Sookjai Thai Restaurant

The food was great! I had a party of 6, so we shared lots of different dishes, from curry to noodles to coconut rice, etc. I would have to say that mild-medium spiciness level is not at all spicy except for with the pad Thai. So if you really want a kick, try the spicy.

The place itself is quite nice and clean. It has a good atmosphere. I'd definitely recommend it for a night out.

As for service, Suki was the best waitress ever!! She was so efficient and friendly when she was taking our order and serving us. She was very attentive in getting us what we needed. She even gave us recommendations about visiting town since we were tourists.

All in all, I would definitely come again the next time I'm in town!

=== 1. VERDICT/VALUE
Friendly staff, decent food - this is a good choice for Thai food if you're downtown!

=== 2. FOOD
Phad See Lew ($20.95)
Wide rice noodles with chicken, celery, snow peas, and broccoli - with veg like that, you're enjoying good taste while feeling great about it :)

Phad Thai Goong ($21.95)
Pad Thai noodles with shrimp, egg, tofu and bean sprouts - another good choice!

Chicken Satay ($15.95)
You get four skewers at this price one of which is typically dry (or overcooked?); the others are typically ok. Peanut sauce comes with it for dipping.

Coconut Rice ($5.50)
It's OK if you like coconut milk - we've consistently gotten it cooked with way too much coconut milk so we're sticking to regular rice from now on (and saving a little money too).

=== 3. SERVICE
Ordering ahead by phone can be a challenge; they are typically busy and so you may need to try leaving a message and waiting for a callback (which they seem to so as soon as they can). I wouldn't try ordering from Sookjai if you need food quickly, as every order seems to require 30 minutes or more of a wait. The staff are always friendly and professional on the phone and in-person.

=== 4. ENVIRONMENT
We've only ever been here in the evenings so the dark interior seems a little dim - aiming for the cozy, intimate feel perhaps. The decor is nothing to write about, but it's typically clean. Smaller groups fit nicely though with a variety of tables, you could potentially bring a larger group in if many of the tables are combined. Wheelchairs and baby strollers could fit, but likely would be a bit of a squeeze. Parking feels like luck of the draw, as you're likely aiming for an open city parking meter on any of the street spots outside and nearby!

Poor service. Rude waiter. Average food. Crowded ambiance.
The food is very average. The inside ia claustophobic.

Nothing more to note other than GREAT Thai, AMAZING service, and WONDERFUL drinks! Best Thai in Victoria and will be stopping here again. The ambiance is great with walking distance to the warf! You'll miss out if you miss this place!

Upon entering Sookjai Thai I caught a whiff of disinfectant. Yes, there is a global pandemic going on and guidelines as to how businesses must operate in order to stay open... but maybe disinfectant can be used more sparingly (ie spray directly into rag or spray tables from a closer distance so that there is less mist for customers to inhale). It's safe to say that the people who are going out to restaurants at this time are probably not the most concerned about coronavirus (& to be fair, this was not the first time I have noticed a disinfectant odour in a place that serves food.)

I had the Panang Gai (pronounced "menu item 51"). A Thai red curry with chicken, red peppers , Thai basil and kaffir lime leaves. I also ordered a side of coconut rice. The red curry sauce was delicious, spiced well with the perfect sweet/heat ratio. The chicken was good but could have had some of the stringy/tough bits cut off. I would have preferred if there was a bit less chicken and instead another vegetable added (ie broccoli, snow peas or some fresh green onion). The coconut rice tasted great and complimented the curry perfectly. I drank water with my meal but unfortunately the water did not taste very good - it might have been a glass that needed better rinsing or just bad tap water but it was noticeably "off".

The server was friendly & the food arrived quickly. The total was just over $25 with tax & tip. I think I'm being somewhat generous with a 3 star review but I might be willing to go back at some point. Sookjai Thai has been in business a long time so they are obviously doing some things right.

Had a fantastic Dinner here. Food was super fresh and vibrant - full of flavour. Highly recommended. We eat Thai all over the place and this was definitely one of the better restaurants we've found.

Amazing dishes and great service. I would not call exactly authentic Thai but definitely amazing dance between Chinese and Thai styles. Their pad thai was probably one of the best I had in my life with wok charred flavour. Definitely coming back again !

Let me start off by saying service was amazing! Very attentive waitresses who are friendly and ensure you are treated excellently during your dining experience. Waters always topped up with frequent but not intrusive check-ins. Great atmosphere and seating.

Food, for the most part, was adequate. We ordered about 7 dishes and about 3 of them we couldn't really tell the difference between each (similar veggies, sauces/spices - tastewise, dishes were not unique from one another). Unfortunately all our guests thought the dishes were very high in sodium. We described the chicken, veggie, and seafood dishes as very similar to the average household could make at home for a regular dinner, but surprisingly (and I am sad to say this) worse since it was salty, less fresh, with chicken less moist/tender/juicy, and veggies that tasted like something quickly stir fried for a buffet style restaurant. Only dish that was truly delicious was the Phad Thai Gai (chicken pad thai) - noodles were great, with crisp bean sprouts, nicely grounded peanuts, all stir-fried in a good sauce.

One thing to note, Sookjai gives very good meat portions - most notably for the chicken dishes. Also the peanut sauce is excellent- nice and creamy, lighter peanut taste.

Can't say I'd recommend this place as I've definitely tried better Thai elsewhere in Victoria, but the service here is truly top notch and that in itself is definitely worth something.

We weren't expecting such amazing food but boy were we happy!! We had Tom Kha Gai, Pad Thai, Cashew Chicken and Curry. Nothing disappointed. Fresh, full of flavor and we had a lot of food left over. Comfortable atmosphere and fast friendly service - I highly recommend this Thai restaurant.

Food and service was excellent. People were lined up in the rain on a Saturday night at 7:00 p.m. so that is usually the sign of a good restaurant as there was an abundance of empty restaurants close by.