Bai Bua Thai Cuisine - Vancouver

The warm glass noodle salad was outstanding, almost surpassing what we’ve had in Thailand. The clear broth soup was delicious, with a hint of sweetness, and the rice noodles were cooked to perfection. The chicken rice noodle dish was also quite good and served in a generous portion. For dessert, the mango and sticky rice was beautifully presented with thin slices of mango. I can’t wait to return for more of that glass noodle salad! One thing to note: the place was packed at 7 PM, so it’s best to arrive early. Be prepared for a lively atmosphere, as it can get quite noisy!

Bai Bau Thai Cuisine is located on East Hastings, near Nanaimo Street, not far from some of my old favorite spots. There's something delightful about finding a fantastic new Thai restaurant (at least new to me). We dined there in mid-August and started our meal with a Lychee Mint Slushie ($5.90) and Chicken Satay Skewers ($7.90). The mint slushie was incredibly refreshing, especially given the warm summer weather we've been having, and the creamy peanut sauce that came with the satay skewers was nothing short of perfect.

Ratings for the first visit: - Service: 4/5 - Food: 4.5/5 - Drinks: 5/5 (I particularly loved the iced tea) - Overall: 4.5/5 On my second visit, I dined with four friends and we shared four different dishes. This time, it was a Thursday evening at 6 PM, which meant the restaurant was much busier than during my first visit. Unfortunately, the presentation of the dishes was considerably less polished, and although service was quick, it lacked attention to detail. Our iced tea orders were forgotten, and we only mentioned it when our main courses arrived. Disappointingly, even after we finished eating and asked for the bill, they still hadn’t corrected the iced tea order and charged us for it. Ratings for the second visit: - Service: 3/5 - Food: 4/5 - Drinks: 3/5 (even though we didn't receive the iced tea, it was still tasty) - Overall: 3.5/5 I plan to return in a couple of weeks, as I believe the third time might be the charm. I’ll update this review after my next visit. I finally made it back for a third time for dinner with my partner. This time, we ordered two dishes, iced tea with milk, and coconut rice. The coconut rice was fantastic—fragrant, delicious, and with a medium-firm texture that paired perfectly with sweet and sour dishes. Ratings for the third visit: - Service: 4/5 (a nice improvement) - Food: 4/5 - Drinks: 4/5 (I actually got my drink this time!) - Overall: 4/5 It seems that the third visit was indeed the charm. Overall, this experience was significantly better than my first two visits. That said, I still highly recommend coming during lunchtime when the portions are more manageable and the service tends to be better.

A couple of weeks ago, the Royal Family Circus came to town, and my friends and I were lucky enough to get discounted tickets on Groupon for just $15 each—such a great deal for a night of fun! The circus was held at the PNE fairgrounds, so we chose to have dinner beforehand at Bai Bua Thai, located at the corner of E. Hastings and Nanaimo. It's conveniently located right across from the 95 B-line bus stop.

The food is exceptional – it's the finest Thai cuisine I've ever had. Although the restaurant isn't very big, the staff is extremely friendly, and our dishes were served to us quickly.