Reviews for Zen Yai in San Francisco, CA

Zen Yeah! Crazy good. Pad Kra Pao is full of flavor, fragrance, and spice. Papaya salad is bright, tangy, spicy, crunchy, and... fresh. We also had the Yen Ta Fo, which is maybe advanced for my current palate, but was so cool to be able to try. Pad Kee Maowas a miss in my book, lacked the dimension of sweetness (oyster sauce?) that I love about that dish. Nice variety of vegetablesthough, and the noodles were well cooked. The absolute quality of the Pad Kra Pao and Papaya Salad are enough to keep me comingback and trying more of the menu. Prices are ultra-reasonable. Read more

Was here years ago and I'm glad that they survived. Mainly came here for the small bowl of boat noodles and ordered more while... dumping the old soup into the new one. Came here with my uncles and we ordered a few things. Can't go wrong with the pad Thaiand the pineapple fried rice. Also ordered the appetizer platter as well as the red curry with duck. Had a small feast andeverything was delicious Read more

A few years ago when I was visiting SF, I had the most amazing Pad Thai. Since then, I've eaten pad thai in a dozen countries... including Thailand, and the one in SF was hands down the best. I was super excited to return to SF and eat it again.Unfortunately, I couldn't recall the name or the neighborhood so here I am at ZEN THAI because of the 500+ reviews. I know nowNOT to trust the reviews because this was the absolute worst PT. Bad service can be forgiven, if the food is good. I really hadto force myself to eat it as I felt my bp rising through the roof because it was way too salty and sweet with out a hint of deepflavor. Ingredients were cheaply put together: sprouts, some slivers of carrot, and disgusting fried tofu. Sadly, the shrimp wasthe worst. They weren't fresh and I felt like I was chewing on soft rubber. I've even had better pad thai on a plane than here.Macau Air, well done! The noodles were done right so they get ONE STAR. Read more

Boat noodle soup was a 10/10 just like in Thailand. Green curry was good but small portion. Cheap prices too but I hesitate to... go again because going through tenderloin is really scary :( Read more

Great and authentic Thai food!! Not touristy at all, and food was served quickly. We ordered minced pork with basil, two noodles... and mango sticky rice. Not every Thai restaurant serves boat noodles and this one has one of the best I’ve tried! We enjoyedour food. Staff are very friendly Thai people. And good price too! Would come back next time in town. Read more

May 2021: Great food, great boat noodles!! I recommend meatballs and slice meat boat noodle and the tom yum one. Rich with... flavor! 2/21/2022: I ordered delivery for my bf and he kept reveling over the genuine care and taste of the food (and I agreesince we've gone multiple times now). He says this is where people should go for genuine Thai cuisine (and he's been to Thailandbefore). These people know what they are doing, and we're all there for it! Read more

Delicious and authentic Thai food. The pad thai is incredible - one of the best I have had across different countries and... cities. Basil pork, boat noodles, and papaya salad were excellent too, but tom yum soup could pack more flavor. Read more

This place has a dish that's so unique, you really can't find it anywhere else. It's call the Boat Noodles. On their menu, they... have 3 options, but you should get the first one "Meat Balls + Sliced Meat Combination" as it's their most popular. The broth isinexplicably good, it's so unique and unlike anything I've ever had. It's got Thai spices that's been curated for hours. Also,the menu says small for $4.00, but you can get a large for $10 instead and I'd highly recommend it. Here is a small portionpictured below. If you're unsure, at least you can try the small, but you might end up getting more like I did! Read more