The Royal Thai

The food is way below standard. I and my friend ordered different kinds of soups and they came as the same thin watery and intensely sour liquid. The rest of the food was below par as well. Another couple having lunch complained that their food wasn’t freshly cooked and their chicken was cold from the inside. The lady attendant was polite though. Not going there again.

We’ve been here twice but it’s not our favourite Thai restaurant. Although the waiters are very friendly and helpful, the food’s a little bland and most of the starters we have ordered turned out to be deep fried in batter. Maybe we made a mistake, but we’ve been on holiday to Phuket and the food here isn’t quite as we remember Thai. (Maybe the chef’s from a different region?)

Saturday 11/​09/​2010 19:00. We have been to the Thai Cottage and the Phutnam as it has been known in the past and now The Royal Thai and have yet to have a bad meal and tonight was no different.
My wife and I were greeted at the door and shown to our table as is usual here. We ordered our drinks and then our meal of Starter and main meal the only quibble we had was that after our starter, which was excellent, my wife’s main course arrived first and she had to wait for the rice to arrive and I then had to wait for my main meal. Surely meal and rice should arrive together. That was our only complaint as the food and presentation was superb. The Service was good and pleasantly delivered by the young lady serving our table and she had a sense of humour that we were pleased with. The price has risen from previous meals but you have to expect that in these times I suppose. 8 out 10 overall and yes WE WILL BE BACK.

We went there on saturday 30÷1÷2010, we had booked for 8:30pm, a table for 7 people, the place was bursting at the seams, not a spare seat in the house. The hostess took our drinks order and we ordered our starters and mains, drinks arrived and we settled in for a good night! … It wasn’t till 9:30 that the first of the starters turned up the rest turned up over the course of 10 mins, but the 3 servers had a lot of other customers to cope with. The rice for the mains followed an hour later and sat getting cold for a further 10 mins. the mains appeared over the course of a further 10 — 15 mins with people having to start before it all got cold. … Service. very poor /​Food. very good
On another night it may have been 5 star, if you are fully booked you need to have more staff, more cooks (maybe) don’t take so many bookings or walk ins for the same time, when we booked their was only one other confirmed booking.

We visit The Royal Thai on a regular basis & love it.
The Set Menu’s offer great value & variety.
The service is excellent & the staff are really friendly & attentive.
Highly recommend this restaurant. One of the best in Darlington.
Give it a try, you won’t be disappointed.

My husband and I have been going to this restaurant for years and keep going back time and time again. The food is excellent and very tasty especially the fish curry. We have tried everything on the menu and have found nothing that we dislike. Very friendly staff and nothing is a trouble. Looking forward to another visit soon. ps. watch the salads very hot and spicy but excellent

We went on Friday 17^th April 2009 for the early bird menu. We cannot fault the food or service. It was very good value for money and the staff were very welcoming and polite. We will definitely be going again.

I have eaten here twice first time for the early bird menu and second time off the later menu. After these two visits I probably will not go back. The foods not bad — but not the best either, I found the early bird menu really salty and could not stop drinking water all night. Yes the veg is prepared beautiful — as with all thai food, but this place just did not do it for me. Previous to this it used to be the Thai cottage which I preferred. Maybe its because I eat a lot of thai food, or maybe its because I have been backpacking in Thailand for several months — but the food here is average. I can imagine it will get a lot of trade from the theatre being opposite.

I’ve never been to a Thai restaurant before so I’m unsure if this is typical of all Thai restaurants.
I chose the £9.99 early bird menu. I explained that I was a vegetarian and they offered to make any of the curries meat and fish free. I chose a green curry for the main course. It was served in a small bowl and consisted of three small cubes of tofu with small pieces of veg in a spicy liquid. There was some white rice to share. Everyone in my party had reasonable amounts on their plate. Mine would be regarded as a very small kids meal.
I rang the manager the next morning and he explained that the green curry on the early bird menu was a very small portion even if it was the meat option. Why did I get such a small portion when others got not only much more vegetable that had been prepared beautifully and also ten times the amount of meat compared to my tofu? The manager advised that when I return I should ask for a larger portion.
Apart from that no complaints. The food tasted good. The staff were friendly and helpful and the place looked clean and well presented.

I first dined at The Royal Thai Restaurant to celebrate with friends. We were received in true Thai tradition with a warm welcoming smile accompanied by a graceful wai.
The restaurant is pleasantly decorated with both the sumptuous table linen and napkins and the Thai background music, both quiet and peaceful, setting the scene but not so to as distract us from our conversation, adding to the ambience.
After careful consideration of the extensive menu we all decided on the Royal Banquet, choosing two options A & C.
We were given the complimentary prawn crackers which were brought to our table straight from the oven and were delicious with the accompanied array of dips. We chose a delightful red Cabernet Sauvignon which was reasonably priced. The starters were beautifully presented with the accompanied salad and vegetables hand carved which in the first instance looked too good to eat! My favourites were the Thai fish cakes which were accompanied by a sweet and sour sauce and the Chicken Satay.
The next course brought to our table was Thai soup, which had an exquisite taste, with lemon grass and coconut milk, leaving the taste buds tingling.
The banquet really began when the waitress, dressed in traditional Thai dress delivered the main course which consisted of several dishes accompanied by bowls of steaming jasmine rice. The dishes carefully catered for all tastes with varying degrees of spiciness.
We were then given any choice from the sweet menu which ranged from Thai seasonal fruits, refreshing sorbets or various ice cream sundaes for the not so calorie conscious. Our party chose across the full range. Once again the fruit deserves special mention for its presentation, along with the sorbets which were a prefect way to end the meal. We were then served with fresh coffee or teas which were all included in the price.
We were all unanimous that our special evening had been an occasion to remember. The service was exceptional, we were not rushed and just the right amount of time elapsed between courses. The food was delicious with so many different tastes, served piping hot consisting of both quality and quantity. The restaurant was spotlessly clean including the toilet facilities. My wife vouched for the ladies!
The Royal Thai Restaurant is situated opposite to the theatre and a minutes walk from a free car park we found in the adjacent street. I would not hesitate in recommending this restaurant for a truly memorable dining experience.

After sweeping the food off my chair before sitting, we tried the prawn crackers which were already on many tables (including the unoccupied tables, which were the majority on a Thu night). The prawn crackers were soggy with no crunch. One of the diners in our group requested a fresh basket of prawn crackers, to no avail as these were also soggy.
The menus were brought to the table and it could be seen that these were covered in grease. We tried various dishes including some vegetarian ones. Having eaten in other Thai restaurants in the past, I can say that the food was well below the standard I would have expected in a restaurant. Not all the food we received seemed to be as described on the menu, the vegetarian aubergine dish described as being with garlic had an overwhelming taste of aniseed which is ok in small quantities but not when this is all you can taste. The duck dish which was described as being ‘stir-​fried roast duck’ was more medium-​rare which is unusual if it had been roasted and stir-​fried.
The restaurant itself and toilets could also do with a good spring clean!
Although not the worst food I have eaten, I would definitely not go there again.

The Royal Thai is the only Thai restaurant in Darlington and it is excellent. It offers a good range of dishes and they are all very tasty. It is ideal for large and small parties alike. The staff and owner are very friendly and welcoming and they have recently won a good food award.
If you are looking for an earlier meal they have an early bird special set menu, where you get 3 courses for £9.99. Althought it is located just outside of the town centre, the restaurant is well worth a visit.