Thai Papaya

Thai Papaya had a nice dining space with really attentive, friendly and quick staff. The food was pretty good Thai at a fair price. They also do a discount for service members in uniform. Would definitely go again.

The food here is great! I ordered the pad thai, crab rangoons, and pineapple red curry. All were really flavorful and delicious! The portion here is big too! We definitely will come back again.

This place was one of my favorites until 2 days ago we ordered TAKE-OUT and spent >$90 for dinner. Just to find this owner being rude by being upset not getting tips from bagging the foods. I can't believe how petty they were by doing this and won't go back for sure. There are lots of thai restaurants around Hampton.

Nice decor. Friendly service. Red curry was ok. Not the best. But the veggies were fresh. Drunken noodles were bland. Sticky rice and mango are what you would expect for winter time. Overall I rate it OK. I will not travel out of my way to eat here again.

Quick & mostly friendly service but my fried rice tastes completely burnt.

Authentic Thai restaurant. Employees are all nice and fast service. The food was good too. I used to live in Thailand, and ever since i left there, i always miss thai food. I'm glad I found this restaurant.

The thai pumpkin curry stays on my mind...all the time. The atmosphere, so quiet, so tranquil. Such good food. 10/10 would recommend.

Just order through DoorDash today hit the pad Thai and pepper steak the food was ok there was nothing spicy about it ordered the hot which is the level above Thai spicy and the portion size for what you pay is not worth it won’t be ordering again

This place is great. Staff is friendly and attentive. Food is hot and comes out fast. I grew up in Thailand, and have to say this is probably up there in terms of authentic Thai in America. On top of all that it has extremely reasonable prices!

This place is great! The food is amazing and service is kind. The atmosphere was calming and I would 100% go again.

I am visiting from out of state and unfortunately there are no local Thai restaurants close to me that are as tasty as this one. This was my second restaurant stop once I got in town. loved the Pad Thai and Basil fried rice. I may have to go back to get some for the trip home. Met with a smile and great service. Recommend

I come to lunch here with my friend ever so often. Sometimes I betray her and order food here by myself (sorry)! I've enjoyed their dishes and always go for the Fried Fish dish, which is fried fish with a kind of curry sauce with onions and pepper on rice. When I order this dish to-go, they always package the curry sauce and the fried fish separately, so the fish doesn't get soggy! I always thought this was very thoughtful of them. Although the menu can be a little overwhelming, it's a great variety of options, from curries, to noodle dishes, to thai salads, to a variety of fried rice, and appetizers. A lot of the customers around lunch time are likely people who work on the AFB or NASA Langley. But I never found this place to be too crowded even during dinner. But it seems like they have extra space in another room for additional seating if it does. The place is modest, service is fast, and I personally think the food is great.

Very good Pad Thai. I could eat it every day. Great whole in the wall place. Service was quick.

This may be an unpopular review! But I was not impressed with the food. I ordered beef pad Thai, cream cheese rangoon, and Thai iced tea. The pad Thai was extremely bland! The cream cheese rangoon was way too soft like soup balled into a wonton then fried. However, the Thai iced tea was delicious. Also, they seem to only have a few condiment tray because they took ours to another table and I had to ask the server for it back. No complaints on the service; in fact, they refilled our drinks quite often and cleared our table. The place is larger than it looks from the outside with two dining areas and yes it's large enough to accommodate about 15-20 people. The ambiance was nice with Thai decor and menu specials on the board. Although, the location may be a bit sketchy. I have been trying out several Thai restaurants in the area and a colleague recommended this place. From my experience, it ranks dead last on my list of Thai food in the area. Again, I was expecting a burst of spices and flavors at first bite but felt short of my expectation. If you you're not a fan of spices and like to keep it safe this place is for you.

The food was sooo good and very worth it. The staff was also very very attentive and kind. I didn't have to ask for anything they refilled my cup and brought more napkins when I was out. Did I already say the food was amazing?? lol

I'm not sure what type of food I just ate.. but it was not Thai. I used to go there several years ago, and it was amazing. Apparently the new owners aren't Thai.... And it was disgusting. It tasted terrible. I am not one to write bad reviews... but this was a zero of a meal !

Alright food for an okay price. That's my justification for the 3-star rating. After visiting Thailand and tasting a variety of food, then comparing it to Thai Papaya I don't taste the authenticity. It had good flavor, but the Pad See Ew did not taste like Pad See Ew in Thailand. In my personal opinion it lost me at the first bite. The service was fair, my coworker and I beat the lunch rush so we were able to be in and out. Didn't wait long for food, refills, or for our check. The restaurant itself is very small, so not an ideal place for a big party, maybe 10-12max.

Attentive service and good Thai food. Ambience needs an upgrade, like music. Seems very popular with the take out customers

This is an institution. No matter when someone was assigned to Beale AFB, this restaurant comes up whenever we are trying to decide on where to eat.

The oldest, one of the best, and a still very affordable Thai spot in Hampton. I had a pumpkin curry from here some years back that was to die for. Last week I ordered the Tom Kra (coconut soup), which I hadn't tried before. It was more tangy than I expected. The lime and tomatoes make the citrus and tang the primary flavors. I didn't really taste the lemongrass, cilantro, or any heat, and there weren't any green onions, but the tofu and mushrooms added a nice texture and there were plenty of white onions. The coconut milk must be a very slight addition - I'd expected a thicker base. I'd never had this before as I usually order curries or basil dishes from Thai restaurants, so I have no previous experience to compare it to. Once I got used to the consistency and tang, it was quite good. A nice summer soup. *Important to note that lunch time dine in is in full effect. The restaurant was packed, it was hard to social distance, and the people at the register were not being quick about paying and getting out of the way. It's a small restaurant and there's not much space for the to-go customers to line up. They are just as busy as they've always been and ordering by phone didn't seem to speed up the pick up process.

Looking for a hole in the wall Thai place? Thai Papaya is the place to be! The staff are friendly, the food tasted great, and the wait is almost nonexistent. For those looking for spicy Thai food, ask for extra spice when dining at Thai Papaya.

Delicious , authentic food . The pad Thai and curry was so delicious . Service was great also

Upon entering this place you can see it's a local favorite for Thai. Plenty of seating inside, and fast service makes this a good lunch spot. The servings are large, the food is super tasty and the service is excellent. Feel free to snag your coworkers and grab some delicious

Thai Papaya is in new favorite Thai place!!! I just moved here from California and missed my Thai restaurant from home. This was the first placed I went and the food is just a good if not better!! The customer service is Amazing! Everyone is so sweet. I now go to Thai papaya almost once a week. I would recommend getting the sticky mango rice for dessert!

This is our favorite local Thai restaurant. The portions are generous and prices are decent. We often do take out (call ahead) and occasionally eat in the restaurant as well.

Alright folks, I'm going to have to give this place 3 star. I'm a Thai food fan, but this place for me was just ok. When you drive up to this joint, this strip mall looks old and run down. But you guys should know me by now. That doesn't run me off. I've run into plenty of dives and bars that I've fell in love with that didn't look the most appealing on the outside. Thai Papaya is a decent sized place and there is a large area through a door to your right that takes you to a larger seating area. I'm assuming for when they are really busy or for private parties. My friend and I started off with the chicken egg rolls. Not good at all. It really tastes like they went to Restaurant Depot and purchased some cheap egg rolls and fried them. Maybe it would work at some dive bar where the inebriated customers wouldn't really care too much about the taste and just enjoy some fried food. I decided to go with a simple go-to Thai dish, Som Tum (papaya salad). Big mistake!! My large white plate came out with what looked like 2 cups of cooked rice, large pieces of lettuce, and just a small amount of papaya. I asked for them to make it very spicy. They gave me the American version of very spicy. Which is not spicy at all. I can understand that part, there are tons of folks that cannot handle flavored heat, so they don't want to alienate the majority of their customers, I guess. No big deal on that note. The huge portion of rice and lettuce threw me off completely! But kudos to the owners for making a great profit off of that dish that they are charging $7.75 that is probably about less than $2 to make. My friend got a noodle dish, I think it was the pepper steak with noodles. Very tasty. Of course, more heat was added, but very good. The noodles were large and delicious. They actually purchase their noodles from Hampton Oriental Market (my last review--STAY WOKE!!) Maybe I ordered the wrong things here. I see a lot of good reviews. Who knows, I may try something else on the menu if I return.

Hello Thai Papaya...so we meet again. Alright so I cannot truly speak to the dine-in experience, as I tend to order food to go here, but I ROCK with TP. The food portions exceed the price point as far as I'm concerned. I always have two meals worth of food, and it's always GOOD! I could eat their Pad Thai everyday. I have dined in once and it was just fine. Service was pretty quick and the servers were polite. It was during the lunch rush, and considering they're located next to Langley, they have quick service down to a science, and I have NO problems with kick service. I'm not looking to chill on lunch, otherwise, I'll never want to go back to work. Anyway, I say all that to say this...Thai Papaya is good. Easily my favorite thai restaurant on the peninsula. I'll continue to order from here once every other week because they're worth it.

You know what, I'd take a Mom and Pops joint over a cooperate, mega, cesspool any day! So I checked in on Yelp, just to see where you guys have been hanging out. Found a local spot literally down the street from my house you guys have checked out and I didn't even know existed. So I ask, "what kinda Yelp Elite 15 would I be if I didn't check it out too?" OK, let me set this up for you. Imagine a five star restaurant in a not so five star area. Well, the area may not have looked all that nice, but the people and their had great character, loyalty to their community and love for people made up for that. This place is Thai food at its best. Cozy spot in the Tide mill Shopping Center with a taste of Southeast Asia you would never expect. An elegant, cozy restaurant with a lot of That Culture. The place was filled with Southeast Asian art and the food was no exception. National dish is Pad, have it with shrimp, beef or chicken and in some cases fish (just not here) so I got it with chicken. My oh My, I got a plate full of Thai Heaven. Noodles, chicken Thai sauce, sauteed and stir fried to an unbelievable noodle sensation. Dish was feeling, very nice portion, and I even had left overs for lunch the next day. My wife had the drunken, she finished it all, something she never does when we go out. I ask her if she was hungry, she said "naw boy, that ish was GOOD' - translation: honey this place is so nice and the food is so good! They also have a spicy trays that rotate around the place with a variety of spices to put on your food. Be careful, it is HOT! Speaking of hot.. It was so hot in there I thought the devil was sitting next to me. I guess the A/C was broke or something, because I was sweating my butt off! Must have been the heat from the kitchen. I guess that is why I'm giving them 4 stars. Oh, keep in mind if you go in the evening, there is only one waitress working. She is also the cashier. Give her a break if it takes a while for her to get to you, the food is worth he wait! Yo if you are ever in Hampton, check this place out! OK, that it! I'm out!

Ordered birthday to go spring rolls and pork larb. The spring rolls were tasty but the larb was dreadful. Menu states "with thai herbs in spicy lime dressing". Tweren't any herbs, spices or lime. Putrid!

Best Tom yum soup and Thai tea I have had in awhile - spicy and delicious on this cloudy rainy day - hit the spot! Great service and reasonable prices !

I went for lunch first visit. A/mazing garlic chicken and mango sticky rice. I was SO hopeful. Later in the week I ordered the Pad Thai to go and was very disappointed. It tasted like soy sauce. Very blah. Four stars down to three.

I was a bit disappointed with this one after seeing so many good reviews. I ordered a sweet Thai iced tea, chicken pad see ew, and an order of the mango sticky rice. The tea was by far the best part of the meal. The chicken pad see ew was extremely greasy and did not have the sweet saucy flavor. Instead it just tasted over loaded with pepper. I felt a little disgusting after eating just half of it because of how greasy it was. The restaurant itself seemed very nice (and smelled delicious as soon as you walk through the door). Not sure if I just happened to come in on a bad day or if another dish would have been better. They were very busy when I came in to pick up my order so that might have had something to do with it.

I ordered the combination fried rice witch came With chicken , beef & shrimp & let me tell Y'all , this was the BEST BEST Thai fried rice I've had in life !!!!! Although I only had 3 shrimps in the rice that didn't take away the flavor from the rice . When I first pulled up the place looked a little sketchy but I'm glad we stopped . . The service wasn't the greatest we waited at least 10 mins for someone to acknowledge us & take our drink orders n food . The guy working the register and running food apologize & said there is a big party in the back not really an excuse being that there was a waitress on the floor that walked past us three times and said nothing . However that small problem will not stop me from driving from Virginia Beach to Hampton .

Wow! Restaurant reborn! Thai papaya had an unfortunate experience requiring a fire truck and a dedicated team of fire professionals. Great opportunity to reimagine success! The owners of Thai Papaya took the opportunity to reimagine the decor. And man did they nail it. The place looks brand new and the food is already drawing crowds from far and wide. The prices are unbelievable! And for incredible food too. Don't wait on this one, get on over and enjoy the sum yum.

The food is ok , but the customer service when I tried to pick my food up it was horrible. Online it does not tell you what's the specific ingredients in the appetizer part. So i tried to explain that to lady what I meant and she came back arguing saying I should've read it better and showing me the menu ( The one online is different than the one in the restaurant). First she's assuming I should know exactly what every food is . They changed it for me....ok kuddos for that, but the attitude and the assumption is what got them 1 star. The guy was telling her not to argue back I was not aware about how they differentiate their menu here. PS: I kept my cool and didn't argue back

Food came quick! Pre-ordering food for dining in is an option! All servers are your server. Tom Kra has massive flavor!

Best Thai in the area run by a family who cares about their customers ! Service is fast and thoughtful.

I guess I got to them on a bad day because my food did not taste or look like anyone else on yelp. I solely read the reviews here and walked into this restaurant confident that my food was going to taste amazing. I ordered the Chicken Pad See Ew (not spicy) for take out. I'm usually a patient person when it comes to waiting for my food but there were people who ordered after me and left way before me (with larger orders than mine which left me a bit annoyed). Back to the food, if I'm not mistaken Pad See Ew is suppose to have quite a bit of sauce on it, but mine was very dry (and a little oily). When I was handed my food it was wrapped up but I smelt something burnt. I figured it was the kitchen, but when I got to my car I realized that faint burnt smell was actually my food. Some of the noodle and broccoli was pretty burnt. I ate around that. Not sure if I would go back to see if it was actually a bad day or not, because there's another Thai restaurant I rather go to instead (a little more costly but worth it).

One of the best Thai places around. Love the quaint atmosphere. The food is amazing & the service is quick & gracious. May look a little sketch but worth stepping inside. You will be glad you did. So many great authentic dishes to try.

Probably the worst Thai food in the area. No flavor in tom kra soup. Told me it was $2 to add 1 fried egg. Haven't been impressed with any of their dishes. Only in business because the base is close by and people don't know what good Thai food is.

Decent food. Lunch special crab fried rice spicy and seafood stir fry with white rice was the order. Flavor just lacked authentic Thai flavor. Can't quite put my finger on it but something was lacking with flavor I've come to enjoy with authentic Thai. It'll work for lunch break but foodie's would be disappointed

ok, so Im still new to the area and so I've been trying to look for the best thai authentic restaurant but so far nothing has been to my expectations. but this place by far is not at all to my expectations. I really want a really good papaya salad and with their name being Thai Papaya, i would expect it to be better. But its so bland and plain and tasteless. i had to add my own stuff to it. Their pad see ew aint all that bad. Their chicken massaman curry was good. Not the best ive ever had but it was still good enough. The chicken laarb was ok. more on sour side so its ok. I guess I shouldve taken pictures first so I can share but i hate to say I wouldnt recommend this place unless u want to just help support a small business or family business.

I've done multiple tours at Langley and this is my go to for chicken pad thai. I'm no expert on authenticity but I've been lots of places around the world between military assignments and personal travel. I know good food and this place has it. Always tasty, always fast and polite service! I don't do many reviews cause lazy lol. This place is worth it...recommend recommend recommend!

Really disappointed! Ordered 2 orders of chicken pad thai the other night, Chicken was shredded up so small you couldn't even taste it. Entire dish was so dry. And no limes with either order. Thai iced teas were good, but I don't think we'll be going back here again.

My favorite go to for Thai! They never disappoint. My never fail items that I order are satay chicken, fried rice, panang curry and pad Thai. I always receive great service and my food is always hot.

Awesome place. Looks like a hole in the wall, but those are sometimes the best. It was in this case. Some of the best pad thai I've had outside of Thailand.

Always a pleasure to run into a fellow Yelper. Today it was Lou M. Holla!!! Good to see you buddy. So happy to come back for lunch. When I arrived at noon the place was hoppin'. All the tables were taken. This is a great sign. I ordered a beef dish with bell peppers, bamboo shoots and basil...Thai spicy. I was sweating my you know what off but this meal was absolutely delicious. The best part of this place are the crushed peanuts. I literally ate have the container. Love it here!!!

came the other day for lunch before I had to go to work. Let me just say, wow. It was packed when I got there..mostly Air Force people since it's near the base... A line in front of the counter and a lot of tables filled. The main area was small, though I noticed an adjoining room with more tables. It's very hole-in-the-wall, family-run type business. The booths and tables are reminiscent of a cafeteria. The servers were nice, although they didn't check up on us after they took our orders.. I ordered the Panang Curry with chicken, and had asked for it to be "medium" spicy. It came out a bit after my friend had received their food. The curry was very good, though there was a very grainy texture that I'm not used to having in my Thai curries, but the flavor and heat were great. The amount of rice was also a good amount. I had ordered the Thai Tea to drink, and I'm glad I did lol the medium spicy was actually quite spicy, and I needed the coolness of the tea to help me eat. let me just say, that was one of the best Thai teas I had ever had. Would definitely go back if I'm in the Town Center area (since it's around the corner).

The food was so good and the server was so nice! There's not one complaint I have about this place. if you're looking for some good thai food this is the place to go

so many good things i can say about thai papaya. the staff is attentive and friendly, the food is fresh and DELICIOUS, the new decor is bright and inviting. if it's busy, please be patient... the food is WELL worth the wait. this is my favorite local thai spot for so many reasons. so glad that they're open again!

The worst pad thai I've ever had. I got something that was supposed to be spicy and it was basically bell peppers. Never again. Never.

Good, but not great, Thai. Pretty good value, very good service, clean and attractive mom-n-pop atmosphere. Hot pretty much means hot, so take them seriously, but their next-to-hottest level was not quite hot enough for this likes-'em-hot guy. (Tida Thai's 8-out-of-10 is a little more than I can enjoy comfortably - my benchmark in Hampton Roads). The pumpkin soup was very good, but not the best I've had. I came in at the end of the night, right at closing, and said I preferred the fried (chewy) tofu over soft, but they would have had to hang out a little longer to make me some, so I settled for the soft. I think the fried would have been better. It's a place that locals like to go to - it's apparently nicely predictable, always good. I don't mind going here at all, especially since I usually go with friends. I like Tida Thai and Thai Erawan better, but I've had some really tremendous Thai food during my travels. Haven't found one of those tremendous places in Hampton Roads yet, is all.

I call it Thai Thursdays! Yes, I order food from here at least once a week and I have a dedicated day for it. I recently switched it to Friday since my Thai buddy has martial arts training on Thursday nights and sometimes we over-indulge. My favorite is the medium spice Thai fried rice with chicken and extra tomatoes. I literally order this every week. I have tried other dishes but I LOVE rice and this dish is my favorite. I have also had the perfectly crispy and crunchy golden cream cheese and the awesome spring rolls. Let me not forget to mention the Thai Tea!! Its a sweet orange-colored, cool, refreshing drink that is a must-try.

Delicious! Came in for lunch and although the location isn't the best, the food makes up for it! Lunchtime is crowded and for good reason. Service was excellent and I was able to get in and out in under 45 minutes. I had panang curry beef and it was awesome! I'll be back soon with friends.

Amazing! Period....been awhile since I've had anything so good Duck Curry with Rice medium heat Ice cold beer

Been here once and that was enough. Here's why they lost stars: - Service at lunch was too slow--35 minutes from order to food. Even at lunch rush they were not at full capacity. Speed unacceptable. - Pad Thai could best be described as salty noodles. No basil. No carrots. Skimpy in bean sprouts and onions. Barely could taste the tamarind, the defining ingredient of pad Thai! - Clumsy wait staff. They just seemed uncoordinated with each other and slow to respond to our requests. On the plus side, the place seems local and others said the curries were delicious. You'll have to take that chance yourself!

It was my first time to visit here and i had the worst experience. Worst service. Worst thai tea. No one checked on my table when my water was empty. And it was not busy at all. the restaurant was empty. The waitress gave me nasty look when i asked for thai tea. So freaking rude. Food is not even that good.