Flavor explosion!You'll be hard pressed to beat the food being put out by Hanloh (quality, taste, presentation); it easily bests random places that I've eaten at across Thailand, right in downtown Santa Cruz.Apps were great, and the chicken was cooked perfectly, but the curries are absolutely out of this world. Good beverage selection (though I wish they offered lemonade/similar).The BAD ANIMAL book store setting provides a cool, trendy, hipster vide. And it can also be INCREDIBLY noisy.Wheelchair accessibility: Fully accessible.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 4
Scott Robbeloth
We were a party of 5 and ordered 1 of everything. We all had our favorites but all of it was high quality and very unique.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Ali Clifford
I’m gonna go out on a limb here and say hands down best restaurant in Santa Cruz County. You cannot get these flavors anywhere else. If you’re intimidated by the menu, just trust me when I say try it and you’ll love it. 100/10.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Grace H.
Absolutely my fav place to dine in SC and one of the few places I consistently recommend. I bring all my out of town visitors here whenever I can bc the food will blow your mind, the wines are good, and vibes are immaculate. It's inside Bad Animal which has cool, artsy kid vibes without being obnoxious about it. It's cute enough to be a special occasion place but somehow also casual enough to also be a drop in on a random weeknight kinda place. Idk, it's magic. The staff are all really great. I've never had a meh dish here but always get the fried chicken.
Jen S.
Outstanding food, service and ambiance. This was our first visit and definitely not our last. I went here on a date with my husband and it was perfect. Our lovely server was attentive and helpful. Food came out at the perfect pace so we could relax and enjoy ourselves but also feed our bellies in a timely manner. Great local beer selections too. I can't wait to return! Thank you!
Daniel Bow
A great way to enjoy an elevated Thai meal. More expensive than your average Thai restaurant and 100% worth it for the quality ingredients in the incredibly prepared meals. The location is in a cozy and hip book store, lending to an intimate environment.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Lucas Jushinski
Why has it taken so long for SC to get a restaurant with flavor, outstanding service, and amazing ambiance? But the day has finally arrived. Hanloh is absolutely the best restaurant in SC. Every single dish they have on their menu is superb. The wait staff here are kind and extremely knowledgeable about their food and wine menu. And the restaurant is in an old book store. How cool is that? Seriously if you can’t appreciate good food, don’t come here. Save the space for those of us that can.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Ron T.
I went there on Wednesday night, and the place was busy and packed. The service was good, and the food took a long time to get out, and they came out one at a time, another words. One dinner came out first, and later came the second food. The food and flavors were awesome, So all and all I deducted one star, because of some inconsistencies. Overall, it's a great experience.
Michele V.
What a surprise. We just wanted Thai food, so we looked up a new place to go here in Santa Cruz. As it turned out, Hanloh is at Bad Animal, the wine bar/bookstore downtown. The food is a bit upscale. Delicious and innovative.
Isabelma D.
Absolutely amazing, from the food, service , and atmosphere I couldn't have been happier with my experience. It fits any vibe you need from a fun date night to a relaxing meal with friends. If you have a chance you have to try it.
Really more of a 4.5Love the space they are in at Bad Animal - but reviewed that separately, just talking about the food here.Love that the menu is so simple - I actually like not making choices. Ha.For starter we got the Roti Mataba. Interesting flavor. Nice and crispy.For mains we got:Ob Woonsen: Pork was really good. Everything went together really nicely. This was the highlight of our meal.Plan Nueng Manao: Was a little underwhelmed on the flavor on this one. The broth was really simple and didn't add much flavor to the cod. Got the Vietnamese Chocolate Coffee Cake for desert. It was good, best part was the cashew brittle on top. Definitely high quality food all around.
Eric meh
Lalita makes great Thai food, which is really hard to find in the Bay Area in general. The tomato jaew is so good, we wish we could buy it in larger batches. Bad animal is a cozy location. And we appreciate that we can bring our dog for outdoor seating.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Lorna Helick
This place is fabulous, the food is delicious, service is excellent, just wonderful!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Pavlova
Sara Kabot
Every dish here had me trying to figure out its magic. More than anywhere I've been, this food is greater than the sum of its parts (and the ingredients are stellar). This was my second visit and a totally different menu. Both were incredible.Kid-friendliness: It was a Saturday night and I had a 5 and 7 yo with me. There was a baby at another table. The staff welcomed all of the kids, recommended dishes that were generally a hit with the younger set, and never made me feel out of place. It's not a "kid-friendly restaurant,"—there's no kids menu or juice or mini crayons—but it's a restaurant that welcomes kids.
Flavor explosion!You'll be hard pressed to beat the food being put out by Hanloh (quality, taste, presentation); it easily bests random places that I've eaten at across Thailand, right in downtown Santa Cruz.Apps were great, and the chicken was cooked perfectly, but the curries are absolutely out of this world. Good beverage selection (though I wish they offered lemonade/similar).The BAD ANIMAL book store setting provides a cool, trendy, hipster vide. And it can also be INCREDIBLY noisy.Wheelchair accessibility: Fully accessible.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 4
We were a party of 5 and ordered 1 of everything. We all had our favorites but all of it was high quality and very unique.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I’m gonna go out on a limb here and say hands down best restaurant in Santa Cruz County. You cannot get these flavors anywhere else. If you’re intimidated by the menu, just trust me when I say try it and you’ll love it. 100/10.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Absolutely my fav place to dine in SC and one of the few places I consistently recommend. I bring all my out of town visitors here whenever I can bc the food will blow your mind, the wines are good, and vibes are immaculate. It's inside Bad Animal which has cool, artsy kid vibes without being obnoxious about it. It's cute enough to be a special occasion place but somehow also casual enough to also be a drop in on a random weeknight kinda place. Idk, it's magic. The staff are all really great. I've never had a meh dish here but always get the fried chicken.
Outstanding food, service and ambiance. This was our first visit and definitely not our last. I went here on a date with my husband and it was perfect. Our lovely server was attentive and helpful. Food came out at the perfect pace so we could relax and enjoy ourselves but also feed our bellies in a timely manner. Great local beer selections too. I can't wait to return! Thank you!
A great way to enjoy an elevated Thai meal. More expensive than your average Thai restaurant and 100% worth it for the quality ingredients in the incredibly prepared meals. The location is in a cozy and hip book store, lending to an intimate environment.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Why has it taken so long for SC to get a restaurant with flavor, outstanding service, and amazing ambiance? But the day has finally arrived. Hanloh is absolutely the best restaurant in SC. Every single dish they have on their menu is superb. The wait staff here are kind and extremely knowledgeable about their food and wine menu. And the restaurant is in an old book store. How cool is that? Seriously if you can’t appreciate good food, don’t come here. Save the space for those of us that can.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I went there on Wednesday night, and the place was busy and packed. The service was good, and the food took a long time to get out, and they came out one at a time, another words. One dinner came out first, and later came the second food. The food and flavors were awesome, So all and all I deducted one star, because of some inconsistencies. Overall, it's a great experience.
What a surprise. We just wanted Thai food, so we looked up a new place to go here in Santa Cruz. As it turned out, Hanloh is at Bad Animal, the wine bar/bookstore downtown. The food is a bit upscale. Delicious and innovative.
Absolutely amazing, from the food, service , and atmosphere I couldn't have been happier with my experience. It fits any vibe you need from a fun date night to a relaxing meal with friends. If you have a chance you have to try it.
Restaurantji Recommends
Great restaurant and library!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Cucumber Salad
Really more of a 4.5Love the space they are in at Bad Animal - but reviewed that separately, just talking about the food here.Love that the menu is so simple - I actually like not making choices. Ha.For starter we got the Roti Mataba. Interesting flavor. Nice and crispy.For mains we got:Ob Woonsen: Pork was really good. Everything went together really nicely. This was the highlight of our meal.Plan Nueng Manao: Was a little underwhelmed on the flavor on this one. The broth was really simple and didn't add much flavor to the cod. Got the Vietnamese Chocolate Coffee Cake for desert. It was good, best part was the cashew brittle on top. Definitely high quality food all around.
Lalita makes great Thai food, which is really hard to find in the Bay Area in general. The tomato jaew is so good, we wish we could buy it in larger batches. Bad animal is a cozy location. And we appreciate that we can bring our dog for outdoor seating.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
This place is fabulous, the food is delicious, service is excellent, just wonderful!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Pavlova
Every dish here had me trying to figure out its magic. More than anywhere I've been, this food is greater than the sum of its parts (and the ingredients are stellar). This was my second visit and a totally different menu. Both were incredible.Kid-friendliness: It was a Saturday night and I had a 5 and 7 yo with me. There was a baby at another table. The staff welcomed all of the kids, recommended dishes that were generally a hit with the younger set, and never made me feel out of place. It's not a "kid-friendly restaurant,"—there's no kids menu or juice or mini crayons—but it's a restaurant that welcomes kids.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5