacked just about every characteristic and quality it should have contained. It was a hot, soggy mess that wasn't the least bit crispy or crunchy. Do not order the Khao Tod. The one redeeming quality was my Thai tea was good.

Kinn Kao was definitely a place to enjoy. There were a variety of experiences and food that made this place somewhere eager to come back to. Let's start with the service. Service: It wasn't anything special, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. They all did their jobs well and had charisma to go along with it. It didn't seem they were just doing their job, but were genuinely intrigued into understanding how the overall dining experience was going. Both our servers made sure we went through multiple choices and recommendations before giving our personal choices. Atmosphere: Suprisingly delightful. When walking in from the outside, the place seemed rather small and almost desolate. Despite its outer appearance however, inside is a differently story. They add their unique twist to their lighting and the tables were all very clean. The long lines of lights on the rooftop (almost like christmas lights) added a different type of method to enhance the overall experience. Music was good, people were kind, and the store slowly began to pick up; none intervened with me and my girlfriend's dinner. Food: Of course, the food is what we need to talk about, that's why you're reading this post. We ordered 3 dishes, Pad Thai, Northern Rice, and Tom Kha. The Pad Thai was decent and tasted like any other pad thai. I mean that completely innocently however, since Pad Thai generally can taste very similar across a multitude of restaurants. The Northern Rice was definitely the star of the show. The chicken was cooked to a perfect temperature, the crispiness was there, and the best part was just how juicy it was. I'm a huge fan of chicken being fresh and juicy, it's honestly one of the best duos out there at least for me personally. It definitely holds a place in my heart as one of the top chicken dishes I have ever had. Combined with the Northern rice and vegetables created one of the best dishes there. Lastly the Tom Kha, for me was slightly underwhelming. There were a multitude of spices and veggies in the soup which provided a taste that I PERSONALLY did not enjoy. However, this was a dish my girlfriend wanted more so than I, so I can't really knock something down for not enjoying that dish. All I know though is that my girlfriend quickly destroyed that bowl within minutes and couldn't eat anything else because her attention was fully placed on the Tom Kha. Overall, it's a wonderful time with great food and people. The only reason I give it a 4/5 is simply due to the fact that I have yet to try everything there and I didn't get to enjoy any of the drinks at the bar (by the way looked pretty cool). Everyone should definitely be willing to come here either if they are a Thai food connoisseur or want to expand their food options. YOU WON'T BE DISAPPOINTED!

Kinn Kao was pretty good. I'm a bit of a northern Thai food snob, so perhaps take this with a grain of salt. The food, as I said, was pretty good, but it wasn't as good as I know it can be. The khao tod wasn't as crispy or as zingy as it should be. The sai oua was a little under-seasoned and the consistency was a little too uniform, like a bratwurst, but I like the add of pork rinds to the dish. The gang hoh was good, but a bit sweet. Highlight was the friend chicken wings, which my husband loooooved, and which were huge. I'm going to stick with Chiang Mai for now, where the food is more authentic and really knocks my socks off. That said, the cocktails look great and this would be a great place to enjoy happy hour in the sunshine, so I'm sure I'll be back. And The Mercury swears the khao soi gai is the best in town, so perhaps I'll try that next time.

This is a 3.5 star for me but they won't let me give half stars, lol! This is a cute little spot on the first floor of Sweet Basil - I believe it's the same owner/same kitchen, Sweet Basil just has a way bigger menu. When we walked in we didn't get the warm and fuzzies with the wait staff but the bartender that took care of us was actually really friendly after that! He didn't notice that we didn't have menus so we just grabbed menus from the table next to us, no biggie! Peek Kai: These are their signature chicken wings marinated in fish sauce. They were piping hot and very crispy which was nice! The sauce was much sweeter than we expected but they were definitely tasty! Yum Nam Kao Tod(Crispy Rice & Pork Salad): Crispy curry rice tossed with pork sausage, lime sauce, ginger, roasted chili, peanuts, onions and cilantro. This dish was much better than we expected but not as good as others that we've had. However, this was the highlight of our meal here so we'd definitely recommend trying this dish as it hits every note on the palette. It's crunchy, slightly spicy, sweet, sour, salty, so good! Kaeng Hang Le: Slow-cooked beef in a rich Chiang Mai curry, ginger, garlic, peanut, carrots, broccoli, and eggplant, served with jasmine rice. We wouldn't get this dish again. It had a very odd flavor that we've never tasted in any of the Thai food we've had but the beef itself was ultra tender. North East Combo: Fried pork lion with Som Tum and sticky rice serve with plum sauce and spicy lime sauce. This was tasty but I think we ordered the wrong dish, lol. We meant to try the Northern Combo so we'll have to give that a shot next time. The papaya salad that came with this dish was a bit bland but everything else was tasty! Definitely not on our top picks for Thai food spots but we'll probably go back and give it another shot!

I ordered Pad See Ew, and tossed it as the noodles were overcooked an gummy with no sauce included on the dish and the vegetables were no cooked. Additionally, the spring rolls were seemingly prepared by taking handfuls of spouts that were shoved into the rice paper, resulting in the rolls being split apart under the wrap provided. I would not encourage anyone to order from here.

Hidden gem alert! Kinn Khao is really delightful - we will definitely be back. They are doing a solid selection of dishes from Northern Thailand that are carefully prepared and delicious. We got the Chiang Mai sausage, fried chicken, beef skewer, and gang hoh (pork, chicken, veg and glass noodles in a curry sauce) The meal was a parade of clear, bright flavors. Story time: Next to my friend's apartment on Huay Kaew road in Chiang Mai, there was a guy who would show up every day in the alley and cook fried chicken in a giant wok in the back of his pickup truck. We'd line up with all the high school kids to get our plastic bag of chicken with another bag of sweet chili sauce. It was so good, and I have looked for that style of chicken outside of Chiang Mai ever since - Kinn Khao makes it! I'll go back for the fried chicken alone. It's breaded and crispy, like American style fried chicken, but the coating has more seasoning. It's *excellent*. The bartender here also deserves special mention. I love the salty lemonade you can get all over SE Asia, and they didn't have it at Kinn Khao. I explained what it was and the bartender offered to take a crack at making it - it was perfect! Also my wife wanted a gingery cocktail and he nailed that too. He doubled as our server, and took great care of us. Great place, can't wait to go back. A couple of tips: - Order the fried chicken, and ask for a side of the sweet chili sauce, for the ultimate Chiang Mai alley chicken experience. - Save room for the homemade coconut ice cream. This is hard to find and theirs is wonderful.

Went here for happy hour with a good friend. When we arrived at opening, no other patrons were there. No skin off our backs! The bartender was great and super helpful. We ordered so much food that the kitchen staff probably thought it was for a four top! Ha. Anyways, food was delicious and served quickly. I highly recommend stopping in for atleast a bite if not many bites and sips!

SO good - the Moo Sam Chan Tod was delicious, the Gang Ho was super flavorful, and the Kai Todd was perfect. Thank you so much!

Please, add more people on the floor during happy hour! Too many guests and only one bartender. Seriously, I understand wanting to save on labor but why do it at your guest's expense? So frustrating!

Went during their happy hour over the weekend and they have amazing deals! The food was AMAZING and their spiked Thai tea was a little on the strong side but sooooo good. I believe the owner was helping out with running food and he was really nice as well as the bartender. The waitress seemed overwhelmed and as a waitress myself I totally get it but she was very passive aggressive with us for most of the time and made us feel unwelcome. Maybe she was having a bad day but that's no excuse for her behavior. I would 100% come back for the food because I think it's worth it. This is a fine establishment and seeing that the owner responds to reviews tells me he cares about his business and customers.

We had the northern combo and som tum. Liked both dishes alot. The som tum was spot on as some places make it either too sour or not enough lemon. The dried shrimps they use is better than some other places as well. Liked the sausage and the fried chicken from the northern combo. Also had the mango sticky rice which was ok. One criticism for that dish is the mango has faint green onion/cilantro scent which probably comes from the knife. Will come back to try other dishes.

Best Thai food in Portland and probably the best i have ever tried. The service was phenomenal and the environment was super friendly. i had the red curry with tofu and veggies and the hot level was just perfect. The prices were the best of all my meals in Portland during this weekend trip. Highly recommended if you are in Portland.

Incredible. Amazing service and food! In a city full of Thai food, it is hard to stand out, but Kinn Kao has done it.

We have been going to another Thai restaurant in the neighborhood, but it was a hot day and I didn't want to walk far so tried here. I ordered online, which was easy and quick. I liked getting updates on the status of the food so I didn't have to sit around. When I got it home, the food was just okay. I won't go back.

Wow Wow WOW!!! The food is INCREDIBLE!!! The plating and presentation made me feel like I was abroad and out of the Portland City limits. I can't wait to work my way through the menu!!

I can appreciate a Thai restaurant that serves up actually spicy food when the description says spicy. There aren't enough places that will actually add enough spice to have that title. I just ordered the spicy veggie wrapped fresh rolls with the lime dipping sauce via Postmates...and my mouth is on fire. I love it. The rolls were huge and tasty as well. I'll definitely be back.

Me and my crew used to hang out here A LOT but inevetiebly spread out to the four corners. We me back on 09/29/2018 and yes, it was different, but . . . The food was still excellent and the bartender still took the care to take care of us! The drinks were quite good and the service was friendly and easy to talk to! Recommend!