For Asian food lovers, Columbia is a gold mine of options ranging from Chinese takeout to sushi to Thai food and beyond. No matter what the whim, Columbia has it.

**Thai** food frequently features light, noodle-based dishes with spicy and sweet infusions.

_Bangkok Gardens_

Bangkok Gardens is one of the best places to go in Columbia for a great Asian cuisine experience. The sit-down Thai restaurant features an amazing variety of delicious options at reasonable prices. Bangkok Gardens is also vegetarian-friendly, with the option to replace any meat with tofu at no additional charge. The only way it really falters is the cramped space. It is almost a little too easy to overhear neighbors’ conversations or get a whiff of their drunken noodles.

_Thip Thai_

Thip Thai presents itself as a more approachable and slightly fancier option than Bangkok Gardens, great for dates or business meetings. Thip Thai has a similar wide range of options on its menu at a reasonable price but doesn’t offer the same vegetarian option to replace meat with tofu.

_Thai Express_

Like most takeout restaurants, the food is slightly subpar to sit-down restaurants, but at an unbeatable price. Thai Express is no different in that manner. It’s the best you can get for the price you pay and for the speed you’ll get it at. It makes for a great alternative to Chinese takeout when you want to be a little more adventurous and try something new.

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**Sushi** is a Japanese food consisting of rice and seafood or vegetables rolled up and served with condiments such as soy sauce and wasabi.

_Geisha Sushi Bar_

This sushi bar in downtown Columbia offers up a very high-brow, Americanized atmosphere combined with Japanese flair. Nothing about Geisha will make you feel like you’re in Japan, but the food is well-made and contains great flavors. It differentiates itself from other sushi places with its wide variety of drinks and the constant display of popular Asian music videos on the big screen TV. This wouldn’t be the spot to take a date, but it makes for a great happy hour or party spot for you and your best friends.

_Kampai_

Nestled sweetly in Alley A, Kampai features fantastic, authentic sushi, as well as several non-seafood options. Its flaws lie in the atmosphere — its relatively ordinary appearance can’t be covered up by horribly dim lighting or loud music, and it isn’t the easiest place to find if you’re new to Columbia.

_Sake Japanese Bistro and Bar_

Sake stands at the top of the Columbia sushi restaurants list in both coolness and flavor. Every bit of décor inside Sake preaches its modern take on classic Japanese style. The extensive menu features the widest range of rolls and seafood options, as well as an incredibly thorough selection of drinks and drink specials. Anything from a happy hour or party to a date would be well-suited inside this Japanese bistro.

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**Chinese** food offers a range of noodle and meat dishes, often rich in sweet and spicy sauces. Often heavily Americanized, Chinese takeout sparsely resembles its past heritage, but somehow there are still some sort of defining factors of differentiation between good and bad take out.

_New Jingo’s_

Almost any college student on campus can tell you about Jingo’s, as it is the go-to for quick and easy Chinese on a low budget. It’s nothing fancy, and you won’t find yourself raving about the unique and culturally-accurate flavors of the food, but you also won’t be disappointed with its decent-sized portions for basic takeout options. The biggest fault for this particular spot is its long wait times when the kitchen gets busy on weekends.

_China Star_

This lesser-known Chinese take out spot on West Broadway features a good range of dishes and an excellent variety of dinner combos. Other than those two aspects, though, you shouldn’t expect any sort of five-star food or exceptional customer service. China Star is subpar in most categories and as Americanized as take-out gets, but it manages to make up for that with decent delivery times.

_Formosa_

Although it’s not quite as popularly known as the other two, Formosa makes up for that in its authenticity and flavor. The food is fantastic for the price, and the lunch and dinner specials ensure you won’t feel hungry again for hours to come. After a recent remodel, Formosa has shed its sketchy reputation of the past and now appears brighter and much more inviting. It has a separate menu for specialized diets, including vegetarian options. Formosa is one of the few take-out places worth sitting in, as it overlooks all of downtown from its second-story location.