Great atmosphere and service. Delicious food, good-sized portions. The worst thing was trying to decide, with so many delicious choices!! Vegetarian and vegan diners are not starved for options here. Every dish iss excellent, every time I come here.

edit 2: came back AGAIN and it was great.

edit: came here again and ordered the same thing on a friday night. both tasted off but the nepalese dry chicken curry was super sour. we couldnt eat any of it and had to leave it. we told the waitress and apparently we had one of the last servings before they sold out of it. The thai tea is super sweet and felt premade. seems like diff hours/day impacts the food quality.

came here for dinner today and it was amazing. prices are reasonable and everyday has some sort of special going on for the drink menu. we got drunken noodles and dry chicken curry

I ordered green curry and it was good. But my husband who ordered chef’s special which is top left on the photo, was like a dumping rest of ingredients from others foods with soy sauce. So DON’T ORDER CHEF’s SPECIAL.

04/22/2024: My expectations were low when it came to Zen Zero and having lots of experience in Thai and pretty much every Asian cuisine. For a small college town of Lawrence, Kansas in middle America, Zen Zero isn’t that bad. The pad see ew could have had more char to the noodles, but the amount was plentiful and flavor pretty good. The seafood green curry was also very tasty. The spring rolls were okay. The prices were decently reasonable. I would definitely go again to Zen Zero when I’m back working in Lawrence. Thanks!

Ordered dumplings, udon and green curry. The dumplings had air pockets, the ingredients were mushy without texture. The person who wrapped the dumpling was lack of skill. Broth for udon was flavorless. On a Saturday afternoon, the host was also the waitress and took forever to take my order. Knocked off 2 stars for food quality, and 1 star for poor staffing.

Not disgusting by any means, clean and friendly with okay food. My main complaint comes from specific dishes, like their pad thai is literally just sugar noodles, so sweet with no depths of flavor at all. Some of their dishes are not made properly, some of their stuff is good though.

Wow! Asian food at its top notch. Curry and Salmon was delicious. Excellent atlantic salmon cooked to perfection. Vegetables were cooked just right. The coconut curry sauce was creamy and smooth. Must try.

Visit again after a few years, same delicious food, fantastic service and hospitality. Was happy to see the consistency in all areas. Zen Zero is on our list of restaurants to visit whenever we visit Lawrence. Once again we were completely satisfied with our overall experience. Hope to see you again soon.

Amazing Asian food, staff, and has several options for vegetarian and vegan!

Zen Zero has been in Lawrence for over twenty years and I've had a lot of fond memories of this place.

Great food, great friendly service great prices

edit 2: came back AGAIN and it was great.

edit: came here again and ordered the same thing on a friday night. both tasted off but the nepalese dry chicken curry was super sour. we couldnt eat any of it and had to leave it. we told the waitress and apparently we had one of the last servings before they sold out of it. The thai tea is super sweet and felt premade. seems like diff hours/day impacts the food quality.

came here for dinner today and it was amazing. prices are reasonable and everyday has some sort of special going on for the drink menu. we got drunken noodles and dry chicken curry

Great locally owned restaurant. The Lawrence Restaurant Week menu was exceptional, full of flavor & just amazing. 👍🏽👍🏽👏🏾👏🏾

Me and my family were dining in and noticed the owner being unnecessarily and obnoxiously being rude to one of the waitress. Food and service were spot on but pretty disappointed with how the owner treats his staff members.

Great food and friendly service! Sadie is the GOAT and kept us taken care of with refills. 10/10, will be back!

Not disgusting by any means, clean and friendly with okay food. My main complaint comes from specific dishes, like their pad thai is literally just sugar noodles, so sweet with no depths of flavor at all. Some of their dishes are not made properly, some of their stuff is good though.

Excellent food in nice space. Great selection of food and the prices are very modest especially for downtown Lawrence.

We stood awaiting a server till another person came in behind us and was amazed we werent sitted. The person behind us was serviced first. Waiter was inattentive or inexperienced.
I got a chicken pad thai and it tasted nothing like it... it also lacked peanuts. It wasnt bad just not what im used to having.
I cannot recommend

Wow! Asian food at its top notch. Curry and Salmon was delicious. Excellent atlantic salmon cooked to perfection. Vegetables were cooked just right. The coconut curry sauce was creamy and smooth. Must try.

Their Pad Thai is my favorite!

I ordered green curry and it was good. But my husband who ordered chef’s special which is top left on the photo, was like a dumping rest of ingredients from others foods with soy sauce. So DON’T ORDER CHEF’s SPECIAL.

Used to be amazing but now it's a pretty run of the mill food fusion.

Our band was here. Incredible food and very good for vegans.

Lawrence's number one pad thai

Always love the pad Thai here.

We've enjoyed everything we've ordered, including different curry, kha pow, and gluten-free sweet and sour. Great service and the staff is very knowledgeable about what's safe for those with Celiac.

The curry hits 👌

Ordered a few different kinds of noodles…pad Thai, Singapore noodles, and pad see ew…and they were all sub par—-didn’t taste like thai dishes at all. We’ve had Thai food from more traditional places on the west coast and this wasn’t even close. Flavors were completely flat—if you’re looking for real Thai food flavors this place IS NOT it. The staff was kind though and the restaurant was clean—shame the food was so bland.

Visited Zen Zero for drinks, and they were fabulous! Had the Matcha green tea latte and my sister had the Thai tea drink - both were wonderful!!

Did a takeout order on my lunch break and the service was prompt and really quick. Container was well packaged so that I didn't burn myself carrying it back to my office but also still warm when I sat down to eat.

The food was not half bad. Ordered the pad thai with chicken. Mild flavor and they don't ask you your spice preference (make sure you request it!). The chicken had zero flavor. For Pad Thai it seemed a little Bland but I do appreciate that I wasn't basically served a soup because they over sauce it

Great atmosphere and service. Delicious food, good-sized portions. The worst thing was trying to decide, with so many delicious choices!! Vegetarian and vegan diners are not starved for options here. Every dish iss excellent, every time I come here.

Alexa is so personable, her genuine smile makes a difference, food is above average and the place is not as clean as id like but service is their forte and i appreciate it.

Great location, food, and service.

One of my favorite spots to go eat in town. It is the ideal spot whenever you want to go out with friends and family because it is very affordable and there are a lot of dishes on the menu that are accessible to people with food restrictions or allergies. The green papaya flank steak is one of the best dishes I've had!

This is a real nice little spot. Spicy food, shrimp chops, and good service.

One of my favorite places in Lawrence - food is excellent and service is good.

Always love the service here! I get the Vietnamese Spring Roll Salad every time, it’s to die for. The amount of dressing is inconsistent, so I recommend getting it on the side.

Overall it was slow to get served though it wasn’t that busy. We ordered crab cakes and the duck special. I stared at my beer at the bar for a good minutes after it was poured. I almost went and got it myself. To the servers credit, she did warn us that the crab cakes were small, which is fine. It was an appetizer. But the crab cakes were overcooked, almost black and not much crab in there. After about 20-30 minutes, our server told us they ran out of duck. Kind of odd it took so long to tell us. We got the chicken pad Thai instead. It was fine but unremarkable and we prefer the flat noodles. Disappointed overall and not going back.

Food was okayish. Enjoyed the thai red curry but nothing too great. The staff was lovely though! The girl serving us at lunch was super friendly and courteous.

The food is great

I loved this place 20 years ago. Then I moved and had Thai food with something called spices. On revisiting, this is some bland, overcooked, Thai food and that's really hard to do. At least give the option for a tiny bit of heat.

04/22/2024: My expectations were low when it came to Zen Zero and having lots of experience in Thai and pretty much every Asian cuisine. For a small college town of Lawrence, Kansas in middle America, Zen Zero isn’t that bad. The pad see ew could have had more char to the noodles, but the amount was plentiful and flavor pretty good. The seafood green curry was also very tasty. The spring rolls were okay. The prices were decently reasonable. I would definitely go again to Zen Zero when I’m back working in Lawrence. Thanks!

Zen Zero is one of our favorite dining spots from our time in Lawrence. The food served here is delicious, complemented by a team of kind and knowledgeable staff. Despite now residing in Kansas City, a bit farther away, we haven't discovered a Thai restaurant that comes close to Zen Zero. The drive to Lawrence is always justified if we are stopping to eat! Highly recommend to anyone seeking exceptional Thai cuisine!

I order from here atleast once a month but here lately its been getting worse. This used to be my favorite place on Mass. Today I ordered the same thing I always get Singapore noodles add mushrooms, medium heat, extra crispy tofu! Than a Green Thai Curry extra crispy tofu. They didn't read the instructions at all now both my meals are wrong. I called and he said they charge for mushrooms a 1.50 but that was never an issue before and didn't acknowledge the rest of the issue. I won't be ordering from then fir a while, service there has changed. And I'm not a fan.

I had the calamari and the Soba Noodles. All the flavors!! Wow!! They were fantastic!! I’ll definitely be back!!!

My favorite restaurant in Lawrence!!! The food is amazing every time and the staff is always nice

If you are looking for authentic Thai spice, this will provide the proper amount of tingle, if not… don’t worry you can adjust the levels on any dish. On this menu, you really can’t go wrong. This place is top notch and has been holding it down for decades.

Ordered dumplings, udon and green curry. The dumplings had air pockets, the ingredients were mushy without texture. The person who wrapped the dumpling was lack of skill. Broth for udon was flavorless. On a Saturday afternoon, the host was also the waitress and took forever to take my order. Knocked off 2 stars for food quality, and 1 star for poor staffing.

Let me first start by saying the service is great - they're always on top of it, but when I go out to eat I do it for the food!
I miss the Zen Zero of twenty years ago. When I first ate there I became OBSESSED with Thai food. I would go there and be wildly satisfied each time. Now (2024) it's like they barely even try in the kitchen. Even the Pad Thai (the signature dish of Thai restaurants) is dry. It's like they skimp on the tamarind sauce. The last few times I went I ended up dumping soy sauce on it so it tasted like *something.* For nostalgia, and hoping I was wrong, I kept going there like 15 times recently hoping I was wrong. But now, my friends refuse to go there with me anymore. It's so disappointing.

The vegan Khao soil, dear God

Generally good. The soup was way too salty and I love salt. So some more Finesse would be nice. Oh and the table wiggled like crazy and caused the soup to go overboard. Not fun. I also ordered hot tea. It was bought in a pottery cup without handle. The cup took on the heat from the tea and it was impossible for me to hold the cup and drink the tea. There are cup that don't have such a strong heat transfer but this was the wrong cup for hot tea.

The dry chicken curry was exquisite. The cacophony of flavors will remain fresh in my memory for a long time. Can't wait to come back!

Summary, service was good, atmosphere was good, food was meh. I don't have much experience in Asian cuisine so may not be helpful.

Water being served was from the tap... Server filled the water from the same faucet where there was a "did you wash" sign. Couldn't tell if there was any filtration system but looked like straight tap.

Meat - I got pork friend for Chicken both looked and tasted like it was boiled. It was chewy, wrinkly and lacked flavor.
Those are my two main takeaways, other than that it was a good experience.

Enjoyed the whole experience! The food was excellent!! Nice,big portions&when I finished,I didn't feel heavy& bloated 😆
Thank you Zen Zero !

Food a little too pricey like the dumplings you get barely any but cost crazy amounts of money but great service and atmosphere

Really delicious food!

I am a big fan of the phad kee mao (drunken noodles) as well as the fresh spring rolls, with the tasty sauces.
You are given shrimp chips as your appetizer, and I love dipping them a little in soy sauce and sticking it on my tongue.

I called in the order and let them know that I was going to be there in 20 minutes to pick up the takeout order and I asked if they could wait 10 minutes before making it so it wasn't cold when I got it but when I got into the restaurant it wasn't ready and they hadn't even started making it yet. The Singapore noodles were delicious however. There's also no where to park most of the time because the restaurant is in the middle of downtown Lawrence.

My family and I thought we’d switch it up for our Sunday night dinner and try somewhere new- and we were all blown away by the quality of the food and the service. Kiara walked us through the menu and was so attentive throughout the meal. The food was even better than my wife’s cooking! We will be back!!!

Tasty and beautiful presentation

Maybe we came on a bad day. The mobile orders had the kitchen pretty backed up, so service was really slow. The waitress was very nice and apologetic about it, though. Our appetizer was overcooked and tough. The rest of the meal was aromatic but lacked flavor. The menu is very impressive, though. Everything sounds good here! Just, maybe wait to visit until they’re slow enough to do it right.

Their green curry is to die for!!!

Great find for Asian food.

I cannot recommend. I ordered Pad Thai. Instead of noodles, it was one flavorless congealed blob. The drink was very good. The service was very good. Food: no way. I won't be going back.

The best food in the world. The workers were very friendly and helpful thanks a lot.

Excellent meal!

Obliterated my mouth with the most spicy item on the menu, god bless the server for supplying me with nonstop waters and a milk. The food was literally and metaphorically fire 🔥

Service was fast and friendly.

Nice thai place in lawrence. I always order phad thai and green curry, need to add spicy😋

The food here used to be good but has been slipping steadily for the last few years and now is unrecognizable and painfully mid. A shadow of its former self, it's not really worth coming here anymore.

I can't speak to the food because we were never served. We had a group of four for a birthday dinner and were sat quickly, but after 20 minutes we had not been greated by a server or gotten water. I asked one of the waiters if we had a server and he said that ours had gone home sick and they were trying to figure it out. We waited for another 5 minutes, watched three other groups of our size come in and get sat and served so we just left. Overall a very disappointing experience

Food is great - I'm especially a fan of their wok dishes. Unfortunately, the decor shows its age, and the layout provides zero opportunity for social engagement beyond your own table. More of a fast food alternative for REAL food, than a dining out experience.

My waiter was very good and well informed. But, the food was way below par. I ordered bubble tea, it was so sweet I couldn’t drink it. I wasn’t charged for it. I replaced it with Thai Coffee which was so strong and sweet I couldn’t drink it. The food had no flavor. I added some soy sauce to give it some flavor. I won’t be back!!!!!

I ordered their Thukpa 🥘 dish. It tasted exactly like desi chicken in India. It originated from Nepal and Tibet, they are neighbors of India, so it tasted very similar, just added noodles to it. I loved that the quality of the food is maintained there. I will try other food items from here in the future.

Very nice

I ordered the Drunken Noodles with beef and OMG! it was outstanding, yummy yummy for my tummy tummy.😄🍜

Consistently delicious for many many years!

Try a Mekong!! They're the best!

It was delicious! I had the green noodle curry, spring roll, and Asian pear sake. I highly recommend it!

Im so sad that I have to write this but after ruminating on my visit for a couple weeks, I think it's important to say that the aggregate 4.5 rating on Google is more realistic for pre pandemic Zen Zero.

This was my favorite restaurant when I attended KU 4 years ago. I recently was back in town and had a birthday dinner here. We arrived around 5pm and they only had 3 employees in the entire restaurant. They were (understandably) extremely stressed out and the host was literally sprinting back and forth in the restaurant and was not very pleasant. It took forever to get our food (once again understandable if they were understaffed). But it seems like the food prices have increased dramatically and the portions have decreased to about half. The pad Thai was mushy and flavorless and the rice dish we got had a tiny cup of cooked rice (you would think bulking up on the rice would not be that much additional cost for the restaurant). I ended up having to cook dinner when I got home because no one was full. On our way out, I stopped by the bathroom and it looks like no one has cleaned it in months.

Really bummed out because ZZ used to be so good!! But now just save yourself the $$$ and trouble and go to Encore.

One of the iconic spots in downtown Lawrence

Came in to eat. Place practically empty and still got shoved into a corner. I hate sitting in the "mannequin space" by the window.

Great food ,small place casual atmosphere...on Massachusetts Street..

Wonderful delicious healthy food at a great price, great variety, great service

This place is horrible i don't understand the 4.4 star rating, phad thai has ZERO flavor, no options for spices to add flavor, ordered phad thai with pork and gave me chicken as well.

food’s mid it’s white ppl what do you expect nice service tho

The food here is really good! Everything I've gotten has been delicious and the Thai tea is great

Zen Zero is a stalwart downtown restaurant, with proven and worthy dishes.
I've always returned to drunken noodles or thukpa when in doubt.
Last visit I was game for something different and the Singapore noodles looked tasty as described in-menu (ginger, garlic, snow peas, scallions, eggs, and cilantro, etc).
What I received had a single dominant flavor: salt.
I'll still patronize my hits at ZZ, but that trial felt like a just set ten dollars on fire.

Loved the service and my friend enjoyed the food immensely- good atmosphere

Here on a busy Formal night last month. Staff was so attentive and kind despite being completely booked and busy.

Best Pad Thai I ever have! Must try!

I went to zen zero tonight, I have been going there for a while and everything time a go there’s this guy who works there. He’s a super cute guy and was super nice, but tonight he had waited on me and my mother. And all night I would hid every time he came over and he would just smile at me. My mother had tried to get me to talk to him but I refused, over all it was a pretty damn good night. And if you’re wondering what he looked like, he had black shoulder length hair had tattoos on his left arm and had black nails. I’m planning on going again just to see him.

The owners and servers were very accommodating of my very large 13 person group, even when we asked for separate checks. They were patient and still timely. The server even took pictures for us! Also, this is one of two restaurants that my international Chinese students recommend. It was a very delicious recommendation!

This has been my absolute favorite place in town to eat from for many years. My personal favorite dishes are the drunken noodles and Singapore noodles.

I typically order carry out, sit at the bar and have a horse feather…best in town! Usually get the Zuza Jam Ron with beef and sub vermicelli noodles for rice…so yummy!…. and don’t forget the garlic chili

Kind of a fusion restaurant. Nothing is very authentic, but it tastes very good. The drunken noodles are on par with Thailand. Though the curry is not that great here.

Absolutely delightful in every way. Great food.

New experience for us to have Thai food! It was very delicious, generous portions! We observed most patrons had to take home "doggybags" in those cute little Chinese boxes! We were greeted at the door by a very pleasant friendly woman and seated. Full bar as well as soft drinks from the tap. The restaurant was busy for 1:30 pm Sunday afternoon, but not crowded. We really enjoyed dining there and would recommend to others!

Loved it

Food is amazing. My dish was an experience of flavor. Thai hot is not obscenely spicy, it's actually tastefully done. Don't like the community seating trend at a lot of these places...only thing that knocked a star off for the atmosphere.

I’m usually not very adventurous when it comes to food & trying new cuisine isn’t really my style BUT one of my friends talked me into trying Zen Zero and I am obsessed. The massaman curry is my go-to meal. Such a cozy, yummy dish. I definitely recommend trying it!

We love Zen Zero. We hadn't been for awhile. It is still just SO good!! The roasted duck red curry was - couldn't stop eating it. I ordered the Thukpa and added pork dumplings. Stepping out of my comfort zone. So good. So spicy. So comforting.

I've been going there whenever I'm in Lawrence. They have GREAT curries!!! I'm sure they have many things I/we have yet to try.

Best Pad Thai in Lawrence. Have great cocktails as well. We have tried nearly 3/4 the menu and it’s all really good food with large portions (even carry out portions are big). Service is always efficient.

Zen Zero is my favorite place to eat on Mass St. I always get the same thing because it is my favorite. I don't think we've ever waited longer than 10 minutes even when they're busy. Servers are always nice.

The food was ok. The tofu was at least cooked properly but the food lacked flavor. It was bland and I found a piece of pork in my vegan dish. I have an intolerance to meat and have been sick all day for it. It’s probably a great restaurant if you eat meat. However, I will not be eating here again myself.

Best Pan-Asian food in Lawrence. I'd recommend the Pad Thai, Pharam Tofu, and Drunken Noodles!

This place is A-mazing! The waitress who served me was so kind (I believe her name to be Shruti) & helped explain the menu items to me in detail. My food & cocktail combination was divine. I will
be back asap !

The staff was so kind and attentive. And the food is just wonderful. Always hot and full of flavor.

Love this place!

Always love coming here when I'm in Lawrence. Tried several different items from the menu and never been disappointed. Definitely recommend this place to anyone who enjoys vegetarian friendly dishes

I didn't like how rude the manager was.
I really enjoyed their pad thai for so long, but the manager was just so disrespectful. I don't think I will ever go back.

Great service great food ❤️

Great food! Reasonable prices!

Great food, great service. Liked the place a lot.

Nice place for Asian noodle fusion.

never disappointed here! try the green papaya salad 🥗 perfectly balanced

Awesome food.

This place is, and has always been, a winner.

I ordered too much food for my wife and I, and our daughter. It was the best thing I did all day.

This place is a masterpiece.
Coconut Flan, do it. Papaya salad, yes.
The spicy beef curry with the lime in it, bangin’. Hoisin Ribs ✅. Fried Chicken Spring Rolls, you know it. Mild Pad Thai for the kid, I ate most of it. Cashew Chicken, real crowd pleaser….extra rice. Edamame.

Food is awesome, I especially love the shrimp chips and the tom kha (gai?) soup...never disappointed.

This place was amazing ~10+ years ago, and then for about 5 years it was bad every time I went. I recently tried it again a couple of times and it’s been pretty good.

When it’s good, it’s great but when it’s bad it’s really really bad.

The best Asian infused food in Kansas! The most robust curry's, dishes, and sauces that we have had when it comes to Thai food. We decided to take a spur of the moment trip to Lawrence Kansas, and we are so glad we stopped in to eat here. It doesn't compare to anything we have in Wichita and our waiter was extremely professional and kind.

Very good food as expected. Friendly people and a nice place to hangout with colleagues. It has vegan food too.

Although the delivery driver was incredibly kind and the thai tea good, the entree I ordered tasted foul. The chicken in particular tasted rancid and ruined the whole dish. I attempted to eat around the chicken but unfortunately the rest of the dish wasn’t very tasty either. Feeling a little let down :(

their menu is actually pretty good, I'm not sure if it's supposed to be a thai or Vietnamese restaurants cause some of the Thai food was significantly different than what i'm used too.
Also, it's pretty hot... not the food i mean the restaurant itself lol crank up the AC lol

Large portions and excellent food. It has a bit of Japanese food as well as Vietnamese. I got Japanese curry and was very impressed. It made me two solid meals. The service was also good.

Awesome service by the young lady who waited on me and distant cousin I was meeting for the first time. Food was excellent and the coffee had a great flavor (regular black coffee).

Excellent flavor, subtle spices, and exceptional service. Dog friendly patio. We started with the Vietnamese Spring Roll Salads. Requested peanut dressing and peanut sauce on the side. Exceptional start! Our entrees: Singapore Noodles, Sauteed Choy Sum, and Yellow Thai Coconut Curry. The meals were excellent and allowed left overs for late night munchies. Local beer is available which is always a bonus for travelers like us. We would eat here again and highly recommend.

Visit again after a few years, same delicious food, fantastic service and hospitality. Was happy to see the consistency in all areas. Zen Zero is on our list of restaurants to visit whenever we visit Lawrence. Once again we were completely satisfied with our overall experience. Hope to see you again soon.

Love this place! Always great for a quick lunch. If you’re there ask for Emily. Very pleasant, gave a great recommendation on the green curry noodle, and did very well for how busy this particular day was.

Haven’t been here in years, but I think about and miss the pad Thai at least once a month. You’re lucky if you live near this gem.

The food is unique and delicious!

Our favorite restaurant to stop at whenever we’re in Lawrence, and even sometimes when just driving to KC. Hands down the best calamari we’ve ever had! Love their curry, and their off menu pineapple chicken fried rice! Just stopped in this weekend, enjoyed lunch on the front patio with delicious food and amazing service. Will forever be one of our favorites! A must stop if you’re in town!

It was fantastic!!!

Wow! Saddle up your taste buds. Authentic Asian cuisine. Gluten-free, vegan, carb-conscious? There is something created just for you. Unique drink options include both alcoholic and carbonated beverages as well as mango and lychee juices.

This is hands down my favorite restaurant in Lawrence. Every item I’ve tried is delicious and they are very good with accommodating vegan guests. Their tofu is amazing as well. The only downside is some of the staff. We called to reserve a table on the patio because we were planning on bringing our small dog. When we got there, all patio seats had just been taken and we couldn’t eat inside because our dog was with us. Mistakes happen, but when asking the waitress, she smugly said “Sorry, you can go somewhere else.” and turned around. It’s not a big deal that our reservation had been lost, but her reaction was unacceptable.
We go to Zen Zero all the time and have always experienced excellent customer service, but we are baffled why someone so rude would work there.

Good food, good service.