Mai Thai has been around for a few years and is one of our favorite places to go eat which I felt meant it deserved a shout out.
They have a mixture of sushi and Thai food that will satisfy most everyone.
For us it is perfect because I love sushi and boyfriend likes Thai food, so both of us leave happy.
We kind of stumbled onto Mai Thai. We were looking for something to eat, and decided on Long John’s Silver which I hadn’t been to in a long time. I drove to where I last knew it was. I was surprised to see a Thai and Sushi restaurant there, but we both like that type of food, so we decided to try it. That was the best thing we could have done. We now even have one of their VIP cards which I proudly carry. 🙂
1.) Location ***** (5 stars)
For those who have lived in Florence, KY for several years, Mai Thai is located in the old Long John’s Silver restaurant building off of 42. It is located on D42 where there isn’t as much traffic as other spots, but still a high traffic area.
It is generally very easy access as well as exit. If you wanted, you could also use the connected parking lot to get to Ewing Blvd.
I will say that it seems if you are on 42 headed towards Main Street, that Mai Thai is easy to see. From the other direction, I could see to where it would sneak up on you. To help you out, it is right across from the Wild Wood Inn.
The Location receives 5 stars from us.
2.) Parking **** (4 stars)
What can I say; it used to be an old Long John’s Silver building. There is plenty of parking for the size building up front and along the side. There is also parking in back in and across in the other paring lots.
With my big Honda Pilot, I don’t have any troubles navigating their parking lot even though it is a tad small.
Parking receives 4 stars from us.
3.) Greeting ***** (5 stars)
Each time we go to Mai Thai, we are always greeted almost immediately. The hostess/waitress always asks how many people are in your party and then surveys the dining area before seating you.
I think there was maybe one time that we had to wait when there were open tables, but we arrived behind a few other couples and had to wait a minute before being seated.
And once we arrived, every single table was in use. The greeter immediately acknowledged us and told us that it would be about 15 minutes. We only waited about 8 minutes.
Overall, they are very good about getting you seated.
The Greeting receives 5 stars from us.
4.) Atmosphere ***** (5 stars)
The dining area of the restaurant is very small, but it has a lot of atmosphere. They completely redid the inside of the restaurant, so you would never guess that it was an old Long John’s Silver. The outside has been redone as well.
There are booths as well as tables and chairs. If you want to sit in a booth, get there early because those are the first to go and they usually have a good number of diners.
Mai Thai has a tiny bar area, but one is available. We’ve never sat there, so I can’t comment on it other than it is small. They do also have a sushi bar that you can sit at. We never do, but you can.
There is one TV between the bar and the sushi bar. The sound isn’t on, but it gives you something to look at when boyfriend goes to the bathroom.
They have done a great job of decorating. It’s not over the top, but at the same time makes you feel at home. It is always fairly quiet in there as compared to most restaurants. A person who voice carries is very well heard by everyone, so please beware.
The Atmosphere receives 5 stars from us.
5.) Menu **** (4 stars)
I usually use the sushi menu. It is very well done. It has the items listed in price order. They only have a couple of hand rolls available, but have a list of other sushi items. The only thing that I would like is a picture for each item, but I’m new to sushi. I’m generally willing to try an item.
The Thai menu is well organized and easy to follow. Boyfriend never has a problem finding what he likes. There are a lot of selections to choose from.
I imagine someone who is unfamiliar with Thai food or Sushi in general might be overwhelmed, but you can just ask for some assistance.
The Menu receives 4 stars from us.
6.) Timeliness **** (4 stars)
Timeliness has improved from when they first opened. We waited quite awhile the first time we were there. They were packed and it seemed like the kitchen was overwhelmed. I actually received my sushi first before boyfriend received his Thai food.
Now though, the timeliness is much better and the wait time seems very appropriate considering they are coordinating a Thai order with a sushi order. They do fairly well at this. I do usually receive my hand roll first, but I’m ok with that. Boyfriends’ food usually follows right behind.
Overall, they could be a tad better in the coordination, but at least we aren’t waiting forever for both of us to receive food.
Timeliness receives 4 stars from us.
7.) Presentation/Taste **** (4 stars)
The sushi is presented very well. Hand rolls are brought with the Hand Roll holder. The sushi is always organized very nicely on the plate. They have a cute little pitcher for the soy sauce that you pour into a cute dipping bowl. They always bring chopsticks, but you also have a fork if needed.
The Thai food seems to come with two plates: one for the rice and one for the Thai food. Boyfriend always takes a portion of his Thai food and places it on the rice plate.
The food always looks very delicious and makes you want to dive right in.
So far, the sushi crab something or other (I’ll have to update with the actual name the next time we go) is the only one that I really didn’t like. There was something with the sauce that made it taste weird to me. I can be strange about tastes though. It certainly wasn’t inedible; it just wasn’t something that was my preference.
Their house salad with ginger dressing is not my favorite and I prefer the restaurant on Mall Road more. Mai Thai’s salad dressing is not very thick, so it may just be a preference thing.
Presentation and Taste receives 4 stars from us.
8.) Employees ***** (5 stars)
Mai Thai’s employees are always working! When we first went there, there were just a couple of waitresses and they were very busy. The waitresses never stopped moving and sometimes had trouble taking care of people and bussing tables.
Given their success with their awesome restaurant, they have gotten them help. Now there is a busser as well as additional waitresses. We never have to wait for anything. They do group waitressing to a certain degree. You have a primary waitress, but anyone will help you with refilling your drink or removing dirty dishes.
The waitresses do talk fairly quietly, but I’m fine with that. Better than having them yell at me. 🙂
Their Employees receive 5 stars from us.
9.) Cleanliness of Restaurant ***** (5 stars)
When we first went there, it was nothing to see tables not bussed. This is no longer true. They have a busser to take care of the tables. They have redone their decorations and it all looks nice there. The outside has been redone as well.
Cleanliness of Restaurant receives 5 stars from us.
10.) Bathrooms
I can’t really comment on the bathrooms because I have never used them and I don’t remember what boyfriend said about them. He uses them all the time, so they must be ok.
Overall:
I love this restaurant and just in general enjoy going there. The atmosphere is very nice for 2 adults, but we have also seen kids there.
The wait staff is very friendly and the food tastes great. I’ve been eating their sushi and have never gotten ill from it. I do prefer their sushi over a restaurant on Mall Road and boyfriend is just happy to have a nice Thai restaurant in Florence to go to.
I highly recommend this restaurant. 🙂
The Mai Thai restaurant receives 4 1/2 stars from us.