Thai Delight is a Thai restaurant on Shattuck and Virginia in Berkeley. It’s a typical Thai restaurant, except twice as expensive because it’s in the Gourmet Ghetto. You can find all the food here is done better and cheaper within two blocks of this place.
Decor: 8
Actually, I’ll acknowledge that the inside of the restaurant looks great. Typical Thai restaurants use plastic chairs and crappy metal tables inside a place that used to be a tattoo parlor that was condemned for being unsanitary. This place has all wood furniture and the walls are decorated tastefully without being garish (another problem at Thai restaurants). It’s a bit darker than I would like, but it’s not too bad.
Service: 4
Service was slow and the waitress didn’t seem all that thrilled that we came in, in fact she seemed mildly disappointed. Our orders were slow at all points, the check came before we finished eating, and the waitress couldn’t wait for us to leave. But at least she didn’t drop our food or something.
Food: 6
The food was pretty mediocre for Thai. Other than the appetizers and the specials that I didn’t try, there was nothing here that distinguished it from any other Thai restaurant. The main servings were fried rice, curry, or a sizzling dish. I gave it one extra point because the appetizer was indeed good, but you can’t screw up shrimp wrapped in wonton skin and deep fried. Still, it’s not something you can find anywhere. The food is okay if you like Thai and don’t mind paying twice as much for the same thing. Which means, go somewhere else.
Ambience: 2
This place is brutally empty. It makes you wonder why nobody else has bothered to come in here. When you see the waitress’s attitude and the prices in the menu, you start to wonder if it’s impolite to stand up and leave, but you can’t because you’ve already taken three sips of water. You think you should try it and maybe you’ve found a hidden gem, then you become optimistic during the appetizer, only to be severely disappointed at the main course that this place is indeed like every other Thai restaurant in Berkeley. In fact, I’m pretty sure they all use the same recipe found on the internet, I’ll try to cook some to confirm.
Score: 20/40
Price: $20 per person (appetizer, drink, entree)
Verdict: Go to Thai Noodle down the street. It’s the same food but half the price.