Gong Modern Thai Dining
“My coworkers and I are addicted to their pad kee mow with shrimp/tofu/chicken/beef lunch special set (choose from spring rolls, tom yum soup or thai salad).”
“Yet another gem hidden within the up-and-coming streets of East Harlem.”
“Usually get the chicken pad see ew or the basil garlic chicken.”
Gong Modern Thai Dining
Takes Reservations: Yes
Delivery: Yes
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Bike Parking: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Kids: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Price range.
$$ Price range $11-30
8 reviews
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Ordered the lunch special with the Tom yum and pad Thai with vegetarian duck. Didn't have to wait too long for it to come out. The Tom yum was pretty decent and has a good flavor. The pad Thai came in an upside down bowl shape which was cute but it was not hot or steamy at all when it came out which made me think that they have their food premade and just microwaved. When I opened up the pad Thai it was hot inside and steamed a little but it wasn't very fresh. Overall the dish is super dry. It's not terrible if you're really craving some asian food but otherwise I wouldn't go out of my way to eat here. The lunch special here is pretty decent though considering the price.
Decent place, however food is generally not spicy and a little sweet. Will return if in the area though.
This is a cute, unassuming spot hidden up in the 90s. I went n a weekday and they had quite a few customers.
Prices are great- about $10-$15 for a dish. I tried the ginger lemon tea, which was way too sweet for me. You can get it hot or cold. For my main dish, I had chicken wok-fried in siracha and oyster sauce. It was not spicy at all… maybe they should put more sirracha. I paid extra for brown rice and they gave me som sort of brown rice/red bean mixture kinda thing, I don't exactly know what it was but it was DELICIOUS and made me feel less guilty about stuffing my face with rice becuase it was semi "healthy".
If I am in the area again, I do intend to be back!
It's not the best Thai food I've ever had, but it hit the spot on a cold day in NYC.
The ginger honey tea was kind of…assaulting…to the taste buds if you don't like invigorating teas. My sister and I each ordered lunch specials. She had the pad thai with beef and I had the kee mao with chicken. They were both reasonably tasty, but not anything I'd write home about. A little on the greasy side.
The place is crazy small but relatively empty around one pm on a weekday. I'd come back if I were in the area and craving Thai, but wouldn't go out of my way.
In short, get the pad thai. They serve a generous portion of it, and it's flavorful and not overwhelmed by bean sprouts.
The peanut braised Indian trait curry with chicken was served…cold. Asked to have it reheated…was brought back cold. I suppose they prepared that dish first and left it out to serve all our dishes at once. The chicken was rubbery and the vegetables were flavorless. They had boiled or steamed the veggies and chicken together, then poured the peanut curry on top, so it's up to you to mix everything together.
Also tried the massaman curry with beef, and the beef was like leather jerky.
The pumpkin custard was delicious, but I'd skip the coconut sticky rice. It's just flavorless sticky rice with sparse coconut milk drizzled across.
Waitress was also very inattentive and seemed to have her head in the clouds. Place is rather small, with approx. 6 tables seating an average of 2-4 people each.
We started off with the chicken curry puff. It comes with a cucumber chutney and a sweet chili sauce. I loved it! Although we were expecting more than just one large puff. But nonetheless it was yummy.
For the entrees we had the wok sautéed sauces. I got the garlic oyster sauce, which tasted just like it sounds. I love garlic so loved it. And my bf got the sriracha, sweet chili oyster sauce which tasted exactly how it sounds. Sweet with a little sriracha kick.
And I got the Thai iced tea which is fabulous because it wasn't overly sweet like MANY other places.
Definitely, would go again.
Papaya salad was tasty, but lacked peanuts and other colorful ingredients…looked a bit bland. Good chicken basil- huge portion- and rice. Peanut sauce a little watery and cucumber sauce was a bit dry. I think I prefer Enthaice a few blocks away.
If you are looking for good Thai food in the UES/lower east harlem, this is it!!
The restaurant is really tiny, but the food is fantastic! We sat at one of the window side tables, which was nice and kept us cool during dinner. The portions are extremely generous, and filled up even the two voracious boys we were dining with!
I got the pad thai and shared a papaya salad with my roommate, who got a red curry with vegetables that I also tried. Everything was really flavorful and exactly what I would have wanted from my Thai food. The price is also really reasonable as well, especially for the size of the entrees. For those who are interested in the papaya salad (which you should be!), just be aware that it is a little spicy, so if you can't handle the heat you should probably stay away from this appetizer.
The service is friendly, although I don't think the servers speak great english, so you may have to repeat yourself a few times just to prevent any miscommunication.
I will definitely be back if I am in the area!