Run Chicken Run

I was happy to see their seasonal mango special so even at a steep $ 12, I decided to try it with chicken. The lady was nice enough and the curry sauce was decent enough but the amount of food was seriously lacking. I counted 5 tiny pieces of chicken with a few pieces of red pepper. The mango was sufficient but nothing else was. It was basically just curry broth. For a cart to charge $ 12 and not even come close to a proper portion is disappointing. Will not be returning.

Super bummed. I asked if they had «fresh salad rolls» she said yes, I ordered them. I also ordered the drunken noodle and a Thai iced coffee.
When I picked my order up I noticed she was handing me fried rolls. I mentioned I ordered fresh and she said she doesn’t make those. (Sigh) not excited about fried rolls with my hot plate of food, was looking forward to something light on the side. I bite the bullet and dig in to the noodle dish, emphasis on NOODLE. Weird, 3 pieces of chicken? (2in pieces) I understand cutting cost down and not loading plates full of protein, but I can’t see paying $ 7 for a plate of .05 noodles. 1 leaf of basil, 1 chunk of tomato. Overall dissappinted in a $ 14 meal, and even more ashamed I gave her $ 2 in the tip jar. (Which had a cute note that said «tipping in sexy»)
What’s not sexy is paying for over priced carbs on a hot day. Thankfully I liked my iced coffee.
I will be trying the Korean place next time I’m in the neighborhood for lunch.
Skip this cart unless you are vegetarian… well…don’t be dissapointed if they skimp on the veggies. No thanks.

Good stuff. Paying extra for shrimp isn’t worth it though. I’ll be back, but I’ll get the tofu/​chicken/​beef/​pork for the normal price this time.

I’m a huge Thai food lover. I mean, is there a person in Portland that isn’t?
This food cart is located in a great pod on SE Division. The pod itself is always kept up and has a variety of seating options (i.e. benches, tables, under canopy, etc.) They also have a TV and games in the tent. Crazy awesome for a food cart pod.
Run Chicken Run has a great menu with the standard dishes. They give great portion sizes and actually ask you how spicy you want it. I’ve been there about five times now and haven’t had anything I didn’t like. I recommend the Drunken Noodle with a Thai Iced Tea.
Downside is that they only accept cash.

The girl was nice but the basil fried rice was not good. At all. Only ate the broccoli.

Best food cart and best thai food around. Served with a smile in 15 minutes or less, you can’t beat having fresh food at such a good price. I love going here versus any Thai restaurant and will keep coming back as long as it’s here!

I only had their pineapple fried rice and it was good. I liked that it had a curry flavor to the rice and that they didn’t put peas and carrots or raisins in it. I don’t recall there being cashews in the dish or anything memorable about it… except, the onion wasn’t cooked enough and was too raw for my taste. I ended up picking it out because it was too many to eat around. I was really hungry that day and that was my first meal at five in the afternoon so my judgement may have been bias.

Freshly made, wonderfully crispy chicken potstickers with lots of ginger. I want more of these!

I’ve had a few items from this cart. The pad Thai is great (chicken an tofu) and the orange chicken is good too although both times I’ve had it they used the microwave too heat it up. But the Pad see ew is amazing!

Love their flaming red curry. They have a way with fried tofu and the rich spiciness with deep coconut tones only enhances it! Definitely a favorite. We have tried a few other things on their menu but nothing else can match that dish for us. It is the spiciest curry we have found yet in the states! The orange tofu is so sweet it is almost sour (it is a sweet that enters another dimension somehow, apparently). We did try a noodle dish (Pad See Ew, I believe it was) but the egg flavor — and odor — was so overpowering it about knocked us out of our seats. I found myself wishing I had stuck with the red curry again. However, food is always an adventure with them, which can be fun if you are up for it. We do like it hot!

I’ve been here twice and I’ve gotten the pad kee mao twice. Asked for it medium spicy and it was almost perfect (but then again, medium spicy is subjective since everyone has different spice tolereance).
Either way, I’ve enjoyed the pad kee mao a lot. It was a little weird that they automatically gave me chopsticks (since I don’t normally use chopsticks for Thai food) but that’s not really a big deal.
Great place for some fantastic pad kee mao.

I had the Red Curry Spicy which is a mainstay of mine when ordering Thai. I wasn’t overly impressed. The curry sauce itself was just too watery. The flavor wasn’t bad but I couldn’t get over the fact that my rice was swimming. On the good side, $ 6.50 was not a bad entry fee. Normally I would try again, but with so many other thai options it seems unlikely.

This was great. I haven’t had really good Thai food in a long time and this hit the spot. The food was quick, fresh tasting, and the people were nice

Their Pad-​See-​Ew is the best I have ever had! I C-​R-​A-​V-​E it.

The last time I visited the A La Carts, Run Chicken Run was at the top of my list of places to try, but alas, they opened minutes after I placed my order elsewhere. That chicken could run, but it couldn’t hide… I caught up with it today.
I was definitely in the mood for some spicy noodles to warm me up on this sunny but breezy afternoon. So I went with my Thai staple, Pad Kee Mow. The attendant was very friendly and my food was out in no time.
Nearly everything about this meal screamed 4 stars. The veggies were fresh (peppers, grape tomatoes, onions, carrots). The noodles weren’t too oily. The chicken was cooked right. It had the kind of spice that I like. But it wasn’t Pad Kee Mow in the traditional sense. Instead of the wide, delicate rice noodles that I crave when I order this dish, it came with the thin Pad Thai style noodles. I just can’t get behind that substitution. Not gonna do it… wouldn’t be prudent.
I get that they’re a cart and that they can’t have a storehouse of ingredients available, so maybe they were just out of the wide noodles. However, it would have been nice to know that when I ordered. Like I said, everything else was solid, so maybe I’ll catch up to the running chicken again some day and we’ll try this dance again.
*Queue chicken dance music*

The menu calls it Phad See Ew.
But I think we should call it «Way Too»…as in way too garlicky, way too salty, way too sweet and way too oily. What a disaster — it was a real chore to eat. They don’t use wide noodles either. Also, the broccoli in the dish had an odd faded appearance.
Like Bryan I. mentioned in his review, hopefully they can adjust their recipes and make their dishes more palatable.

The salad rolls were as delicious as I had expected. I’ve never met a salad roll I didn’t like.
The yellow curry featured both potatoes and curry, which is a pet peeve of mine. Too much white, low-​flavor filler. I would have like less potato, more carrots and broccoli.
I ordered the curry medium-​spicy. To be honest, it was a little bland. Next time I’ll ask for «hot.»
The young woman taking the orders was nice and seemed eager to please, so I will give this cart a second chance IF they can ever again steal my attention from Off The Griddle.

By far the best pad thai I have had in Portland.
Everyone has a different set of variables for defining their ‘favorite’ pad thai so it’s hard to assume that my love for this dish, at this cart, is gonna be your fave too.
Why I love it so:
1. The chicken was so tender, so fresh.
2. The noodles were done to perfection.
3. There was a subtle heat that kept my lips warm the entire time I ate it.
4. There was a slight sweetness and overtones of tamarind that balanced perfectly with the fish sauce.

After walking around the Division and 52^nd foodcarts for about 10 minutes being indecisive, I settled on thai and came to Chicken Run. I went with the salad rolls and the red curry and all I can say is Yum.
The salad rolls were a delicate combo of rice noodles and veggies with fresh basil lined in the middle as well. They give you a large side of peanut sauce with the two rolls and it is darn good. The peanut sauce has a little spice to it and is absolutely delicious.
The red curry was wonderful. I ordered it with tofu, which was perfectly made. It was packed full of yummy and surprising veggies as well. Broccoli, Brussel sprouts, carrots, in a fresh red curry. I ordered a medium spice level and it definitely cleared my sinuses.
Meal was large enough for 2 and was $ 10 total. Being 3 blocks from my house, this is going to be a definite frequent stop for me.

The only Thai food cart I know of in the area has just opened! Though they’ve been slow to offer a full menu (many dishes are still in the queue), I’m hopeful that they can show off some impressive quality food the the short-​lunch-​break employee in the area!
That being said, my first dish here (daily special Green Curry) left a bit to be desired. The flavor was ok, and the chicken and veggies tasted fresh, and it came with a couple scoops of rice, but it’s kind of a crule joke to serve non-​viscous curry with a fork! So I took the leftovers hoping that it would thicken up when cooled… no luck.
I’m used to a thick, full-​bodied curry with standout flavors, and in that respect this one dissapoints.
As with any new cart, I’m sure they’re still tweaking the recipes and I hope to see improvement with good feedback. Thus, the 3 stars is a bit generous and my trial of their Pad Thai will be the true determinant of their rating in my book.
Sadly, thus far, my hope of a premeire Thai Cart in SE is still the stuff of pipe dreams :-(