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Thai Basil
Category: Restaurants Thai Thai [Edit]
467 Bloor St WToronto, ON M5S 1X9
Neighbourhood: The Annex
(416) 840-9988
- Hours:
Mon-Thu, Sun 11:30 am - 10 pm
Fri-Sat 11:30 am - 11 pm
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Attire:
- Casual
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- Yes
- Take Away:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Good For:
- Lunch, Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Noise Level:
- Quiet
- Has TV:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- No
28 reviews for Thai Basil
Review Highlights
"...of food was perfect, the green curry was a nice level of..."
(in 5 reviews)
"Their lemongrass soup is TO DIE FOR."
(in 2 reviews)
"vegetarian spring rolls (quite possibly the best part, and..."
(in 2 reviews)
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28 reviews in English
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Review from Thuy D.
Toronto, ON
9/21/2011
I have visited Thai Basil for about over 30 times in 3 years but have stopped since I don't visit the Annex these days. This restaurant's provides a very warm and beautiful decor except that it is a small restaurant especially if you are sitting at the tables for 2.
My usual favorites are green vegetable curry, malaysian curry is good to except it has lots of potatoes that I'm not a fan of. Their pad thai is very good with only one complaint and that it is too oily for me but this dish is equally oily everywhere else. I also recommend the garlic shrimps with broccoli very flavorful...everytime I go, I MUST order their jasmine green iced tea - it is very refreshing and good! I really like how the waitresses know I'm a regular and everytime I request for extra spicy that they will use some special chili spice to make my dishes extra HOT!!! I highly recommend the satay beef skewers as they are the best I have had in town but do watch out for the chicken skewers because they were pretty dry the last 2 times we ordered them. It comes with a peanut dipping sauce so watch out for those who has any allergies as peanuts does come up in few dishes.
The only one dish I tried and disliked is basil seafood, I've ordered this on 3 separate occasion and the mussels taste spoiled everytime so I stopped on the third time.
Prices are comparable same as most other thai restaurants and if you go there for lunch they have their lunch specials that comes with salad, soup, spring roll and the entree but the soup is not that great. -
Review from Deepika T.
12/6/2011
This restaurant was bustling on a weekday night! The ambiance was cozy, but loud at the same time. We were fit into one of the small 2-seaters elbow-to-elbow with another table, yet we felt like it was enough space to enjoy the meal.
The vegetable spring rolls were good, the Tom Yum Kha was excellent, while the chili fried rice was disappointing. Not that the fried rice was bad, but it tasted like the sauce was poured into the rice and mixed at the end, rather than cooking through the flavor. I'll definitely return for the soup though!
Don't miss the refreshing cocktails (mine was something with mango, and it was delicious). -
Review from Amit K.
Toronto, ON
5/10/2011
Great value for the money sums this place up!
I split my visits between the regular entree visits and their lunch special.
The lunch special gives you a salad, roll, soup, and entree for only $9 and is delicious every time! The soups are not as consistent, however, ranging from perfect to too salty - but still delicious in either case. Ordering an entree off the regular menu is just as delicious. I've had great curries and their eggplant is also well made.
The actual restaurant has modern decor and is quite comfortable for lunch. I haven't visited for dinner, but have heard that the ambiance can be very romantic when the lights have been dimmed. -
Review from Denise S.
5/29/2011
3.5 stars
If I have a hankerin' for Thai when I'm in the Annex, I always come here. The menu is extensive with all your standard dishes, and prices are good. I usually get the emerald curry chicken, classic pad thai, and mango salad to share. Their 'baseline' spiciness is considerably more spicy than most places, but you can still ask your server to dial the spice level up or down a notch. The place is simply decorated and nice. Service is unremarkable. I had a birthday here once, because it was one of the few places in the Annex that would take reservations on a Friday night. Also, I once saw Deepa Mehta having dinner here! -
Review from Ellie A.
6/11/2011
Attention vegetarians - this is for you. This review is specifically for vegetarian food that we got as take-out. My experience eating in at Thai Basil has always been great and I recommend it highly. But, take out was a little more disappointing.
To their credit, the folks at Thai basil know what vegetarian means, which is a big plus. Many Thai restaurants will insist that a dish is veggie, but still use fish sauce. These guys, at our request, removed all the fish sauce and helped us navigate what dishes we could safely order.
All curries and soups are off the table here if you are a veg. We ordered thai basil eggplant and tofu, a crispy chilli tofu dish, a mango salad and vegetables in black bean sauce. Overall, the food was okay, but not great. The veggies were a bit limp and the sauces were understated. The chilli tofu I found a bit watery. I really liked the crispy garlic in the mango salad, but it was warm because it sat in the bag with the hot food, so lost its freshness. You might have more luck with a noodle dish - we didn't order one.
Overall, not a bad place to get Thai takeout. We felt confident that the food was indeed vegetarian, which was a big plus. But it's not nearly as good as take-out as it is to dine in.
Vegetarian score: 6.5/10 -
Review from Rochelle L.
Toronto, ON
4/15/2011
We ordered a whackload of takeout for a team lunch today. Probably won't be eating there again anytime soon.
Completely average thai food, my mixed veggies were limp and the oyster sauce was more like garlic salt sauce. They also forgot a bunch of stuff on our very uncomplicated order for less than 10 people.
The portion sizes are tiny, even for the stuff off of the regular dinner menu.
If you're craving thai in the annex, skip this place, there are a bunch more that aren't as mediocre as this place. -
Review from Kris E.
Calgary, AB
12/8/2010
My experience is based solely on the lunch special. I'm beginning to see that just because it's 'special', doesn't mean that $7.95 necessarily buys you a satisfying meal.
Your lunch special of choice comes with:
- vegetarian spring rolls (quite possibly the best part, and fried to a magnificent deep brown)
- hot & sour soup (meager little bowl, but nice and sour)
- green salad (ice berg lettuce drizzled with a big of dressing)
- rice (but not if you have noodles...no rice for you)
I had the pad thai with chicken. I didn't finish the whole plate (it was a generous portion), but I ended up chucking the styrofoam package right into the bin. My stomach felt twisted up after eating it... don't know if it was just a bad day, or a case of so-so noodles.
For dinner, I would try Thai Basil again, because I don't think restaurants should only be judged for their pull-customers-in lunch specials.
One thing that did bug me was that a worker was cleaning all the glass near us while we were eating... mmm, chemicals.Listed in: So You've Watched Scott…
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Review from Sharky L.
Toronto, ON
10/16/2010
I've been going to this place for over 5 years now. The food is really good and the green basil chicken/shrimp is to die for. Very yummy and good for you. I've tried many of the other dishes and they are spectacular as well.
The ambiance is really nice and romantic in the evening when they dim the lights.Listed in: Romantic Date places
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Review from Andrea S.
Toronto, ON
2/27/2011
I lived in South East Asia for a few months and gained an appreciation for the region's great food...so I can be picky about the Thai/Cambodian/Vietnamese food I eat here in my new home town.
Thai Basil was perfectly satisfying - reasonable price, yummy Thai Basil Chicken (can't help but love it when my cheeks flush a little bit from the heat:).
As others have mentioned - the ambiance is nice (especially relative to other places on the Annex section of Bloor which seem take take their location and price as a sufficient excuse for completely forgetting about decor). The service was fine - I was with a large group that was disorganized and ordered things out of sequence but it was all sorted out just fine.
Since I am in the area frequently I will be back, but other wise it is just another Thai place that is better than Spring Rolls. -
Review from Ashley P.
Toronto, ON
8/10/2011
This place is pretty good! I like going here for lunch because they offer great lunch specials at a reasonable price. I really like their Cashew Nut Chicken. At night time, they offer a nice and cozy atmosphere that is good for couples and friends.
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Review from Whoop K.
Calgary, AB
2/24/2011
On one of my first nights in Toronto I decided to go here on a whim after wandering down Bloor St. The decor and ambiance is very warm and relaxing. The staff are friendly and welcoming.
I tried the yellow curry chicken which was really tasty, but very filling. I could not finish it all so I left about half the bowl untouched. When the server came to take it away she gave me a funny look and asked me if I didn't like the food. I said yes I liked it but I was just full, so she continues to intrude and ask if I want to take it to go. I say no (because I was going out after and I wasn't about to carry around some curry with me). She then looks offended and wonders again if I was unhappy with the food. Um, so anyone deciding to eat here please make sure you finish alllll your food or else you'll practically get scolded by the staff. Needless to say, it made me feel a bit awkward.
However, overall I did enjoy this place. Location is great, food was good, as well as the atmosphere. -
Review from Julianna B.
Toronto, ON
8/2/2009
Cross-eyed after an intense essay-writing session, I walked along Bloor looking for some place with table service, a/c, some healthy food, and a pleasant ambiance.
Thai Basil was busy, but not too busy, so I though I'd give it a try. Their prices are reasonable, and I ordered the prawn pad thai (so much for the healthy options, but it's my benchmark dish).
Ho-hum. The starting salad was chunks of iceberg lettuce in a tasty yellow peanut dressing; surprisingly good. The salad arrived with what looked like spring roll sweet chili sauce; I decided not to apply it to the salad.
It was rapidly followed by soup and a spring roll (aha!). The hot and sour soup was so sour and salty it grabbed at the back of my throat - it was flavourful, but not worth the grief, not to mention the sodium intake. Some cilantro leaves & button mushrooms swam in the broth.
Before I got to the spring roll (nice flavour, quite mushroom-y) my pad thai arrived. It was the intense orange colour of middle-of-the-road pad thai, but it did come with a lime wedge, a little pile of crushed peanuts, and some spring onion cooked in. Where's my cilantro? The noodle texture was nice : delicate, firm, and not gummy. It may have been due to all the grease.
Have you ever suspected that Toronto has a city bylaw requiring all shrimp dishes to be served with exactly four shrimp? I can count on one hand the number of times I've seen it raised to five or (bastards) lowered to three.
Ech. You can do better, but it's a nice ambiance, and the service was quick.Listed in: Thai Thai Thai Love Love Love
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Review from Erin B.
5/25/2010
One recent, very rainy, afternoon my girlfriends and I were looking for somewhere to eat along bloor. We decided on Thai Basil because it was right across the street and that's about as far as we were willing to walk in the downpour.
We were pleasantly surprised. We shared three items - green curry, garlic and basil eggplant, and spicy noodles. One of my friends is vegetarian, so the items were sans viande.
The curry and noodles were both good. Not mind blowingly so, but solid. And the eggplant dish was a complete delight, richly flavoured and striking a good balance between the basil and the garlic. We oohed and aahed a fair bit.
The service, however, was barely adequate. We were approached at least six times before we were ready to order and felt a bit nagged. From there in we had to focus really hard to catch someone so that we could order food and additional drinks. At the end of the meal we sat and sat and sat with plates in front of us waiting for a chance to ask for the bill. It's no worse than the majority of restos in this city, but still lacking.
I'd go back, though. Inexpensive, yummy, well-located, and the service was just lacking, not rude. -
Review from Rachel L.
Toronto, ON
10/5/2009
Whenever I am in the mood for Thai, it's the first restaurant I hit on Bloor (great for people watching! I always see someone I know), there's never a wait, and it's so vegetarian friendly. What's not to love!
I am particularly fond of their lunch special which hovers around $14 (I'm not sure why someone said it is 8-9) and includes lemongrass soup, spring rolls, and pad thai.
Listen. Their lemongrass soup is delicious. Delicious. I will write papers for school in a timely fashion and reward myself with soup. I will buy the soup and sit in my window on a sunny day and watch you walk down my street while I ponder how this is so much lovelier than writing a paper. I bemoan the fact that when I am not in Toronto I can't order this soup.
Whenever I'm up for Thai, whether with a friend or going solo, I always wind up here because it is reliable, amazingly delicious, and close by and you know what?
NO REGRETS except just stick with the pad thai.
PS Get the mango sticky rice (fgkjfhgksfgsd) and iced lemongrass ginger juice (ohhhhh), but skip on the martinis because they are expensive and if you're in that neck of the woods, you can for sure get cheaper martinis a few blocks down. Go to the Lab on Brunswick on a Tuesday night! -
Review from Michael M.
Toronto, ON
5/6/2010
My uncle manages a hotel in the area, and told me to check out this place. I took a friend out one night and haven't stopped going back ever since! Every dish I've ordered has been delicious. (Try the Panang Curry!)
Service can be a little slow when things start to get busy, as they often do, but all the waitresses are friendly and attentive. At this moment, it's been several weeks since I've been here, and writing this review is making me want to head back tonight!Listed in: Annex Eats
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Review from David R.
8/24/2009
The lunch special is cheap ($8-9), generously portioned, and comes out VERY fast (I was in and out in 35 minutes). If you haven't forgotten your high-school algebra, you can easily solve the restaurant equation for the remaining variable--quality.
The salad was just a tiny bowl of dressed lettuce with a few wisps of carrot. The "spring roll" was fried (I expected fresh) and had no flavor to speak of. The tom yum soup was okay. The pad thai was...odd. It was orange and glistened with a sort of gelatinous sheen. There was one lonely piece of green onion and a few sprouts, but otherwise no vegetables (thankfully it DID have peanuts). It actually tasted all right, but very different from any pad thai I've ever had. The chicken had been grilled rather than stir-fried and lent a nice grilly flavor to the dish. Also, there was tofu in addition to the meat.
But--it WAS fast and cheap. And the special runs from 11:30 to 5. Also, the service was pleasant and the setting lovely. I wolfed it all down because I hadn't eaten all day, but I probably wouldn't return. -
Review from A S.
Toronto, ON
5/10/2011
Rather poor service. Flagging a waitress was harder than trying to catch a thin slice of mushroom with chopsticks. Just saying...
I was so frustrated that I hastily finished my delicious green mango salad (topped with fried onions to give it the perfect crunch) and got my main meal as takeout.
In other news, the pad thai, bright orange and too sparsely decorated with the supposed-to-be-standard toppings of vegetables, tofu, and peanuts, tasted sugary sweet. Almost like cough syrup. -
Review from Connie T.
Toronto, ON
11/5/2008
Ah, hello? A good Thai restaurant in Toronto for cheapz? NO. WAY.
A visiting friend from Calgary and I entered this place only because it was close to where I was living. What a sweet sensation on our Thai-craving palates. The Pad See Ew is one of the best I've tasted, with the perfect balance of slobber-slobber-slobber... Guh. I can't even piece a sentence together; it was that good.
In fact, it's almost good enough to make me want to live beside the U of T frat houses again. Almost. -
Review from Mitch S.
Toronto, ON
5/8/2010
I just came from here tonight and I had an AMAZING experience. I started my adventure with the lemon ginger tea (great, especially since I have a cold currently :( ) and then shared the dinner for two with a friend. The amount of food was perfect, the green curry was a nice level of spiciness and and left completely satisfied.
So far I think this is my favourite fairly cheap thai restaurant! Check it out if you haven't already! -
Review from Eugene M.
Toronto, ON
4/6/2011
Nice lunch specials, with salad, tom yum, a spring roll and an entree starting from 7 dollar + tax. Nice ambiance too. Though, I must warn, this is very tame Thai food; good, but a bit bland. If the Pad Thai (which was too sweet, in my view...can't rule out ketchup as an ingredient) and the green curry are any indication, flavors are dulled down here. Sigh....
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Review from Adrian P.
East York, ON
12/22/2009
Good, solid Thai food conveniently located in the Annex.
This definitely isn't the best Thai in the city (that is Mengrai Gourmet Thai) but I don't think you're going to be greatly disappointed either.
The benefits of this place are: price, consistency, quantity and location. Great for lunch, I've done several business meetings here as well as popping in for a quick bite.
If you want a special Thai dinner, it is definitely worth a trek to Mengrai Thai or the almost as good Golden Thai on Richmond St.
If I could do half stars I would give this 3 and a half since I also gave Golden 4, but the price and convenience probably make the 4 star tie a fair one. -
Review from Melissa J.
Toronto, ON
11/5/2008 4 photos
I was pleasantly surprised by Thai Basil. First of all, I'm not sure why I had never been there before, because it's a gorgeous restaurant inside. Great decor, really nice cutlery and dishes, and a nice atmosphere in general.
The menu makes it really difficult for an indecisive person like me...I was very close to ordering everything! Every dish looks/sounds/smells delicious. I was looking at everyone else's food to get a feel of what to order, but then I realized it was all good. And that insert with the HUGE booze list... They had all sorts of neat cocktails and non-alcoholic drinks. Plus imported Thai tea. Mmm.
I ended up getting the $14 dinner combo which was sensational. Their lemongrass soup is TO DIE FOR. I have never had such good soup in my life -- it was the perfect combination of creamy and spicy without either of them overwhelming the dish. Plus it had huge chunks of chicken (sorry vegetarians) and mushrooms. And I LOVE mushrooms.
The combo also came with vegetarian spring rolls, which were decent, and Pad Thai. My friend got the cold rolls, which I got to try one of -- sooooo good. I've tried to make cold rolls before, and theirs are folded so neatly and perfectly compared to the mess mine were. There were also tons of options for vegetarians, which is great, and usually means they have tons of fresh veggies in their kitchen.
And I tend to judge every Thai restaurant by the Pad Thai (if they screw that up, then there's no hope) -- Thai Basil passed with flying colours. Perfect sauce seasoning, great mix of meat and veg, not too saucy, not too dry (à la Salad King), gave me a lime instead of a lemon...so delicious.
Basically this place rules. Great food, great service, and a really interesting menu that makes me want to go everyday. I'm sold. -
Review from Tom C.
9/11/2008
Having been greatly disappointed to find that a particular dim sum resturant which I was searching for was closed, I came across this gem.
Thai Basil offers authentic Thai food in a very relaxing environment. The host is very friendly and the service is spectacular. I had the chicken pad thai lunch special and it was super cheep. For $7.95 I got a salad, spring roll, and soup as my starter and the chicken pad thai as my entree. The thai ice tea is not bad either.
Beyond being a great value, the food just flat out taste good. -
Review from Diana C.
Burlington, ON
3/21/2009
What a disappointment! We went in hoping for some REAL authentic Thai food, not the modified fusion version to fit western taste. There is nothing unique about the menu (may be dessert menu could be better but by the end of the meal, we were so disappointed, we didn't even want to stay and try it out). 'Eggplant and pork hotpot'?? That's Chinese!! 'Stir fried Vermicelli Singapore Style'??!! Come on people, there's NO SUCH THING!! ask anyone from Singapore and they will tell you there's no such dish in Singapore! My friend had the 'Pad Thai', it tasted just fine, like any other Thai restaurants, except the shrimp wasn't fresh and he had upset stomach after wards.
However, there is one good thing I'd like to say about the place, like many others have reviewed, the price is relatively reasonable for its location and the restaurant is nicely renovated. If you are looking for a nice place that serves good food (mind you not authentic), I'd say go for it. Just don't get your hope too high like we did, or you will be disappointed... Well at least I know one thing, I'm out of there, Ciao! -
Review from Weena N.
Toronto, ON
Updated - 11/24/2009
I brought another two Thai friends who just came for 2 months. Of course I was bringgin them to Thai Basil. We ordered the steam fish on stove (Long time I haven't had this because I never knew any other Thai resturants offered this item) First time I tried the Yellow curry stir-fry Prawns (becuase almost everytime we would ordered the Green curry) It was so tasty and we could not help to pack the left over sauce back home. So I want to update and highly recommend to try this after you have tried plenty times of Green curry!
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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6/3/2009
I came from Bangkok and started my intership last year, I was brought to Thai Basil by my friends.… Read more »
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Review from Jordan M.
Waterloo, ON
7/27/2009
Please people... stop eating Thai in this city... stop. Went to this place after checking Yelp, Chowhound, and Blog.to... It's bland, typically overpriced, and ultimately unsatisfying.
Spring Rolls were bland. Best thing was they weren't oily, but flavour?!
Lemon grass soup - overly sour, not enough balance in the flavour.
Pad Thai - sweet, standard, boring.
Green Curry - good, 3 stars.
Mixed vegetables - decent 2.5 stars.
Was about 20 per person with water, before tip. Granted a good amount of left over, but sorry... with the exception of Salad King, which really gets it right, for the right price, this place like all these 'top' thai restaurants in the city come at you with McDonaldized flavour at Milestone's pricing... Blech. I'm exclusively Salad King from now on. -
Review from Downtown D.
Toronto, ON
7/31/2009
Typical Thai restaurant - I went here about a year ago. My friend ordered pineapple friend rice which came in half shelled out pineapple which we thought was neat. I ordered one of the thai chicken curries with rice. Ambience is clean and renovated, you can bring a date here.
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Review from Alan K.
London, ON
2/17/2011
A very popular restaurant in the Annex and I can see why it's appealing in that it serves fresh, tasty, unexciting Thai food. I tried the thai basil chili noodle with chicken (very good), kana chinese broccoli in a garlic chili sauce (the best part of the meal), and ginger beef (very chewy). A decent meal overall but nothing overly exciting.
