Top Cafe - Milpitas

We found it quite by accident. Excellent Food. Fast service. This is definitely our next go to place for authentic Thai food. Clean place. Lots of parking outside.

We went in at noon on Monday. The waitress appeared to be very busy when we walked in even though there was only one or two other party in the room, perhaps there were online orders she needed to handle alongside. Service was a little slow but it was understandable due to her being the only person in the front. We ordered the Pad Thai and another noodle dish along with the satay. The chicken satay was alright, the peanut sauce and the pickled cucumber that went on the side were very tasty but the chicken was a bit dry. The other noodle dish was very good the wide noodles weren 't stuck together and the dish was flavorful, though I didn 't think the spice level was exactly hot, more like medium. Now, the Pad Thai was something else. It did not taste like Pad Thai, the flavor was quite off, it just tasted sweet and slightly salty, and was lacking some vinegar or fish sauce it could have been a lot more flavorful. Also, the noodles were stuck together. There goes my belief that all Pad Thai was good at any Thai restaurant. The soup and salad that the lunch combo came with were questionable. The salad was just 5 leaves of cheap salad mix lettuce with basic sweet sesame sauce and the watery vegetable soup tasted good only because I was quite hungry. Overall, the place had alright food, good enough to fill empty stomachs but not worthwhile to revisit.

Thai Cafe Restaurant is located in a strip mall that also has Koi Palace, 85 degrees bakery, etc. Parking can be challenging here, especially during peak hours, as there are a lot of good restaurants in this plaza. I've eaten at the restaurant and got takeout over the years. Pad Thai Noodles: Thin rice noodle stir fried with egg, bean sprouts, green onion, and a choice of protein in their exclusive tamarind sauce with ground peanuts (on the side). This is slightly sweet and has more sauce than other places. I do like it, though. Pad See Ew: Wide rice noodle pan fried with broccoli, egg, black soy sauce, and a choice of protein. Sweet and dark soy sauce covered soft noodles done correctly. Kee Mao Noodles: Spicy. Wide rice noodle stir fried with tomato, mushroom, bamboo shoot, bell pepper, chili, fresh Thai basil, and a choice of protein. Yellow Curry: Choice of protein slow cooked with cubed potato and carrot in coconut milk with yellow curry paste. Served with white rice. A bit watery other places are better. Tom Yum Goong Soup: Spicy. A zesty spicy and sour soup with shrimp, mushroom, kaffir lime leaves, lemongrass, galanga, lime juice, and cilantro. It comes out piping hot, but once it touches your tongue, an explosion of tart, savory, sweet broth to your senses. Seafood Salad: Quick boiled assorted seafood with onion, cilantro, and fresh chili in our lime dressing. Great seasoning, as you can taste the fish sauce, lime, and chili in this refreshing salad. Kee Mao Fried Rice: Spicy. Choice of protein pan fried with fresh jasmine rice, chili, onion, bell pepper, and fresh Thai basil. The taste is sweet, savory, and slightly spicy. I guess you can have them add more spice to it, but then you do have the chilis on the table. Overall, 3.5 stars.

I was craving for a quick lunch and came across this thai place on Yelp with good ratings. Thai basil fried rice taste 5/5 but very less portion size. I know Thai restaurant portion sizes are small compared to others but I requested for a dinner portion and yet the rice is not enough for one person. Red curry 3/5 i felt extremely creamy from the coconut milk, lack of curry flavor. I requested for spicy but not taken. My recommendation, I will try another Thai restaurant next time.

My staple go-to restaurant when I stay in San Jose. The Chix Satay is grilled nicely and the peanut sauce is flavorful and creamy. I also enjoy the Pad Thai but be specific with the spice level you would like. I may also suggest adding slightly more sauce to the dish as it had been a little on the dry side at times.