Zab-E-Lee - Thai restaurant in College Park - 4837 Old National Hwy, USA

SOOOOO disappointed! We were introduced to Zab-e-Lee during Covid by a great friend. Their recommendation didn't disappoint HOWEVER today's visit did. My husband and I intended to grab takeout and have 'date night' on our porch since we were kid free. Well, we got home opened our ordered food-the shrimp chow mein (recommendation from the restaurant when he requested something similar to LoMein), garlic pepper chicken and a salmon roll. Nothing looked appealing. The noodles LOOKED mushy and they were. The Garlic pepper chicken (described as having vegetables, had carrots, baby carrots and bean sprouts and no garlic topping). The included white rice was visibly mushy and tasted as mushy as it looked. The salmon roll was thrown together and really not as fantastic looking as we are used to. Nonetheless, this is it...we will not be patronizingthis restaurant again. I took to reading the reviews and it's sad that the 'negative' reviews are super believable ESPECIALLY after this experience. From roaches in dishes, to bad service, to flavorless unappealing food...this is it. I tasted the food, which was VERY LUKEWARM (We live close by and our take out from here is always hot after pickup) and definitely did not taste like the Zab-E-Lee that we've recommended to so many.

Since coming under new management Zab-e-lee has gone way downhill. The customer service was the first thing I noticed. When this was a family owned restaurant the staff was more warm, friendly, and even grab the door for you when they knew you had a large to-go order. Now they just want your money and for you to be on your way. The food has lost its appeal as well. I ordered two deep-fried spicy tuna rolls yesterday and what I got was a mess. As if everything was thrown together. Not to mention the watered-down Wasabi. Also ordered the Massaman Curry, but it was missing the cashews, avocado, and the overall dish just wasn't what it used to be. I used to patronize Zab-e-lee at least once a week before it was sold. NEVER AGAIN

I ordered the Spring rolls, Fried wings, Chicken and shrimp spicy Thai basil, Chicken pad thai, and a Thai tea. The amount of disappointment I feel is overwhelming. The chicken wings still had feathers, there was no flavor in any of it, and the sauce was leaking out of the tray and all over the bag from the Thai basil dish. They didn’t charge me lunch prices I was charged for dinner plates at 1pm on a Monday. The presentation was awful, no plasticwear in the bag, and the basil dish was drowned in sauce to the point where it mirrored soup. I won’t be returning and I understand this place has been around for years but I do hope they make strides in the future to improve.

Waited almost an hour for 3 crab rolls and coconut soup with shrimp. I had to ask three times before I got it. Got to my hotel and I have regular rolls instead. Horrible service. The soup is just ok. No spoon or napkins in my bag.

UPDATE: After receiving the baffling response below from the restaurant, it's clear they need to learn basic math principles, business ethics, and tax laws. Please note - charging more than the allowed state and local sales tax is TAX FRAUD and illegal. Not to mention this is also stealing from your customers. 8.75% of $55.70 = $4.87 We were charged a total sales tax of $8.78 on a $55.70 bill...Even doing the most basic math out there, you can figure out that this is well above 8.75%. 15.76% of $55.70 = $8.78 So they charged us a sales tax of 15.76% (nearly 16% as I stated before). Current posted sales tax for College Park is 8% to 8.75% (local and state combined). Again, we asked for the additional amount to be removed from our bill but were refused. Because we already ate, we paid and left. This seems like a small amount of money to take from a customer, but imagine what that number could amount to if they do this to every customer. Be ware all. Check the taxes they put on the receipt and make sure it's not more than 8.75% before you pay! We've been coming here for years and will absolutely NOT be returning. ORIGINAL REVIEW: After dining in, we were charged nearly 16% sales tax! State and local for College Park should be 8.75% total. We complained and asked for the doubled tax to be removed and were refused. We paid and tipped the server well, but will not be returning. Very disappointing because we've loved this place for years.

I was super excited to try this place because of the reviews. I ordered the panang curry and the fried rice. To my surprise there were very visible egg shells in my rice that prevented me from enjoying my meal. I ordered my food right before they closed so I had to call the next day. I was informed that they did not give refunds and did not have access to orders from the previous day. How could that be. I was told to contact my bank for a refund. I did that and to my surprise again my bank said they didn’t authorize a refund and everything was fine. Wow!!

the pho was good, service was amazing the waiters are so nice and tell you what to recommend or help incase you’re new here and the atmosphere is amazing im glad they reopen with a better management!! It might be a bit busy but you’ll just need patience ohh I also recommend the basil fry rice mild spicy it’s so good

I've been coming here for over a decade. The food is always good and cooked to order. The basil fried rice, pad se ew, pad thai, catfish, basically everything is worth a try. I came here with a friend for lunch and I had the spicy pad see ew with shrimp and she had the basil fried rice with chicken. You can dine in but it's a small area with about 6 tables. The big dining are has been closed since covid. Food is always good if you want some Thai and you're on the southside.