Basil Canteen

Super cute, and intimate place. Food was delicious, and the service was fast and friendly.

Oh man, I'll be going back again. Excellent chicken curry with tasty vegetables like eggplant. I ordered it spicy, and it came deliciously spicy hot. The dish was warm and held its temperature through the meal. I got some dessert, too, would you believe it. Some coconut ice cream and fried banana balls. The thin fried crust on the balls was perfect with the fruity juicy core. And the ice cream was a great combination, with some excellent and pronounced coconut flavor. The service was on point: attentive, friendly, helpful.

Lucas Meaux

I really liked Basil Canteen. The space is not large so there's not a ton of seating, but the food is high quality and very tasty. It's a good place to have in SoMa where there aren't a ton of food options at the moment. We'll definitely be back!

Becca Gomez Farrell

Hit up Basil Canteen a couple weeks okay for Happy Hour and tried new-to-me Thai eats! Started off with the Thaiphoon with mekhong Thai rum, coconut milk, and Thai tea—fun, but not that memorable of a cocktail, honestly. But the sakhoo sal mu was delicious! They are steamed tapioca dumplings filled with pork and peanuts. Would eat again! For a main, I had the yum woon sen, a glass noddle salad with minced chicken and shrimp in a sweet–spicy lime dressing with peanuts and fresh herbs. Fresh and tasty!

Chef Tony

I stopped by on my way home. This place has been here for years, and I didn't even know. I love finding great places close to where I live. The owner was very helpful in what was spicy to order. I will definitely be going back, and I highly recommend trying this place if you haven't yet. I had to come back, and the food was still great. The owner and I had a great conversation. He is a great man living his dream.

Kay Liew

Lovely Thai resturaunt, has quite a bit of seating, but can get quite busy here. Be aware that you may be seated at communal tables if the place is packed! The service is quick and efficent. And the food comes out hot, fresh, and packed with flavour! I would say a great place if you want to experience upscale Thai cuisine!

AJ Soriano

This place is seriously good. I haven't ordered anything a thing I don't like. The steak dishes and pad Thai will really hit the spot. I always have Asian lagers because of my past adventures in SE Asia but see a lot of cocktails being pumped out by the staff. No nonsense decor and staff is ok for the most part.

Mindy Pile

I’ve been back here many times. I try new dishes almost every time, and I’ve never been disappointed! The pork belly brussel sprouts and yellow curry are my favorite though. I also LOVE the coconut ice cream, but I love coconut. They have a great selection of drinks. We’ve also ordered to go many times and are always satisfied. I recommend ordering directly from the restaurant’s website if you can instead of through a third party app.

Larry R

Finally open with outdoors seating. Excellent service and food. Great happy hour (on Saturday!) deals. Delicious creative craft cocktails could be slightly stronger 🤷‍♂️

Musho Pea

If you like sweet Thai food, this place has a great selection. • The satay was tender and peanut sauce was amazing. • the eggplant is cooked very well. • I love their coconut batter taro fries • pad se ew was sweet and tasty. • the roti snack with beef cubes was very popular • the popcorn chicken is ok. • for dessert, the roti was greasy but sinfully delicious. The mango and black rice was yummy too.

Adell Hanson-Kahn

Happy hour (5-7pm daily) with $5 "Thai-pas", beer, and wine (pretty reasonable wine offerings) is fun and v reasonable. I esp enjoyed the fresh roll w basil & mint and these adorable little pork & nut tapioca dumplings.

Mikey Chang

Yummy! Basil Canteen on a friday night with my friends! My favorite was the roti dessert with ice cream! Its almost like a deep fried crunchy flaky pastry topped with vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce! Fried wontons remind me of 'pangsit goreng' from back home in Indonesia. Loved it! And ooooo yeeeeees.... can't forget the lychee iced tea! So good! For my main I had pork belly with chinese broccoli with a side of coconut rice. Yummm! Definitely recommend for a fun delicious night out with friends!

Nire Lewis

Super cute, and intimate place. Food was delicious, and the service was fast and friendly.

Anthony Cesnik

Oh man, I'll be going back again. Excellent chicken curry with tasty vegetables like eggplant. I ordered it spicy, and it came deliciously spicy hot. The dish was warm and held its temperature through the meal. I got some dessert, too, would you believe it. Some coconut ice cream and fried banana balls. The thin fried crust on the balls was perfect with the fruity juicy core. And the ice cream was a great combination, with some excellent and pronounced coconut flavor. The service was on point: attentive, friendly, helpful.

Very tasty food and a cozy atmosphere. We really enjoyed it - highly recommend!

I’ve been coming to Basil Canteen for more than ten years, and I just realized I’ve never actually written a review… which feels almost wrong given how often I’m here. This place is just solid in the best possible way. The food is consistently good — every time. The service is always friendly and on point without being overbearing. And somehow, no matter how busy things get, it still feels easy and comfortable to eat here. I live just one block away, so Basil Canteen has become one of those places I don’t even think twice about. Quick dinner? Basil. Meeting a friend? Basil. Don’t feel like cooking and want something I know will be good? Basil. It’s dependable in a way that’s honestly rare. Restaurants like this don’t stick around for years unless they’re doing a lot of things right, and Basil Canteen clearly is. Great people, great food, great energy — and the kind of neighborhood spot you’re genuinely grateful to have nearby. Very overdue five stars from me.

Excellent thai, but this is a competitive spot sitting next to manora’s. This place delivers with a more modern interior, and you’ll leave with a lighter wallet. The lunch specials are the real stars

The food was delicious and the service was excellent. Nice atmosphere. We went on a Tuesday at lunch so it was busy but not packed.

Kevin Reed

I’ve been coming to Basil Canteen for more than ten years, and I just realized I’ve never actually written a review… which feels almost wrong given how often I’m here. This place is just solid in the best possible way. The food is consistently good — every time. The service is always friendly and on point without being overbearing. And somehow, no matter how busy things get, it still feels easy and comfortable to eat here. I live just one block away, so Basil Canteen has become one of those places I don’t even think twice about. Quick dinner? Basil. Meeting a friend? Basil. Don’t feel like cooking and want something I know will be good? Basil. It’s dependable in a way that’s honestly rare. Restaurants like this don’t stick around for years unless they’re doing a lot of things right, and Basil Canteen clearly is. Great people, great food, great energy — and the kind of neighborhood spot you’re genuinely grateful to have nearby. Very overdue five stars from me.

Daria Kovalova

Very tasty food and a cozy atmosphere. We really enjoyed it - highly recommend!

Noah Brooks

Excellent thai, but this is a competitive spot sitting next to manora’s. This place delivers with a more modern interior, and you’ll leave with a lighter wallet. The lunch specials are the real stars

Lydie Thomas

The food was delicious and the service was excellent. Nice atmosphere. We went on a Tuesday at lunch so it was busy but not packed.

Restaurant was good and almost great! Service was really friendly and we loved the atmosphere. The menu was diverse and offered a lot of variety. We ordered a noodle dish (pad sew) and a curry (duck curry). Both were fantastic, the duck being just full of amazing flavors. The pad sew was good, but nothing stand out. Overall, we had a great experience here, though we had to walk through some rougher neighborhoods (South of market/tenderloin adjacent) to get here.

Great food quality with some really good cocktails! Friendly staff with pretty quick service.

Khash A.

Restaurant was good and almost great! Service was really friendly and we loved the atmosphere. The menu was diverse and offered a lot of variety. We ordered a noodle dish (pad sew) and a curry (duck curry). Both were fantastic, the duck being just full of amazing flavors. The pad sew was good, but nothing stand out. Overall, we had a great experience here, though we had to walk through some rougher neighborhoods (South of market/tenderloin adjacent) to get here.

Ziad Kachmar

Great food quality with some really good cocktails! Friendly staff with pretty quick service.

I really wanted to like this place as the reviews were great. However, both the spring rolls and the Roti, were dripping with oil that it was just inedible. The spring roll especially looked like it was double fried, and tasted only of grease. We had to send it back. It took me two tissues to dab against one piece of roti and remove some of the oil. Both our entrees, the red curry and the stir fry veggies tasted good.

Smitha K

I really wanted to like this place as the reviews were great. However, both the spring rolls and the Roti, were dripping with oil that it was just inedible. The spring roll especially looked like it was double fried, and tasted only of grease. We had to send it back. It took me two tissues to dab against one piece of roti and remove some of the oil. Both our entrees, the red curry and the stir fry veggies tasted good.

Waited over half an hour for my food after ordering with two tables next to mine order afterward and getting their food before me. Asked three times about my order. When the food finally came out, the waiter waved his hand, saying "sorry, busy night". To additional insult, the waitress came out and refilled water for a friend who had finished her food, left without refilling anyone else's water, then never came back. Food itself was OK, but doesn't stand out among the many other Thai options in SF and the East Bay.

Felipe Diaz

It’s okay be busy, but let your clients know. We wait 30 minutes after we order, then we ask about the food and in a rude way they said it will take like 30 minutes more. NO THANKS!