Ban Thai restaurant is a traditional Thai restaurant located close to St. Paul and Minneapolis, Minnesota. The English translation of Ban Thai means Thai house. We wish to make everyone feel like they are eating fresh Thai food in a traditional Thai home in Thailand. The owner, Pornouma Marid was born in the small coastal town of Rayong on the Gulf of Thailand.
Pornouma earned a business degree from Valaya Alongkorn Rajabbat University under the Thai Royal Patronage. She worked as an export manager for a large Bangkok manufacture until she married her husband and came to the USA in 1997. She opened Ban Thai in White Bear Lake, Minnesota in 2005. The Marid family has owned and operated Thai restaurants for over 60 years.
Pornouma earned a business degree from Valaya Alongkorn Rajabbat University under the Thai Royal Patronage. She worked as an export manager for a large Bangkok manufacture until she married her husband and came to the USA in 1997. She opened Ban Thai in White Bear Lake, Minnesota in 2005. The Marid family has owned and operated Thai restaurants for over 60 years.
Reviews (27)
Kirsten M.
Dec 30, 2021
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Very disappointed... the Shrimp were only half the length of the wrap so the end was just fried dough for more than half - not worth $10! The fried rice was very strangely seasoned with an overwhelming amount of lemongrass as was the Tom Kha soup. My husband's sticky rice tasted like plain very old hard rice not traditional sticky rice. Ended up being a $100 dinner that the chickens ate most of.
Martha G.
Dec 04, 2021
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We understand these are difficult times for restaurants so we excused the limited service and serve yourself drinks and silverware (plastic). We eat a lot of Thai food and always order 2apps and 2 entrees so we have leftovers. We could barely eat anything we ordered (chicken satay, spring rolls, pad Thai and a chicken stir fry). The apps were passable. The pad thai looked like it had spaghetti sauce on it. I've never had it with a red sauce or much sauce really. The worst was that it tasted like a sickly sweet spaghetti sauce. The lime I squeezed liberally didn't help. The stir fry tasted
Ashley H.
Jun 02, 2021
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I eat at ban thai every 3 weeks because it Is my favorite thai food restaurant and I pick up food here every time I visit my chiropractor. I have tried so many things on the menu and I love everything. Her dishes are so thoughtfully made her flavors are amazing and her food has been better than any other restaurant I have had. In my opinion above and beyond in quality. My favorite things on her menu is laab nua, her amazing chicken wings, her spring rolls or any of her soups. I recently fell in love with the pra ram song dish. Excellent flavors. This restaurant gets busy for a good reason and it
Jeremy Tilsen
May 18, 2021
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I ordered the wontons, egg rolls, and a noodle dish. Both the wontons and egg rolls tasted off. Litterally took a bite and just couldn't eat it. The noodles were ok, the spice level was perfect, but it just isn't up to the standards of the other places. If your in the area I would go to Val's in Mahtimedi, Ha Long Bay (s. WBL) or Orchid (WBL township)
Lindsey Dumire
Dec 12, 2020
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Rude. I have had three bad experiences here. I love Thai food and I think the food is good. But today i am done. I told my husband we should try eating there again. We took a couple year break because the last time the owner(chef) was yelling at her husband (the server) the whole time. It was awkward/sad. We could hear it all from the kitchen...for a long time. And today (Sunday afternoon) we stood at the door 50 minutes before the place was supposed to be closed, and i guess she closed early as she just looked at us standing at the door. Kind of felt embarrassed trying to eat there. The time their
Aaron Keen
Sep 08, 2020
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Daniel K.
Jul 05, 2020
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Not a prime example of Thai food, and you can certainly find better in St. Paul if you drive out little further. This place is tucked on 3rd St in downtown White Bear Lake. Don't expect a parking lot, in this area you'll just park right on the street, but there should be plenty of spaces all around the area.
I ordered 3 items: Chicken Pad Thai, Chicken Satay and a side of jasmine rice.
Pad Thai: Frankly, this is the first Pad Thai I've ever eaten with cilantro in it. Pad Thai is a staple and usually the most approachable food item for first time visits at a Thai restaurant. Its
I ordered 3 items: Chicken Pad Thai, Chicken Satay and a side of jasmine rice.
Pad Thai: Frankly, this is the first Pad Thai I've ever eaten with cilantro in it. Pad Thai is a staple and usually the most approachable food item for first time visits at a Thai restaurant. Its
Brian T.
Mar 29, 2020
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Steph P.
Oct 13, 2019
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Saturday night my family of 4 went to Ban Thai to eat in. We ordered at the front desk. It was served in plastic to-go containers. When we asked for plates we were given LIDS to eat off of. All this would be a fervor if the food was good. The award winning egg rolls were horrible. The Pad Thai wasn't bad. The fried rice was ok. We paid $60 for two entrees and two appetizers. Lee Ann Chin would have been better. I don't know how they have stayed in business for this long.
Peter Goldberg
Aug 24, 2019
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Pretty good place for Thai food in White Bear Lake. The location is simple, the food was pretty good, and the prices were a bit higher than expected. It is kind of a hole in the wall place that is a one woman show (she takes your order then heads back to the kitchen to cook it, then serves it herself) where pleasantries are minimal and it's all business. All food was served in takeout containers (not my favorite). I like this type of place in general, but I was not overly impressed. I would eat here again if I was close by, but would rather travel towards Saint Paul to get my Thai food fix.
Tyler B.
Aug 05, 2019
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Chase Nelson
Jul 11, 2019
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Mai Y.
Mar 26, 2019
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Libby K.
Mar 06, 2019
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The food was not very good. There was a lot of flavor, but it was runny and the ingredients were obviously frozen. We ate in and the food was served on all styrofoam/plastic products that had to be thrown away afterwards. What a complete waste.
Service was bad, there was rarely someone up front to take our order or keep the serving station (for knives, forks, water) refilled.
The worst part though, was that although they advertised that they were wheelchair accessible, they had not shoveled their wheelchair entrance in weeks and then when I checked out the wheelchair entrance inside there were
Service was bad, there was rarely someone up front to take our order or keep the serving station (for knives, forks, water) refilled.
The worst part though, was that although they advertised that they were wheelchair accessible, they had not shoveled their wheelchair entrance in weeks and then when I checked out the wheelchair entrance inside there were
Dr. C.
Dec 28, 2018
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The pad Thai was ok. Just ok, as were the spring rolls and egg rolls. The fried rice was very good. My gripe is the entries are $12-15 and it is essentially self service. You order and pay at the register. You get your own drinks out of the cooler. You get your own disposable utensils and napkins and water. The food is brought out on carry out containers. They were out of all beer and wine
There are a lot of better choices. Better food, better service for what they charge
There are a lot of better choices. Better food, better service for what they charge
Gregg Campbell
Dec 26, 2018
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Tracy D.
Oct 23, 2018
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Sharriah Armstrong
Aug 29, 2018
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We ordered carry out for our family who is well versed in Thai food and while the gal working the front was very nice and efficient the food was mediocre at best. To start, I love pad thai and get it often but will never get it here again. The wantons were tough and the fried rice was also sub-par. The only dish that was any good was the chicken curry and rice. Wish I could have a do over and buy our Thai dinner somewhere else.
E. F.
Jun 24, 2018
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Sheila N.
Apr 12, 2018
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I own a vegan bakery a block away and always get my lunch or dinner here. There's isn't much time for me to cook or run to get vegan food near here. I call the owner/chef Mama Oh, because she cooks so many of my meals! I always have long conversations with her when I go pick up my food.
She can basically make any dish vegan. Just ask. Never gives me any grief. Loves to accommodate. I love cilantro, so I always ask for extra and now she just automatically adds more when I forget to ask!
I've had vegan pho, pad Thai, fried rice, curry, fat noodles, skinny noodles... A lot of things
She can basically make any dish vegan. Just ask. Never gives me any grief. Loves to accommodate. I love cilantro, so I always ask for extra and now she just automatically adds more when I forget to ask!
I've had vegan pho, pad Thai, fried rice, curry, fat noodles, skinny noodles... A lot of things
Jim A.
Feb 09, 2018
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Ok, I have been all over the world, I've eaten in Bangkok, I've taken Thai cooking classes in Bangkok and here in Minneapolis from a local Thai lady who has her own restaurant. This was the best red curry I've ever had. Life changing. The blend of sweet, sour and spice was perfect. My first time here but I'll be back. Probably tomorrow.
Rohan G.
Dec 02, 2017
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The worst service experience we have had here. They refused to seat 6 adults and 3 kids. Just because we did not reserve 24hrs in advance. The lady walked out of the kitchen shouted from one end of the restaurant to us (standing by the door waiting to get in) saying we need to leave because we did not have reservation for 9. I can understand if the restaurant was full, but it was mostly empty. 3 out of 10 tables were full. She could have made arrangements if she was even a bit customer focussed.
She created a scene and an embarrassing moment for me and my family. Plus we had all the other folks
She created a scene and an embarrassing moment for me and my family. Plus we had all the other folks
Karen K.
Apr 15, 2017
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Benny B.
Feb 21, 2017
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One of the best Thai restaurants in the area hands down. Owners are amazing. I get a huge kick out of the reviews talking about spice levels...yes its spicy, lol...thats the point. I get a 10 pepper so i guess i'm a little biased...but anyway, its one of the few places in the twin cities that will actually produce enough heat to satisfy. Gang Pa-Nang is my fav....and its her family recipe so its the real deal.
Bill W.
Jul 10, 2015
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Jesse M.
May 11, 2015
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Service: bad. Ambiance: bad, Prices: too high for what you get ($12-13 for a medium portion). Food: My Pad See Yew was very tasty but had american broccoli florets in it (yuk). Authentic spicing, not authentic ingredients (veggies).
We waited 40 minutes for food and there were only 4 other tables of customers in there, 2 of which were already served!
Someone needs to teach the cook what multi-tasking is.
BTW: if there are a ton of other people writing the same 3 things (too long of wait, bad service, too pricey) why don't you change those 3 things!!!? Hire another cook or learn to cook
We waited 40 minutes for food and there were only 4 other tables of customers in there, 2 of which were already served!
Someone needs to teach the cook what multi-tasking is.
BTW: if there are a ton of other people writing the same 3 things (too long of wait, bad service, too pricey) why don't you change those 3 things!!!? Hire another cook or learn to cook
Rick T.
Sep 30, 2014
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I cannot begin to tell you how much I enjoy eating a restaurant when the owner comes out and talks about their passion for food. It goes a long way with me,and I know what's good to eat. I finally settled on a nice yellow curry w sticky rice. It was what I expected but next time I might go to three peppers in the heat scale for more punch. Always great to have warm curry to bring you joy !
