Food is okay - won't go into detail as I had a really bad experience with their waiters there; I'd avoid this place though as there are other better places for Malaysian/Asian/Indonesian food out there.

Had the cendol, and when I asked for some extra 'palm sugar' (which is one of the essential ingredients of cendol) the waiter said 'okay' without being too honest, and came back with a glass of honey. To say I was disappointed would be an understatement - I understand that this is Canada and not Malaysia, but if you're going to bring me honey, please tell me that that is all you have, instead of saying 'okay' when I ask for palm sugar.

Service was horrible throughout the night as the dishes came in rapid fire fashion but beyond ordering your food, the waiters are not interested in you at all and it is hard to get their attention.

I'd say that the best dish out of all that we had (and trust me, we had A LOT of dishes) would be the roti, though the food is by no means outstanding and is mediocre at best.

The 'crowning glory' of the night was when we left a rather small tip on account of them bringing me honey (it irritated me to no end) and them not finding the time to refill our glasses of water and taking 20 minutes to bring our cheque.. we are poor students and can't quite afford to tip where it is not deserved, I was tempted not to leave a tip at all.. but then, the waiter stared at us and asked, "IS SOMETHING WRONG?" in the most arrogant loud tone, to which we said "no, why?" and he said "well, usually our customers leave a much larger tip than that" and then he held out his hand.

This left us rather bewildered, but rather than cause a scene, the bf dropped a few more coins into his hand and we left promptly. One would think that it is universally acknowledged that when you leave a small tip (or no tip), you are showing how unhappy you are with the service; you shouldn't just stare at the customers in a surprised way and demand for an extra tip.

Bad service outweighs the mediocre food and we definitely won't be returning. There are many other places if you want to get a good Asian/Malaysian food fix.

Will be hard to persuade us to come back again. The service was ok but the food was really bad. We ordered the roti canai, The curry sauce that came with it was really watery. Didn't taste anything like curry with coconut milk at all, but was kind of sour tasting, watery sauce. We also ordered the dinner combo of fried shrimp, fried chicken and beef curry. The shrimp was ok. The fried chicken was tasteless, over cooked and dry. So dry that my husband complained that his jaw was tired from the chewing. The beef curry was just as bad. It was old and dry. My husband's portion was so obviously old that you could tell the cook must had ladled it from the top of the pot because the pieces of meat were black and dried out. My portion was slightly better because the meat was more moist and more yellow, properly from the bottom of the pot.

We pointed this out to the waiter. He said he would tell the cook. He came back and said the cook would give a new portion to take home. Don't remember he apologized though. What a bad experience! And it was my birthday too. Never again!

I've been to Tropika a number of times over the years, but I dont think i will be making another trip to this restaurant for a while. Within 5 mins of sitting down, we were pressured to order our drinks at least 3 times. It was only until I told them we need at least 5 mins to look at the menu that they left us alone. Throughout the dinner it was fine, but as soon as we received our desserts they threw the bill down on the table. For lunch I can expect to receive the bill before you finish your meal, but for dinner it translates into we want you to leave.

Aside from the bad service, the food was good and the portions were a bit smaller from what I remember

I have been to this location many times and was happy with their service, but judging by my recent visit with a couple of friends, their service is a bit messed up. The server took a dish off our table when it was not even finished. Also tried to impose a 15% tip on our bill despite the fact that we had only 4 people, which we refused to give.

Bak Guh Teh and Roti Canai are items that I would recommend.

It's been a while since I went to any of the Tropika restaurants, but we had a sudden craving for satay, and drove by the location on Cambie.

Had to wait about 15 minutes for a table (on a friday night).

We ordered the satay combination (that included the sweet & sour pork and the curried vegetables), an appy of the Roti Kanai, and the "homestyle chicken". Tropika's satay is still one of the best I've had (although the peanut sauce that comes with it is just okay). The roti was soft and sweet and delicious. The sweet & sour was decent, but not particularly noteworthy.

The highlight was the homestyle chicken, a sweet marinaded chicken that's cut in pieces and deep fried. Absolutely fabulous.

Service was snappy and efficient.

I had a bad experience going to the Tropika on Cambie St on Friday, July 2nd, 2010. They weren't that packed or super busy either. The food & drinks were ok. The bill came to about $99 something. I paid for the whole bill as it was my treat to my friend, I tipped them less than 10%, the waiter came back and asked for more tip. He showed me the bill and said people usually tip atleast 10% here. I was embarassed since my friend is right there and I wanted to treat her. I usually tip atleast 10% anyways but for some reason I didn't feel like tipping that much on that day since I was leaving Vancouver to go back to Toronto. I didn't care since its my last day and I wouldn't go back there for a long time anyways since I am a tourist and don't live there.

I have never experienced this before where a waiter in a restaurant denies my tip and asks for more upfront. I think this place's attitude stinks and would never go back. I believe tipping is optional and not mandatory. You can tip whatever amount you want depending on how you feel or think...Everyone is different but there's no set rules on their website saying that all customers must tip 10% or else??? There was only 3 of us so its not a big group or anything!

By far this is has been the worst Vancouver dining experience I have had and I am going to complain to the manager about this. By reading all the reviews at this restaurant, they seem to have poor management and staff so not sure if they actually do care??

The food overall was decent, over priced for what you get, small portions and I truly think that you can get way better food, better price and better service in elsewhere. I know atleast in Toronto we have a ton of better Thai food places...The food here is just unique & different but not the best or good!

I even tried the Roti Canai & Samble Clams. Roti Canai was good but Samble clam was not that great. Don't waste your $$ going this place. Look for better Thai food places & better service too :)

From reading the reviews here, I think probably Tropika is not as consistent as a restaurant should be, but I enjoy my experience here. The food is very delicious and reasonably priced. Service is not outstanding, but friendly and efficient enough. As for decor, the restaurant is a bit old and tired looking. There is some room for improvement, but overall, it's a good place to have a pleasant casual meal.

Checked out this place with a close friend on a rainy Thursday evening. Was a little tricky to get to since Cambie is pretty much closed due to the RAV line construction.

Food - Really, really good. Mind you, my friend used to come here all the time, so she knows what's good on the menu. Had some huge Thai-style drink that was served in a wood bowl with a couple of straws to share. The pineapple rice was actually served in a pineapple! How cool is that? Satay was really good, but pretty small portion. Veggies and curry chicken were also good.

Service - Solid. Some recent views have been pretty harsh on rating the service, but I was fairly pleased with it.

Ambiance - Pretty nice for an asian restaurant. Usually they're hole-in-the-wall places. This place seemed nice and new and it even had clean bathrooms!

Going to Tropika is always a treat.
Food: Great food with authentic flavours. My favorites are the roti w/ peanut sauce, the Bah Kut Teh soup, and the spicy eggplant. The nasi goreng is delicious too.

Service: I wouldn't say the service is out of the world, but it's good considering how busy the restaurant usually is, especially on the weekends!

Ambiance: Very comfortable and I love their dishware!

Don't forget your entertainment coupons!

The tastiest! Best service. Quick to serve; quick to cook to perfection; Friendly, attentive. Most consistent. Love their chicken wings! The Leung Ye Tofu (lightly battered; absolutely a must with the sauce!); Roti Canai--yummy curry sauce! Perfectly made satay whether it be chicken/beef/pork/lamb! The best spicy sambal crab--finger-licking good! Normally, I wouldn't eat crab, but this is the exception. Their baby ribs are so tasty and tender (I forget the name). Spinach is always good. Their dessert is delicious! The only mediocre item on the menu I can think of would probably be their soups! Yes, plural. Plenty of cocktail concoctions to go with your dinner. Always a good value. One of my favourite restaurants! But always remember to call in to make reservations! They're almost always busy. Be sure to arrive a little earlier than your chosen time otherwise, you might be in for a wait. Been frequenting here at least once a month if not more over the last bunch of years. There was a time when the taste of the food turned sub-par, I assume it was because they relocated their regular chef to one of their other locations to promote the other place first. But that only lasted for a couple of months or so, then they were once again unquestionably superb! When their newest location at Aberdeen Mall opened in Richmond, it was absolutely horrible! Disgusting. Ill-prepared food! Slow & confused service! Inexperienced. The tofu was bland-to-doughy-raw for the batter, and had a mushy-nearly-trampled-upon look to the tofu. The crab was awful and haphazardly thrown on the plate. The chicken wings were bad to nearly being undercooked, and the roti was awful doughy tasting. Haven't dared to go back since then. Just awful. But CAMBIE is the BEST! The Robson one is okay in every respect, more roomy, fewer tables. But for taste and atmosphere, liveliness, go to Cambie! Not sure if the Lansdowne Rd location one is still around...