Smoking Goat is a lively Thai Bar & Grill located in Shoreditch, London, known for its bold, spicy flavors and energetic atmosphere. It offers a neo-modern take on Thai cuisine, making it a popular spot for both food and drinks.
Customer Perception
Customers consistently praise Smoking Goat for its vibrant and energetic atmosphere, though some note it can be loud. The service is frequently highlighted as friendly, attentive, and helpful. The food receives high marks for its unique and intense flavors, with the Fish Sauce Chili Wings often cited as a standout dish. Many appreciate the spicy nature of the dishes, though it's recommended to inquire about spice levels. While generally considered one of London's best Thai restaurants, some reviewers suggest it might not fully capture the authenticity found in Thailand or Sydney. Reservations are highly recommended, especially during peak hours.
Smoking Goat is located on Shoreditch High Street. The restaurant supports Solace, a charity empowering women across London, by donating £1 from certain initiatives.
Vegetarian options are available, such as the Mushroom Pad See Ew.
Best Times to Visit
Evenings are popular, and booking in advance is strongly recommended, especially during busy hours, to secure a table.
5
We’d been wanting to try Smoking Goat for a long time because our daughter really wanted to go, and it absolutely lived up to the hype. We went for dinner and loved the lively, energetic atmosphere. It’s definitely a bit loud, but in a fun way. There’s a central bar with tables all around it, and the amazing aromas hit you the moment you walk in.
Our server, Camille, was fantastic — incredibly friendly, attentive, and happy to explain every dish to us in detail.
We started with the Fish Sauce Chili Wings and Pork Skewers. The wings were excellent. For mains, we ordered the Fried Chicken, Massaman Curry, Som Tam salad, and Mushroom Pad See Ew. The sauce on the fried chicken was unbelievable — spicy but absolutely delicious. The curry was rich and comforting, the salad was fresh and full of flavor, and the noodles were perfectly spicy and satisfying.
One small recommendation: definitely ask about the spice levels when ordering, because some dishes can be seriously spicy. We personally loved it, but it’s good to know in advance if you’re sensitive to heat.
Overall, we left completely full and very happy. We paid around £35 per person and honestly felt it was totally worth it. A truly satisfying meal from start to finish.
We have been wanting to try the Smoking Goat in Shoreditch for some time. After a quick tube ride, we were warmly welcomed at the door, and this continued at our table. The waitress was friendly, helpful, and there when you needed her. After our group read the menu, we were excited to try the dishes to come.
If you have eaten a lot of Thai food before — in Thailand or even in Sydney, Australia (which has some of the best Thai food) — you may find the food lacking some of those authentic flavours. That said, it is probably still one of the best Thai restaurants in London at the moment.
The standout dish was the Massaman Curry grilled Bavette, the meat was cooked perfectly and the curry fulll of flavour. Other dishes we enjoyed on our table included the Stir Fried Squid & Salted Duck Egg, and the Fish Sauce Chilli Wings. I would avoid the Moo Hong Belly Chop & Fennel Ajat, as it was simply not cooked well enough given the amount of fat.
All in all, a good meal with great service — but probably not the best Thai food I have eaten.
A refined and fancy take on typical British-style Thai cuisine dishes. The flavors were good and well executed, but nothing felt particularly extraordinary or memorable. Some of the staff were very friendly, while others felt less welcoming. Reservations are recommended, especially during busy hours.
I’d recommend coming here for a drink and the chicken wings (lives up to the hype, has been on my list for years!) - crispy, salty, sweet - they balanced the flavours in such a unique way. And good value as the wings are so large (2 wings would be a meal for one person). However - the other dish we ordered was really bad imo (stir fried squid and salted duck egg). Mushy texture, over salted - and overpriced imo. So definitely worth a visit for the vibe, drinks, location and wings, but wouldn’t return for anything else tbh
I’d been wanting to try The Smoaking Goat for a long time, and we finally took the opportunity when some friends came to visit. It was absolutely worth the wait!
First, I have to mention the great service. Our waitress was incredibly attentive and friendly. We couldn’t decide between 2 white wines, and she kindly brought us a glass of each to taste before choosing, such a thoughtful gesture! We ended up going with the 2023 Portuguese white, Intervalo Branco.
We decided to share several dishes between the five of us, and ordered:
Fried Chicken, Tom Yum and Pork, Massaman Bavette, Pad Phet Trout and Courgette, Squid and Salted Duck Egg with Courgette, Cabbage and Mushroom Soy Sauce, Daikon Som Tam, three House Rotis, Jasmine Rice, and BBQ Turmeric Gurnard.
The only dish I wouldn’t particularly recommend was the Cabbage and Mushroom Soy Sauce.
Everything else was fantastic!
My top recommendations would be the BBQ Turmeric Gurnard, the Squid and Salted Duck Egg with Courgette, and especially the Massaman Bavette, which was the standout dish.
The service was great, the food was amazing, and the restaurant has a lovely atmosphere. The open kitchen is a nice touch too - you can watch the chefs at work while you eat (if that’s your thing)
Highly recommended!
