Kalaya

Loved everything about this place. I need to go back and then back again.

So glad Kalaya is back. The food is unique, delicious, and the portions are very ample. The owner even talked us out of ordering “too much food” and she was right. We felt very safe. You order by downloading the menu, pick your choices and then pay- very efficient and safe. This is one of our favorite restaurants in Philly. They don’t serve tap water, you have to buy a bottle of water....another concession to safety. This also probably helps their bottom line, but it’s not a problem. Just note that the food can be spicy for some palates and there is no adjusting of the level of spice- it comes as the chef wants it to be served. If you like spicy unusual and well prepared dishes, this place is worth a try.

Great outdoor experience , staff handled social distancing restrictions well. Incredible food of course.

Excellent food without a doubt. Fresh and nicely seasoned, moderately spicy. Entrees were portioned well. A little pricey. This was my first Covid19 outdoor dining experience. The menu app was challenging to use and could have been made easier with some 'instructions'. We were seated near the front door under the window outside which was too close to everyone entering and exiting the interior and approaching the door for take-out orders. That made the experience a little distracting and unnerving. I'd ask for a different table next time.

Food was excellent- beautiful presentation and full of flavor. I am a fan of this local establishment and the kindness of the owner when I have encountered her before with take out service. Outdoor dining service was slow/disorganized last night which may be due to adjusting to re-opening, thus will hopefully improve. You have to pay gratuity before receiving the service, which isn’t ideal if the service isn’t on par. I would return again to support this local business.

Best Thai food in Philadelphia!

Food was absolutely incredible! Service was weird and the ordering system did not give the opportunity to ask questions about what we were ordering. Ambience is a tough one to answer in these Covid times as the only ambience is the sidewalk right now. Let me reiterate, however: the food was INCREDIBLE! If you like Thai food, you will LOVE this. If you don't think you like Thai food, this place will change your mind.

They can accommodate vegan diet very easily. Everything we tried was great. Get the mushroom tapioca dumplings :)

Delicious unique Thai food. Read reviews beforehand to help you figure out what you want to order.

Wonderful - all guidelines adhered to- and excellent service.

Great food and service

Best Thai food outside of Thailand. Sshh, please don’t tell anyone

I have traveled to Philly for the first time and was looking for a great place to put a pause on my Vegan lifestyle for a night. I was not disappointed! We shared the scrumptious Monkfish, the flavorful and delicate seafood curry, along with the flakey, tasty, pork dumplings. Each was flavorful enough to stand alone but together created a delightful meal experience... the textures, the flavors and the feel of freshness...PERFECT! The service was great and culminated with a visit from the owner. This place is up for a prestigious award and I can definitely see why. Bravo, well done. Hope to see you again soon.

Great food and service. 10/10 will return again

So awesome. The staff seems to truly be a family, we felt so taken care of. Every bite is magical.

Wow, just spectacular. After reading about their James Beard nomination for best new restaurant, we had to go. We started with Kanom Jeeb and Sakoo Moo appetizers; the Sakoo Moo was one of the best things I've ever eaten. For dinner we had the Kant Ghai plate, which is meant for two. It was the perfect balance since I don't like spice and my husband does, and this had one of each plus rice and cabbage sides.


The Kang Ghai Plate includes KANG GHAI KHAO MUN (Southern style chicken curry) and NUA PAD LUK PHAK CHEE (Stir-fried beef with coriander seed, palm sugar, fish sauce) and KALUM TOD NAM PLA (Stir-fried cabbage in fish sauce & palm sugar). Everything was phenomenal.

For dessert there was only one option - coconut sticky rice with fresh mango- but it's the only option you need. The mango was unbelievably fresh and it tastes just like the dish I had on the island of Koh Lanta in Thailand.

Our server, Lindsay, we wonderful. I have a number of food allergies and can't have too much spice, and she was extremely helpful in making recommendations. Everyone was very attentive including the owner/chef who was constantly checking on tables. We were very well taken care of! We will absolutely be back!

Service was not good. I believe understaffed and overwhelmed. With takeout and delivery orders . We felt ignored and forgotten with our table service .

Great food and wonderful staff

Delicious dinner, wonderful people, great experience!

We have been waiting for a while to try this authentic food in our area and it did not disappoint. We saw the owner featured on 6abc FYI Philly and decided we would do take out for my husbands birthday. This week we were able to make outdoor reservations as the quarantine restrictions lifted and we enjoyed the curry set and tapioca dumplings with pork. The beef was so incredibly delicious And the spice level of the chicken was perfect. We cannot was to go back.. next week? Every week? The owner came out to greet us and our server was extremely helpful and attentive.

The food here is outstanding, but even more incredible is the community-minded focus. In a time of need for so many, Kalaya has been offering “Phamily meals” for hospitality industry workers in need of a to-go meal. Take a cue and support our local businesses however you can. They are worth it!

It was delicious. Very spicy!

Very friendly service with good advice on what to order including spice levels and quantities. I have been to Pok Pok in Brooklyn and have eaten in Thailand, the food at Kalaya is very authentic which is unusual in the Philadelphia area.

All of the food was delicious. Some of the offerings are a little spicy, but they warn you on the menu. A couple of the items are a little small for the price, but the food is so good it doesn't matter. Definitely a must try.

The food was so delicious and the owner was so attentive and gracious. I’ve lived here for two years and one of my favorite dining experiences to date. Get the Tom yum soup

Great food, ambiance and service. Definitely would recommend going there for lunch or dinner.

The most flavorful creative Thai cuisine that I've ever eaten, we had a special soup for our main course that was simply amazing!
The dumplings were incredibly beautiful and delicious!

As part of my job, I normally travel to Asia 7x per year. Given the current circumstances, I am grounded, but the silver lining is, I actually want to dive into Philly's Asian food scene. The adventure started with Kalaya and now the bar has been set very high! We had the som tum (spicy, which I loved), the shrimp ceviche (a little scary at first because the shrimp is literally gray, but the dish is delicious), the tofu curry (fantastic with a nice hint of lemongrass), and the monkfish (also great). To accompany the dishes and alleviate some of the burning in our mouths from the spice, we had sticky, Jasmine, and coconut rice. At the end, we somehow had room for the dessert which was a pineapple Panna Cotta parfait (I can't remember everything in it). Also superb. Our server, Alyssa, was outstanding and gave great advice about how much and what to order. And the owner, Nok, was very visible on the floor, serving food and checking on the guests. She and her staff have done an absolutely tremendous job with Kalaya. I felt like I was dining at a neighborhood restaurant in Southern Thailand. 6 stars. Oh, and don't forget to bring your own Singha since it's a BYOB!

The best. Thank you so much.

One of my favorites. Deep, rich flavors, varying spice levels, from fresh and warm to more intense, but always under control. On our recent visit we had purple dumplings, a mouth-sized burst of flavor, branzino with ginger and lime, a superb jumbo lump crab dish, and a hearty, spicy goat stew. Servers know the food and are always warm, too. The whole experience is a pleasure.

The menu was explained as soon as we sat down. The service was excellent and food was delicious. We will definitely be back.

Great food! Wonderful & engaged owners. Fun evening

Some of the best food in the city! The service was excellent as well.

First visit lived up to all expectations. Goat curry, flower dumplings and crabmeat curry were delicious. Some of the items with more than one x were certainly spicy but wouldnt expect anything less from this place which is probably the best thai food I have had in Philly. Can’t wait to come back

Kalaya has some of the best Thai food I’ve ever had. The staff is always friendly, extremely knowledgeable and offer great suggestions. The owner visited our table and was super pleasant! I’ll be back soon!

Great experience. Bit of a wait to be seated even with a reservation, but the food was worth it. Had a great seat by the front window. Service and ambiance were great. Can’t wait to go back.

So delicious, so fun and welcoming. outstanding service! The best Thai food I have ever had!!

This exquisite restaurant is a must go. There is food for everyone from vegan to carnivore. Do not be scared off by the "Oh it's so spicy" reputation. There are entrees for all from spicy to not spicy. The salads are incredible as well.

Went there for a benefit dinner. Everything was very good. I would just caution people if you are not into hot spicy food you may not want to try this great restaurant.

Dined with well-travelled group of Culinary professionals and all were blown away by the deep flavor, beautiful presentation, and generous hospitality. Go. Enjoy.