The Lucky Bee
“We started off with the cucumber salad which had the perfect mix of mint and cucumber.”
“I tried the dumplings, papaya salad, chicken wings and the massaman lamb curry.”
“Second, the food is amazing and by amazing I mean breathtaking (Seriously, order the Coconut Poached Organic Chicken.”
The Lucky Bee
Takes Reservations: Yes
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Bike Parking: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Happy Hour: Yes
Coat Check: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Caters: Yes
PokéStop Nearby: Yes
Price range.
$$$ Price range $31-60
8 reviews
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service was a little slow but hey ur not here for white linen and michelin stars. inside is very cute, we had a reservation and were seated in a great spot. dumplings, bao buns, and short riv were awesome (we shared them for the three of us, short rib was our favorite-a standout). heads up to the owner/chef- shrimp smelled and tasted a little "off" abd at somepoints the smell lingered. maybe it is the spices because i didnt feel ill or anything like that, but i noticed the smell.
tapioca pudding was unique and all gone by the time we got our check.
very cute spot! innovative food combos
KenScale: 8.0/10
Fat Radish has been one of the pioneers in the New York dining scene with its seasonal farm-to-table cuisine in downtown Manhattan. It is somewhat bizarre that I never had the opportunity to visit this popular spot despite its significance in the history of locavore dining in the city. When I heard the team behind the restaurant decided to open a new restaurant with their own take on Thai street food, I was immediately intrigued. Can two different cuisines that can't be any more different, one emphasizing the fresh ingredients and clean flavor and the other known for its spice, co-exist together? My recent visit on a Friday night tells me that the kitchen has done a pretty good job of achieving that mission.
The menu at Lucky Bee consists of shareable "drinking food" snacks, small plates and larger plates. I really liked the way the kitchen put together fresh ingredients while maintaining the integrity of Thai/Southeast Asian flavor throughout its dishes. Larb of organic duck that you can wrap in cabbage was a nice beginning to the meal, as was grilled octopus and roasted pork belly accompanied by summer corn, sesame and tamarind. Szechuan salt and pepper chicken wings were also a winner, with its spicy kick that made me start sweating but unable to stop eating. The larger plates that my dining companions and I had were even more successful. The best dish of the night belonged to green curry of marketable vegetables and pickled mustard greens. I normally eat Thai curry dishes with meat, but this one really blew my mind in terms of how it maintains a memorable aroma with just vegetables in the broth. The freshness of all the vegetable ingredients inside was evident and I couldn't stop eating this with a side of rice that was put on the table. Sour orange curry of Atlantic char, lemongrass, fava bean and betel leaf was close second, with nicely cooked fish that had pretty unique of sour orange curry I hadn't tasted before (which is one reason I pushed for ordering this dish), and all the ingredients came together really well. For dessert, there was single option of banana pudding, tapioca, marshmallow and honeycomb. I did like the texture of tapioca but the flavor of other parts of this decadent dessert quickly overwhelmed my taste bud.
The restaurant has a fun décor with a big bar at the center and pink lightings illuminating the dining space. I saw a lot of young, handsome crowds enjoying their food or simply drinking at the bar area enjoying the beginning of a weekend. In other words, an advance reservation, especially during the weekend dinners, is highly recommended. There is full bar at the restaurant, with some creative Asian-inspired cocktails (including those made with honey where the proceeds from the sale of such cocktails are used to support the New York City Beekeepers Association). I am usually one of the skeptics when it comes to seemingly inauthentic Thai/Southeast Asian restaurants, but Lucky Bee overall is a worthwhile place to visit if you want to see the marriage between seasonality and spice.
The food and service at this adorable, trendy little Asian restaurant was terrific. We ordered a bunch of appetizers and entrées and except for the Tuna Tartare (it was average), we LOVED every other dish we tried. Their chicken wings, dumplings and pork buns were fantastic. The Coconut and chicken curry entrée and the Curry Noodle special they had that night were both incredible. Their drinks are super pricey for how small they actually are. Of their drinks, we loved "THE KEEPING OF BEES IS LIKE THE DIRECTION OF SUNBEAMS" which is their take on a spicy margarita. Delicious. And their tapioca pudding topped with toasted marshmallow dessert was pretty awesome too. Definitiely going back. Used the "Reserve" app to make a reservation and it was a pretty seamless experience. Would give it 5-stars if their teeny-tiny drinks weren't $15 each.
Lucky Bee is one of the most engaging aesthetic experiences I've had outside of a museum in a long time — it's basically one of my Pinterest boards, brought to life. With neon flamingos and flawless graphic design everywhere, you feel transported when you walk through the doors, although it's unclear where exactly you've been taken. That said, experiences like this often don't come cheap, and at Lucky Bee that's certainly the case.
My boyfriend and I had a 8pm reservation on Wednesday night, and were seated immediately. Our waiter was attentive and perfectly nice, although he didn't respond very enthusiastically to our jokes. We started with the spicy thai chili and tequila cocktail, which was delicious, but VERY spicy, so don't order it if you're spice-sensitive. We went a little wild on the menu, and started with the chicken wings (deep fried and super juicy, with a delicious tamarind dipping sauce), the cucumbers (a little weird and salty, but delicious, with rich coconut and crunchy peanuts), and the crab on bantam leaf (awesome — fresh crab, good mix of sweet and tangy sauce). All these bites were delicious, and ended up being quite a considerable amount of food on their own. This is where things got less awesome…
For mains, we went with the Khao Soi and the Red Curry with beef. We're huge Khao Soi fans so were excited to try it here. I have to say it was nowhere near as good as either Pig & Khao or Pok Pok. It was super salty and the noodles were a little mushy. The red curry, though, was rich and lovely, with a hint of basil. Some of the beef was super tough, and it too was very salty. We asked the waiter if he thought we were over ordering, and he said we'd ordered perfectly. By the time our mains came we were too full to try more than a few bites of each, so use caution!
We were too full for dessert, but I would definitely come back to try other cocktails and taste that banana pudding.
We got a lot of food, and a cocktail and glass of wine each, but still, the $162 (not including tip) felt WAY harsh. I'd say stick to the drinks and small plates, and be prepared to maybe supplement your dinner with a dollar slice later in the night.
I had high hopes for this place but I wasn't really impressed overall. The overall decor and ambiance of the restaurant are great. It's cool and trendy and has a nice bar in the middle. The place is really really small though so expect to be almost touching elbows with the table next to you.
The service was good and the staff was friendly and offered suggestions if you needed any.
We got the smashed cucumber salad (courtesy of Yelp check in), the Thai dumplings and two cocktails. The salad was not that great. It came submersed in a coconut milk like dressing which I didn't think paired well with the other flavors in the salad which included cucumbers and peanuts. The dumplings were lacking spice. Thai food is generally packed with flavor and spice but this was not. The cocktails were good but they came at a high price.
Overall, it was an okay experience.
Love the decor, the ambiance, and most importantly, the food!!! The vibrant colors and style at this restaurant really do brighten up your mood 🙂 Teal and hot pink all the way! Their attention to detail is clear, you'll find their little bee logo in a lot of places including on their plates. Super trendy, great place for a date!
I was a little skeptical about this place at first since it's another asian fusion place that's gotten a lot of press/hype lately, but I was pleasantly surprised. Even though there were no online reservations available, when I got there at 7pm on a Friday, it was relatively empty so I wouldn't worry too much about that. Here's what we ordered:
Twice cooked pork hock bao bun (cucumber, chili relish, hoisin) $14
Yum, pretty original as the pork here is twice cooked and crispy (instead of the usual soft pork belly). The cucumbers and chili relish really brighten up the dish with sour notes and crunchy texture. Comes in twos!
Betel leaf of crab meat (peanut and chili paste, cilantro, kaffir lime) $15
I've never had betel leaf before but it was a pretty good vessel for the crab meat and everything that came with it! The plate had 4 delicious leaves; these were also a great dish where the sweet/sour/savory notes were balanced wonderfully. Peanuts/Lime/Chili paste give it a nice aroma . You could probably eat a bunch of these and never get sick of them :).
Khao Soi Curry of organic chicken (egg noodles, house chili oil)
I can't remember how much this dish was, but this was really good! This is more of a sweeter curry, so don't order this if you don't like that. There's lots of chicken pieces in the noodles, plus a large drumstick on top. The egg noodles do get a little too heavy once you really dig into this dish, so share with your friends!
Whole fried fish (szechuan salt & pepper, soy, lime) $38
AHHHHHHHHH my favorite dish of the night!!! I seriously would come back to The Lucky Bee just to eat this whole fish again. It comes whole, except they already cut off and deep fried individual pieces of the fish meat for you and they all sit on top of a curled up deep fried fish bone. I kind of wish they deep fried it more so you can eat the fish bone like chips, but it wasn't crisped enough yet! The fish meat seriously tasted like tofu with a crispy shell, and if you read my other reviews, you know I love anything that's crispy on the outside and soft on the inside 🙂 Comes with a dipping sauce but you don't really need it since it's already crusted with salt and pepper. Do remember to squeeze that lime on it though! It comes out piping hot too!!! A++++++
Food was delicious, but the service really does need a little help. I feel like they all mean well, but I wish they were a little more attentive. Service was pretty slow, including the hosts in the front who didn't really notice I was behind them for a while (they were standing with their backs facing the entrance discussing something) until another server called out their name. I was seated at the bar while I waited for my friend – the bartenders were all really nice and friendly btw – but when my friend arrived, it took another few minutes to get us seated and get our orders placed in even though the restaurant was half empty. I would seriously come back just for the fish though… 😉
If there was ever a hidden gem in New York, this would be it. And I'm a mix of both honored and shocked that I am one of the first few to have been lucky enough to try this place so early on in what I predict will be its long long restaurant reign.
First off, the decor is eclectic yet smart. Almost refreshing especially in what I find to be a pretty grungy part of Chinatown. It's the kind of decor one would normally find in Brooklyn. So thank you because I absolutely adore it.
Second, the food is amazing and by amazing I mean breathtaking (Seriously, order the Coconut Poached Organic Chicken. It won't do you wrong). It's the kind of amazing you will write home about and tell friends about and share to every and all social media platforms about and maybe even blog about (as I have done, breaking shoes dot com homies). It's the kind of restaurant that makes you want to eat out more and venture around neighborhoods that have still been untraversed and if that's the kind of effect a restaurant has, then it's the kind of restaurant I want to be at. So I guess I'll just end with that… It's the kind of restaurant you want to be at.
Really loved dining here. It is a fun, young, hipster place with cute decor and excellent food. The service was also great however some of the forks/knives were dirty but my server replaced it right away when I asked. Definitely a repeat for excellent thai cuisine but also on the expensive side.