This is a restaurant with a 30 year history of traditional Thai food in St. Louis, but unfortunately that history does not translate in this newer space. It is a stark, modern, space playing indie rock in the background. I’d love to see more of the history of this family brought out in the decor and menu. The food presentation was lovely, but the taste itself was just ok. My dish very bland and the salad was served with too much dressing. I did order the King Veggie dish with mild so that could be on me. I would be willing to try the restaurant again and order something different. My husband ordered the Spicy Pad Kapow with medium spice which did have a lot more flavor than mine and of course more spice. This is more of a fast casual restaurant. I had always heard rave reviews for the location on South Grand but I never had the chance to visit that location. My assumption has always been that the previous location was one of our cities classic Asian restaurants and again that just doesn’t translate here.

I whole heartedly wanted to like this place. The green curry dish I ordered was good in flavor but more yellowish than green than expected. The downside was the noodles. I ordered pad see ew noodles and the noodles were so wet, soggy, they disintegrated when I tried to pick them up. It was like eating watery noodles without the soup. It may have been a bad day, but I unfortunately may not be coming back anytime soon. Everything else was superb! (Service and atmosphere)

Went with a group of friends. The server was attentive. The atmosphere is kind of dull compared to when it was on South Grand Ave. The cocktail choices were very limited. The Crab Rangoon was delicious. The Chicken Sate did not look appetizing, nor flavorful. The Crispy Spring Rolls were alright. I ordered the Three Kings of Thailand. It was delicious, except it did not come to the table temperature hot. The spice level was perfect. I would go there again, if only in the area, but would ask for my food to be temperature hot.

New location, same stellar food. Menu is much more condensed and cocktails are gone. Ordered yellow curry with chicken, the 3 kings of Thailand, and mango sticky rice for dessert. Definitely one of the best meals you can have in st. Louis. Everything was perfection. Yellow curry was creamy and I could drink it with a spoon. 3 kings left nothing to be desired. Mango sticky rice was new to me and it was warm and the mango was so good, fresh and perfectly ripe. We also had coconut ice cream which paired well with the sticky rice.

Thank you King and I for never disappointing, I was concerned the new modern atmosphere meant less food quality, soooooo not the case. While I do miss the atmosphere of the old location, this location is fine. Seating is a bit uncomfortable.

We did note that the medium spice level wasn't as spicy as it used to be, so they are definitely catering to a more American palette.

The tamarind shrimp is really good. Food is good generally! The service could be friendlier. Will come back!

It’s overall good experience. We ordered basil fried rice and tom yum soup. It was delicious.

The layout of the restaurant is inviting and comfortable. The service we received was exceptionally friendly, making us feel welcome from the moment we walked in.

The portions here are quite generous, which is a pleasant surprise, and the quality of the food is excellent. The flavors in every dish we tried were rich and well-balanced.

The menu offers a wide variety of options, and I'm already looking forward to returning to sample more of their delicious offerings. If you're a fan of Thai cuisine, King and I is definitely a place worth visiting for a satisfying and flavorful dining experience.

Delicious food! Reflecting back, my husband and I had a debate on tipping our waitress. This restaurant seems intentionally geared to a large amt of take out customers but nice updated dining area. The waitress was pleasant, filled the guys water twice, and checked to make sure we liked the food. Check, check, check. She didn't tell us anything about the menu, didn't mention or ask about drinks, and we had to ask for containers and our check. Truly, the place was busy but it seemed that the service provided is the standard. The drinks we saw were in cans and bottles - catering to take out? We don't know because there was no discussion about drinks. I felt we received service along the lines of Noodles and Co. The service overall was great if you rate it on the Noodles and Co scale. Hubby gave nice above average tip which is what we usually do at a restaurant. I would have tipped less - just what is standard and expected.

This place was such huge disappointment. My girlfriend has visited Thailand and she’s been trying to find proper, authentic, Thai cuisine here in STL ever since. When googling “best Thai STL” one of the first links that pops up is from KSDK News citing the award they have received. I quote “King & I was awarded the prestigious Thai SELECT Signature award from the Ministry of Commerce Royal Thai Government. It’s the highest level of recognition given by the Ministry of Commerce, which gives out the awards once a year after a committee visits and reviews restaurants across the U.S.”. When I saw this I was so excited. I thought “wow, awarded by the Thai government itself. This place must be AMAZING”. Well allow me to let you in on some bad news - it’s anything but. The Pad Thai tasted like catsup and didn’t resemble anything close to the iconic dish known across the world. The Duck and Rice was cloyingly sweet and the rice was undercooked. The Yellow Curry was far too sweet as well. The King & I Fresh Rolls were fine and surprisingly fresh. The Papaya Salad was the star of the show and while not tasting authentic was still pleasing to the palate. The wings were mediocre at best. Nothing remarkable 5.1/10 clucks. They received their prestigious award in 2021 from what I read but something has happened to this place since then because I wouldn’t even recommend King & I casually to a friend. The server was extremely friendly. She was professional and all of our food arrived as we ordered it.

Great food and service, as always.

Don’t get wrong, the food was fine, it wasn’t the best I’ve ever had, but the thing is there is zero ambience in this place. It’s clean, and tidy but is reflects nothing concerning Thai culture on the inside.

No pork option, which is a staple protein for Thai food.

The tamarind shrimp is really good. Food is good generally! The service could be friendlier. Will come back!

Food was delicious, service was not good.

Will not dine-in again. But will do carry out.

High quality food, large portion sizes, reasonable prices

This is a restaurant with a 30 year history of traditional Thai food in St. Louis, but unfortunately that history does not translate in this newer space. It is a stark, modern, space playing indie rock in the background. I’d love to see more of the history of this family brought out in the decor and menu. The food presentation was lovely, but the taste itself was just ok. My dish very bland and the salad was served with too much dressing. I did order the King Veggie dish with mild so that could be on me. I would be willing to try the restaurant again and order something different. My husband ordered the Spicy Pad Kapow with medium spice which did have a lot more flavor than mine and of course more spice. This is more of a fast casual restaurant. I had always heard rave reviews for the location on South Grand but I never had the chance to visit that location. My assumption has always been that the previous location was one of our cities classic Asian restaurants and again that just doesn’t translate here.

Really good Pad See Ew

Always a Blast 🤜♥️🤛

Update: Very, very disappointed. This used to be our top spot of all restaurants in STL. I don't know if there was a change in ownership or management or something, but they have not been the same since the move. Portions are smaller, which would be acceptable if the quality remained the same. The yellow curry, our favorite, is much thinner, not nearly as rich and creamy, which is what set it apart. I got the Tom Ka soup, also a favorite, and it was absolutely inedible. I tried to tell the server but she insisted it had lemon in it and was supposed to be sour. But I mean, it was inedible. I used to talk this place up all the time. Sadness.

Original review:
Oh, wow. Best Thai yellow curry I've ever had. Ever. Perfect seasoning and creamier than I've ever had. I got the mild, as I'm a heat wimp, and it was perfect. Full of flavor. Generous portion. More, I suspect, than most people can eat. Even though I was full, I didn't want to miss a drop.

The spicy basil was 🔥🤯💯

Would recommend

Came for dinner on Friday evening. Hours say open until 9PM but the door was locked and said closed when we got there around 6:30PM but there were people eating inside… very bad first impression, will not be back

Excellent thai food. They make amazing curry dishes with a nice portion size. They can make it as spicy as you want too!

Had a few dishes during my visit. One item was too oily and the other item was too sweet. There are better Thai options in town.

Very good Thai food in St. Louis. Be careful, they don’t mess around with their spiciness levels.

This is not a bad review. And not a great one. The Thai here is generally good, especially for STL. This is a downgrade alert if you remember the old, original, and authentic location in the city. The move to mid-suburbia made it easier to get to, but more commercial and "chain-like." The original location was so clearly family-run and quaint that it got bonus points across the board for authenticity. The food is still good, if perhaps a bit too "PF Changs" style. I prefer fresh-brewed Iced-Tea to that from a can, so that is a hard negative for me. I prefer Mai Lee for authenticity, but I will come back here with family or friends as long as they know the new story. They serve you a lot of food, but don't expect a "deal" here either. Soup with Entre was $38 at lunch. Staff was friendly, but made some mistakes.

Best Thai restaurants in St.Louis.
They moved to Richmond Heights

The service was great and the fact we got to choose the spice level of our entrees was much appreciated! I ordered hot and they didn't disappoint. My husband ordered Thai hot and was quite impressed. They also have a good selection of both appetizers and entrees.

I whole heartedly wanted to like this place. The green curry dish I ordered was good in flavor but more yellowish than green than expected. The downside was the noodles. I ordered pad see ew noodles and the noodles were so wet, soggy, they disintegrated when I tried to pick them up. It was like eating watery noodles without the soup. It may have been a bad day, but I unfortunately may not be coming back anytime soon. Everything else was superb! (Service and atmosphere)

My girlfriend and I first started going when they were on Grand ave. I never had Thai food before. My girlfriend lived in California and mentioned she's never found good Thai here in st.louis. Well after going to King and I. We've never went elsewhere. She says it's probably the best she's ever had. Well the dishes she orders atleast. We really enjoy everything about the place.

Was okay

Great food

This is a family staple of ours! Always fantastic and delicious!

Went with a group of friends. The server was attentive. The atmosphere is kind of dull compared to when it was on South Grand Ave. The cocktail choices were very limited. The Crab Rangoon was delicious. The Chicken Sate did not look appetizing, nor flavorful. The Crispy Spring Rolls were alright. I ordered the Three Kings of Thailand. It was delicious, except it did not come to the table temperature hot. The spice level was perfect. I would go there again, if only in the area, but would ask for my food to be temperature hot.

First time in I was very impressed. I was greeted right away and promptly the server took my take out order. I ordered the seafood soup and crab ragoon. Before I sat down the server offered me a water while I waited which in my opinion is beyond the top customer service. I waited a little over 10 mins for my food. All I'm my food was a little over $30 so a bit pricey but now that I'm eating it the portions are good and taste delicious so worth it. They also took care there was no peanuts in my food. I'll definitely be back!!

Very quaint eatery with welcoming staff and great food and generous portions

New location, same stellar food. Menu is much more condensed and cocktails are gone. Ordered yellow curry with chicken, the 3 kings of Thailand, and mango sticky rice for dessert. Definitely one of the best meals you can have in st. Louis. Everything was perfection. Yellow curry was creamy and I could drink it with a spoon. 3 kings left nothing to be desired. Mango sticky rice was new to me and it was warm and the mango was so good, fresh and perfectly ripe. We also had coconut ice cream which paired well with the sticky rice.

Thank you King and I for never disappointing, I was concerned the new modern atmosphere meant less food quality, soooooo not the case. While I do miss the atmosphere of the old location, this location is fine. Seating is a bit uncomfortable.

We did note that the medium spice level wasn't as spicy as it used to be, so they are definitely catering to a more American palette.

Food is not as good as it was at the old location. The seating is also uncomfortable. Service was good but rushed. I always get the yellow curry with chicken. Prices are much much higher than old location. It was overall better at old location.

So I went here to get my favorite dish The King and I Special. Unfortunately, was told the King and I does not offer it's Special. So disappointing. I do like the lunch Special options just wish one of the them was the King and I.

Where do I begin....The most positive - our server was super sweet, polite and provided as much customer service as she could that was in her control.
But if you are expecting a semblance of the 2 prior locations on Grand, you will be woefully disappointed; nothing is as it was.
The food is different, the delicious mixed drinks are gone, they serve wine and beer. (Remember the old drink "The Scorpion"? Gone!) The decor is monotonous with metal furnishings and glass windows. It's like sitting in an industrial kitchen.
2 workers were standing behind the counter staring at us and other patrons, sometimes talking and laughing. Laughing at people while they are eating? WTH?
My friend and I also had flies buzzing around us while we ate. It's summertime, but now it seems questionable.
The food has now been "Americanized" which accurately implies and lives up to the reference - the spicy fried rice looked like oatmeal and tasted even blander; no flavor, no salt, no spice, no sauce. When I mentioned it to the server, she said "Oh you can just put hot sauce or pepper flakes on it." Really??? No sauce? I could have stayed at home, made it myself and saved $16.
Incidentally, a person from Thailand was with us, she said her papaya salad was too sweet for Thai food and after trying my rice, said it was "horribly dull, no flavor." When I told her I could throw in my compost bin, she said to take it home, add hot peppers, fish sauce and soy sauce and that should pep it up. I never dreamed I'd have to pay money for a meal then bring it home to resuscitate it. Get the paddles!
My friend noticed with the exception of our table, most of the patrons appeared to be over age 60...perhaps they've lost their sense of taste? If a venue doesn't attract young people, something is wrong.
On the upside, the potstickers were "just OK". The King & I - The "King" is dead and "I" will not be back. A St. Louis culinary landmark is gone. RIP my friend.

Food was very bland. No bar. Overpriced. The waitress was very sweet. Will never go again.

Have been there twice and not gotten a single photo of anything but the dining area.

I have some mild criticisms.

The beverages are not listed anywhere on the menu. When I asked for diet soda, the waitstaff said they were out and didn't offer anything else sugar-free (iced tea? coffee?). Happy to see the address is fixed on the new menus, though.

I had the King Veggie on my recent visit and ordered it "medium spicy." There are four levels--mild, medium, spicy, and Thai spicy. So why did the medium make my lips burn, and why was it sprinkled with so much black pepper I was caught between coughing and sneezing with each bite? I enjoyed the green shrimp curry I ate on my first visit, but I only ordered it mild because I was with someone new. I usually like a reasonable amount of spice, but it seems there's no good level for me. The fried tofu was tasty, though.

There are too many seats packed into the dining room. I don't want to sit along a back wall on a bench seat two feet from a stranger. There is still a pandemic going on. I also don't want to be on the other side of the table and feel I'm in the waitstaff's way every time they pass.

They're also quite rude about their 2:30 closing time, though they don't put any signage about it on their windows or menu. They just close for 2.5 hours in the middle of the afternoon and in-store customers and those ordering delivery are just supposed to know.

All in all, I'm not likely to return for these prices.

I miss the restaurant on Grand, but the food is still great!

Food was good, but the bill was weird. Got handed a handheld device with the total and tips starting at 18 and going up to 22. No itemized receipt to be sure what we ordered and was correct. Bill seemed a little high. Waitress stood over me while I reviewed. Probably won't go back due to that.

Over priced and not as good as it was the first time we visited in their previous location.

I went for late lunch by myself, got crispy spring rolls and a cup of Tom Yum soup with chicken. The spring rolls were crispy, but oddly mushy inside, with a pretty good dipping sauce. It gave me a lot of chicken and my soup, but it was difficult to eat: big pieces, impossible to eat in one bite, no knife on the table.

I might give them another try sometime.

I ordered those two items because I had been craving Thai food lately, had the same things recently at a place in Maplewood that did them much better.

Modern, bright natural light, basic room.

Fabulous food.

A nice update from the original. Same quality food in a contemporary environment.

Love the new location. Service was great. Lai (probably spelled that wrong) is always very sweet and attentive.

Food is consistently great.

My recent visit to King and I Thai restaurant's new location in Richmond Heights was a mixed experience. The service we received was initially friendly, but after we mentioned that one of the dishes was extremely salty, the waitress changed her attitude.

She explained that they use soy saude and fish sauce in the Papaya Salad, and that was the reason for the saltiness. Come on, it is not the first time we dine out or try thai food or try soy sauce and fish sauce. It was salty, unbeatable and out of balance.

She didn’t apologize or offered a substitute.
The other dishes were good, but overall experience was ruined. Not ruined by the papaya salad itself, but by the service reaction.

In the end, they didn’t even bring the check. Just entered the cost in the card machine and expected us to pay without seeing the check. That was the first time.

It was good for a take out meal after a day of sightseeing. I ordered the pad Thai, because I'm a pad Thai snob and like to judge Thai restaurants by their pad thai. It came with a good amount of chicken, but the rest was all noodles (I had eaten the chicken before I took a photo). I like some veggies in my pad thai too. Flavor was there, but a tad on the lighter side, and no option to add a spicy level. My husband ordered the 3 kings of Thailand. It was really good. Something different. We also ordered some steamed potstickers. Neither of us cared for them. Very bland and mushy. Overall pretty good experience, but doesn't compare to the authentic Thai food I used to get in Phoenix.

Excellent food! The green curry was absolutely delicious. The spice level was perfect.

I only ordered the chicken wing appetizer as my meal. It was very good although the wings were a bit on the small side.

We tried green curry and red curry duck for the first time, and the curry flavors were on point as well. Spring rolls might be the best ones I had for a long time, which could use a little bit more crispiness. Crab rangoons were bigger than usual yet still delicious, as expected. As their Thai coffee is a must-try. Their Papaya salad was less crispy than I would expected but still flavorful and juicy. Rice could "always" be better but not a huge minus. I only went in and out, so I cannot really comment on the atmosphere, but the tables looked a little bit too close to each other at first glance. A must-try Thai around the STL area!

Ordered for my birthday meal after looking forward to it for weeks after seeing they opened nearby. Food was good but portions were very small. I was still hungry after finishing the pad see ew. This was also dinnertime. I ordered for lunch when it was still in the city and got a full container of food for a lower price. The takeout dish was about half full. Really disappointing when i was so excited for this place to open!

Located in Richmond Heights, St. Louis, Missouri, the King & I Thai Restaurant offers authentic, rich & spicy flavors of Thai cuisine. I got the Seafood Hot Pot, which was spicy, both fiery and addictive.

Mr. Suchin Prapaisilp, the owner of King & I, came to the United States in 1970. He brings a wealth of experience and passion to Thai cuisine. He started his love for food while selling his mother's food from a cart to miners in Thailand. He learned the importance of quality ingredients, exceptional customer service, and hard work from a young age.

In 1983, the King & I began and has been a loved restaurant ever since. I miss them on South Grand. Congrats on the growth to a larger spot.

Went with party of 6 on a Sunday. It was pretty empty. Food was mediocre. Chicken was very dry but the curry was decent and the food is pricey for it's small portions. Would rate it about 3.5/5. Decor was nice. The service was decent. Here is why I gave it a one. When is was time to pay, tips of around 20% due to party of 6 was added automatically. We asked the tips to be removed and the waiter agreed and the total bill was signed without the tips. Do not remember his name but he had a black eye. We gave him a cash tip directly. As it turned out, someone sneakyly added a 20% tip to the total without permission. Called the restaurant and talked to somebody and was basically told that the tips were mandatory. That is very DISHONEST, deceptive, greedy and is probably illegal. Would never go back there again and would also spread the word.

I’ve loved King and I for decades when it was on grand. I had high hopes for the move, but it seems like the original quality is just not there. The dining room in the new place is very cold and feels like you’re sitting in a school cafeteria rather than a Restaurant dining room. Even when everything shut down for the pandemic and it was takeout only the dishes were on par with what they were serving before, but after the move, everything is smaller and the menu is more restricted. One of my favorites the Penang curry is no longer on the menu. And now that you have to travel to the most nightmarish shopping center area of St. Louis there’s really no draw. Really sad to lose one of my favorite restaurants.

excellent Thai food. GF ordered a tofu dish with spices, noodle, bell peppers, and tomato. It was out of the world with flavor. She chose medium spice and it was very spicy. Mine was a yellow curry with chicken, medium spice. Wasnt as spicey. Was so good I ate too much and almost made myself feel ill from how much food I ate. But couldn't stop eating. Will order as takeout for sure, since the inside is so small (for a Saturday night).

Definitely a change in recipes. The portions ate half of what they used to be and double the price. The service was wonderful. Sadly disappointed overall.

Seems pricey for what it is. $16 for fried rice that doesn't come with egg. No thanks

The food was ok. The chicken satay and fried tofu were good, but the pad Thai had a super sweet sauce. Heads up that they put an automatic 20% tip for a “large” group 6.

Moved out of the city AND dumbed down their menu. I hope you didn’t like the fresh rolls, Penang curry, or pad eggplant because they are gone. Along with several others and the cocktail list. A shell of it’s former self.

Great place

I got the spicy fried rice w/chicken. Fresh and tasty ingredients (spice level hot).

Loved King and I for years! But the New Location
And their very downsized menu is Upsetting
Only carry one of the Favorites me and the wife enjoyed so we had to leave without ordering. Bring back the full Authentic Thai menu and we will Return until then we will go to Florissant 😣

The food was amazing. Portion sizes were great!

1st time at the new location, friendly, clean, atmosphere. Greeted when I walked in. Went at lunch time, food was great, the heat level was good, and I got a good portion for the price. Only knock would be the chicken wings are incredibly small. But overall, it's a good experience. Would definitely recommend them.

Ordered Pad Thai, got a giant compact blob of noodles with almost no sauce. Maybe 8 pea shoots and half a teaspoon of peanuts shoved to one side of the box and half of a dry chicken breast.

The food itself was almost inedible due to how dry it was. I had to bring the whole noodle blob up to my face and bite chunks off of it. Tossing all the ingredients together was impossible because the noodles were so dry they stuck together. They can do better than this.

Delicious food! Reflecting back, my husband and I had a debate on tipping our waitress. This restaurant seems intentionally geared to a large amt of take out customers but nice updated dining area. The waitress was pleasant, filled the guys water twice, and checked to make sure we liked the food. Check, check, check. She didn't tell us anything about the menu, didn't mention or ask about drinks, and we had to ask for containers and our check. Truly, the place was busy but it seemed that the service provided is the standard. The drinks we saw were in cans and bottles - catering to take out? We don't know because there was no discussion about drinks. I felt we received service along the lines of Noodles and Co. The service overall was great if you rate it on the Noodles and Co scale. Hubby gave nice above average tip which is what we usually do at a restaurant. I would have tipped less - just what is standard and expected.

Food has gone downhill at this place. Not recommended. There are many better Thai places to go to.

Great delivery service, great packaging, great food, arrived hot!

Long story short I don't see why King & I is name dropped so much. Thai is a fun cuisine full of room to experiment and play which is great and King & I does just that but it isn't focused or specific or even in keeping with Thai food themes.

For example the Pad Thai is completely dominated by a sweet sauce that tastes like pink grape jelly and removes the iconic five flavors of salty, sour, sweet, spicy and bitter in exchange for muddy sweet mash.

The Red Curry Duck is perfect except it also tastes muddled together unlike other red currys where the basil is crisp, the peppers bright and the sauce with some herb bite. This read buttery and bland even though the duck alone and apart was solid.

The decor is nice in a minimal good use of the space way but is dominated by the wraparound windows and being shoulder to shoulder with everyone else. It is communal but not intimate. Conversations echo off the hard glass and you find yourself either trying to talk above it or whispering closely below it which is a form of intimacy.

The service is nice albeit not that useful for advice about the menu. king & I is a bustling Thai that you pay a premium for the vibe that you might do better getting take out than sitting down and with basic items might just do better going somewhere else for takeout like MeYou and spend the savings on a movie.

Great addition, always need more Thai but kind of muddy for the cost, a great group night out spot mostly.

I ordered the Pad See Ew with chicken—takeout—but there was no chicken. None. I checked the receipt and it definitely listed chicken as the protein.

I still ate it. I didn’t notice the absence of chicken until I arrived home. By then I was hungry and didn’t feel like driving all the way back.

Overall, for being chicken-less, it was alright. But would have been better with chicken.

Spicy, crispy duck was excellent. Crab Rangoon also killer. Not as much "charm" as the original location, but a nice clean, modern dining room. Definitely my go-to for Thai in the STL. Some awesome tofu options I want to try next time I go.

Very tasty and filling and a helpful server. Hot really isn't that spicy, so that would be my only real critique.

First time to the new location. Enjoyed it very much. They have a slim down menu from what they used to have. But it's still very good. Loved it and will be back.

Some of the classes from the old King and I applied well. Miss a full bar.

Excellent Thai restaurant. Medium spicy almost knocked me out. Delicious. Busy on a Friday night.

My recent visit to King and I Thai restaurant's new location in Richmond Heights was a really disappointing While I have enjoyed this Thai restaurant in the past, my recent experience left me disappointed. The food quality was noticeably different from my previous visits, lacking the same flavors and authenticity that initially drew me in. Moreover, the service was subpar, failing to meet the standards I've previously encountered. I hope they can address these issues to restore the quality and consistency that I once admired about this establishment.

Bad service. Average food. Be ready for sun bath if going in evening. They focus more on take outs vs dine in.

Food was okay. Kind of bland and colorless compared to other Thai food eateries. Service was phenomenal, lots of smiles, how can I help yous, and made us felt welcomed. The workers did anyway... however, I highly DON'T RECOMMEND this restaurant to people with small children (especially children with special needs). I miss the old King & I. At least we weren't told to "control" my special needs cousin there. I will not be coming back after that experience.

The service was very good, the food was tasty (recommend the red curry duck), but the atmosphere is sterile compared to the old restaurant on Grand.

This was our go-to Thai place when it was on South Grand so we were excited when they reopened. We ordered 3 dishes for take out, two pad Thai and one pineapple rice. It was some of the worst Pad Thai I've ever had. The pineapple rice was also bland. We were so disappointed.

Great food and service! They give you nice portion sizes so the price is worth it to me.

Tried a few dishes now - green curry and 3 kings are both pretty good. Would not recommend the pad thai though - tasted off, almost like it was missing ingredients. And the chicken they put on it tasted like it was boiled, then shredded and put on top right at the end - very bland, not great.

Thank you King & I for reopening in Richmond Heights! Enjoyed the new space and the food, especially the Yellow Curry, Pad Thai, Yum Beef, and Mango Ice Cream. Menu options are a bit limited but maybe will expand in time. Will definitely be back.

The food and service was excellent!

Love the pad Thai! The new location is beautiful as well! The food was delicious!

Food was delicious. Glad they had vegetarian and vegan options. You could choose your own protein. Portion sizes were perfect!

It’s overall good experience. We ordered basil fried rice and tom yum soup. It was delicious.

The layout of the restaurant is inviting and comfortable. The service we received was exceptionally friendly, making us feel welcome from the moment we walked in.

The portions here are quite generous, which is a pleasant surprise, and the quality of the food is excellent. The flavors in every dish we tried were rich and well-balanced.

The menu offers a wide variety of options, and I'm already looking forward to returning to sample more of their delicious offerings. If you're a fan of Thai cuisine, King and I is definitely a place worth visiting for a satisfying and flavorful dining experience.

what can I say, it isn't like the one on grand, price is sooo much more. The dish size was about the same. It was just average.

Food is fantastic as always.

But it’s a take out only place for me. They don’t have an ounce of sound dampening. It’s loud and not enjoyable to dine-in.

If you want the Chipotle of Thai food is your place. Everything was overly sweet and nothing felt authentic

Great Lunch

I always order spicy which in St Louis never is, this was the spiciest dish I’ve ever had. Had the spicy noodles and egg rolls. Both were great. Service was great. The acoustics suck. Modern aesthetic which is so loud! They really need to add some acoustic panels on the ceiling.

Bad news my friends.... I had been frequenting King & I on Grand since the late 80's, but the new King & I is a completely different animal. The name really should be changed because it's not anywhere near the original, which was a St. Louis establishment.

The dining area is spartan even by strip mall restaurant standards. The shades were completely inadequate for the light coming through the plate glass windows. There are handly any decorations. It seems like they want to focus on take-out, and dine-in is an after-thought. So there is zero personality or ambience in the new space.

Even worse, the best menu items have vanished, and the new menu is half the size of the old one. They no longer have vegetable tempura - the best tempura I've had at a Thai restaurant in St. Louis. Also gone is the panang curry. The menu is mostly suburban staples like Pad Thai. I ordered red curry and it was bland.

End of an era I guess. But the new place is boring, and no longer worth the drive for me since I have other Thai restaurants closer.

Mediocre food for a price , a far cry from the experiences we had on South Grand . Not going back .

New location is not the old King & I. Food was sweetened for American tastes, lacked the fresh vegetables and was just bland. I wonder if the family just licensed the name to a new owner.

Best Thai restaurant.

The new location is a HUGE LETDOWN. Much smaller space, very noisy acoustics, ambience is terrible, much smaller menu, pork is no longer a protein option, food was not nearly as tasty as the old location. Won’t be going back.

Was excited for the new location as the old place on Grand was my favorite Thai restaurant for 18 years; it had the great atmosphere and extensive menu. Hearing they are focusing on ease of carry out orders makes sense as I don't feel a reason to eat on site anymore. The new place looks generically Asian as they threw up some bamboo sticks on the wall and ceiling; all the dark teak woods and deep red colors they had in the old location are nowhere to be seen.
Aside from the loss of atmosphere the Menu has been pared down to maybe 1/10 of what it used to be. 3 curries choices remain- red, green and yellow. 3 noodle dishes only (the King & I special noodles is no more), Pad Ped is gone and forget their few desserts. 3 stars for the food because so much from their past offerings is no longer available.
Our hostess was also our server and I attribute the acceptable service to our being there at 8 pm after most of the dinner crowd had left.
We had the Papaya Salad, the Yum Beef and the Four Kings of Thailand all of which were delicious as expected although the Prices have gone up by around 30%.
Considering everything, King & I is now a basic strip mall Asian restaurant with no feeling of history or way to stand out. The restaurant I held so dearly since my late 20's is not this place. I don't recognize the menu anymore. I'll get their takeout once in a while if I feel like paying the prices but with Mai Lee Vietnamese and Joy Luck Szechuan both with HUGE menu choices, I feel they're at a disadvantage now. I wish this version of King & I in this new iteration well and only regret that I have their old ambiance and menu to compare it to.

Was excited to check out King & I at it’s new location and see what it’s like now. The place doesn’t look or feel like an Asian restaurant anymore. The menu is not even half of half of what it used to be, and per our waitress they have no plans to add more dishes or restore any old ones. SO MANY of the previous restaurant favorites have been removed. That being said, the quality of the food was still good. I ordered the 3 kings of Thailand and I enjoyed the flavors a lot. They did seem a bit understaffed considering that the hostess that seated us was also our waitress, but she was very nice and timely with our order. The meal was enjoyable but overall a bit underwhelming in comparison to the previous King & I experience. I think one visit at the new location was enough for me, especially since the menu was so small.

My friends and I are in town visiting for a brewery anniversary. We were recommended to try this restaurant for Thai food as it is close to where we are staying. It was busy and understaffed. We were not greeted by a host/hostess for about 15 minutes. Our appetizers came fairly quickly after we were seated. From then on we waited while 6 tables that we seated after us received their food and we did not get ours. After 40 minutes and even a couple tables finishing and leaving we spoke with a manager. They said they must have "lost" our ticket. We received our food shortly after bringing this up. The manager said he would take care of us. The food was good and I specifically enjoyed the yellow curry. We received the check and it was full price. We ended up going back to the manager and he gave us 15% off. They need several more staff and a better ticketing system. Only go here if you are willing to wait an hour after being sat for you to get your food.

I wanted to like it.. they’ve just opened up their new location walking distance from my house. The Crab Rangoons were fantastic, some of the best I’ve had. The Pad Thai unfortunately was really bad - the noodles were over cooked and the sauce was sickly sweet. No tamarind flavor just sugar. No lime with the dish either. You’d think they would make sure everything was perfect for their first week being open. Wish it was good as it’s in such a convenient location.

Carry out was fast.

So excited King and I are now in Richmond Heights!

Why would you put the wrong hours on Google, that’s super lazy. Drove all the way down here and paid for parking and they weren’t even open when they said they would be

Mediocre at best. The shrimp are rubbery and unpleasant, the noodles have formed a solid cake. Extremely disappointed. Don't trust the hype. They gave me a lemon.... For my pad Thai. Where is my like? Wouldn't have made it better but what are you doing? Guess I'll eat my expensive mush. Glad you are moving farther away. Every bite I take it gets worse. I'm white and I can cook better Thai than you in my sleep. Don't open a new location. Just cash out and remove yourself. Worst pad Thai I've ever had. I can't give negative starts but ugh......your prices are offensive after trying the product.

This place was such huge disappointment. My girlfriend has visited Thailand and she’s been trying to find proper, authentic, Thai cuisine here in STL ever since. When googling “best Thai STL” one of the first links that pops up is from KSDK News citing the award they have received. I quote “King & I was awarded the prestigious Thai SELECT Signature award from the Ministry of Commerce Royal Thai Government. It’s the highest level of recognition given by the Ministry of Commerce, which gives out the awards once a year after a committee visits and reviews restaurants across the U.S.”. When I saw this I was so excited. I thought “wow, awarded by the Thai government itself. This place must be AMAZING”. Well allow me to let you in on some bad news - it’s anything but. The Pad Thai tasted like catsup and didn’t resemble anything close to the iconic dish known across the world. The Duck and Rice was cloyingly sweet and the rice was undercooked. The Yellow Curry was far too sweet as well. The King & I Fresh Rolls were fine and surprisingly fresh. The Papaya Salad was the star of the show and while not tasting authentic was still pleasing to the palate. The wings were mediocre at best. Nothing remarkable 5.1/10 clucks. They received their prestigious award in 2021 from what I read but something has happened to this place since then because I wouldn’t even recommend King & I casually to a friend. The server was extremely friendly. She was professional and all of our food arrived as we ordered it.

Bar is listed to beer. Menu half scratched off. But the Pad Seafood was phenomenal. Tom Yum soup delicious.

Service was slacking and they wanted a tip on top of an automatic 20% gratuity.

A restaurant that runs out of rice when they serve rice with most of their dishes. Ironically they are right across the street from an Asian food store that carries plenty of rice. Been looking forward to their food all month only to be turned away.

Good. Not amazing, but good. Service was perfunctory. Kind of odd.

Garlic fish mild spice vey good 8.5/10 would recommend

I love this place! However, the reason for the three stars is that the service has gone down tremendously! The wait staff is often overwhelmed, and this results in your food being cold when it arrives! It’s all good, though; enjoy the food and the entertainment out the window as you eat!

this review is purely in reference to the food. A lot of people rave about it due to the taste, but they use MSG and I feel the quality is low. Sensitive people will understand when I say that I could taste the mold in various vegetables. Unfortunately, I just don’t think the standard is as high as it may seem. won’t be going back.

I love their yellow Thai curry. Service is good, but finding parking is horrible and almost non-existent.

Trash Thai food. Tofu is flavorless and everything is too sweet. The pad Thai tastes like it was cooked in a syrup and not the traditional tamarind sauce. You also can’t adjust spice, so it’s served with none at all and you have to adjust it yourself, and good luck getting the ingredients to do so. Service was super slow, and they were out of several things we wanted (spring rolls, smoothies, sriracha???) I would not recommend this place at all unless you want poor service and super Americanized Thai.

Waitron rang our order up incorrectly, . Food was so so. Prices were high for what was provided.

The king and I had been a trusted and delicious Thai staple for us since the early 2000s. Still a great place to go.

I went there after a long time, food has changed drastically for worst, terrible food, everything is very sweet, not enough salt and spice.

Always amazing

Amazing south city restaurant!!!!

Best Tai food in St. Louis! Red and Green curry is amazin, pad Tai is great also fresh spring rolls with peanut sauce is so good I eat there multiple times a month.

I would I can give 0 star. We came for lunch today with 2 orders: papaya salad and beef pad thai. Papaya salad was ok but the pad thai’s so terrible. The meat smell and taste too old… OMG. Never be back.

Authentic Thai, great service, good price....

Everytime I try to eat here they are always out of what I want. Called at 7:15 to place a pick up order and they told me they weren't taking anymore orders for the night even though it says they close at 9 and stop taking to go orders at 8. Please do better.

The staff are the most unfriendly crew I've encountered!
The food is okay but overpriced
There was only 1 server and we got our food after 45mins from placing it. What a waste of time!

Delicious food, served promptly. Very pleased with all the vegetarian options on the menu!

I haven't been to The King and I in years. When I used to visit , I enjoyed being able to communicate in Thai "hello." Well, that was definitely missing. The food was just ok. I didn't get any of the authentic Thai flavor I was used to getting years ago. And trust me, I spent 5 in Thailand as an exchange student, so I definitely know authentic Thai flavor. This place used to be packed at lunchtime years ago. When I was there, it was like a ghost town. It's so sad to see such a beautiful Thai restaurant not in its former glory. The decor I might say is pretty nice.

This restaurant has lost its touch or their best cook. Either the food lacks flavor or the order is completely wrong. I will no longer support this business. I ordered a veggie pad Thai. I received dry noodles, with canned mushrooms and baby corn!

I have dined in and had takeout several times the service is excellent! The staff is well versed and very attentive. The quality of the food and the service is extremely delightful. The restaurant was clean and we were seated quickly. The staff brought out drinks and explained the meals we wanted to try. Everything we order was fresh, plated well hot and very tasty. I will continue to make this one of my favorite spots and bring friend’s and family to enjoy the delicious food and knowledgeable staff. Everything was excellent for my party of eight. Thank you!

A very rude place. They didn't seat me because I didn't look good enough for them. I got off the bus specifically to try their establishment, only to get turned away. RUDE

Fantastic food! Helpful staff!

My wife and I had been ordering here for awhile but I ordered the Pad Kra Prow and had the worst food poisoning I have had in a long time. I have another friend who also got very sick from eating here. I hate writing this, but thought I needed to share.

Had takeout tonight and the pad Thai was kinda horrible. The fried tofu was completely burnt and super hard. I usually get this dish, so I'm pretty familiar with it. I'm not sure I can stomach the leftovers for real.

I had the Laap Tofu and it was delicious! Definitely one of the best tofu dishes I have ever had!

Have to get the Pad Spicy

Great staff. No peanut sauce :( available the day I went. Variety of vegetarian options.

Good food, thought waitress forgot about us a few times though.

Very nice stop

Josh was our server. Great food & great service.

Okay.

Really good food.

We did carry out via an online order. The food was right-out-of-the-oven hot at the projected time. Well done!
The worker could have thrown a smile to make it a better experience, but for carry out, not much interaction so modest expectations.
The food was amazing! We ordered 4 different curry dishes and all were excellent. The 4 King dish was superb as well.
If there is a next time (we're just visiting) I'd go with medium hot as mild was just that.

Ordered a curry and tom kha to go and it was excellent! Leftovers were even better.

Awful food. No spice and very fishy. Gnats swarming the table.

I ordered red curry, tom kha soup, and papaya salad to-go for dinner. The service was friendly at the restaurant when I went in to pick up my order, but unfortunately the Tom Kha soup was inedible. It tasted like someone heated up a can of coconut milk and dumped some chicken in it. It had no flavor or seasonings whatsoever and lacked the usual spices and flavor this soup has. The red curry and papaya salad were ok, not great, but definitely would not retun.

Delicious Thai food with a variety of protein options for every dish and a wife-ranging scale of spicy heat that one can choose from.

It was terrible Thai Food. I stopped by this place for a quick lunch today, ordered a Hawaiian Fried Rice with Beef (that is an extra money for that, which is total of $22 + tip); and the rice was too dried, the beef is hard and taste awful like very old meat, i tried 2 pieces of beef and had to spit those out both. I brought it back to store, they brought it inside and said it was ok and would not make refund for me. That is my terrible experience and should bot recommend anyone to try them.

Id have to say this was a complete let down. It's been a while since I had food from here and it was good in the past.

We got multiple dishes starting with Pad Mee Kao which was bland and had a pile of sauce on the bottom. Almost like they just poured sauce on the noodles, warmed it up, and sent it off.

Thai fried rice was underwhelming as the rice was to wet and was a gluten blob.

Highlight was the steamed dumplings.

I like to support local but this place I won't be going back anytime soon.

Food was sub par. Will not visit again. I had Pad Thai, the tofu was ice cold, there was a puddle of oil in the plate. Asked if a little heat could be added to the spice level, waitress said I can bring out pepper flakes which she "forgot". Husband ordered Red Curry Chicken that came out like a bowl of soup, he asked for Hot, the temperature of the food was hotter than the spice lever. All the time we were eating we were swatting away gnats and flies.

Despite being short staffed and out of several items the ladies waiting tables did a great job!

I ordered through doordash last week and selected the Green Curry with tofu. It tasted off…. But tried to ignore it.

I ended up feeling so ungodly sick that night and threw everything up.

I am upset I wasted $20+ for me to throw everything up.

Quite possibly the worst Thai food I’ve ever had

All the doors are locked except one. Please make all the signs the same. We had the curry. The online the price was 12 but it cost 38. Not sure what the extra charge was for. The veggies in the curry were not cut up properly no human has a mouth that big. Very lazy prep. This meal was not worth this amount of cash anywhere.
So Insanely overpriced. We were supposed to get one hot one medium but they were both the same. The person taking our order was very short with us. And rude when we called back trying to find the right door. One side said use the south grand door and other door said only for pick up but was locked. You have to go all the way around the building to use the walk in door. Very little effor put into the service and the food prep for the price they expect to charge people. Will not return...

Every time I've had food there I've been impressed..
The spicy fried rice I just had today was amazing. Get the hot level and you will have clear sinuses.. So good!!

Food was good, but I've had better. Staff was friendly, but the service seemed kinda slow. The restaurant itself was nice and clean, so no complaints there. I'd go again.

This restaurant’s food is a shame to Thai cuisine, and the price was highway robbery. And these people had the audacity to tack on an automatic tip of TWENTY PERCENT!! Food was literally horrible! Will never set foot in this place again.

This restaurant was a choice of convenience, but I honestly regret it. I ordered the Kee Mao noodles, and it was absolutely nothing like a Thai noodle dish. The sauce was extremely runny and soupy, the noodles were the wrong type, and they weren’t cooked properly. The tofu wasn’t flavored or seasoned, and the mushrooms were extremely rubbery. I have never been more disappointed or let down at a restaurant, and these prices weren’t at all worth it. I won’t ever be coming back.