Mandala Kitchen & Bar

I was a little worried about coming here due to the past negative reviews, but Mandala exceeded all expectations. Don’t listen to those reviews. The service was welcoming and attentive. Our server gave us some suggestions and they were amazing. The top dishes we got were the mini pancakes, Vietnamese chicken curry, 5 spiced stewed beef, and the pad Thai. Super surprised this place didn’t have a wait. It’s a great place to come to for dinner on a weekend night knowing there won’t be a long wait. Highly recommend!

Flavor of everything was 100% on point. Came back 2 times so far and everything we have tried is perfect. Good portions sizes. Vinny helped us he was awesome and great personality. Chef your food was perfect.

Wow! Such a nice late night spot, you don’t see a lot of great restaurants open as late as Mandala! I came for the pho and it did not disappoint. Broth and meat were up to par (coming from a viet from Houston!) The service was very attentive, welcoming and kind.

What a great place. The food is excellent, service is wonder, and the atmosphere is chill. The food is well priced and well portioned. But the flavors and quality are just excellent. The service is the best I have had in a long time for the price range, and alone is worth the visit. The hours are perfect for a evening stop after 9pm, which I find to be a great and peaceful time to each. I can't say enough good about my visit. The only reason it's not a 5 is the atmosphere, but for the price range you can't beat it. Go and enjoy this place. Note: parking is free but in the garage.

The food was amazing my Pho was delicious. The fish with the pineapple amazing combo and the flavors were so good. The food was top notch. My mango drink and guava drinks as adult beverages I loved! I will Def come back here again. The server was nice and prompt with everything very polite.

I feel bad for the reviewer who submitted before me (Tom) because my friend and I went to Mandala for dinner last night and it was fantastic. Hopefully he gives it another try. :) It was pretty chill for a Tuesday at 6:30pm. We sat at the bar and had no trouble with service. I highly recommend the Guava Mojito. It was excellent! We split the Pan Fried Dumplings and Mini Rice Pancakes as appetizers. The dumplings were a solid classic, but the rice pancakes were truly something special. I haven't had anything like that before and they were amazing! Don't skip those when you check this place out. My friend got the Cajun Fried Rice and I got the Seafood Clear-Noodle Salad. The noodle salad had plenty of veggies and a good kick to it. The fried rice was our favorite of the two though. It had a great smoky flavor that went well with the crawfish and sausage. It's in the same shopping center as the Alamo Drafthouse so give it a try before your next movie!

Mandalas is one of my favorite restaurants. The food and service are always amazing! I always get the Yellow Curry with shrimp and the Cajun garlic butter edamame, both are super delicious!

Came here two days in a row. The best spot for great food

The Mango Sticky Rice is incredible - I order it for takeout all the time! I can't wait to try more items on the menu & go for dine in.

I'm not sure if the reviews are from dine-in only or just paid actors... but I ordered from Mandala to-go... and it was the worst, if not, most mediocre, subpar thai food I have ever had in my life. And I consume thai food almost every week. There was absolutely no flavor and after a while it felt like I was just eating globs of nothing. I don't know, the reviews tricked me - do with that what you will.

Used to be one of my favorite places for Thai food in the South Austin area - especially their red curry - but it's a drastically different experience now. The curries were not as flavorful and the noodles were floating on a plate of soy sauce. I don't know if ownership changed, maybe the chef did, or inflation has forced them to cut back on ingredients. But I am sad to say I was disappointed last week.

Cute restaurant, nicely decorated and friendly staff. The lemongrass chicken vermicelli was tasty although slightly higher priced with smaller portion compared to other Thai/vietnamese restaurants. The menu is quite limited with even fewer vegetarian food options. Pro tip: Parking is behind the restaurant in the garage next to Alamo.

Great vegan options! Things are clearly labeled if they can be made vegan, I had the Thai fried rice made vegan with tofu! My boyfriend isn't vegan and got the Cajun fried rice, and he says it was so good! Drinks are also very tasty and cute! Service was good, we went on a weeknight and there weren't many people inside. We ate on the patio and it was the perfect spot!

Located on S. Lamar, Mandala Kitchen and Bar is a great place for your this food fix! My husband and I came on a Saturday afternoon, around 5pm, and were seated immediately. There were a few larger parties at the restaurant as well. Service was quick and cordial. We ordered the pad Thai and the red curry with chicken. The chicken was over cooked and dry in my opinion. The flavors of the pad Thai and red curry was OUT OF THIS WORLD good. The red curry also has a bit of a kick. Absolutely delicious! Overall, I would dine here again, but maybe with tofu or shrimp as my protein!

The food and service are amazing! I love Mandala's, the food is always delicious and I've always had the best experiences here! The Cajun garlic butter edamame and mini rice pancakes are delectable! I always order the Yellow curry with shrimp, it's one of my favorites! The pad Thai is really good too!

My fiancee and I ordered Uber Eats here and the portions were wildly large. Typically when this happens the alarm bells start ringing. However, no need to be concerned, not only are the portions massive but the food is incredible!

I feel bad for the reviewer who submitted before me (Tom) because my friend and I went to Mandala for dinner last night and it was fantastic. Hopefully he gives it another try. :) It was pretty chill for a Tuesday at 6:30pm. We sat at the bar and had no trouble with service. I highly recommend the Guava Mojito. It was excellent! We split the Pan Fried Dumplings and Mini Rice Pancakes as appetizers. The dumplings were a solid classic, but the rice pancakes were truly something special. I haven't had anything like that before and they were amazing! Don't skip those when you check this place out. My friend got the Cajun Fried Rice and I got the Seafood Clear-Noodle Salad. The noodle salad had plenty of veggies and a good kick to it. The fried rice was our favorite of the two though. It had a great smoky flavor that went well with the crawfish and sausage. It's in the same shopping center as the Alamo Drafthouse so give it a try before your next movie!

I've been a customer for years enjoying Mandala's top notch food and service. Yesterday's dinner was green curry with bountiful shrimp (dish ordered hot). It had wonderful flavor and accompanying plentiful chunks of eggplant and perfectly cut strips of bamboo strips. Second dish was Vietnamese curry chicken (dish ordered mild). Perfect flavoring and good portions on both dishes. Our server J was attentive and pleasant. Other favorites of mine are the gloriously rich mini rice cakes appetizer, surf clam cerviche and sumptuous Cajun fried rice. Spice levels on entrees were as ordered, and they also offer an array of hot sauces. Highly recommended.

Unfortunately this place has closed down. No notice. No one answers phone. Nothing on the website! Very disappointing.

THE BIG: Located in the Lamar Union Plaza shopping mall, right across the street from Alamo Drafthouse and Gibson Street Bar. Beautiful bar and plenty of indoor and outdoor space. Garage parking is available. THE BLACK AND WHITE: I came here after paddleboarding and in need of some good thai food. We got the pad thai with chicken and the red curry with chicken. In both dishes the chicken was dry. However it tasted really good. Portion sizes were generous albeit the prices were higher than a normal thai restaurant. Ambiance is great, we were seated immediately and I can see the place bumping in the night hours. THE FINAL BAMBOO: Overall damage done was ~$40 for two entrees. Would definitely recommend and choose a different protein next time.

I was a little worried about coming here due to the past negative reviews, but Mandala exceeded all expectations. Don't listen to those reviews. The service was welcoming and attentive. Our server gave us some suggestions and they were amazing. The top dishes we got were the mini pancakes, Vietnamese chicken curry, 5 spiced stewed beef, and the pad Thai. Super surprised this place didn't have a wait. It's a great place to come to for dinner on a weekend night knowing there won't be a long wait. Highly recommend!

Quiet when you go at the end of the night but quick service, full bar! The food was very flavorful and arrived quickly to our table - definitely great for late night munchies and great portion sizes!! We also enjoyed the Vietnamese coffee liquors which were sweeter and stronger than normal coffee liquors (best of both worlds!)

My bf's family took me here and this place was amazing! The inside is so pretty, a perfect place to go for a casual bite or dress up and eat! There's also a bar. I didn't get many photos because I was too busy devouring the yummy foods, but I will note that I can definitely spend the whole day eating the mini rice pancakes! The mango sticky rice was of course, amazing as well! The chicken wings were delicious! I got pad thai (not pictured) and it did not disappoint, so so so yummy!!! Definitely will go back when I have time! :)

No. Soupy Pad Thai with overcooked shrimp. The pad Thai tastes heavily of fish sauce and sugar and that's it. Very unpleasant.

Went twice during my long weekend in Austin! We ordered a bit of everything with each visit. In the evening over ACL fest, they had a different menu to make up for the rush of the weekend. Most of the items during a regular night were still on the other menu! Over the course of the weekend I had: the egg rolls, the crispy rice app, the tumeric coconut rice cakes, and pad see ew! Ugh I love a viet place that does menu items that you don't normally find at a viet restaurant. Most of the apps/snacks are hard to find as a viet person living in the Midwest! The coconut tumeric rice cakes were my favorite! The coconut cream mixed with the fish sauce...to die for! The crispy rice reminded me of what my dad made for me as a kid! Crispy flattened rice, topped with scallion on and pork floss-THE FLAVORS, the crunch, YUM! Sadly mangos were out of season so I didn't get any of the mango sticky rice for dessert but I hope to be back because it looks BOMB.

i was most excited to visit mandala because i saw they had 'mini rice pancakes' on their menu. it's a take on a viet/cambodian dish (banh xeo) that's very nostalgic to me. i was blown away by their version. the flavors and texture was exactly what i expected/wanted. unfortunately, the other dishes fell flat. the pad see ew, pad thai and fried rice were large portions but they tasted bland and charred. we had leftovers but decided not to take it home. our server is not only serving us but bartending and i think possibly cooking? he was the only employee we saw on that saturday afternoon. took a while to get menus, drinks, food and the bill. also, the decor is strange because theres a clash of modern (cool bar) and traditional (the beachy white chairs) furniture. there's also a cluster of plants in the front that awkwardly obstructs the entrance. i'd definitely come back for the rice pancakes but they got a few kinks to work out.

I got takeout here and ordered the pho, save your money way overpriced and probably the most bland broth I have tried in austin. My meat came raw and the broth was too cold that the meat didn't cook in it, I had to cook it separately on the stove I expected more for such an overpriced bowl of pho, maybe their other dishes are better.

Yummo, atypically Thai dishes with a regional twist that are packed with flavor and personality... alongside the garden variety bellwethers like Pad Thai and Curries. Cajun Fried Rice... Shaken Ribeye... are among the favorites. All of their food has always been consistent and delicious. Third party delivery has made enjoying at home, a convenient option.

Love their unique patio. You can sit with a friend and watch a game with some unique Vietnamese appetizers and a great drink...or with your dog and family on the two sided patio. The breeze up from Town lake reminds you why it's good to live in this area.... Or great food like the Tom Yum Soup which is so expertly made.... I recommend the Ceviche. And. Tango Foxtrot. Great personal staff. They make you feel at home and also give you your space. Can't say enough great things about Mandala. Bring family or anyone special and you'll be bragging about the authentic cuisine for weeks.

Mandala has been one of my go-to restaurants for the past few years. Always a great portion size and food hits the spot. Their curry is absolutely fantastic and highly suggest going with the red. Pad Kee Mao is always a super solid choice. It's hit or miss on how spicy it is depending on the day. Sometimes it has a small bite to it, sometimes a fire in your mouth, but my favorite dish outside the curry either way. Pad Thai isn't going to wow you by any means, but it has good flavor, a generous portion and something I continually order on a regular basis. Nice, quiet, comfortable ambiance and they have a great bar area that opens to the patio. Surprised this place isn't as busy every night as it should be

Omg!!! I don't even know what to say. The food is just spectacular!!! So good guys!!! Keep it up!!! The crispy rice is the best I have ever had. And I'm from vietnam.

Cool location right in the heart of S Lamar. This place has great bun cot (almost tastes like coconut shrimp), pad Thai, and fried chicken. The bun cot was soft, coconuty and had a nice buttery taste. Pad Thai was great with just the right amount of spice to it! Fried chicken was super moist and had a great flavor to it! Overall food was really good, neat location with several things in the area to walk to, and good for late night food in the area

I wouldn't come back here again. They take so long and they don't listen to us at all. I asked for the pad kee mao spicy and emphasized I want it spicy 2separate times to the the waiter. Surprise surprise, the food came out NOT spicy at all. It tasted like Pad see Ew, It had NO spice. Super bland. So either that means they didn't think i could handle spice (messed up) or they don't know how to make it correctly. I should have known because they have "thai" and "vietnamese" as the type of food they make. Whenever a business tries to blend 2 different countries and types of food, it just means they can't do either well. The service was so bad. SOOO bad. I get that the guy behind the bar was also taking our order and bringing the food. But we waited for 30+ minutes for our food even though there was only 1 other table eating. We waited 15 minutes to even place our order after we sat. So we were there for 45 mins just trying to order and eat. The waiter never even asked if it the food alright or anytbing. He almost would come to our table and run away. Even when asking what do you want to order be started running away before we could finish. The food not being cooked to our request is probably not his fault but why should I come back. I noticed he had no paper or pencil to write the order, maybe that's why he was running away each time lol

We stopped by here fairly early on a Sunday afternoon despite the area looking seemingly empty. After seating us, our server did a fantastic job explaining many of the dishes on the menu and giving recommendations for what we would like. Many options made it hard to narrow down, but the mini rice pancakes seemed like a unique item to choose, and they really did live up to the expectations I set! The mixture of shrimp and pork on pillowy pancakes and topped with a coconut cream that was not too overpowering provided the perfect balance on sweet and savory. The Vietnamese curry was a solid choice, and I especially loved how tender the chicken was, as it fell apart easily into the sauce. My partner got the shaken ribeye and he was extremely pleased with his dish as well, for a more protein heavy option that was still filled with a number of complex flavors. While the restaurant was empty due to it being fairly easy, we enjoyed where we were seated. The restaurants interior and exterior make it a great place for both a quick sit down lunch or a for a more special occasion. Would recommend this place to anyone looking for food on south Lamar!

This was the most bland pad Thai I have ever had in my life. I was unable to taste the sauce and definitely didn't feel any heat even though I ordered it spicy. The mango sticky rice was surprisingly good, but not even close to being good enough to make up for the lackluster pad Thai. I would be a fool to consider ever spending money on this again.

After a late night dip, my friend and I were hankering for LATE NIGHT eats. So much has shifted and the late night diners aren't open. We found Mandala. We had excellent service! The restaurant was cute and chic. The food was okay at best. Not awful. Not gross. Just I've never experienced a Green Curry that wasn't green. Where is the Thai basil?! It was also super sweet, more like a yellow curry. My friend ordered a dish and asked for it not spicy and it was COVERED in chilis. The dish itself was tasty and their noodles... WOW. YUM. It just was not edible with that level of heat. The server was kind enough to remove it from our bill. Okay for late night eats, interesting for Thai food.

We came here for lunch. Delicious food. Generous portions. Fast service. Quite environment. What we got: - Mini Rice Pancakes: Vietnamese "banh khot." I would return for this appetizer alone. The rice cake is soft inside, crunchy outside, the middle is melted with charred ground pork, small shrimp, topped with coconut milk and a splash of fish sauce. Perfect for 2-3 people. - Pad See Ew: got it with chicken and tofu. Simply done and simply fantastic. The flat rice noodle was so well cooked on the wok that it tastes good even by itself. - Cajun fried rice: crawfish was small but there was plenty of them, as well as sausage. The rice was charred fried leaving a smoking fragrance to the over all dish. Yigit was our server. Super friendly and nice guy. We would definitely come back to try other dishes on the menu next time.

I came here with two others for dinner and it was a lovely experience! The restaurant had a very pleasant atmosphere, the place felt well-maintained and clean, and the service we received was impeccable. Our server was very attuned to our needs and helped us make great choices for our food. I got the Cajun Fried Rice while my friends got the Viet-Cajun Crawfish and the Vietnamese Chicken Curry. The prices are on the higher side but we definitely had enough to take home as leftovers. All-in-all, I would definitely come back here again as I had such a great time eating delicious food with great friends in this lovely restaurant.

My partner and I wanted to grab dinner before watching a movie at the Alamao so we came here. Originally, I was against the idea because I had ordered Mandala on Doordash and did not enjoy it. However, I was pleasantly surprised by our experience and will be back! We had the tofu spring rolls and the pad ke mao which were absolutely delicious. However, the real star of the show were the cocktails. We had the mojito and margarita and they were heavenly. Probably one of the best drinks I've ever had! Shoutout to the bartender

When you find yourself here after a long walk in south Austin, you will delight in their menu items. We had the mussels in champagne.

Great food! Lovely interior. Awesome tray of guava candies up front Wasn't busy at all on Wednesday evening when 20+ of my friends and I came for dinner. Vietnamese Chicken Curry 5/5 - spicy!! beware - thicc chonks of chicken - great flavor - easily feeds 2 people Chicken Wing Appetizers 5/5 - literally gigantic - crunchy and crispy - juicy and tender - great flavor Dumplings 3/5 - pretty basic, nothing special Edamame 5/5 - great buttery, garlic flavor - doesn't taste frozen Pad Ke Mao 4/5 - wayyyy too spicy - giant portion size, feeds 2 Yellow Curry 5/5 - flavorful and feeds 2! Prices are a bit high ($20 per entree) but worth it because the portions are HUGEEEEE!!! Every single person in my party of 20 brought home leftovers :0 Will be back :')

I love their crawfish! Not many people seem to talk about it or come for crawfish, but it's so fresh and delicious. They also might be the only place in Austin that serves Vietnamese crawfish. Their alcoholic drinks are not that great, but their food is delicious! I love their clam shooters. They're very ginger-y and have a nice lime touch as well. I honestly would come here just for their crawfish. It's really well seasoned, and they're huge too. Mandala is slowly reopening, so make sure to call ahead and reserve a table. Sometimes they don't open even though their Yelp hours say they are open (they need to update this!).

Food was absolutely FANTASTIC! Great portions and amazing flavor. We got the Mini Rice Pancakes as an appetizer and I tried the Pad Thai for my entree. I'm so surprised by how much i enjoyed the rice pancakes-- such a great combination of sweet and salty, and the creaminess of the coconut cream was a welcome contrast to the crispiness of the pancake edges. 10/10 hands down, would come back solely for these pancakes. The Pad Thai was also great. My qualm with most Pad Thai's is that some are overly sweet, but this wasn't the case. There was a nice sourness in the seasonings and slight bites of sweetness from the onions. Not the best Pad Thai but still delicious! And portions were really big too! My friend and I left feeling stuffed and happy. Lastly, the Green Thai Tea was underwhelming. Not creamy enough for me but flavors were there!

You saved me Mandala! When I was down and out & sick for over a week straight, I ordered the Phô '84 and it was so perfect! It's establishments like these that make South Congress worth writing home about.

Okay so, we originally wanted Ramen but of course Ramen tatsu-ya was super busy. So we took a little walk down South Lamar & we walked past Mandala and was like hmmmmm what is this ..... well good thing we inquired because the FOOD WAS A HIT ! Delicious! Wonderful! Fire good as a mug okay. So they were understaffed it was one server (Justin) & 1 Bartender but that had no impact on our service. Justin made sure we were well taken care of. He was running around like crazy,but still very attentive and also super knowledgeable about the menu. He made wonderful recommendations. & gave us a guide on what to order since it was or first time there. We order the pad Thai 10/10 Shaken beef 10/10 the sauce was so flavorful & rich Surf clam ceviche 7/10 the sauce was great but the clam was super chewy Pan fried dumplings 10/10 made with love flavorful Overall. It was a great dining experience I would definitely go back, I need too try the sweet and sour soup.

11 out of 10. So pleasant with nearby parking, dog friendly patio, no reservations required. We had pad tai, chicken curry, and a white fish dish with pineapple. Starters were chili edamame and tofu sprig rolls. Yum.

Ordered delivery from here based on the recommendation of a friend. Apparently we had much worse luck with them than our friends. After placing a $150 order I was disappointed to find the multiple items on our order missing and the meat for the Pho is uncooked. Not sure if that's normal and we're expected to cook the meat ourselves or what but the broth was cold and the meat was raw (or inedible). This was after we waited an extra half hour longer than the original promise time. Never ordering again and I suggest you do the same.

I have literally been eyeballing the crawfish they serve at Mandala pre-COVID. At this time, I would like to declare-- the deed is done. Mandala is one of the few restaurants that serve Vietnamese-Cajun styled crawfish. The crawfish they serve is $11/pound, yes, a bit pricey during this time of the season. Not sure how long this deal runs, but when I purchased it, they were doing a special of "Buy 4 pounds, get 1 free", so yes, your girl ate 5 pounds of medium sized crawfish all by herself. The seasoning... was disappointing. I was so sad after having such high hopes upon watching videos and photos of how good they looked! The crawfish was bland, yet spicy? Don't ask me how. My guess is they don't broil the crawfish in a rich flavoring, and season the crawfish POST broil.

I am a loyal madam mams for pad see ew but I was in the area and it was holidays so everything was closed but this place so we gave it a try and so glad we did!! I LOVED the amount of veggies!!! Usually there is never enough for me, but if you're a meat lover there was plenty of shrimp too! Very big portions, was definitely two meals. The leftovers tasted almost better than the first meal!! Flavor was excellent! Only thing I didn't love were the noodles bc I prefer the wide ones and these are more the large flat ones like din Ho. Tasted great, just a preference of mine. Will stop by again next time I'm south of the river!!!

Really good Thai food but also very pricey. I ordered tofu and shrimp spring rolls and pad Thai w/ chicken. Spring rolls were pretty standard with the house peanut sauce. Pad Thai dish was surprisingly large and filling. It was a bit saucier than pad Thais I've had at other restaurants. Overall, food was excellent but would probably only come for more special occasions!

i originally found this place on uber eats and became obsessed with their tofu pad thai. amongst our friends we have a running debate on the best pad thai in austin.... i'm telling y'all THIS IS IT!!! my bf and i swear by mandala kitchen and bar and everyone we take here agrees!!! these days we actually go to restaurant more than we order delivery n i really don't know how they aren't packed every night. it's a great location, they have TONS of other delicious food other than pad thai lolol, lovely place to meet up, beautiful bar, comfortable booths, little outdoor area, reliable, service is always great, it's an institution if you will if you don't like mandala WE (me, my bf, and our friends) DONT LIKE YOU also side note there is an alamo drafthouse basically next door in case you're looking for a little post dinner activity

The pad see ew was great but when I bit into my wings they were very pink and under cooked

I've decided to give Mandala another chance for dinner. It's definitely good but is a much higher price point than needs to be in my opinion. The portions are decent sized and flavorful and leaned mostly toward the sweeter side of the spectrum! On the bright side -- parking was easy in the garage, staff with quick, kind, and attentive, and the Thai Tea was a favorite! We didn't find the drinks very balanced though

THE RICE MINI PANCAKES WERE A CULINARY MASTERPIECE. It was so crispy but the rice was soft and chewy. The savory flavors were so strong but balanced off with the creaminess of the coconut. It was so delicious omfg. the yellow curry was good too, very flavorful! the cuts were a bit big on the vegetables so not bite size and i wish there was more curry. overall the food on this place is pretty solid and good!!!

The ceviche was refreshing and the crispy rice pie were amazing! If you're in the area, definitely skip Elizabeth Street Cafe and come here instead for unique and delicious Vietnamese food. Q's Pina Colada was yummy and came topped with a fresh flower. Our waiter was attentive and personable which made the dining experience even more enjoyable. Plenty of outdoor seating and great location to people watch!

High quality family owned business. Pad see ew with tofu and some spice has become my go to lately, amazing flavor and portion. Always top quality service and a beautiful clean restaurant

Wish I could write a proper review. I arrived at 1:30 Tuesday. Parking was tricky.... Not one soul in the place. Sat for a minute-no one greeted me. Just no one was in sight. Went to RR. Came out, waited another 2-3 minutes. Still no one. My friend who was meeting me was on the phone. She said, Well if no one is eating there and the employees are invisible, then perhaps I should pick you up and we can go elsewhere. Went down the street to Super Thai and had a great meal. Very strange business model.