Citizen Thai + The Monkey

I cannot believe this place is closed! This makes me so sad. I really do hope they are reopening.
Creative interior design, beautiful food presentation, delicious delicious food, prompt and attentive service, totally fair prices, lively but upscale atmosphere, and basically the best restaurant name ever. Came here three years ago and have been dying to go back again since.
I am so bummed!!!

I have to admit… i was actually skeptical going into the restaurant bc we went here for a bachelorette party dinner, and the only reason we came here was because we it took us FOREVER to find parking, and so we missed our stinking roses reservation. The restaurant is hidden in an alley off the main strip, across the street from stinking roses.
The restaurant is 2 stories… we stayed on the ground floor. There is a gigantic buddha in the middle of the restaurant and the waitresses dressed in cute thai apparal. It was really packed that nite we were there, and because we had a big party w/​us, it was hard to find an area large enough to accomodate us in a reasonable time, so we chose to sit at the bar. Besides being squished and being seated right by the bar/​kitchen/​bathroom area, we actually had a good time. The drinks we ordered from the bar were HUGE and DELICIOUS! I can’t remember exactly what i got, and their website is currently unavailable (bc apparently they’re not closed?!). The bartender really tried to accomodate what we liked in a drink, and made us drinks that we would enjoy.
Our food came quickly, and everything was YUMMYLICIOUS!!! We all shared each other’s dishes… and i must admit. it was some of the best thai food i’ve had. The dishes were decent size, and the price wasn’t bad either. We all felt satisfied after the dinner… before we went off for our bachelorette party! I would have loved to come back. I hope they reopen.

According to a woman in the salon down the street, this place will be re-​opening at some point with new management. She didn’t give any indication as to when, and there’s pretty serious-​looking construction going on.
Hope they’re open again soon — they’re my local favorite!

WTF??? they are CLOSED!!! where am I gonna get delicious and artistically presented pumpkin curry now?

Hubby’s Review:
Went here once with Wifey. Decent food… pretty nice staff… really poor management practice with 86ing the employees before the winter holidays.

YUM! Give me some more of that ish!
I liked my meal here and the 6 or 7 dishes I tried. All were prepared nicely and I left with a big smile, full tummy, and saying «can’t wait to come back». The décor was also very nice, we sat up stairs, and I was generally happy with my experience here.
That said, I am ready for round two!

A funny thing happened last time I was here. It was my friend’s birthday. I had brought a birthday cake to the restaurant and so did another girl in our party (by accident). We handed the cakes to the hostess and informed her the table at which we were seated. At the end of the meal, the server bought both cakes to the wrong table (the one right next to us)! The other party didn’t have a birthday, but they went along with it and started singing «Happy Birthday» as if it was someone’s birthday. We tried waving the server down and explaining the misunderstanding to him; it took a while for him to get things straight. It was frustrating and the moment was totally killed. To compensate us, the server offered the birthday boy another cocktail and a bottle of their finest champagne.

Hidden away from the maze of strip clubs and Italian restaurants that is North Beach is a great little restaurant called Citizen Thai & the Monkey.
It’s a classy space, and is deceptively large. From the outside, it looks like it’s a small little joint with a few Buddhas thrown up on the walls. But upon entering, you realize that it also has been tastefully decorated, and that the upstairs dining room can easily fit another 60 or so diners.
I came here for a friend’s birthday, and we were very impressed with the service and the food. They were quite accommodating, even when we were being indecisive and not listening.
We started things off with a couple of testing platters — these had corn patties, shrimp rolls, chicken satay, mango salad, and crispy prawns, served with a few different dipping sauces. It was a nice way to kick off the meal — and two platters were enough to piqué the interest of 12 hungry diners. They went for about $ 20 each — a little pricey, but well worth it.
I ordered the pumpkin curry — amazing! Presented in a cute little green pumpkin, the curry boasted a variety of flavors in the form of chicken, bell peppers, basil, curry, and the eponymous gourd. I had heard about it beforehand but it more than exceeded my expectations. Well done.
Other dishes served creatively including a duck curry served in a — you guessed it — a duck! Not a real one (that would be gross, not to mention messy), but a little serving dish shaped as a duck. My dining companions also enjoyed the grilled and fried chickens, the pad thai, and sea bass dishes.
All in all, a decently priced Thai place that I would be more than happy to go to again.
A few (minor) complaints:
1. Although we never felt rushed, our appetizer dishes were taken away before completion to make room for the main course. Very much a feeling of «Well, I guess I WON’T be having any more salad.»
2. While the mango mojito was quite tasty, it was a little too muddled. By the end of my drink, I was sucking up lots of mint. I do enjoy fresh breath, but it was a bit much.

Where to go on a busy night in North Beach and in walking distance to the bar for a good bye party… Citizen Thai it is.
The atmoshphere was pretty cool and laid back and the food for the most part did not disappoint. Although a little on the pricey side for thai food, the curry dishes were delicious as were the vegetables in peanut sauce. Pad thai is normally one of my favorite dishes but I was not that impressed with it here. The noodles were too sticky and glued together, maybe overcooked and the sauce was a little too heavy for my liking.

You call that red curry?
I don’t think so.

Ha, I think my group of friends sat next to the bday girl Unilocaler in the previous review. Anyways, I was with a group of 8, 3 of us decided to share our dinners and we all thought they were really good.
The Beef in Kaffir Panang Curry sauce was incredibly tendor. The pumpkin curry (which came in a decorated pumpkin– +1 bonus star for best décor I’ve seen) was incredibly soft and as it melted in my mouth I could feel a hint of spice. Perhaps my favorite of the three was actually the Sonoma Duck Breast. I’m didn’t even know I liked duck all that much but the sauce was just so good, I had a hard time deciding which sauce I would use to eat with my rice. (Answer: all)
The only big drawback I have is the lack of rice they give you. Even though we each ordered rice, we all ended wanting more rice to mix the curry sauces with… I know most thai places charge, but for 2 – 2.5 bucks, you should at least give people enough for their meals. It’s such a small thing but makes an otherwise great setting and restaurant seem frugal and cheap.
Overall, I give this place a very good rating (more like 3.5 stars) but not the «I want to dream about it every night» 4 – 5 stars like some other places around the city. I guess I shall continue my search for the best thai food in the city…

Unilocal pulls through, AGAIN!!!
We came to Citizen Thai last night with a birthday party of 20. It was nice to be in a classy restaurant, but still be loud! With the birthday girl (and her posse) fashionably 45 minutes late, her guests were able to chill in the Monkey Room pre-​fading and enjoying their unique cocktails.
The servers were very accommodating and helpful, despite our… slightly intoxicated friends!
The food was incredible. Everything we ordered was divine! On our side of the table, we ordered the … Yellow Curry Scallops, Papaya Chicken, Pineapple Duck and Mango Pork. Of course those aren’t their real names, but it was something to that affect and hella good
The drinks and appetizers we started with were excellent. The «Soft» Spring rolls were soo good we had a rock paper scissor tournament for the last roll! The Bangkok Punch and Mango Mojitos were delicious.
We ended the meal with the rich chocolate cake they provided for the birthday girl and naturally ordered more dessert, we couldn’t pass it up! We got the top three on the menu… Fried Bananas, Mangos with Sticky Rice and some Puff Pastry. Sooo delicious!
Thank you Citizen Thai & the Monkey, we had a fabulous time!

I’ve been to Thailand. I’ve eaten in Thailand, and I love Thai food.
I’m horrible at Thai restaurants – I’m way to critical. I know that.
But I have to say, I was blown away by Citizen Thai. I was a bit concerned when I saw their menu that looked like it had a serious «California» twist to classic Thai dishes (Salmon Panang? Seriously? No WAY could that be any good). But probably in an effort to prove myself right and feel self-​righteous, I ordered the Salmon Panang.
Seriously. I was floored. It was such an amazing, delicate balance of flavors. Creative, not classic, and dead on. Very impressive. And not just the entrée, everything ordered off the menu was spectacular. I cannot recommend this place highly enough if you like classic Thai, but willing to try it with a little twist.
I should also mention that the service was wonderful. They will take very good care of you – there if you need them, but won’t interrupt you if you are in a deep conversation with someone. The perfect balance.
Kitchen timing was also wonderful. Courses and drinks were perfectly timed.
Giving this a 5 star. I will without question become a regular!

Three Things:
1. Good for Groups
2. Perfectly Priced
3. Flavorful Food.
okay and there’s a 4^th.
4. Excellent Wine List
My friend made reservations for 17 people the day before and everything worked out perfectly. The waiter was attentive and did a great job accommodating our every need. The wine list, my goodness. At first I wasn’t going to indulge in alcohol, but after I saw their Riesling list, I knew I was in trouble. The 2003 Pacific Rim — Riesling, the best I’ve had a long time. Not too sweet on the palette and perfectly crisp. At this point, I had already given them 5 stars.
Grilled Prawns and Mango in lime juice — very well mixed. Wish there was a little more prawn action, but nonetheless loving the salad. I really recommend this dish if you’re seeking something on the lighter side.
I had the Basil Eggplant with Chili Garlic Sauce and yowza. I knew right then and there, that this was Unilocal worthy. The garlic sauce was wonderful — hint of sweetness yet still retaining the garlic boldness, and the eggplant was cooked to perfection. Even if you are a meat eater and not a fan of eggplant, please!, pleasetry the Basil Eggplant. The best overall dish at Citizen Thai & The Monkey.

One star because they got a cool name.
One star because they have really good spring rolls
Beyond that? Well, let’s see…
Over priced, unoriginal, americanized to shit. And to add insult to injury, it’s about $ 10 drinks at the bar. There is absolutely nothing original or genuine about this place. Kind of like the Stinking Rose, I would say.
My conclusion: MEH

I’m really happy to note that I attempted to be original tonight by ordering something other than green/​red curry. although I couldn’t help but sample some. Tiger salad with sirloin was nice but I kept feeling like they had cut up a patty from burger king and decorated with shredded carrots and dressed it up Thai style.
Coconut ice cream for dessert was tasty but I didn’t particularly like the sticky rice. Parking is a pain in the ass although I’m sure that was magnified by the North Beach Street Fair. also bring a light sweater/​jacket because it was brr.

I liked the atmosphere for this place. We were a group of 6 for a birthday dinner and were seated upstairs on the long table & benches which makes this quite comfy. However, I felt like I was hunching the entire dinner & had a hard time getting in and out (squished at the end… would have been better if benches were not connected to the table).
Their house chardonnay (Oyster Bay) is really good (in my non-​expert opinion) — I actually preferred it over their sauvignon blanc. I didn’t have any mixed drinks, but they looked yummy,
The rice wrap appetizers were very good — the beef salad and tom yum soup were both very, very salty. We tried a bunch of different curries and my favorite was definitely pumpkin. The sea bass was not bad either. I’m not a big pad thai fan and thought it was just «okay» — not that flavorful, but again, not a huge fan.
The service was good and they brought out dessert for my friend.
I think this place is more like a 3.5 stars because there are A LOT of great thai restaurants to compete with. In North Beach however, it’s a decent Asian alternative.

Service was outstanding — staff was extremely attentive and flexible as some of our group wasn’t able to make it. I’m not sure how different it would have been however if it was more crowded?
Definitely try the Thai Sky drink if you are into fruity. No one liked the Thai Kiss… it was… sort of flavorless outside of the alcohol taste. Soft shell crab and papaya salad was yummo! I would eat that everyday if I could (and if the crab wasn’t so KFC extra crispy recipe). Bill was reasonable, and it’s a great spot for both dates and groups.
It was a little weird that most people there were on the older side…

The Monkey: I had the Tom Yum (spelling) Shrimp Lemongrass Soup. It was very very good. The combination of the Bok Choy, Shrimp, noodles and lemongrass really works well. I couldn’t finish the entire bowl so I took it back to work. I’m pissed though, because i left it on my desk overnight and didn’t get to finish the tasty soup. Just another excuse to go back and try again…
Citizen Thai: Started with the Mango Prawn salad which had just the right amount of lime but maybe a little too much onion, still really good. Also had the Bag of Gold which was basically Fried Chicken nuggets in the shape of a little pouch with some sweet and sour dipping sauce. The highlight of the night was the Scallops with Yellow Curry. I don’t think I’ve ever seen scallops so big. The yellow curry sauce was perfect…

This is a fun place to eat. Upscale thai without being pricey, it’s definately better to dine-​in than do take out, though they do package everything in very cool plastic containers. The bar is pretty chill with a good cheap menu (It’s called The Monkey, and serves bangkok street food). The upstairs dining room is nicely decorated and the food is unique. I had the pumpkin curry upon Unilocaler recommendation and it rocked… my boy loved it and he doesn’t even like pumpkin. It was a bit on the spicy side, but i’m a wuss.
other yummies? The Crispy Noodle Kow Soi Chicken (sorta like a soup/​curry), the corn patties, and the mango salad.
Something to try when you’re sick of Italian! :)