Forkelo ranking · Updated September 2026
10 pad thai across San Jose, ranked on what people say about the dish itself — never the restaurant's overall rating.
Thai Grata Restaurant · San Jose
6 dish-specific mentions · 100% positive · 3 source types · menu verified September 2026
Diners hunting for a pad thai that is not overly sweet name this the local answer. Praised repeatedly for generous portions that arrive fast and piping hot.
Thai Soul Kitchen · San Jose
3 dish-specific mentions · 100% positive · 3 source types · menu verified September 2026
A vegetarian diner calls it very tasty and singles out the separate meat-free menu. In a Bay Area best-Thai thread the crab version is called outstanding.
Must Be Thai · San Jose
4 dish-specific mentions · 50% positive · 3 source types · menu verified September 2026
A repeat customer calls it amazing, bold and confidently seasoned, more Americanised than strictly traditional. Another diner's criticisms landed on the curry, not the noodles.
Thai Elephant Express · San Jose
2 dish-specific mentions · 100% positive · 2 source types · menu verified September 2026
Recommended by name in a Thai recommendations thread, with the Silver Creek Road branch specified. Built on thin flat rice noodles with tamarind, tomato and paprika.
Oros - Thai Restaurant · San Jose
6 dish-specific mentions · 50% positive · 3 source types · menu verified September 2026
Regulars call it flavourful and well balanced between sweet, tangy and savoury, and the kitchen's signature. Others found it too sweet or off, and portions small for the price.
Tee Nee Thai Cuisine · San Jose
3 dish-specific mentions · 67% positive · 2 source types · menu verified September 2026
A returning group called a large spread including the noodles delicious. A former regular says the beef version is now bland and overpriced, and that quality has slipped.
Khaosan Thai Restaurant · San Jose
3 dish-specific mentions · 33% positive · 3 source types · menu verified September 2026
Large enough to split between two people. A diner who judges Thai kitchens on their pad thai found it only alright on flavour, and priced above other Thai places nearby.
New Krungthai Restaurant · San Jose
3 dish-specific mentions · 33% positive · 3 source types · menu verified September 2026
The one written account, a cold and inedible takeout tofu order, was posted near-identically against the similarly named Winchester Boulevard sibling a day apart. Read with caution.
Original Krung Thai · San Jose
2 dish-specific mentions · 0% positive · 2 source types · menu verified September 2026
The only written account calls a takeout tofu order cold and stale-smelling. The same reviewer posted a near-identical complaint against the similarly named sibling a day later.
Siam Thai Cuisine · San Jose
2 dish-specific mentions · 0% positive · 2 source types · menu verified September 2026
The only written account found it too tangy and the visit below average overall, with no plan to return. The chicken version comes with soup.
Every score is built from evidence about the specific dish: how often locals recommend it, how strongly, how recently, and whether independent sources agree. A restaurant's overall star rating is never converted into a dish score.
Quality and confidence are reported separately. A dish two people loved can score high, but it is marked early ranking until more evidence backs it up. The whole calculation — every constant, and three dishes worked through line by line — is written out on the methodology page.
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