Never mind about the ‘hole in the wall’ Atmosphere, the food makes up for it! Honestly, just the most delicious Thai food, real Thai food not ‘Chinese’ trying to pass itself off as Thai as some Thai places seem to do. So tasty every dish, and all though the atmosphere leaves much to be desired, it is still kind of charming with the ‘local color’ always at the attached bar . In conclusion, great food!
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 5
Service: 5
Carla B.
Don't let the quirky atmosphere turn you away! EVERYTHING we've ever ordered has been absolutely delicious, both the American grill type food AND the Asian food. Recently got an order of Onion Rings, the British Burger and fries, the Larb Salad with fried tofu, and the Yellow Curry. The onion rings and fries were delivered hot and had no off oil taste. Salad was crisp and fresh and a good amount of heat. For dessert, the Mango Sticky Rice is the best I've ever had, the rice cooked to perfection. In fact the owner won't even serve it if she doesn't have a good mango. Both server and owner were friendly and helpful. Support this locally owned business!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Heather Ingalls
Food was super late
Ben Ingalls
I placed an order for pick up and was told that it would be ready in 30 minutes. I arrived and it took an additional 35 minutes for it to be ready. That doesn’t work very well when you have kids at home that are counting on you to get food their credit card payment system also requires you to tip at least 15% even on to go orders pretty annoying when they were 30 minutes late on the food.
John Gallagher
Sometimes you have to wait bit for meal but it's worth the wait
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Kirk Lyons
I tried this spot last night, and honestly, it blew me away. The chicken was absolutely incredible — perfectly crispy on the outside and tender, juicy on the inside. It had just the right amount of spice, giving that satisfying kick without being overwhelming. I went for the hot chicken sandwich with fries, and both were spot on. The sandwich was packed with flavor, and the fries were golden, crunchy, and clearly made fresh — not the soggy kind you get at some places.
The guy at the window was super chill and friendly, double-checking my order to make sure everything was right. I didn’t even have to wait long; service was fast but still felt personal. You can really tell they care about quality and take pride in what they serve. Nothing felt rushed or thrown together — everything tasted thoughtfully made.
The overall experience was so good that I’m already planning to go back this weekend. If you’re into hot chicken, this place deserves a top spot on your list. It’s easily one of the best I’ve had in a long time — flavorful, satisfying, and made with real care.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
Jaime Tejeda
I used to love coming here but recently it’s like the employees stopped caring. I came for lunch recently to give it another shot but no dice.
This is how it went: I when we were seated. Only one server was helping there were more people but nobody else was helping, another 2-3 employees were there but just talking at the bar, took over 7 mins just to get our orders. She was such a sweet elderly asian lady, we were being so patient and understanding for her. We ordered drinks but the glasses were really dirty when served, mine had a bug in them, my wife’s was just dirty in general. Confronted the server about it and got given replacements but that already set in my mind that it’s not very clean back there. Lastly, the food, I had ordered Pad Thai noodles with tofu, got given glass noodles instead at this point I just went with it, the flavor was lacking as well, tasted bland. My wife had the coconut soup which was okay. We had to add a lot of jalapeños just to give it flavor.
Overall, this would be my last time dining there. Such a shame, it used to be my favorite place.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 2
Jonathan Moretti
Awesome food. Great menu selection - especially if you have kids. Eat here every time I’m in Ventura!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Sherry
Best Thai food in town! Been ordering and dining there for 30 years.
Food: 5
Service: 5
Rich Benbrook
You know the Thai food is going to be delicious when right after you order, the chef goes out to the garden to pick fresh basil.
I wanted to come back and say THANK YOU to the owner of the Lunchbox. Thank you for your kindness and for implementing the suggested changes. I truly appreciate you putting customers first. Please go and support this local business.
My sister and I were really looking forward to trying the lunchbox for the first time. I Googled the restaurant for directions, hours of operation, and to verify if they were able to accommodate individuals with disabilities. Upon arrival, the open signage was illuminated, stating the restaurant was OPEN. There were steps into the main entrance, but there was a notice on the window for people with disabilities to enter in the rear. I went back to my car to assist my sister in entering through the rear entrance. I noticed customers sitting and eating in the dining area, and one of the staff members sitting in the rear area by the door looking at us as we came in. It took a bit of work to get my sister to a table, and as I pulled out a chair for her to sit down , a staff member stated they were closed until 4pm pm. It would have been helpful to post notifications on the front and rear doors with the hours of operation, and on goggle, yelp, etc. In addition, why would your staff member watch as we struggled to get into the restaurant and not advise us that you were closed? Why not turn off the sign that stated the restaurant was open? Locking the rear doors would have also let one know your restaurant was closed. In the future, please take into consideration it takes effort on people with disabilities to visit your business. The apology would have felt genuine if a little more effort was made.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Amy Tobol
Amazing curries!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
B L
Love this place! Great food and amazing owner! Try spicy basil eggplant, chicken saute, larb salad, mango and sticky rice!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Abigail Livella
The Lunch Box is a hidden gem. I felt right at home when I walked in. The space is comforting and authentic. Our waitress, Marie was lovely and very attentive. She gave us the whole run down of the history of the restaurant and the woman who has run it for 40 years. The food was lovely and I will definitely be back soon!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
geckowithapin
Just go here, you won't regret it. With a menu split between classic American and Thai food there is something for everyone. The people who attended me are very kind, not like customer-service-smile type kind, but genuine human to human care. Crunchiest veggie rolls I've ever had, incredibly complex and acidic soup, and ripe mango on perfectly cooked sticky rice. What a place! I'll definitely be back
Never mind about the ‘hole in the wall’ Atmosphere, the food makes up for it! Honestly, just the most delicious Thai food, real Thai food not ‘Chinese’ trying to pass itself off as Thai as some Thai places seem to do. So tasty every dish, and all though the atmosphere leaves much to be desired, it is still kind of charming with the ‘local color’ always at the attached bar . In conclusion, great food!
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 5
Service: 5
Don't let the quirky atmosphere turn you away! EVERYTHING we've ever ordered has been absolutely delicious, both the American grill type food AND the Asian food. Recently got an order of Onion Rings, the British Burger and fries, the Larb Salad with fried tofu, and the Yellow Curry. The onion rings and fries were delivered hot and had no off oil taste. Salad was crisp and fresh and a good amount of heat. For dessert, the Mango Sticky Rice is the best I've ever had, the rice cooked to perfection. In fact the owner won't even serve it if she doesn't have a good mango. Both server and owner were friendly and helpful. Support this locally owned business!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Food was super late
I placed an order for pick up and was told that it would be ready in 30 minutes. I arrived and it took an additional 35 minutes for it to be ready. That doesn’t work very well when you have kids at home that are counting on you to get food their credit card payment system also requires you to tip at least 15% even on to go orders pretty annoying when they were 30 minutes late on the food.
Sometimes you have to wait bit for meal but it's worth the wait
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I tried this spot last night, and honestly, it blew me away. The chicken was absolutely incredible — perfectly crispy on the outside and tender, juicy on the inside. It had just the right amount of spice, giving that satisfying kick without being overwhelming. I went for the hot chicken sandwich with fries, and both were spot on. The sandwich was packed with flavor, and the fries were golden, crunchy, and clearly made fresh — not the soggy kind you get at some places.
The guy at the window was super chill and friendly, double-checking my order to make sure everything was right. I didn’t even have to wait long; service was fast but still felt personal. You can really tell they care about quality and take pride in what they serve. Nothing felt rushed or thrown together — everything tasted thoughtfully made.
The overall experience was so good that I’m already planning to go back this weekend. If you’re into hot chicken, this place deserves a top spot on your list. It’s easily one of the best I’ve had in a long time — flavorful, satisfying, and made with real care.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
I used to love coming here but recently it’s like the employees stopped caring. I came for lunch recently to give it another shot but no dice.
This is how it went: I when we were seated. Only one server was helping there were more people but nobody else was helping, another 2-3 employees were there but just talking at the bar, took over 7 mins just to get our orders. She was such a sweet elderly asian lady, we were being so patient and understanding for her. We ordered drinks but the glasses were really dirty when served, mine had a bug in them, my wife’s was just dirty in general. Confronted the server about it and got given replacements but that already set in my mind that it’s not very clean back there.
Lastly, the food, I had ordered Pad Thai noodles with tofu, got given glass noodles instead at this point I just went with it, the flavor was lacking as well, tasted bland. My wife had the coconut soup which was okay. We had to add a lot of jalapeños just to give it flavor.
Overall, this would be my last time dining there. Such a shame, it used to be my favorite place.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 2
Awesome food. Great menu selection - especially if you have kids. Eat here every time I’m in Ventura!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Best Thai food in town! Been ordering and dining there for 30 years.
Food: 5
Service: 5
You know the Thai food is going to be delicious when right after you order, the chef goes out to the garden to pick fresh basil.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
I wanted to come back and say THANK YOU to the owner of the Lunchbox. Thank you for your kindness and for implementing the suggested changes. I truly appreciate you putting customers first. Please go and support this local business.
My sister and I were really looking forward to trying the lunchbox for the first time. I Googled the restaurant for directions, hours of operation, and to verify if they were able to accommodate individuals with disabilities. Upon arrival, the open signage was illuminated, stating the restaurant was OPEN. There were steps into the main entrance, but there was a notice on the window for people with disabilities to enter in the rear. I went back to my car to assist my sister in entering through the rear entrance. I noticed customers sitting and eating in the dining area, and one of the staff members sitting in the rear area by the door looking at us as we came in. It took a bit of work to get my sister to a table, and as I pulled out a chair for her to sit down , a staff member stated they were closed until 4pm pm. It would have been helpful to post notifications on the front and rear doors with the hours of operation, and on goggle, yelp, etc. In addition, why would your staff member watch as we struggled to get into the restaurant and not advise us that you were closed? Why not turn off the sign that stated the restaurant was open? Locking the rear doors would have also let one know your restaurant was closed. In the future, please take into consideration it takes effort on people with disabilities to visit your business. The apology would have felt genuine if a little more effort was made.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Amazing curries!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Love this place! Great food and amazing owner! Try spicy basil eggplant, chicken saute, larb salad, mango and sticky rice!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
The Lunch Box is a hidden gem. I felt right at home when I walked in. The space is comforting and authentic. Our waitress, Marie was lovely and very attentive. She gave us the whole run down of the history of the restaurant and the woman who has run it for 40 years. The food was lovely and I will definitely be back soon!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Just go here, you won't regret it. With a menu split between classic American and Thai food there is something for everyone. The people who attended me are very kind, not like customer-service-smile type kind, but genuine human to human care. Crunchiest veggie rolls I've ever had, incredibly complex and acidic soup, and ripe mango on perfectly cooked sticky rice. What a place! I'll definitely be back
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
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