Thai Smile Of Rancho Mirage On El Paseo

One of our favs!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Oh My God !
This is the best Thai food in the world . Absolutely SUPERB !!!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Kung Pao Chicken

Good food but wayyyy too expensive!!!

I have eaten at both locations, and the one located in Palm Springs is better.

Food was the best, lots of flavor and the special ginger sauce was the best

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

We absolutely ? loved our entire experience at Thai Smile! The food was the Very BEST we had in Palm Desert! Our server Pablo was excellent too! We absolutely loved their papaya salad, the Phad Thai and fresh vegetables in a most delicious brown sauce and their coconut ice cream was simply heavenly! We will be back every time we are in Palm Desert❣️

Vegetarian options: Everything was fresh and super delicious! ?

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Pad Thai Choice of Rice or Spring Roll, Papaya Salad, Mix Vegetables Tofu, Pad Thai Noodles

Our rule of thumb is to give a restaurant 3 tries before leaving a review. We haven't been here since they opened because the food never really improved and leaving reviews wasn't a thing back then. Our normal Thai Restaurant is closed because of summer, so we decided to see if Thai Smile had improved. Unfortunately, it has not. First, I want to say that Pablo, our server, was outstanding so this review is not a reflection on him. The review is solely on the food, prices and atmosphere. If you like paying top dollar for subpar food then this is your restaurant. We ordered the Thai Smile Appetizer Combo, the papaya salad and the Kee Mao. The entire appetizer combo was fried and mediocre. It's a shame because they had an opportunity to deliver a sampling of their menu to get you excited about the main courses. Instead of making it mouthwatering, I felt like I nuked some egg rolls in the microwave. Our next course was the papaya salad. This salad's texture reminded me of eating jellyfish at a sushi restaurant. The papaya was tasteless and the sauce was nothing. There was no spices or any kind of seasoned sauce to elevate the salad. It was like eating rubber bands dipped in a bland juice. When the Kee Mao arrived we were hoping for something tasty to recover our mediocre dinner, but it wasn't much better. The Kee Mao had some flavor but the unseasoned, overcooked beef ruined the dish. We paid $94 including tip for this meal. If you're looking for a pretentious, overpriced, subpar dinner then Thai Smile on El Paseo is your place! There are so many better Thai restaurants in the valley. It's a shame the good restaurants close for a month during the summer. If you must try Thai Smile, I recommend the Palm Springs location. It's not as pretentious and the food is better. If it wasn't for Pablo's hospitality, we would have walked out. Unfortunately, the people leaving 5 star reviews clealry have not experienced good Thai food.

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 1

Service: 5

Great Thai food in a nice setting

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Great food and friendly
Staff. The water actually taste good. That’s important. We will be back.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 4

Service: 5

Thai Smile is one of the most consistent restaurants I have ever eaten at. I am here for lunch quite often, and the food is always prepared exactly the same way. The servers know me and remember my normal choices, which makes the experience quite pleasant overall.

The food isn't entirely authentic, mind you. Their stuff is made a bit more sweet than most other Thai restaurants. That said, it doesn't mean I don't like the food. I am especially a fan of their garlic chicken, and their version of Kung Pao is delicious. Their Tom Yum soup is definitely a little different, too, lacking the usual strong tangy lemongrass flavor usually associated with it. They have changed this classic soup enough that it, while similar to other Tom Yum soups, has its own unique flavor that is really great.

So, if you are looking for a pure Thai experience with 100 percent authentic food, this isn't necessarily the best choice. Nevertheless, the food is delicious if you are willing to give it a chance, and the friendly servers make the dining experience here a true pleasure.

Parking: During very busy times in the winter, the parking lot is sometimes full.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Go “Thai Spicy” it so gooooood! And very spicy. Thai Smile has been around for a long time (like decades) in the desert. More recently it came to El Paseo, and they continue the great taste/flavor tradition that started decades ago.

Highly recommend the Kung Pow Shrimp. You can get any protein you like for this traditional Szechuan dish. Also love the eggplant, the cashew chicken, and spicy shrimp fried rice. Their lemon grass traditional Thai soups are awesome too!

Off season, call in early for take out. Sometimes it is dead, and the close the kitchen early. The have a great indoor and outdoor seating. Some parking curb side out front, and a large lot in the rear. Also very cool, they have reserved a pick up/short term parking right out front. It makes take out pick ups very easy.

If you view their menu on their website via your phone, the text is blurry. It works on a laptop/computer. But I have screenshot it here for you in high/readable resolution!

Generous with the sauces. And portions. It’s about $23-30 per dinner entree portion. We got kung pow shrimp Thai spicy (included plain white rice), spicy shrimp eggplant, and spicy shrimp fried rice. It was about $94 bucks. And two people could barely finish after an active day hiking, swimming, and tennis.

Highly recommend! Dining in is great too. The staff is warm, and on top of it. Take out is great. The food was ready EXACTLY when they said it would be. Well packaged for the trip home, and perfectly hot and tasty at home.

Vegetarian options: Thai food is great for vegetarian and even vegan dinners. You can customize most dishes to met your preference/need.

Dietary restrictions: Tons of options

Parking: Plenty of parking - free lot in the rear. Free curb side out front.

Kid-friendliness: Yes!! Very much so.

Wheelchair accessibility: Ada compliant

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Kung Pao Chicken, Tom Yum Soup, Thai Smile Fried Rice

OK for Americanized Thai food. Tom kai soup was good but pad Thai lacked flavor and texture. Service was excellent

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 2

Service: 5

Complete lack of food personality. No spices and cook as if someone was forced to. Tasteless like a hospital meal. Please put some pride behind your food.

Food: 1

Service: 1

Wonderful people and service. Loved it! Very beautiful gesture for my bday.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Pad Thai Choice of Rice or Spring Roll, Crispy Spring Rolls 4, Dumplings, Tom Yum Soup, Pad Thai Noodles, Poh Tack Seafood Hot and Sour Hot Pot

This place’s prices are all wrong on their website and apparently have been for months (they told me on the phone that they are aware). When I realized after I got back to my hotel that they overcharged me, I tried to call them and wouldn’t answer my cell. However, when I called on my hotel phone, they answered (they said they just have been busy but I called several times). Food is also greasy and not that great. Don’t eat here unless you want to pay 30% more than what their menu states.

Atmosphere: 2

Food: 2

Service: 1