Chao Phaya

Really awesome yellow curry! Generous portions — enough for two meals.

I’ve been here twice, once two years ago with just my sister and on New Years Eve with my cousins. The food here is excellent. We ordered the Veggie Spring Rolls which were devoured within seconds. We also ordered the Pad Kee Mao, Thai Fried Rice, and Ka Na. Like I said above the food was delicious and spicy like we ordered. However, I docked a star because the service was extremely slow. You would think on a very busy night like New Year’s Eve, they would have more than one server but nope. There was only one server who was taking orders and delivering the food and she was having trouble keeping up with all the tables which were packed. It took about 25 minutes for her to come and take our order. And it took 45 minutes to an hour just for the entrees to come out. We were all hungry and were getting impatient as to when our food would come. I would go back for the yummy food but probably not on a busy night.

Good sized portions, tasty food for the Lunch portions. TERRIBLE SERVICE. FOOD FLIES EVERYWHERE. Water I had to ask for 2x in the 45 minutes I was there. $ 8.00 for lunch… comes with salad, entrée, and a vegetarian spring roll. Standard.

This is my joint.
I’ve tried a bunch of Thai places in the vicinity, I’ve only been completely satisfied with this one. Better than a lot of the high rated Thai places I’ve checked out in Manhattan.
Their Pad Thai is my favorite in the surrounding area; the only plate I’ve liked more is at Spice in NYC. Another favorite of mine which I don’t find anywhere else is the Chili Garlic Wine entrée, with either beef or pork.
As usual with Thai joints, lunch combos (with a slightly smaller portion fitting rice in the container) make the place a lot more affordable compared to ordering entrees at dinner.
The place looks nice, clean and ornate. but my only grievance here is that I don’t ever remember there being proper air-​conditioning — in the summer they use one fan and it’s still a tad too warm inside, and clear adhesive insulation around the windows and doors in the winter. Didn’t bother me, because I like the food too much. I usually get takeout, anyway.
I also don’t like ordering water in the restaurant, as it has that weird smell to it like it’s from a tap or has come through an old unchanged filter. I really hope they can address this! Instead, order a soda (they’ll give you an empty glass with a straw and a can) or a Thai iced tea.
Parking is abundant, come through and support this business.

My Indian co-​workers took me here because they loved the food. I was instantly hooked too. I love their Thai fried rice. The two co-​workers I usually go with always order the pad thai. Best thing is they can customize your dish to include meat /​not include meat, include vegetables /​not include vegetables, include spice /​not include spice. I love the Thai fried rice at this place.

I have been in this restaurant about 5 times. Never disappointed. From starters to entrees, all delicious!
Good service too!

My favorite Thai place in the immediate area.
I prefer Thai kitchen but that’s a small drive and sometimes I’m just lazy.
I like this place better than the ones by Rutgers and Thai lanna though.

Ordered the basil chicken. This stuff isn’t authentic thai cuisine, the dish reminded me of a typical chicken with mixed vegetables from a crappy chinese carry out. Don’t waste your money here!

Masamum curry, done just right with whole peanuts, spice and pineapple pieces.
Basil dish, Ive had better but the veggies were fresh and plenty.
Basil rice– perfectly spicy, lots of shrimp.

Love this place! We have eaten here a few times and the curry is some of the best we’ve ever had. We have frequently jumped around between Thai restaurants looking for something authentic and delicious, but were always left wanting something more. Finally, we’ve found it! I would recommend this place to anyone!

I first went to the Bridgewater location years ago and it was perfection. The Somerset location over the years has declined in the quality of food.
Last year we ordered shrimp in a couple of dishes and the shrimp was majorly overcooked and my husband got sick from something in the red curry. I still went back figuring it was a one time thing. Nope. The second time the shrimp was over cooked again. Overall, not the best Thai in the area.

Great Thai food and the staff is always friendly to me. Don’t ask for «hot» unless you want it REALLY hot! they will accommodate you if you like it mild or medium heat.

Food is good but received unfriendly response from the attendant. May be she is not in Christmas mood. Do not suggest for new peole

Chao Thai Phaya was always my go-​to place for Thai food but it seems like ownership/​management changed in the last year and so did the quality of service. 50% of the time I call, no one answers the phone– and I know I’m calling within the hours of business. Other times, I have gotten my order wrong (asked for spicy, it wasn’t spicy — or asked for a certain meat, got the vegetarian version). I do miss the old servers and hostess too :(the new ones are nice enough but please answer the phone! I have money to throw at you guys for your still wonderfully delicious food!

If there wasn’t such an abundance of truly «great» Thai food in central NJ, I might give Chao Phaya more leeway here. But the truth is, based upon my first dining experience here, the food, ambience, and service is really about 2.5 stars. I am rounding up to three because I am feeling generous.
My Massaman curry chicken was just okay — more sauce than chicken or vegetables, and the chicken was overcooked. The curry sauce was bland and tasted watered down.
My dining companion had some soup and said it was quite good, which is another reason I went with 3 stars versus 2. This is your basic strip mall Asian restaurant, and I see no reason to go out of your way to eat here, but if you do happen by, maybe you’ll have better luck than I did. Not 20 minutes from Chao Phaya there are some very solid 4 & 5 star Thai spots, so I recommend you search a bit and see if maybe you might find some Thai to rave about. This is okay, but def not rave-​worthy.

Best thai food in area. Always fresh and well prepared. Curry is always a great way. Masaman is my favorite. Also the tamarind duck special will blow your mind. Save room for the sticky rice mango!

I was driving by and decided to stop in since I love… LOVE…Thai food. The place was empty save for one other party. That should have been a clue!
Service was good. The space was nicely decorated and clean. The food itself, however, was truly horrible! My «spicy» curry dish was nauseatingly sweet (as if a bag of sugar had been dumped in it), but otherwise utterly bland. It tasted as if I were eating peanut butter and jelly on rice! Just yuck! Totally disgusting.

I had never seen a place where the server puts in the tip amount herself in the check and writes the final amount. It is common for restaurants to charge a 15% or 18% gratuity on checks for parties of 5 or more. However, this is explicitly stated in the menu card or somewhere. I didn’t see any such policy written in the menu, and our waiter charged us this tip by herself and that too for a table of 3.
Although the food was ok, this experience left a bad taste and I don’t think I’d return to this place.

I can not say enough about this place. The food is so good you can forgive all the flaws (a little pricey and only one server\counter worker). Please don’t get upset if it takes a while to be served this little place is quiet but always busy.
Try the Lasting Cloud you will love it. Their Curry Puffs and Peanut sauce are excellent, and the little Thia house salads are simple but truly special.

Okay Pizza-​Pals, here is a non-​pizza review on the ‘Best Thai in Town!’
Chao Phaya — Best Thai in the New Brunswick area, a strong contender for best Thai in the state!
I have been dining at Chao Phaya weekly for the past 3 – 4 years and finally decided to write a review.
Chao Phaya is located in a strip mall on Easton Ave that is obscured by a Boston Market. You cannot see Chao Phaya from Easton and you certainly need to know where it is located.
Chao Phaya features the most authentic Thai that I have ever had. All very fresh and quality ingredients including fresh Thai chili peppers including FRESH prik kee noo and bird’s eye chilis when available.
All dishes can be made to accommodate vegetarians as well as spice tolerance.
Personal favorites include:
Thai Basil Fried Rice (awesome!)
Red, Massaman, and Panang Curries (all curry dishes are jam packed with fresh veggies, never overcooked) (also Awesome!)
Pad Thai
Cashew Chicken
Veg Spring Rolls
Restaurant staff is always friendly and accommodating. I will admit that they are sometimes understaffed as Chao Phaya becomes busy at times.
Chao Phaya is an excellent choice for a lunch or dinner as well as take out.
They are BYOB and there is a bottle store in the strip mall (across) where the restaurant is located.
I understand that Chao Phaya also has a sister location in Somerville.
I highly recommend Chao Phaya! No other Thai restaurant is as authentic!
(Confirmed with my Thai peeps!)
(To those reviewers that have stated the Chao Phaya is under new management: This is false to my knowledge. Chao Phaya has had the same owner for all the years that I can remember. I had also seen and had spoke with her a couple weeks ago as she was cooking at the Somerset location.)