The Thai Garden

249 Globe Road, E2 OJD

This is our second visit to The Thai Garden, which we went to with friends. I have to admit I don't really like Bethnal Green much at all. But Globe Road is quite near the tube/buses (i.e. a quick escape at the end of the night), and a bit of a haven, with two great pubs (The Camel and The Florist), and The Thai Garden.

The Menu:
It's a vegetarian and seafood menu only, but it's still extensive and there is lots of choice. As I sat and tried to decide I had a horrible sense of déjà vu - I had had a terrible time trying to decide last time.

We eventually settled on Mixed Seafood Tempura and Prawn Spring Rolls to start (Mr PP and I have the charming/annoying habit - depends on your viewpoint - of sharing all our food. Means we don't waste lots of time on pointless food envy.) Then red and green curry with prawns for mains.

Our Meal:
The food, as before, was absolutely delicious ... when it arrived. Starters were light and crispy, no problems with dirty cooking oil, and soggy batter. The curries were very good, and fully lived up to expectations. But there really was an issue with the service. And it was very difficult to ignore.

I would say that we were patient customers. We were on night out with friends, we were in no rush ... So we weren't overly demanding. But, our prawn crackers never arrived; our beers took over 10 minutes to get from the bar to the table (anybody who is familiar with the Thai Garden will realise you can do that walk in 10 seconds, if you are walking very, very slowly); one of our starters didn't arrived until 10 minutes after everybody else had finished ... despite being asked for three or four times.

And it went on. Beers continued to be in short supply, no rice arrived with the mains etc ...

This was nothing like our first visit, so I'm prepared to give them the benefit of the doubt, just this once. And the food is good enough to give it another go.

What we liked:
The food - it really could not be faulted. And at £7 for a main course, very good value for money.

What we didn't like:
The service (this time anyway).

The fact that the starters are £6 when the mains are only £7.

The restaurant itself is absolutely tiny, and we felt very squashed in. When full (which it always is) I was hemmed in and could not get to the bathroom without disturbing at least two other tables. Maybe that was the strategy in not serving me any beer?

Will we go back?:
Yes, definitely. Although probably not just the two of us - it would always be with friends.