Sweet Basil Thai

Probably the most disappointing Pad Se Ew (drunken noodles) I’ve experienced. Very few vegetables, and no thai basil! I don’t believe the menu specified that it would have basil, but still a let down.

These guys had a great lunch deal. It was like $ 7 for pad thai or something basic like that — I can’t remember exactly what I ordered, but I remember liking it. It’s a small place, I wouldn’t recommend trying to go with a group. The staff was nice, and the food was good. I got a Thai tea too, and I think I waited somewhere between 10 – 15 minutes for my food, which I think is reasonable for good takeout that you know is being prepared fresh for you. I was there around midday on a Thursday, and there were only two other tables of people, so if you want to go for lunch on a weekday, it doesn’t seem like you’d have trouble getting a table.

My favorite Thai place in the Bay Area, which says a lot. The only place I’ve ever seen bamee talay on the menu, a must have. Their fried spring rolls and peanut chicken are also delicious!

Yummy food, and very nice friendly service.
The dishes we ordered were very tasty and attractively presented.
Much better than the average Thai restaurant.
The décor is simple but nice and the place feels cozy and relaxed.

Ordered the eggplant lunch special and it was great! Was hesitant to try the place because it wasn’t very busy but the food came out quickly and was very well prepared. I especially liked the sauce and the amount. Will definitely be coming back in the future.

Horrible service… Perhaps intentionally unpleasant.
But also very very slow…
Dishes come out one by one, 15−20min in between…
Food is tasty, but nothing to write home about…
Not special at all…
Prices are high.

I so hoped to enjoy Sweet Basil but the ambiance and service were the most appealing aspects of this restaurant unfortunately. The appetizers of spring rolls and corn cakes my partner and I had were good but the main dish of green curry with grilled vegetables that I had was quite a disappointment. The curry sauce was very salty and lacked the depth of flavor that one comes to expect from Thai cooking.
With so many good Thai restaurant in the Bay Area, I will not likely be back to this one.

If walked by this place so many times and finally had a chance to try it.
The service was great– pleasant waiting staff who sat us at a table right away, and refilled out waters within reasonable time. the only critique I had was that the waiter didn’t know how to describe some of the beers on the menu (like whether it was dark or light), but other than that, it was fine.
The dishes were good portions, so I suggest sharing a few with whomever you’re with (more fun that way anyways).
We started with the calamari. It was pretty good, but a little too sweet for my taste. I know that it was intended to be sweet to balance with the tangy/​sour/​spicy sauce, but I still found that with the sauce it was too sweet for my liking. I also think, however, that the pieces should be a little smaller. The presentation, vegetables it was served with and amount of crispy texture was perfect.
We shared the coconut and galangal soup which was super yummy– creamy, rich, and flavorful. The mushrooms were my favorite part, soaking up the flavor a of the soup, it was delicious. You could definitely taste te coconut milk, but it wasn’t overpowering. We ordered a pot and shared it amongst the three of us.
We also ordered a kabocha braised pork red curry. Usually, I’ve gotten yellow curries with kabocha in it. It was a bit spicy, but not so much so where it took over; I love kabocha, which was nice and soft but added a sweetness to the already sweet curry. I didn’t mind it too much, but I think that it should have either been a bit more spicy or had more bell peppers or onions which, though also sweet, would have offset the monotoned curry a bit more. Don’t get me wrong, I did enjoy the dish though.

Went here for dinner tonight with my bestie; my first time. As I looked over the menu, I said, «How am I ever going to pick just one of these?» Every item on the menu sounded delicious. It was only by promising to share entrees that we managed to settle on two, the duck with pineapple and cherry tomato, and the kung pao shrimp fried rice. (also with pineapple) The food was an utter joy, a delightful combination of clean pure flavors, innovative and artfully done. The very reasonable number on the bill, even with wine, was one more happy surprise. I will come here again, often; and I would recommend it to anyone — little kids, Grandmama, even your super-​straight cousins from out of town.

I don’t have a lot of experience with Thai food, nor do I possess the understanding of authenticity regarding foods from Asia, but what I do know — this place tastes great! Seriously, by the end of this meal I had completely rediscovered the dimensions of my stomach (I didn’t know I could hold that much food!)
For starters, we (party of 7) ordered two pots of Thai hot & sour soup. It was fantastic, but not for people with low tolerance spicy foods. We also had deep fried turnip cakes and Indian flat-​bread, both of which were delicious.
Entrees, this is where they kind of faltered. I ordered the wide rice noodles with chicken, which was only so-​so. But beyond that, I found a hair in my dish (big no-​no). We ordered sticky rice for all, and my friend some plastic (saran wrap maybe?) in one of the rice patties. But I think everyone well enjoyed their meal, which earns back the star I definitely would have taken off for the hair and plastic in the rice.
Deserts were delicious! My friend ordered the mango and sticky rice which he said was awesome, and my other friend, after saying he wasn’t hungry anymore, ended up asking for our «spare» fried bananas (I gave him one, but quickly polished off the others).
Also shout-​out to our server! He was great the whole time, and gave us extremely friendly service, which really enhanced the experience. (Nothing ruins a good meal like a bad waiter). In conclusion: Awesome meal, awesome service, awesome restaurant!

Service was great and very nice setting. Quiet and intimate.
Very good calamari appetizer– and the sauce it comes with is amazing.
The pad thai came out steamy hot (perfect!) I asked for it medium spicy and it was exactly what I wanted. Portion size was just right. My husband got the pad see yew and he loved it. Has a bit of a smokey taste to it.
Don’t forget your thai tea!

Our first time here last night. The most delicious Thai food we have found!!! The Calamari was absolute heaven. The crispy chicken was so flavorful. We ordered 3 more dishes to share~ beef, prawns & chicken. Between 2 of us we ate it all! Honestly an amazing meal! Our new favorite:)

I am in love with their Chicken Pad Thai! Almost to the point where I am addicted lol. I work next door and I can’t help but order my craving as take-​out on my lunch breaks. They are always super fast when I order out! I have also had the pleasure of dining in. The place is very cute and clean. This is one of Berkeley’s gems. Highly recommend.

Omg I think I found my favorite local Thai place! I can’t believe I’ve never come here before, but this was an awesome experience with great food!
The server was probably the nicest server I’ve seen in a while, very willing to let us sit outside with our dog even though it was almost closing time and he had to walk farther to serve us. Even brought my puppy water. He was very friendly and helpful, thank you!
The food was really good too. The soup that came with our meal was the perfect appetizer, and my favorite was the grilled eggplant salad, it is to die for, made spicy upon request, it was actually spicy and delicious!
I’m definitely coming back here, and often!

Those who dislike the typical grimier Thai places will love the décor and service at this joint! The food is solid too– I had the chance to try their fresh rolls, pad Thai and hot chicken basil. Among the mild, hot and very hot options, we chose the very hot, which could further be «Thai“spicy or «American» spicy. Don’t let that naming fool you… The American spicy we got was pretty hot!
Anyhow, only one star less because the small restaurant has limited space and didn’t open up their patio for some reason. The service was a bit slow too. Sometimes hard to get the waitress’ attention. The indoor lights were heavily skewed towards the left side of the room, but that could just be nick picky of me. Overall, solid 4.5, and a place that would welcome kids too!

Sweet Basil has an awkward entrance with no hostess podium, and when you walk in, everyone looks at you like you just waltzed into someone’s living room. That’s okay, though. You keep being you, Sweet Basil, because I love your food. The fried turnip cake appetizer is delightfully crispy, and unique – I haven’t seen it offered at any other Thai restaurant. I love the pad see ew, which is nicely charred while still offering crisp vegetables. I crave their pad see ew in particular pretty regularly now. The pad thai is not the best I have had, but there is not anything offensive about it either. Other offerings – stir fried eggplant, and tom kha gai are high quality as well. I highly recommend.

I don’t know why this place doesn’t have more than 3.5 stars… because it’s actually really good.
I’m picky when it comes to Thai cuisine, it’s just one of those things I really enjoy and cannot get enough of, but I do know the difference between the good and the bad. For instance, I’ve had terrible noodles in my pad see ew before. They were overly cooked, gummy and oddly flavored; that’s not what I’ve had at Sweet Basil Thai. Their pad see ew is fantastic. It’s always perfectly cooked, the chinese broccoli has the perfect amount of bitterness too it and the seasoning is never overly sweet. I’m also a huge fan of the calamari and maybe that’s because it IS a tiny bit sweet. Have you had minorly sugary calamari before? I haven’t, but paired with the spicy dipping sauce it’s a great combo.
Honestly, nothing I’ve had has ever tasted bad and ever since moving to Albany, I’ve been quite a regular on the take-​out front. Prices are a little bit more than your average hole in the wall Thai shop, but that seems pretty standard considering is right off of Solano avenue. Another note, they’re really quick when it comes to ordering. My husband orders the food while I’m on my way home from work and within 15 minutes it’s ready. Gotta love it!

So delicious! Very impressed with this find on Solano Ave. Went here on a double date… we shared most of our plates but here’s a taste of what we ordered:
Small plates: Kao Pode Tod (corn cakes) and Kieow Tod (dumplings). Both were scrumptious. The corn cakes were a nice change to the usual satay and rolls. 2 small plates were easily shared between the four of us.
Main plates: Thai Style Fried Rice with Crab (special), Kang Kua Moo (red curry with pork) and Pad Normai (asparagus and bamboo shoots). All 3 were delicious and I especially liked the red curry. The pork truly is tender and the sauce is spicy enough to please everyone’s taste buds. The Pad Normai was a little heavy on the bamboo shoots and more on the dry side but was a good compliment of veggies to the mainly meaty curry. The rice was delicious with hefty pieces of crab. We were all full from our dishes with some to spare as leftovers.
Didn’t divulge into the wine/​beer menu but we did have the lemongrass and Thai iced teas. Both were exceptional. I’d highly trying the lemongrass tea if you want something light and refreshing!
Service is on point, location is easy to find with ample side street parking. I’d highly recommend checking it out.

Great service, an intimate atmosphere and good food make Sweet Basil Thai a highlight of Solano Avenue. Perhaps I should have been more adventurous with my menu selections, because some stuff looked pretty unique. I came by with a friend on a Saturday night art walk and grabbed a table in front.
The décor was subdued for a Thai place, but fresh flowers and other touches showed. We didn’t feel crowded in, but had a large table since it was getting late. Our servers were quick and very nice.
I had some fried spring rolls, which we wished were much longer/​larger. Otherwise, they were crisp and not greasy. I wanted some more flavor out of them, but the sweet sauce was good. The chicken satay was very well seasoned (filled up my car and fridge with garlic and curry) and had pretty good meat. I wanted more out of the pickled cucumber though. The peanut sauce and jasmine rice were good as well. My friend’s thick noodle dish (pad something?) was good but not overly memorable.
For a nice, consistent Thai meal in the area, Sweet Basil is a great choice, with service that really shows.

Boooommmmbbb Thai food. Great ownership and mgmt. too.
Portions are great and Jeff the server is the nicest guy. Super accommodating and friendly. The hot Thai tea is perfection.