Chef helps eating place become a must-visit location for food

Head chef Rin at Charm Thai on Copley Road in Doncaster has helped it become the town’s highest-rated Thai restaurant.

She learned her trade at Thai Garden Cafe in Manvers before opening her own kitchen on Copley Road two years ago.

She has spent ten years cooking Thai food across South Yorkshire, including stints at Khao Niew in Barnsley and Happy Cha Bubble Tea.

Rin lives in Swinton.

Charm Thai Cafe turns two this month.

In those two years it has become Doncaster’s highest-rated Thai restaurant with 150 Google reviews at 5.0 stars and #1 on TripAdvisor.

What is novel about this cafe though is its new halfway-meet delivery to Bawtry.

Bawtry sits just outside the standard delivery range and the chain delivery apps don’t cover it, so Rin and her team meet Bawtry customers at an agreed point in Cantley, roughly the midway mark.

The customer drives 10 minutes from Bawtry, the team drives 10 minutes from Doncaster, the food has been cooking for 10-15 minutes - everyone arrives at the same time.

Fresh food at the longest practical range, no app fees, no minimum order.

A spokesman said: “As far as we know, no other restaurant in the wider region is doing this.”

Thai Garden Cafe in Manvers, and stints at Khao Niew in Barnsley and Happy Cha Bubble Tea - before opening her own kitchen on Copley Road.

Charm Thai is a chef-led independent with five tables, sauces prepped daily, authentic pastes imported from Thailand. It has halal chicken and beef on the menu, with extensive vegan options and most mains adaptable as gluten free.

Rin said: “Bawtry's just out of our standard delivery range and the apps don’t go there. So we started meeting customers in Cantley - they drive ten minutes, we drive ten minutes, the food’s been cooking for ten minutes, and we all arrive together.

“The food’s at its freshest when it gets to them.

“We’re not aware of anyone else doing it."

On opening Charm Thai, she said: “I’d been cooking Thai food across South Yorkshire for ten years - mostly at Thai Garden Cafe in Manvers - so when I got the opportunity to head the kitchen at Copley Road it felt like everything I’d learned coming together in one place.

“Five tables means I can look after every dish properly. That’s how I like to cook.”

The opening times are - Monday: noon to 9pm; Tuesday: closed; Wednesday to Saturday: noon to 9pm; Sunday: closed.

More information is available at charmthaicafe.co.uk.