Review Tom Yum Goong Thai Restaurant - St Heliers

I absolutely love Tom Kha Gai, and I must say that Tumyum Goong restaurant exceeded my expectations. Their Tom Kha Gai is simply outstanding. The rich, creamy coconut broth was perfectly balanced with the tanginess of lemongrass and the subtle heat of Thai chilies. The tender chicken and fresh herbs made every spoonful a delight. Combined with their excellent service and pleasant ambiance, this restaurant is a must-visit for any Thai food enthusiast. Tumyum Goong has certainly earned a spot on my list of favorite dining spots.

The taste and quality, including presentation is very good. Occasionally an offnight, it's not the norm in all the years. we have had 2 mixups. Their policy the customers are always right

We dined in. Great food, lovely friendly service and they were super-helpful when I spilled my drink all over myself, duh!

My first experience was very good, with service and food exceeding my expectations, so of course I went back. I tried their takeaway menu about a month ago and now Thai is a weekly treat. Each visit I have tried something different and have to say the fresh flavours and depth is a welcome change to the usual takeaway Thai offering. I will be a regular.

Perfect performance and great experience, absolutely amazing food , staff is always awesome 👌

Great food, very good variety in the menu. Portion size is very generous. Fresh ingredients and very tender meat. Despite the fact that they were super short staffed and only working 2 people ( husband and wife) they took care of us very kindly and with smile on their faces. I highly recommend this restaurant.

The best food we tried in New Zealand, very friendly staff and fast service, would definitely recommend!!!!

When it comes to quality Thai food there is no one better. The team here are masters at their craft and provide delicious meals that warm the soul, spirit and mind. When deciding on Friday dinner don't think of salad and sausages think sumptuous Thai and a nice glass of Stella or Red.

I do the rounds at every Thai restaurant from St Heliers to Missionbay. Tom Yum Goong is number one favourite for Thai Beef Salad, Duck for a King (Red Curry) and all the other curries.

The delicious and authentic food is generously prepared and cooked with special care and attention to detail. A business with an admirable cultural vision rather than a commercialist one. Positive and caring work culture.

The food is fantastic. I ordered curry and they keep asking me if the taste is good or I need more spicy. Well service. Convenient parking, just in front of the restaurant. My granpa walking with stick. The staff help take him to the seat. Will come back for sure

After many "we must try that place" drive-bys I finally went in for mid week dinner. Food was spot on. Arrived truly hot and well presented. Generous portions from a slightly better and bigger menu than many Thai restaurants. Service was solid; nothing flash but certainly satisfactory. Overall both diners very happy to come back sgain. Seating a bit tight if you have kids prone to needing to move around. Suggest this place is perfect for couples, small to mid size groups, anniversary dinners etc

Dined tonight and was amazed at the quality of the meals.<br/>- Best Thai mixed entree ever!<br/>- Best Tom Yum Goong soup ever!<br/>- Best crisp duck sizzling platter ever!<br/>We were blown away by the consistent high standard.<br/>Topped off by new menus, nice interiors, and a great flat white!<br/>Big tiger prawns in the tasty clay pot dish. . . .<br/>Highly recommended!!<br/>Shery

Excellent value and excellent taste. All the whole snapper dishes really are whole snapper.. NOT fillets. Happy to serve dishes without the sugar if you like. Minced prawns on toast was excellent. Also when you buy a glass of wine its a full glass not a half or quarter glass. We will be coming again.

Visited for the first time this week and was very impressed. Tried a variety of items from curry to salad and everything was excellent. Undoubtedly the best Thai food I have had in Auckland. Friendly and efficient service from the couple who run the restaurant.

Undercooked potatoes, no capsicums or peanuts and way too much onion in this dish. We've been regulars for years but the last two visits have been awful.

Tom Yum soup is great. Pad Thai is great. Thai curries are great. Generous portions, rice and also the amount of sea food/prawn. Service is nice and the Thai lady who cooks and sometimes also waiters the tables is really nice. I would love to see more coriander on top of the dishes. Other than that it really reminds Thailand.

Decent experience at this restaurant on a busy Thursday evening last week. We ordered their signature duck dish n the famous prawn with basil dish. Both dishes were good n we ordered pad Thai as well which was the best. <br/>Food - 4/5<br/>Ambience-4/5<br/>Service - 4.5/5<br/>Cleanliness-5/5<br/>We will definitely return

The green curry I ordered did not look good and when I tasted it it was clearly off. The chicken smelled like it's been put in a chlorine. I should have read the reviews before ordering.

We are a group who have been coming here for years regularly.<br/>It always has a high standard, and is a favourite.<br/>Came this week- and was SUPERB FOOD- the owner excelled!<br/>The Chef's special Duck - outstanding. ;-)  Couldnt be better.<br/>The owner  seems very busy, but takes time to  say hello. <br/>The ambience is very nice- cute little authentic Thai, with lovely cushioned booths, or little tables.<br/>Nicely decorated.<br/>Service is always good.  Authentic Thai staff too.<br/>Recommended.

Have taken away twice now and this can only be considered as middle of the road Thai food. They seem consistent which is a good thing. There is nothing stand out on the menu although they do provide good levels of spice in the dish, it frustrates me when Thai is bland. And the meat dishes are very light on the meat element.

I've had takeaways from here a few times now. The scores could range from 4 for a great meal, to a 1 for a terrible (and dangerous even) meal.<br/><br/>They seem to have great problems with consistency (do they have different Chefs working on some week days maybe?). I've had delicious meals here, but the last time (a couple of months back) we had got the chicken satay entree and the chicken was under cooked (it was 'crunchy' and transparent), gross! The main that night was also well below the usual quality (vegetables that were soggy and poorly cooked meat), so I'm not sure what was going on.<br/><br/>It's a shame, as if the food was always like the best meals we have had here I'd love to come back - and the takeaway meals are quite reasonably priced; however, the last experience was so bad I'm not willing to risk it. Another St Helier's takeaway that has potential but is ultimately a disappointment.

The food is average. The Pad Thai is mostly noodles with very little vegetables (just look at the photos above). The green curry is the same. Very little vegetables with copious amounts of bamboo shoots. It's inconsistent too. When they say a takeaway will be ready in 20 minutes, they mean 30-40. <br/><br/>I too have seen how the owner treats her staff, on several occasions. Exactly the same how other reviewers have mentioned. One gentleman returned a meal after discovering nuts, which his wife was allergic to. When he brought it back to the owner she didn't believe that he had told the waitress and was genuinely annoyed with the customer. The owner is not a nice person so we made the decision to not buy there anymore despite living very close.

This is in my local area. I've been coming here for takeaways and dining in for 6+ years. <br/><br/>In our experience the food has always been very good, and the service fine. <br/>The food is very good value and consistently good. I was surprised on some of the other reviews. Yes the owner can be a bit curt but she is a foreigner, and once you get to know her she is not as bad as first seems. Once she very nicely got exit mould to remove stains off my shirt and she always asks about our kids as we havent been here for a few years dining in. <br/><br/>On saturday the restaurant was full, we had the chicken satay, 3x tom yum soup, 2x steamed snapper, masaman curry, panang curry, all food was well cooked. <br/><br/>Its why its one of our go to places. <br/><br/>Look its a value place for money as its also BYO, so if your not expecting service like at Clooneys, but commensurate service with a Thai restaurant then they do well. <br/><br/>Thanks Lena, we had not dined in for a few years due to kids, and it was again the same good experience we remembered. <br/><br/>We go here rather than Ruan Thai as its consistently better, and better value.

I have been to this place twice and must say the food is good. But I was highly disappointed at the way the owner treated the waitress. The waitress mentioned that it was her first day. There was only one other table that was occupied. When their food was being delivered the owner snatched it from the waitress and took it to the other table. The waitress then served them rice. When she asked if it was enough the owner yelled out "You can always give them more later". She gave the waitress a very stern look. I did not see anything wrong with what the waitress was doing. When we went to the counter to pay we gave our card to the waitress who proceeded to make the charge. Well the owner came out from the back and snatched the card from her. I really felt sorry for this waitress. She was doing her best. She was polite yet she was treated as if she was some imbecile. My friend later told me that he has seen the owner treat other staff members in the same way. I wont be surprised if the waitress does not last long there. I really felt for her. I won't be going there again to support someone who has no respect for their staff. I hope you read these reviews and can become a better employer.

Our go to Thai food. Consistently good, nothing special but always guaranteed a good feed :) sitting in is just as great if not better. Lovely atmosphere.

Have not been here for about two years as my partner was violently ill after a bad T.Y.G. prawn soup. If it was undercooked due to rushing or if they had mistaken the cooking of the prawn for a second later order either way the uncooked food was unacceptable .<br/>This revisit was to test the water but itvwill be takeaways and definitely no prawns. For a Saturday night 8pm the restaurant was not busy Two tables. Staff were polite when the phone order was taken and expected collection was on time.<br/>Saw the much mentioned boss cooking in the kitchen when the swing door opens. My partner had also witnessed her reprimanding staff in front of patrons years ago.<br/>Spring roll entree ok but not super. Slightly overfried and nothing much in them apart from vermicelli. 5/10<br/>Two mains were pad thai and jungle curry. The pad thai dish tasted good but had only several small bits of chicken. Somecwere the size of old 5c coins. (See fork prongs to give scale in the pictures) This was disappointing as a icon thai dish pad thai is. Rated it 2/10 as this is a simple dish and an attempt to save money by being parsimonious with the meat is appalling.<br/>The jungle curry with duck was much better. With plenty of veges and medium hot flavour as ordered. 6/10.<br/>So on this visit although takeaway everything seems ok. While I am not sure if the boss is qualified to be a chef, as owner, she'll need to weigh up the cost spoiling the atmosphere dining in with her bullying and misery takeaway servings.<br/>Food was not convincing so we are unlikely make an return.

Had the most upsetting experience with this restaurant, was looking forward to tucking into cashew nut tofu only to find black human hair in the dish. Disgusting. What was worse was calling to arrange a refund and bring the dish back to them, only to be promptly accused of lying and planting the hair in there myself. The service is absolutely appalling and main woman extremely rude. Terrible waste of money and extremely average food (spring rolls were totally crucified and stale). Won't be eating here again!

Have tried this place in vain a few times for takeaways. <br/>tonight was the final time we will bother. Over sweet gluey and tasteless Masuman beef curry. <br/>when o when will the eastern bays get decent authentic well priced Thai ?<br/>Really don t bother.

Food always good here- one of my husband's favourites. However of late, the owner/manager's short temper and loud telling off of good staff in front of customers is a bit embarrassing when you have guests!<br/>We found the staff obliging and provide good service- the meals are great but please don't ruin a good thing by unpleasantness!<br/> We have found the food generous in portion and adjusts well to out taste needs for spice.

My first impression: good food, accommodating staff.<br/>I didn't eat in, though it didn't seem busy (a Wednesday night). The staff were helpful with adjusting spice levels in the food for my mother, and the food was ready really quickly. I'm very familiar with Thai food and this was of a pretty good quality.<br/>The prices were, I guess, typical of St. Heliers.

We often eat here and also get takeaways. The food is great and we love meeting friends here regularly. It is always really busy on Fri/Sat nights for takeaways so it can't be all that bad. Lena is sometimes a bit harrassed and can be quite snappy but that is part of the stress of being an owner of a busy restaurant juggling phone orders and sit in diners. I love coming to this place and if Lena is a bit surly it just adds to the entertainment on the night!!!

We have been getting takeaways and eating here for years, food is good not great. For us it's local and very convenient, as it is for a lot of people. The customers service is pretty bad, often the owner/manager is rude and surly both when you eat it and ring for a takeaway. What's disappointing is the all the staff now seem to following the example set by the owner/manager. Three times during my phone order, the person started a different and very loud conversation with staff in the restaurant, getting short with me when they failed to get the order correct for the third time. I'm now off to search the web for an alternative option.

The fish cakes were tasteless and had a rubbery texture. The spring rolls were similar and the chicken on the satay sticks was so thin it was almost transparent, however it was the absolutely rude and dismissive attitude of the staff that was the most disappointing aspect. Definitely won't be going again as this was the "give them another chance" night.

1st visit we enjoyed the food but the waitress whom seemed to be the "boss" was surly. As we enjoyed the food we decide to try again with a 2nd visit at around 6:30pm on a Saturday night and took a friend from Tailand with us. The overall impression being served by the same waitress was the same, but even worse this time. Her actions made us feel uncomfortable...from snapping at us to sit at this table to grabbing the wine glasses off the table without asking if we would like anything to drink. I am sure that she thinks she is doing a good job being quick with her actions but actually she just makes you feel uneasy. Once the busy takeaway trade had finished at around 7:30 she seemed to relax and was pleasant enough. Our friend said the food was authentic but not authentic in "heat" I asked the waitress about this and she said it was to suit her customers palette otherwise they complained. Sadly I think this is doing a disservice to Thai cuisine,if this is the case then we "customers" need to understand that each cuisine has its variations and to change that changes the actual experience of that particular dish. So we wont be returning for the food and definitely not for the abrasive service..that, frankly we can do without.

Our stock standard Thai takeaway joint. Great food, and prompt service. Very authentic (have lived in Asia for a few years). <br/><br/>Have never eaten in here, just takeaway only, but highly recommended.

Sadly another boring thai rest serving up very average unexciting overpriced food.

Great place to eat - get a table by the window in summer and they fold back and give a wonderful view of St Heliers. <br/>Food is very good and very cheap. BYO makes it even cheaper. Standard Thai food but done well. Staff are great at recommending food.

Best avoided, especially on Fridays when the service is surly, (unusual in a Thai restaurant) confused and disorganised. Food is generally pedestrian. After 5 visits to give them the benefit of an 'off night' scenario, I'm ready to give them a miss in future.

Chefs Special Duck is excellent. We also had the snapper, a mixed seafood salad and a curry. All really good. Service was great. Had two Thai people with me who said it was as good as you can get in Thailand.

The best Thai food in the world without a doubt!!!!!

This is my personal favourite Thai restaurant. Owned and operated by Thai people it is like the Thais themselves- friendly, clean, serene and pleasant and the food, espacially the "Chef's special duck" is to die for. Also it does a good take-out trade so is well supported by local residents- always a sign.