1 /5 nmsl: I came here genuinely wanting to enjoy this place. My friend and I love Thai food, and since Thaikun is a well-known chain, we assumed we were in for a solid meal. Spoiler: we were not. If this was considered a “good day,” I’d hate to see what an off day looks like.
The Pineapple King Prawn Fried Rice was nearly £17, and the most generous part of that dish was the price. A few tiny pineapple bits, uncooked prawns, and enough burnt pieces to make me question whether the pan was on fire or just giving up. When the strongest flavour in a fried rice is burnt bitterness, something might be wrong in that kitchen.
Then came the Mango Sticky Rice, which honestly deserved an award — for Best Example of How Not To Cook Sticky Rice. It was undercooked, hard, and had the texture of rice that decided halfway through cooking that it no longer wanted to be involved. We politely mentioned it to the manager, and instead of an apology or any kind of hospitality, the dish was taken away and returned with the exact same problem. At this point it felt less like dining and more like a social experiment.
When we brought it up again while paying, the manager delivered a performance I won’t forget. No apology, no willingness to listen. She poked the rice with a fork and said, “It’s soft in the centre.”
If your defence is “just eat the middle”, that’s basically admitting the dish failed — unless the new concept is Mango Sticky Rice With a Side of Instructions. I wasn’t even done speaking before she walked off. The food came out warm; the hospitality was ice-cold.
For the price, the food tasted closer to reheated frozen meals than fresh Thai cooking. There are family-run Thai restaurants that deliver 10× the flavour at half the price — and with actual warmth, both from the food and the people serving it. The staff here were trying their best, but the manager’s attitude wiped out any goodwill.
We still paid the 10% service charge — only because the waitress refunded the sticky rice, not because the service deserved it.
Avoid!!!!!!!
