The Saap Avenue

Dear Americans, Stop putting sugar EVERYWHERE in the meals for god sake. It is not a dessert. Sugar is an addictive product. Change your way of seeing the food. The ingredients beside that are great, recipe are great. But just stop the sugar or mention it in your menu please.

Ambience: a warm buzz. Don't miss the deep-fried whole fish.

Delicious Lao food and top cocktails near the top of Piedmont Avenue's commercial strip. We went for restaurant week and everything was excellent. Will definitely return!

Incredible food and cocktails!

Went for restaurant week specials. One member of our party doesn't do well with chili peppers, so we asked to exchange items between the two $40 fixed price items, but were told that couldn't be done. So she asked for a recommendation off the regular menu. Server suggested a yellow curry item that had a pepper next to it on the menu. We asked why she recommended that item and she assured us that, despite the pepper icon, it is not hot. She was incorrect, so we ended up trading items at the table to meet our needs.

Tried restaurant for first time during restaurant week. My friend and I really liked it. The cocktails were amazing as well. Will definitely go back.

We had a wonderful experience . Our server was excellent and guided our choices. We enjoyed the spring rolls, chicken salad , pumpkin curry and whole catfish. I highly recommend all.

The big curtain was on my shoulder, which was weird. Service was slow. Otherwise a good experience!

It was fine dinner for us. Both are so satisfied by your delicious food. Sure we come back again. I also told to other family members and friends about your reputation.

Great ideas and great food. There were a few dishes that we ordered that were good but could have been better. The spicy curries weren’t spicy and the salmon on the salmon salad was over cooked. Still, the flavors were great,
we’ll be back hoping our first try was a fluke.

Love this place food is amazig

The food was delicious. But I am mildly allergic to mango and thought I hadn't ordered anything with mango in it – then my mouth and throat were numb for the rest of the night, and I had to rinse many times. So it's important to be specific about any allergies you might have. Very christmas-y now, so if you're not a fan of that, you might wait until January....

I live in DC but my son is a student at Cal, and when I am in town we go to this incredible restaurant. We most recently dined there on Saturday, December 7. I have eaten at the best restaurants all over the world for many years, but I have to say on any given day I would prefer to eat here. The food is amazing, the craft cocktails are brilliant, the staff is wonderful and perfectly tuned to the ideal experience of this restaurant, and it is affordable. The Saap Avenue is one of my favorite restaurants in the world, and certainly my favorite in the Oakland/Berkeley area. Don’t miss a chance to eat here, especially now during the holidays. The facilities are decorated perfectly, the mood is festive, and their holiday craft cocktails are hall of fame. It should be apparent that I love this restaurant. You can order anything and be thrilled with your choice.

Excellent food and service, we went with friends for the first time and all enjoyed the meal and ambience.

Great cocktails and food. The servers seemed stressed and at times confused--our appetizers appeared well after our entrees, and I doubt we would have gotten them at all had we not asked about them. Also, we had to remind them twice that we had reservations, after it became clear that they were ignoring reservations and only seating people on the waiting list. Despite these somewhat significant annoyances, I loved it and can't wait to go back.

Amazing food, fun ambiance, great drinks, and warm, attentive service makes for a wonderful restaurant! We love Saap Avenue and go for a nice date night out on the weekends or take the kids mid week for an easy meal.

Excellent food.

Other reviews commented on a lack of ice in the beverages. Let me share that there is now PLENTY OF ICE, even enough for a separate glass filled with it!
This was my first time at Saap Avenue... food was delicious and staff was great. I was there mid-week so that may be a factor as I don’t know how well staffed they are on the weekend.
I highly recommend this place!

Food was interesting and good. But our assorted appetizer platter showed up 30 min after ordering, and then the main courses 10 minutes later. So that was a problem. They had forgotten the appetizer order, until we reminded them - and then essentially all the food showed up together. So tracking service not good.

The food was amazingly authentic. I wasn’t too fond of the mixed drink but enjoyed the restaurant nonetheless. Will return with the rest of the family!

Excellent and reasonable price Laotian food. Nice vibe and service

One of the best Thai/Laos food in the area. Innovative and delicious cocktails and a really friendly staff. Love this place! I particularly love the chicken gizzards, rice ball salad, Laos style rolls, and papaya salad. This place gets busy so a reservation is a must. Highly recommend!!!

Great service. Delicious food and generous portions. I've eaten there with groups of 3 to 8 with no issues. Street parking is available around the block.

I highly recommend this place for the creative cocktails, but that was the only thing that stood out for us. The food was disappointingly mediocre and bland. I expected more spice and authenticity. It tasted watered down for Americans, and everything we ate was highly forgettable, especially the papaya salad. Service was hurried/rushed/uneven; our cocktails came AFTER 3 of 4 dishes we ordered. Not in a rush to go back.

Loved the look of the place. Service was excellent. Will go back.

I had a friend who was a East Bay food critic and she recommended this place. Glad I took her suggestion. Excellent food, service, EVERYTHING. Our server, Linda, was exceptionally pleasant and I would most definitely come back here. Absolutely wonderful!

Been there twice. Same experience both times. I love their cocktails, appetizers and desserts. I am sort of lukewarm on the entrees. Maybe I just haven't picked the right ones. I'll be back though!

Delicious food and amazing bartender. Service is super friendly when it's slow, but it can be tough to get their attention when it's busy. We waited 15 minutes between asking for boxes and receiving our check, which we'd asked for 3 times.

Great options, we had the vegetarian platter, definitely recommend it.

The cocktails and desserts were outstanding. Food was also good. Our waitress was helpful with great drink suggestions (based on vague preferences ;-))! Will definitely be back!

Relaxing open atmosphere for girls dinner out. The Lao appetizer platter was perfect to share and get a taste of several appetizers, rice ball salad, Lao sausage, Lao rolls. All very delicious! Nice cocktail menu with a variety. Delicious pumpkin curry, duck larb, salmon curry and spicy papaya salad!! Very enjoyable meal with great service!

Had great meal here. Nice ambience and the food was very good and portions were plentiful. Large selections of spirits from the bar.

Love the food here. The app plate was wonderful, with crispy eggrolls and meaty sausages. Also loved the fried rice app that came with it. My only suggestion is to ask for the sauce that comes with the pompano fish dish. The sauce that came with the app plate was syrupy sweet, and that tasted ick to me. The deep fried pompano fish dish was also healthful, fresh, and flavorful. I love the lettuce wrap with the mints and cilantro. We also loved the beef stew. The decor was hip and inviting, in a wonderful corner of Piedmont. We don’t live close to here, otherwise we would come every week for sure. Cocktail list was plentiful and fun to try out.

Delicious food. Waiters and staff made great recommendations and were meticulous with our unplanned requests

Delicious food and great service. I enjoyed it a lot.

Everything about our experience was fantastic. The food was amazing and reminded me of dishes I had when traveling in Lao a few years ago. The beef jerky, which isn’t on the menu, is worth inquiring about! Service was friendly and fast. Definitely going back!

Delicious and fresh food with complex favors and wonderful textures. The servers were attentive and lovely and kind. We left feeling well fed and well cared for. One of our new favorites.

I have visited Saap three times within the last three months. Your food and service is excellent and the value is very good. You have some of the most tasty interesting South East Asian food I have ever experienced. I will be bringing six of us this coming Monday for dinner at 6:00PM -- the more of us, the greater the variety we get to experience.

I have one observation -- I have driven by your restaurant numerous times (the head of Piedmont Avenue) and never noticed you were there. From outside your restaurant appears rather dark and is easy not to notice. Friends took me there originally and I discovered what I was missing. However, you have obviously been discovered, as I have noticed you have a good attendance. I will be a regular!

Thanks

The food was wonderful. Fresh, and well-balanced. We were with friends and everyone enjoyed their dishes. My only complaint was that the tables were a little small for four people--not a big complaint. The place has a really homey feel. I highly recommend it.

We really enjoyed our dinner at The Saap Avenue. We had the larb rolls, a tofu larb salad (next time we'll get chicken), the short rib noodle soup! Next time we'll get the short rib plate and the duck curry. All very good. The tofu was crispy and tasty but got a little lost in the salad. The cocktails were really good too!