Tin Drum Asiacafé

I had to get on here immediately to review this place because I was so outraged at the whole experience. I’ve been studying for law school finals for some time now, so eating is really one of the few things I have to look forward to.
I honestly would have never gone into this place except my friend Ms. Tina wanted to eat there. Just something about the decorum and the sign just gave me a really bad feeling. I thought we were gong to Chipotle, but I did’t want to say anything. Ms. Tina said that it was delicious. Our taste buds must have very different preferences because I’m having a hard time putting into words how undeniably bad this place is.
I got the cantonese noodle which came highly recommended by the cashier. It tasted slightly worse than Ramen Noodles, and I hate Ramen. I think they probably poured an entire salt shaker on this dish, and I was born in the South and have a serious problem with putting too much salt on things if that tells you anything. Let’s just say I filled my sodium intake for the next two weeks.
I could have eaten two of these plates (if it wasn’t so disgusting). A four year old would have been hungry after eating the portion that they gave me. The spring roll was fine, but they are always fine. In retrospect, I’m actually surprised they haven’t figured out a way to ruin that as well. I’m sure they will.
In addition to Ms. Tina, I went with one of my best friends from the law school, and he is just genuinely a really nice guy, so it made me even more upset because he hated his food even more than I did. He couldn’t finish it. If I wasn’t a slovenly glutton stuck in the library I probably would have thrown mine out too. He was revolted, and this is a guy with really good taste. He ordered the sesame with tofu, and somehow it took them twice as long to cook that as the steak that came in my noodles. Oh, I can’t believe I almost forgot, the «steak» was what appeared to be and tasted like rubbery pieces of fat died brown.
I hate for people to lose their jobs, but this place does not deserve to exist by any stretch of the imagination. I think that it is a surprisingly dumb business decision to open up an «Asian» noodle place literally parallel to a Doc Chey’s, which is always dependably good. I can’t believe I spent ten dollars at that place. I’m starting to feel a little queasy as I type this. I’m sure they use MSG and whatever ingredients they can get their hands on.
Sorry Ms. Tina, I have to say this is one of the worst restaurants in Atlanta that I have ever been to.

Very good. Get the mango stir-​fry!!!

Tin Drum is a usually a good place to grab quick food, and my expectations are pretty low, but man, this location is lame. I came around 2pm for a late lunch and ordered a chicken chow mein. The food came out quickly and I ran out of the restaurant to get to my next destination. I opened by brown bag and inside there was chow mein, but no chicken. Not even one piece. I was the only customer ordering at the time, so I have no idea what happened. The noodles were also not very good, but ate it anyway. Talk about disappointing. Hanging my head in shame, I realized I paid $ 8 for soy sauce noodles.

The menu is sparse, the interior is humdrum, and the food is barely ok.

I love the Tin Drum near GA Tech, but this one missed the mark. The food wasn’t that great and was way overpriced. Staff was friendly, and that Thai Tea they make is awful! Don’t ry it!

Is there a more mediocre restaurant than Tin Drum? I can make this food at home in the same amount of time for a tenth of the price. The previous Unilocaler’s comment that it is like a McDonald’s for Asian food is spot-​on. Not bad, just mind-​numbingly average. Personally, I’d rather have a Filet O’ Fish.

My first visit here was with a good friend during Tin Drum’s opening week in Emory Village, and from what I can recall, the food was mediocre. I had the Lemongrass Curry — overall, it was okay, somewhere between a 2 – 3 stars.
We dropped by Tin Drum again recently for a quick lunch in between classes, but I feel as if the food has worsened. The curry was too sweet and heavy for my liking, and I had a good amount of food leftover on my plate. I can easily say that the best part about my most recent lunch here was the white rice and the iced water.

So I’m STILL not sure why they opened this place literally directly across the street from the Doc Chey’s. 2 restaurants next to each other with almost the same type of food — awkward.
Anyways, if you’re craving mediocre American-​Asian food and in a real hurry, you could come here, but Doc Chey’s is slightly better and literally across the street. Unless you really like your food to taste like prepackaged frozen meals (think Lean Cuisine or Annie Chung’s) but even then, you could go to the CVS across the street to get those and save some money.
The girl behind the counter is friendly. There are always at least 3 tables that haven’t been cleaned when I go there, which really holds up the flow of people looking for places to sit. Ill really only come back if I’m desperate.

Oh no!
This place looks really cute — and the folks who staff the counter are very friendly — but the food is just, well, bad. I stumbled into this place after flying into Atlanta, arriving at my hotel, and discovering that there was nothing to eat in the hotel. I Unilocaled what was around and headed off in search of food — off to Tin Drum.
I decided to sample the samosas and the pad thai noodles thinking both were safe bets (even if this combination violates my rule against pan Asian food). I ordered, waited ten minutes, and was handed a steaming hot bag of food. I walked back to my hotel room, stomach grumbling, ready to eat.
Much to my surprise, the samosas that I ordered turned out to be dumplings! (Not sure if there’s a samosa/​shumai mix up here — note to TIn Drum: samosas and shumai are not the same thing! — or if my order just got screwed up). What I got — dumplings — was fine enough, but absolutely nothing special. And then there was the pad thai which really was like none other I have ever had. It could best be described as overcooked spaghetti with a smattering of veggies and a nearly brown wedge of lime. The saving grace is that the entire meal was very cheap (at least by DC standards) — $ 12.

No thanks. I wanted to like this place. I’ve been there twice now. The first time, I probably would have given it 3 stars, but this meal I just finished was worthy of 1 so we’ll call it an even 2.
The good: the service. Nice, eager young people who seem to like what they do.
The bad: I think the place is hideous, and it smells like a construction site. The food varies from okay to terrible. This last trip I got egg drop soup and lo-​men. The soup was SO salty. After adding almost a cup of water, I was able to drink it. Thank goodness it was an easy fix. The lo men was stale. Disgusting. I’m not sure when it was made, but it tasted like it was bordering on spoiled. I threw it away and went to Golden Buddha.
To be fair, my boyfriend likes their food and doesn’t think the place smells bad.
Judge for yourself I guess.

I went here when they had a «buy a drink, get a free entrée» deal, and at $ 2 for a meal and drink, its not bad. At that price, I would give this a 4 star review.
At full price, the review is this: like Doc Chey’s, but worse. This wouldn’t be that terrible, but there is a Doc Chey’s literally right across the street.
I’ve tried a couple dishes, and nothing stood out as particulary good. They all types of asian dishes (thai, chinese, vietnamese) If you want any of the particular dishes, your better off going to a place that specializes in that type of cuisine. And if you want the variety, like I said before, Doc Chey’s is the better bet.
Also, the chairs aren’t very comfortable.

Not-​so-​good:
*The food without the coupon my friend sent me is rather expensive
*The vegan options are sorely lacking, especially for an Asian restaurant — more should be available without fish sauce (also, I shouldn’t have to look at a special menu; just put special vegetarian or vegan symbols on the regular menu)
*When ordering a curry bowl, it was some curry heaped on a bed of rice
Good:
*The service… they really try (especially with their ‘Welcome to Tin Drum’ greeting)…this is probably their best asset
*The food isn’t bad; certainly not the best Asian (or even pseudo-​Asian I’ve had) but not anything to say «no» too
Overall, the coupon is what drew me here. Without it or more vegetarian options, I probably won’t go back unless my friends really want to go there. Their service comes with a smile and that’s worth something in my book but that only goes so far. Overall, not bad.

One of my co-​workers raved and raved about Tin Drum that I felt like I just HAD to go while I was in Atlanta. One day for lunch, we came down here to a pretty packed restaurant. I thought the ordering concept was cool, and I’d like to see more of it back in AZ.
I got the teriyaki chicken stir-​fry (mostly because I’m indecisive and the menu told me it was a fan favorite). Friend got the Tin Drum Curry, which I got to try a little of. Both dishes were way too sweet for my liking, especially the teriyaki. They give you massive amounts of food, and overall it is alright. I could see myself coming here once in a while if it was nearby. Not the worst, but it certainly didn’t live up to the hype I had heard about it.

The Tin Drum Asia Café in Emory Village has room to grow. I’ve been a fan of their food when they started in Atlanta.
However, this Tin Drum seems to have some growing pains. The parking for the area is kind of a mess which is none of their fault. This is targeted toward Emory students who will most likely walk to Emory Village. The ordering system here has been implemented across all Tin Drums. It is definitely efficient if you know what you want, but I still like to order in person. Call me old fashioned.
The food is really good for a fast-​food noodle joint. My favorite is the Mango Chicken. While I know the food is probably unhealthy for me, I still find it amazingly good. The only thing that bugs me about this place (as well as all Tin Drums) is that the sweet tea is always a hit or miss. Us southerners love our sweet tea. Tin Drum sometimes makes it really well, or it is either too sweet or not sweet enough.
It is a little bit confusing with the style of restaurant, but they also should somehow warn customers that they will clean up your food for you. You do not have to dumb it out or whatnot.
While Doc Chey’s is right across the street, they both serve a different need. Doc Chey’s is never really an in-​n-​out place. Tin Drum can do that for you. This restaurant is the most promising thing to come to Emory Village in a while. Hopefully, they can make it a staple like Doc Chey’s, Panera, Everybody’s and Dave’s.

Just finishing my take-​out order of lemongrass green curry (which I customized with tofu and brown rice) and a basil roll.
The basil roll was quite tasty, very fresh. It was rolled a little loosely so as soon as I took a bite a lot of the «guts» wanted to spill out. The dipping sauce (tamarind dip — is that the same as hoisin sauce? tastes like it) was good and had an addition of chopped nuts in it.
The lemongrass green curry was just okay. It was rice, strips of canned bamboo shoots, formerly frozen green beans and coconut curry. Kind of like a «McDonalds» version of Doc Chey’s but unfortunately their prices are the same so, I think I’ll stick with DC and get fresh ingredients. Also, I bit down on one piece of tofu and I think it had either gone bad or been in contact with a tomato or something because it did NOT taste right. I spit it out, hoping I’d dodged whatever illness it might’ve brought on.
The ordering method using the tablet is nifty. I like seeing what I’ve ordered, being able to customize and knowing that my order is going in to the kitchen exactly as I wanted it because I do tend to alter my dishes to my tastes. The staff are very nice. I wish them success, but I probably won’t go back.

Tin drum’s «order on the computer» set up, allows for a quick in, quick out lunch. It offers flexibility and shows the nutritional information for those watching their weight or those who have particular diet needs. Its staffed with young, enthusiastic (students?) who try to keep the line moving, while taking some traditional orders as well. I find the food to be a bit overpriced– somewhat similar to doc cheys (the sit-​down asian fusion restaurant across the street) without the sit down service aspect.
I ordered a take out salad for lunch with added extra stir-​fried veggies. When I got back to work and opened the salad, I was disappointed to find a bed of spinach topped with a few slices of mango and 10 crunchy noodles. I called the restaurant immediately and the staff was very helpful and offered me an extra salad the next time I came in. It was okay– veggies were a little hard. Ginger and asian sesame dressings were great though.
I”d go back if I was rushed for time— but I warn you to check you take-​out order before you leave the restaurant.

I’m pretty sure that this restaurant will suffer the same fate as it’s myriad predecessors in the same location but my last few experiences here have left me without much sympathy.
Still, I’ll give them kudos for having the balls to open a casual, Asian-​fusion restaurant right across the street from the well established Doc Chey’s. That takes chutzpah.
The Wow:
I’m a sucker for geeky, gadgets and I like the iPad based self-​ordering system they have setup. I’m not convinced it’s anymore efficient than a human taking orders but this is mainly because every damn parent with kids seems to allow the rug-​rats to ‘order’ their own meal. A few rounds of Spongebob later, I still haven’t ordered and no longer feel like touching the snot-​streaked touch screen.
The Meh:
The food is indifferent. I tried the fried rice with chicken and found it to be dry, bland and strangely sparse on the veggies and meat front. The chicken seemed to have been severely beaten into thin strips like an emaciated schnitzel.
The curry dishes are equally 2-​star worthy.
The ugh:
Snot streaks on the touchscreens.

Me and a friend ate here yesterday and it was quite good. I had a salad, coconut soup, edamame, and the cantonese noodles. The salad was a standard salad but it was a large salad chock full o nuts and lots of other things. The coconut soup was wonderful. Very tasty and spicy. I liked the peices of mushroom that were in the soup. It gave it a certain kick. The soup was not waterey or wimpy… it was the perfect consistency. The edamame was nice. I had never had that dish before and i didnt know what to expect of it before it arrived at the table. It is green beans in the pod soaked in salt and spices. It was very tasty and i enjoyed getting the beans out of the pod. The cantonese noodles was my main course and they were the star of the show. They were salty as a another reveiwer mentioned but i like salt so it was perfect for me. I also tasted what i thought was cumin or tumeric. It also had bits of beef which added to the flavor and overall satiety of the dish. The only negative was that there was really nothing in the way of an ambience. Just stark, white bare walls. Some artwork would do nicely.

Decently priced food and they have some options that are actually somewhat healthy. Tim Drum makes a great addition to Emory Village. I’ll admit it’s kind of weird that they have a really similar menu to Doc Chey’s but it seems like that’s the new trend in the Village. Who knows? Maybe the competition will be good for the place…

I have never been to a Tin Drum Asia Café before, but came here for lunch when I realized they set shop in the recently closed Wonderful World Burgers. Now, I really liked Wonderful World Burgers. They had a great burger, delicious fries and this little shrimp wrap that was amazing. So I did not know what to think of it being replaced by this new place.
I like Tin Drum. I like their efficient ordering system (one staffed order station and two automated stations) and their polite and helpful servers. Their menu offers are varied, covering most of Asia and some of southeast Asia. Most entrees are around $ 8, their appetizers are around $ 3 – 4. I ordered the fresh basil roll and the samosas and I think they totaled about $ 6. It was a cheap lunch. The basil roll was solid for a vegetarian roll, and the samosas were crispy and the potato curry filling was tasty, tangy and satisfying. My friend Alexis ordered one of the rice dishes, and they honored her substitution requests (sauteed chicken instead of fried, brown rice instead of white). Her portion was pretty big and looked good. I also like that they have outside seating (dog friendly!) and varied drink options (I tried their coconut water and thought it was too sweet– not as good as the zico variety, so won’t be ordering that again).
While I would go here again, I am not sure what would bring me here as opposed to Doc Cheys’ across the street. They serve very similar food, at an almost identical price point. Doc Cheys’ has a loyalty program, and I like their lettuce wraps a lot. They also have awesome tea options. So when I am craving Asian food for lunch, I may just go back to Doc Cheys’. I’m confused as to why Tin Drum decided to directly compete with Doc Cheys’ at this location– were they hoping for the spill over? Either way, I wish them luck, and a welcome to the ‘hood.