Lotus Thai Cuisine

The decor is festive and great, the staff is pretty decent too but omg the food is below average for sure. My Pad Sew noodles were overcooked to absolute mush. The meat for all the dishes we got was dryer than the Sahara and all the small bites were like something you can heat up from Costco.

Met a friend here for lunch, pretty darn good specials at that time. Most are around $13 and come with soup a spring roll, salad, rice and entree of choice. Noodles don't come with rice, however. Inside is kind of industrial Thai vibes with concrete floors and high ceilings. Seats were a bit on the hard side but comfortable enough for a meal. Service was great. Our server Alejandro was excellent. Friendly, accommodating and informative, definitely takes care of his customers. Food wise we shared lemongrass beef satay, delicious. Then tried their version of soup dumplings, which had a tasty ginger fused broth inside. For lunch I ordered Drunken Noodles with mock duck meat. Noodles were nice and bouncy but as a heads up, the chef has a heavy hand with sugar. Everything we had was very sweet, which some might love. To temper the sweetness you can ask for a chili tray which has fish sauce chili, dried chili flakes and chili paste. These helped to balance out the flavors which I appreciated. Their dinner menu looks good so I'll be returning to out their version of Khao Soi. Hopefully it won't be too sweet.

If you’re vegan ask for the vegan menu! Even though I ordered tofu spring rolls from the vegan menu one of the sauces contained fish. Fortunately the server mentioned this when they brought the food out, but that is still unusual. The yellow curry was so good! The employees were very attentive to us during our meal.

I got the Vegan Yellow Tofu Curry. They don’t advertise having vegan options but they have a whole separate menu for us Vegans! It was delicious! Only thing I would be concerned about is anything fried as they use the same oil for everything. Luckily when I went (11am on a Monday), they had just changed their oil and the veggie rolls were the first thing in it. I don’t remember but I would confirm any other cross contamination.

Food is perfectly edible, but nothing special. Drunken noodles were actually a tad bland considering I asked for medium spicy. Service was friendly, but a bit inattentive. Interior is acceptable, but in need of a remodel. I’ll likely go back because they are so close to where I live, but there are better options in downtown.

Great service! Very good Tom Yum soup! Flavorful and spicy! Happy Hours steam dumplings are great too!

I'd give this place a 4.5. It's good and the vibes and prices are very good. The food is also good I just can't give 5 stars if it's not the absolute best I've ever had. The tom yum IS the best though. I will be back. I'd recommend.

Spring rolls were good. The pad thai had very little flavor. Every once in a while got a huge hit of lemon of lime juice. Not pleasant. Added chicken which had zero flavor. If I hadn't already been back to hotel I would have returned but I was too tired. Next time I'm here for work this will not be on my list of places to eat at again.

My coworkers and I decided to have lunch at this place. Food was delicious. The ambiance was relaxing with an Asian theme. The service was great, until the end when we asked for our check. We asked maybe 3 times for our check and took about 20 minutes to finally receive it. For lunch special, I ordered their Pad Thai with shrimp for protein, which was delicious and flavourful. Will get it again for sure. The spice level I requested was 3, which was a good amount of spice but not too much to take over the flavor of the food. Will definitely go back here again. Hopefully, it wouldn't take that long to receive our check next time.

The food was delicious; however, the service was very slow. The music was loud and deafening. Just avoid this place like the plague if you don't want the sound of vehicles passing by on the main artery annoying you while you eat your dinner.

It was my first time here! The place is super spacious and a lot of seatings. I love the Thai decor inside. It is downtown/hillcrest so good luck looking for parking. I ordered the pad sew ew chicken and it was a solid 8/10 The service is fast and friendly. There was little confusion with the person taking the order so I took a star down for that. I definitely want to come back and try other things on the menu.

Met a friend here for lunch, pretty darn good specials at that time. Most are around $13 and come with soup a spring roll, salad, rice and entree of choice. Noodles don't come with rice, however. Inside is kind of industrial Thai vibes with concrete floors and high ceilings. Seats were a bit on the hard side but comfortable enough for a meal. Service was great. Our server Alejandro was excellent. Friendly, accommodating and informative, definitely takes care of his customers. Food wise we shared lemongrass beef satay, delicious. Then tried their version of soup dumplings, which had a tasty ginger fused broth inside. For lunch I ordered Drunken Noodles with mock duck meat. Noodles were nice and bouncy but as a heads up, the chef has a heavy hand with sugar. Everything we had was very sweet, which some might love. To temper the sweetness you can ask for a chili tray which has fish sauce chili, dried chili flakes and chili paste. These helped to balance out the flavors which I appreciated. Their dinner menu looks good so I'll be returning to out their version of Khao Soi. Hopefully it won't be too sweet.

In our new hood and happened upon this place...and everyone needs a Thai joint! Started out with an appetizer sampler... filled with all the tastes and textures....good, and a large portion! Pad Thai was tasty and the portions were good, service was good, local beer selection was good... I think we will be back!

The food was just ok but their lunch prices are really fair! I got the Penang curry which was spicier than I expected but decent. I wasn't a big fan of their egg roll that came with the lunch plate. The salad was also ok. My friend raved about the Choo chee fish though and mentioned dinner portions are big so I'll be back! The ambiance is nice! The chairs were heavier than expected but sturdy!

We had a very disappointing dining experience last night. The Resturant came highly recommended by multiple friends one being an Executive Chef! I think perhaps we ordered the wrong things. I was very hungry when we arrived so we immediately ordered some Spring rolls & Chicken Lettuce wraps & a Lychee Mojito. The Chicken lettuce wraps was like eating sand. Super dry. My husband took a bite and spit it out and he eats anything. I think if it had some sort of thick peanut sauce it would have been better, but the peanut sauce is not Gluten free so not an option for me. My Lychee Mojito was difficult to drink. I think the Lychee was muddled with the mint and kept getting stuck in the straw and looked like smushed pieces of shrimp floating in my glass. The execution of this cocktail needs some TLC. The service was fair(our server was brand new and very nice) and the manager was personable and helpful. We will try the Resturant again for Pad Thai & Curry. Sadly we left unsatisfied and hungry. Hopefully we will have a better experience next time.

I really like it here , I don't write reviews based on one visit - I have been here 7 times total for lunches and dinner - lunches are very affordable on the lunch special menu , soup, egg roll ,side salad , your choice of main entre foe 15 dollar ( chicken main) fir San Diego eating out - it's doesn't get any better than this- quality and taste are great too

I've only gotten takeout so may need to update when I dine in, but I don't understand the low rating for Lotus Thai!! I've ordered takeout a few times now and every time it's incredibly delicious. My go to is always a curry, the yellow and green are both amazing, their fried rice and spring rolls are always great too. The restaurant looks very nice too, will need to dine in soon!

Yummy Thai food in the Gaslamp district! Walkable location and is spacious inside. Our server was kind to us, which made the experience all the better!

I've lived in gaslamp for two years and have never visited this place, and I regret it. This place is amazing! The food, the service outstanding. The waitress, Andrea, was very attentive and met all of our needs and she was CRUSHING IT serving 7 tables at time. Absolute rock star. My wife and I will definitely be coming back here again.

Such a cute spot with a traditional atmosphere. Love the inventive rambutan mojito! This is officially my favorite Thai spot in San Diego, so fresh and flavorful. Service was really quick, and they kept apologizing for being backed up and slow. Can't imagine how much faster they'd be on a regular night! Seriously everything was great here.

Had lunch special. Green curry chicken and it was so good. Service was quick and accurate. Clean inside.

Ordered online and walked to pick up our food but never got a confirmation after 30 minutes of waiting because they said the time was supposed to be ready by 2pm. Came in 30 minutes AFTER the supposed 'ready' time only to see the servicer, Litzy, to be sitting in the corner and stating that she didn't even turn on the monitors that had the orders. Like what? It's 30 minutes after you opened and you're sitting there and not doing any open shift duties? I understand if it was busy but there was NO ONE there. And when the food finally came Litzy gave us our food but it was the WRONG one so we had to come all the way back to the restaurant to get our correct food. But still when I went to return there was only ONE table now and that's it so it wasn't as if they were busy at all lol So if you're trying to order online expect it to suck because ours said it was supposed to be ready at 2pm but didn't get it until 3pm.

We stopped in here for lunch today. Our usuals are the green curry and the soup. The green curry was a little off today, not as their usual. It was more watery. As for the Tom yum soup, it was delicious and flavorful. The pad seew was good and delicious as usual. I had some Thai iced tea too! Service was a little off today too. I don't know if they changed their kitchen staff and service staff, but it was different.

Convenient Thai in Gaslamp and close to everything! As always, Thai is so comforting and filling, and Lotus Thai held true! Both our dishes - green curry and holy basil - were spiced as requested and the medium was plenty hot. They have a full bar with a great cocktail menu with happy hour specials. Our server was so gracious and knowledgeable. It's a lovely restaurant, appropriately decorated, with Thailand tourism information tastefully posted near the entry. Lots of takeout orders, so you can tell it's loved by locals. Highly recommend!!

Came here after a Padres game and the food was delicious. It did take awhile for us to get our food. I got the gyoza as an appetizer and fish cake. I wasn't a big fan of the fish cakes. The green curry was my favorite. I like that they ask you what spice level. Inside is decorated nicely and plenty of seating.

Service is the best - caring folks. Menu is extensive, encompassing several Asian cultures. Food is carefully prepared and flavorful: soups & potstickers & mango-sauced main dish.

Green curry chicken lunch was excellent, service and ambiance was excellent. Lunch came with white rice, egg roll, salad

Completely addicted to the pad Thai, drunken noodles, green curry and vegetable crispy rolls. Keep going back and regularly order for delivery. Soooo good!

Amazing Thai food (especially good deal at lunchtime). The lunch special is amazing value. Quick service and the spice level was perfect. Lunch Special comes with a soup, salad and appetizer. Great interior with plenty of seating and the place was not very busy at lunchtime. Highly recommend checking this place out with fresh ingredients and good service

I live upstairs and love this place! Lunch is an amazing deal and don't miss dinner happy hour. My favs are the pad Thai. The yellow curry. And the fried rice is pretty good too. And love the gyoza. Service is always great as well.

Love their vegetarian and vegan options. Fresh ingredients and friendly staff. Very much so comfort food

Went in after a Padres game and had a good meal. Servers are super friendly and take good care of the customers. Ordered Pad See Ew, Chicken Panang Curry, and Mango Sticky Rice with Lychee martini and Strawberry Daiquiri. The food was very good and tasty. Having not ever had mango sticky rice , I was glad I did. The place seats quite a few people and even though it is very open from the windows it still keeps a private feel at the tables.

On our way to one our favorite Steakhouse , we passed by this place called LOTUS THAI. My craving suddenly changed and we ate at Lotus Thai instead. We got seated quickly, and our server came to get our order right away. And our food came out quick. These are the following foods that we ordered: *LOTUS THAI PLATTER *DRUNKEN NOODLE ( w/pork ) *ISLAND FRIED RICE *SPICY EGGPLANT *YELLOW CURRY (w/ Chicken) *LADY FINGER ( to go of Shrimp wrapped in wonton skin ) Every food here is very balanced on their seasoning, not too Salty or lacking in Flavor. Everythig tasted good. I enjoyed eating their LOTUS SAMPLER, it's a combination of Crispy spring rolls, lanna gyoza, chicken satay, lady's finger, and krathong thong. Everything was good, but what I liked the most was their SPICY EGGPLANT. I love eggplant, and it says Spicy, but it wasn't really that spicy, it's just perfect. I forgot to order the Lady Finger on their menu, so I ordered that to go and omg it was so delicious! The staff here are nice, especially Alex, he was awesome. The place is spacious, clean, and has good Vibe. It's just the parking that is horrible 'coz there are a lot of restaurants nearby, but that wont stop me from eating here. They have good food, so this is definitely one of my stops for Thai Food.

Great place for a hearty bite! We ordered the Drunken Noodles, Vegetable Dumplings, and Shrimp/ Squid with the Cashew Nuts and Chili Paste, and it was delicious! The food was a bit oily, but the flavor was great and the price was quite reasonable considering it's at the heart of downtown SD and the multitude of eateries around it. A great perk with this restaurant are the specials and happy hours they have! It's a great place to grab food with some drinks before exploring the downtown area or catching a Padres game at Petco! Service was also amazing and they were all super friendly! Definitely check it out!

We went to the comic con free events about two weekend ago and were needing of good food to refuel our energy after a long day in the sun. We were in a bump out mood because of the bad experience we had. We were welcome very warmly and the staff made us laugh after a long day. They definitely raised our spirits and allowed us to go back to comic con after a very delicious meal. I came here with two friends. One of them was having a stomachache and the waiter was kind of enough to bring her some ginger ale her. We got some very good and aesthetically pleasing cocktails which improved our mood. The food was a good portion and it had kick to eat it. My friend got a curry and I got pad Thai. My friend with a stomachache got a side of rice and one of the staff offered some soy sauce to add some taste. It was very peaceful and nice place. I would come again especially because it lifted our spirit and we were able to enjoy comic con .They have very good staff here and can't wait to come back to try more of their cuisines.

Great Thai place in Downtown. It's not buried in the heart of Gaslamp so you can find parking close by. I've been here a couple of times and both have been great experiences. The ambiance and decor is very nice. There is a nice bar with seating if you're just here to grab some drinks and a quick bite. They have Happy Hour every day, so the locals gotta love that. I've had a few different dishes here but my favorite will have to be the lard nar noodles in that delicious gravy and the lotus platter, which is a sampler of a few of their appetizers. My new go to place for Thai Downtown.

Thai is one of my favorite cuisines, so hearing about Lotus Thai and having a free lunch block, I decided to stop by to try Lotus Thai out! - PARKING - Street parking only, be mindful of metered parking spots and any time limits! - SERVICE/ENVIRONMENT - Service was absolutely top-notch. Alex was extremely hospitable and accomodating! His energy really shined through not only for our table, but noticably for other patrons dining in at the time as well. You could tell he cared a lot about the restaurant and what they were giving out, food and service! The restaurant is quite large, with various seating arrangements for small and large parties. They have a bar inside as well, which may be utilized more during Happy Hour. Very lively ambiance inside. - FOOD - Northern Thai Sausage ($23.99): WOW - I wish more Thai restaurants had this available on their menu! Lotus Thai makes their Sausage in-house, and they make it GOOD. Really amazing flavors with the lemongrass and spices, definitely a highlight of the meal. Duck Buns (4pc - $10.99): This is also an item not seen on Thai restaurant menus, so I had to give it a try out of curiosity! The bun itself was quite fluffy, but the duck was unfortunately pretty dry. The sauce they served with the buns was tasty, but still not enough to balance out the dryness of the meat. Lunch Special - Pad Thai Chicken ($11.99 ): Weekdays 11am-3pm, Lunch Specials start at $10.99, and change depending on your protein choice. You get a salad, soup, egg roll and your entree of choice. Unfortunately they forgot our soup, but we didn't notice until we were close to finishing and thus didn't ask about it. The portion of our Pad Thai was very fair, and honestly was a great deal! Crying Tiger ($23.99): This, similar to the Duck in the Duck Buns, was a bit on the dry side. The sauces again were very delicious, but unfortunately wasn't enough to help out the dryness of the meat. I have seen this on other Thai restaurant menus before, and have had juicer pieces. Jumbo Shrimp Khao Soi ($24.99): I LOVE Khao Soi, so when this was a menu item I definitely was drawn to it. They serve the noodles separate from the broth, which I like as it gives you fresh noodles that haven't been soaking in the soup too long. Lotus Thai uses thinner noodles than I'm used to, but they had a very nice texture to them. The Jumbo Shrimp really are Jumbo, and had a nice juicy bounce. - OVERALL - Take note of their Lunch Special hours and get that deal! If you get a chance, I would definitely try their Northern Thai Sausage as well!

I had a long day and decided to stop by this restaurant, as I've ordered from here in the past. Everything was going well until I took a bite of my veggie egg roll and found hair in it. Unfortunately, this experience has made me decide not to return. I'm giving it two stars because the staff was attentive and friendly, but the quality of the food was disappointing.p

The best Pad Thai and Tom Kha I've ever had! Absolutely delicious. I was in San Diego for a conference and returned twice with friends. Nice locale as well and very friendly staff. Will eat there anytime I am visiting.

We wanted a quick bite to eat so we wanted to give this place a try. When we walked in, only about 3 other tables were occupied, so we figured we'd get our food relatively quick. Well, it took about 30 minutes before ours came out and we realized others were waiting on theirs as well. Not the best Thai food I've tasted either, full of grease and the oil tasted fishy. Fresh rolls were great though. Food should not take take nearly as long especially when it's a slow day during lunch hour.

The only reason I am not giving five stars is because we only tried to dishes at this restaurant, but we also went in 20 minutes before the kitchen was supposed to close. My friend and I were just looking for a light bite close to our hotel, the hotel, indigo. Lotus Thai is at the next corner and partners with the hotel offering a discount to guests if they ask. We forgot to ask, but that was fine with me. While it appears that the restaurant has patio space it wasn't open when we went. The interior of the restaurant has a dark wood, but the windows in light and we really enjoyed our table by the window. We receded promptly with the waiter, letting us know that the kitchen was closing very soon. We quickly ordered the crisp spring rolls and vegetable dumplings. The food came out in probably 5 to 7 minutes with it being clear that the spring rolls have just come out of the fryer. The dumplings were still steaming, which is a good sign. The spring rolls were hot crispy and had good flavor both with and without the plum sauce. The veggie dumplings really were stuffed with a lot of different vegetables. It was an interesting but tasty mix. They were a little bit more delicate than many spring rolls because the vegetables don't stick together the same way a meat filling wood, but they were very flavorful. Our waiter did come back a couple of minutes after our food. Arrived to ask if we wanted anything else from the kitchen since they were going to close. We had everything we needed, but it was a nice check-in. We didn't feel rushed, just attended to. No pictures this time because we were both hungry enough to want to dig into our food as soon as it arrived. For a snack/late lunch in the gaslamp quarter of San Diego, this was a great price and very filling

The food flavors were about average but not bad. When we were there only five tables had customers yet our server rarely stopped by and there was a considerable wait for her to bring us extras such as soy sauce. The surroundings are very nice. Street parking. All in all our experience was underwhelming.

I went to pick up for thanksgiving. I got a chicken Panama curry and some pad Thai with beef. Both were traditional and good and as I expected. Portions were generous and the price was reasonable.

Service was great, the restaurant was clean and welcoming. The food for me was good, but nothing standout.

Food is GREAT as always! But just had to write a review based on their amazing service... an item was missed from my pick up order and they offered to personally walk over to my residence to deliver the missing dish (along with a few extra items free of charge). Really appreciated their effort to make the situation right!

UPDATE: Not too long ago, I started growing fond of panang curry and blindly ordered one from DoorDash from this place. I didn't even know I already ordered here before and LOVED their pad see ew. The panang curry was absolutely delicious, filling, and hearty. I've been a repeat customer since then and hope I can finally dine in there soon.

Really enjoyed good Thai food in downtown! So many selections and the lunch special is such a steal!

Decent- but they add a tip FOR you in the checkout process online. Shady behavior. If I tip, I want the chance to decide how much IN CASH.

Ordered off web site. Prices lower than ordering off of yelp. I find this a lot now where prices higher on yelp. Food was ready on time and received a text when my order was ready for pickup. Ordered the won ton soup which was excellent. Asked for medium spicy. Won't do that again as it was very spicy. Also ordered some dim sum duck rolls that were perfect. Really hit the spot.

Their green curry was the absolute tastiest best curry I have ever had. I read the reviews before I ordered and saw that it's sometimes a hit or miss...it was definitely a HIT the night my husband and I went

The Lotus Thai is a great stop if you are in San Diego. Ryan is an amazing waiter and really went above and beyond with the service. As for the food, i highly recommend the drunken noodles.

First time customer. Disappointed and sniffing from the heat of the food. Had I wanted chop suey Thai style I would have ordered all the ingredients I didn't want but came anyway in the Pad See Ew - green beans, zucchini, cabbage, etc. It was supposed to only have broccoli and eggs and a sweet soy sauce. It's a mish mash hodge podge of everything and I didn't like it! Ditto for the Yellow Curry! Supposed to be potatoes, carrots and onions. Still searching for the potato and wondering how that big hunk of carrot made it in the mix. Why not update the menu so a customer knows they are going to get all these assorted vegetable instead of the ones they actually wanted??!! Rice was decent though but I didn't spend $10.99, lunch special for rice only.

Ryan is a great server. He was so kind and attentive to us. Food was 10/10. I recommend the drunken noodles.

The worst !!! Oily , tasteless , rude , unhappy wait staff. This place is always empty,. 2 decades but hardly any customers. Money laundering business.

I love the red curry here and sticky mango. Always a great service and great food. They do well with to go orders too .

The only Thai restaurant in the downtown area that has stayed open the longest and it their menu and hospitality shows why. I really enjoyed eating lunch here. Their specials are great and their staff is so attentive and friendly. Definitely some of the best Thai food in San Diego.

Literally the worst Thai in the area!!! The person named Charlie was extremely rude and said who the fuck are you to me! Do not eat here!!! Not sure what they are serving people, but it is gross and way over priced!!