Category: Lao Restaurants

Kin Saep (Chollas View)

Lao Restaurants, Thai Restaurants

For some reason, warm weather always has me craving Lao/Thai food….along with the other usual suspects. On one recent hot summer day, I decided to check out a place I’d had on my “list” for a while; Kin Saep. One thing that drew me here was the location….4710 Market Street. Folks who’ve been reading this blog forever will recognize the exterior.

Yep, this used to be Asia Cafe, which I first posted on back in April of 2006! Asia Cafe was the place where I developed my love of Lao Cuisine…which culminated in our wonderful visit to Luang Prabang! Eventually time passes and Asia Cafe changed ownership…Cathy even did a post back in 2017. Asia Cafe then closed and became So Saap, which eventually moved to University, in what used to be Ban Lao and before that Que Huong. Man, I’ve been doing this blogging thing for too long!

Ok, returning to real time, I arrived a few minutes after the 11am opening time and the parking lot was empty…….something that really wasn’t common here in the days of Asia Cafe. The open sign lit up and I walked on in.

For some reason, this tiny restaurant seemed even smaller than before? The nice woman brought me menus, then turned on the music videos while her son watched his own personal tablet.

Looking over the prices, I was shocked at how inexpensive things seemed. I ordered three items off the menu…all predictable dishes for me these days.

First to arrive was the Peppered BBQ Pork ($10.95)…which was pork neck.

While I expected chewiness, this was really bland…whatever marinade they used was quite weak. No caramelization….so not my definition of “BBQ”. That Jeow Som was spicy enough for my taste, it had a bracing sourness, but lacked a savory-umami component.

Of course I got the Lao Sausage ($10.95).

This was pretty good. I enjoyed the “tight” casing, giving things a bit of snap. The filling was adequately moist and tender, with good savory tones, though I like a hint of sour and a more herbaceous flavor.

I had ordered the spicy version of the sausage, but this wasn’t spicy in the least. Still, this was not bad.

And of course, I got the Nem Khao Tod ($14.95). First to arrive was a plate with a huge amount of lettuce!

And then the Nem Khao.

I ordered this medium spicy…but should have gone for more! I liked the amount of sour sausage and herbs in the nem khao.

But there was one short coming. I think you can see it clearly.

Yep….there were no crispy-crunchy bites of rice in this! What the heck? It could have been a winnah!

I took leftovers home and when I heated the nem khao it got really mushy. And when I looked at the receipt I saw that the woman had ordered my sausage “mild”.

But check out those prices! Did I just go back in time to the days before Covid? The owner is very sweet and I enjoy supporting these mom-and-pop places. If we lived closed I’d do a revisit. But unlike the food prices….we’re still in those days of crazy gas prices….so maybe one day. After having my leftovers; the Missus wanted to head back to So Saap….so I guess we’ll be there soon.

Kin Saep
4710 Market St.
San Diego, CA 92102
Current Hours:
Daily 11am – 730pm

Thum SD – A Soft Opening Visit

Lao Restaurants

A few months back, I noticed a Cambodian – Lao Restaurant was opening on ECB just East of the 15 right past Vallarta Taco Shop. I wasn’t quite sure of the name since the sign made it kinda hard to read. Then in my Donburi Rice Bowls post; “FOY” Elle who is nice enough to keep me informed of new openings in the City Heights area mentioned that Thum SD had opened! So, I made sure to check the opening hours and made time to visit at around 1115 on a Thursday…to find that the place was closed….sigh….. I did wait around until 1130, but there was no activity within the place, so I left. Still, I did want to try the place out so I returned on a Saturday, to find that they were indeed open.

Upon entering, I quickly noticed that this was one of those order at the counter places…..the menu board only had around 8 items on it. The really nice young lady working also informed me that they were out of several items as well.

And as far as I could tell, there was only one menu item that was Cambodian; a soup made with Kroeung, the foundational Cambodian seasoning paste that we had run into when visiting Cambodia all those years ago. In the end, I decided to just order two of my favorite Lao dishes to go. Nem Khao (of course) and Sai Oua….Lao sausage. With regards to the sausage, you have two choices, regular or spicy. This was when the really nice woman working on her laptop chimed in saying “I prefer the spicy version”. Turns out she was one of the owners. Her husband, who is Thai-Lao and co-owner is also the chef. We had a nice little chat while I was waiting. Turns out that she is Cambodian. She was so very friendly and sweet. She apologized for not having a full menu at this time, saying that many of the ingredients they needed were still in transit. She did say however, that the week of May 3rd will be grand opening, so they should have a full menu by then.

Here’s the Nem Khao.

Nice sour tones and there was actually some coconut flavor in this; something missing in most versions we’ve had here in SD. There’s also some thin slices of pork skin as well.

On the other hand, the rice was too soft and fluffy’ lacking the crisp crunchy bits and also was devoid of sausage.

Rice was not evenly coated as well.

The Spicy Lao Sausage on the other hand was a winnah! The filling was so porky, moist, and tender. It also had some good spice to it. The casing had a bit of “snap” to it.

While the Missus thought it could have used even more herbs and Makrut Lime leaves, I thought it was fine. The Missus also loved the dipping sauce which along with typical fish sauce flavor had a ton of garlic in it.

It also came with a large portion of rice.

We’ll definitely have that sausage again, though I’m going to wait to revisit until they’ve been opened for a bit.

As I mentioned above; I was told their grand opening will be this week.

Thum SD
4151 El Cajon Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92105
Current Hours:
Tues – Fri 11am – 7pm
Saturday 11am – 5pm
Sunday 11am – 4pm

Thanks again for the heads-up Elle!

So Saap (City Heights)

Lao Restaurants, Thai Restaurants

Sometimes there are benefits to having a not so great meal at a favorite restaurant. Once you have a favorite; it's easy to stop exploring and go to your old favorite. Lao cuisine has been a favorite of ours ever since we had a chance to visit Laos. But recently, after what seems to be some major changes, it seems that the food at Spicy Lao Kitchen had changed, and not for the better. We had a very disappointing meal; every dish was a mere shadow of its former self. Sigh….. Well, it was time to start checking out other options.

There was one place I'd had on my "list" for a while. I'd had So Saap on that list when they were located in Chollas View; but never made it out there. They moved into the location that was formerly Ban Lao, which I had noticed in passing back in 2023. Side note……you remember when this place was Que Huong?

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And So (pun intended) it was obviously time for us to check the place out. We arrived right after 11am and the place was empty. The young lady waved us to a table.

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We were the only customers dining in during our entire meal; though there was a steady flow of takeout orders. I'm guessing So Saap is a favorite "to-go" place for folks. We were handed menus, which had all the usual suspects with regards to Lao dishes and some quite fusiony dishes, Laab Poke Tuna anyone? Sorry, not for us!

We actually ordered quite a bit of food.

The Lemongrass Fried Chicken ($12.99) seemed interesting.

So Saap 03  So Saap 04Which came with a side of sticky rice; which was actually more hard and dry than "sticky". The dish consisted of two whole "wings" and another odd piece. The chicken was nicely fried, more crunchy than crisp, and very moist. The flavor seemed to be a bite "off" though. There was a hint of lemongrass and garlic; but it seemed to need a bit "more" savory-salty tones, and came thru as being on the bland side, an adjective that one really doesn't associate with Lao cuisine.

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Of course we had to order the Nam Khao ($16.99).

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This was an interesting dish; the Missus loved the generous portion of peanuts as it really added to every bite. As did the mint and the old fried, dried chilies (ouch!!!). This was an decent version; though not close to being our favorite. There weren't enough crisp-crunchy rice and the also it fell short in the fermented sour-sausage department as well. Still, nice herbaceous tones, though it seemed to be missing the "touch" of coconut that we enjoy in our nem khao.

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Still, not a bad version.

Needless to say, we also got the Lao Sausage (spicy version – $13.99).

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The filling of the sausage was so tasty; great garlic-makrut leaves (that's what they're now calling kaffir lime)-herbaceousness. The Jeow (dipping sauce) had a nice kick, without being overly tomato forward. The sausage was decently spiced as well. The only issue as you can see was that the casing was totally incinerated. Bummer; because this one could have been our favorite of the meal.

As it was; the Nam Tok ($17.99) took first place.

So Saap 09

Loved the flavors in this one; good, balanced lime, adequate amount of roasted rice powder to add a nutty edge, loved the mint and cilantro as well. The beef was nicely prepped and while toothsome; it wasn't tough. A very nice version of "Waterfall Beef". A vibrant, savory, and refreshing dish when wrapped in lettuce. A keeper for sure.

This was a nice visit; the prices weren't too high and we decided to return a week later for lunch again.

So Saap 10

Again the place was empty when we arrived; but this time several rather large parties arrived during our meal….to go along with the steady flow of takeout orders.

The same nice young lady was working and we again ordered more than we could finish.

I'm not sure why; but the Missus ordered the Pad See Eew with Tofu ($14.99).

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Pad See Eew in a Lao Restaurant? Well, on the good side, the tofu and the noodles were nicely done. The flat noodles still had a nice bit of al dente pull to it. But overall, this dish was way too sweet.

We asked the young lady about the difference between the Seen Savanh (Heavenly Jerky), versus the Seen Lad (Fried Beef Jerky) and she recommended the Heavenly Jerky ($13.99).

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This was another winner! The beef was thinly sliced, making it easier to eat, a nice balance of chewy to tender. A hint of sweetness, good savory tones, hints of gingery-pungent tones as well.

I saw Fried Pork Bell on the menu and asked if it was Moo Tod, the young lady seemed surprised and said yes, it was. So we also ordered that ($13.99).

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A very straight-forward fried pork dish. Cut a bit too think for my liking, though still fairly crisp. Lightly seasoned; the acidic-spiced dipping sauce came in real handy.

And yes, we had to get the Lao Sausage again. This time, it was cooked perfectly.

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Even better than on the previous visit. We'll be ordering this on every visit.

And yes, even though it's a bit out of the way, we'll be returning to So Saap. So perhaps there's silver lining to our terrible meal at Spicy Lao. As it got us back to exploring other options for Lao food in San Diego……

So Saap 00

So Saap
4134 University Ave.
San Diego, CA 92105

Harborside Cuisine- Authentic Lao and Thai Food- (Lincoln Park)

Lao Restaurants, Thai Restaurants, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!! is the name of this food blog.  Kirk usually is here, but today Cathy is writing while He and His Missus (and JJ) are out and about. 

My day of dining adventures curated by cc was so interesting.  She decided on Harborside (which is located near the 805 and Imperial Avenue, in the Lincoln Park area of San Diego, not on the side of the Harbor).

Since about 2012, this location has served Lao food; its name was Bane Phonkeo with a Lao market next door (it had been a Vietnamese/Pho place prior to 2012; The Mister and I did go there as I recall).  In 2023, new, Lao owners took over and the Bane Phonkeo name has gradually disappeared.  

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You can walk up, grab a menu and find a seat to decide your order, as we did. I saw people walking up and ordering 'To Go' without even looking at the menu.
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The menu had been exclusively Lao but now has Thai additions-probably a new chef.  The ladies who work here are so friendly and helpful. 

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We decided on a 'new to us' salad-Long Bean Salad (Thom Mak Tua ($15)).  Long beans and tomatoes in a delightful, garlic-sugar-shrimp paste-fish sauce with (a few) Thai chilies, depending on the spice level you request.

That's a Small order of sticky rice, which we shared. ($6).

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Of course we shared an order of Lao sausage ($3) from the Appetizer side of the menu. Made in house with chopped pork marinated in lemongrass, herbs and spices then quickly fried, this version is especially good. 

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We decided to share something simple- Pad Saw Ew ($13) Wide rice noodles, eggs, broccoli, Chinese broccoli and carrots all wok fried.  We chose to add beef ($5), but this would be fine with no added protein.  So very fresh and bright.

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When walking in, there is a small area of snacks and these cookies were chosen for cc's husband, Bert, so he could enjoy some of our day.

Harborside Cuisine 110 47th Street San Diego 92102 (619) 228-9985 Open daily 10AM-7 PM

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Spicy Lao Kitchen Revisited

Lao Restaurants

The recent warm spell had the Missus and I craving some Lao and Thai food. So, we decided to head on back to what had become our favorite Lao Restaurant in the area, Spicy Lao Kitchen. I had heard that there had been some changes in terms of the management and kitchen, so I was interested to see if our favorite dishes still held out.

Spicy Lao Again 01b

The one young man working the front of house was so very nice. Strangely, there was only one other table during our entire meal.

And sadly, the food didn't measure up. We actually ordered three of our favorite dishes! Which had enjoyed back in February. 

Since these were dishes we'd had several times during our visits over the last couple of years, and that we had ordered the same three dishes during our last visit, I thought it would be interesting to post first, the dish from this visit; than a photo of what the dish looked like during our February visit.

Things came out of the kitchen fairly quickly; starting with the Moo Tod, the "usually" crispy pork belly.

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First off, this more thickly sliced and unevenly fried; some parts really hard, not crisp, other parts barely fried. It was on the bland side and missing the dusting of chili powder it used to have….like back in February.

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Never was the difference more evident than in the Goong Nam Pla, which had been a favorite dish of ours since our first visit.

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The shrimp itself was fine; but was sorely lacking in spice….we ordered medium spice like we always do and this was just plain overly sour. Also missing was that herbaceous-spicy-savory – fish sauce forward topping and sauce which I swear….I could dip my rubba' slippahs in and enjoy.

Less than five months ago, this is what it looked like. Look at the mint and other herbs on this version. All of this was MIA!

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And of course the Nem Khao. Whenever that Missus and I would get a decent version of Nem Khao, we'd always talk about that wonderful meal we had on the banks of the Mekong all those years ago. Food can do that, spur memories, feelings, return you to a special time and place. And then to have it taken away…..

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The charred rice wasn't crisp enough and on the chewy side. The dish lacked a sufficient amount of sour sausage, though it was super sour. It lacked seasoning and spice. This was truly a disappointing dish.

Especially compared to what we'd had in February.

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I'm not sure what happened here. I know that business had been up for sale, but I thought it had been resolved. Though I've heard from sources that one of the owners is no longer involved and has moved out of state.

This was so disappointing, since Spicy Lao had become our favorite Lao restaurant in San Diego. I guess it's time to get back out there trying other Lao style places. 

Spicy Lao Kitchen
5375 Kearney Villa Rd.
San Diego, CA 92123

I know that "FOY" Junichi has also been a regular at Spicy Lao; I'm wondering if he's visited recently and if so, what his experience was like?

 

Spicy Lao Kitchen Revisited

Lao Restaurants

In my post on Pha Khao Lao this past Wednesday, I mentioned enjoying like dishes at Spicy Lao Kitchen a bit more and that we needed to do a return visit to compare. In the comments of that post, "FOY" Junichi mentioned how warm the weather has been recently, perfect weather for some Lao food. Well, I'm thinking Junichi is psychic (perhaps he should be the true owner of the Ojai Psychic Friends Network t-shirt?) because guess where we went?

Yep, Spicy Lao. We got there right past opening, a few minutes after 11.

Spicy Lao Rev 01

We ordered a load of food, getting our favorites, which I won't dwell on too much since I've done several posts on Spicy Lao already. I'm going to focus a bit more on dishes we hadn't tried before.

The Nem Khao was perhaps even better than what we had on our first visit to Spicy Lao.

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And the Moo Tod always delivers…..

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As does the refreshing, spicy Goong Nam Pla. My goodness, the spice, acidity was spot on. This was so refreshing!

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Remember we wanted to order the Heavenly Beef on our last visit, but they were out? Well, guess what we got? Yes, the Sien Savanh.

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Well, these folks own JL Jerky in the same strip mall, so you'd expect the flavor to be spot on; which it was. Not overly salty, good savory tones, hint of sweet. The spicy-fish sauce that accompanied the beef was good. You will need some good teeth for this though!

As I noted in my post on Pha Kao Lao, we've yet to have some decent Mok Pa in San Diego. Though we had never had the version from Spicy Lao.

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So, of course we finally ordered it.

This looked a bit different from versions we'd had before, but the Missus really liked it!

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The fish was super creamy, good dill, kaffir lime leaf, and I made out some lemongrass as well. Slight amount of heat, decent savory tones, though it was a bit on the salty side for me. The Missus did say that this was better than what I make at home. So I guess we've got another dish on our "Spicy Lao list".

And even though the woman working apologized in advance for possible slowness since she and one cook were the only one's working, we actually got our food faster than on previous visits. I guess Spicy Lao is currently our favorite Lao restaurant in San Diego at this time.

Please note the new hours.

Spicy Lao Rev 08

Spicy Lao Kitchen
5375 Kearney Villa Rd.
San Diego, CA 92123

Postscript – I've recently read that Spicy Lao's future is currently up in the air. I'm hoping that they stay in business!

Spicy Lao Rev 09

Pha Khao Lao Cuisine

Lao Restaurants

Back in December I heard about a new Lao restaurant opening in Rolando named Pha Khao Lao. The Missus and I usually go for Lao food during warmer weather, so I was going to wait a bit. But then, the last month, the weather has been unseasonably warm, so we decided to head on out and pay Pha Khao Lao a visit.

We liked that the restaurant opens at 1030, so we could beat the typical lunch crowd and there's ample parking in the strip mall that always seems half unoccupied on University. The restaurant is basically located next to the location of Lee's Sandwiches, which Cathy posted on two years ago.

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The interior is quite spacious and the tables spaced out well.

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There was only one nice young lady working on both our visits. It was kind of funny when I was looking at movies of Vientiane playing on the big screen and mentioned it to her. She told me, "I hope to go there one day!" I came to find out she's actually Thai!

Of course we went ahead and ordered "the usual"; our favorite items at local Lao restaurants; starting with the Nem Khao (of course – $18.95). We thought the presentation was quite nice and were surprised at the amount of sparkling fresh veggies provided.

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The portion size was quite generous. I do prefer a bit more crunchy, crisp rice in my nem khao, the flavors were a bit on the milder side; but there was a good amount of sour sausage provided. This was pretty good, though we prefer the version at Spicy Lao Kitchen.

And yes, we got the Sai Oua ($13.95). We ordered the spicy version.

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This was a bit too chewy and dry; lacking in the kaffir lime leaf-lemongrass-ginger tones we enjoy. That Jeow Mak Len had quite a kick though! 

And we also ordered the Mok Pa ($14.95); you see, we really haven't had a great version outside of Laos; though the Missus said I make a decent version which I learned at the Tamarind Cooking School in Luang Prabang (I still treasure the three little pamphlets of recipes from the class). And this one was also disappointing.

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The fish tasted muddy and was strangely really chewy. There was a distinct lack of dill, kaffir lime leaves, and I believe they put coconut milk in this version.

Overall, a decent meal, the nem khao was quite good. I mentioned our meal to Candice, who recommended that I try the Luang Prabang Papaya Salad. So, having a day off, I headed back over to Pha Khao, and ordered the Tum Luang Prabang ($14.95).

Pha Kao Lao 00  Pha Kao Lao 08 Which was quite interesting as the papaya was sliced into wider strips and I loved the appropriate use of Lao Eggplant; slices of the small green orbs of goodness. This was nice and pungent so it was obvious they used a good amount of fermented crab and fish sauce. I ordered it just medium spicy…which was still pretty hot! I then noticed that there was a combination of two chilies in the salad. Both Thai bird and another. When I inquired the gal laughed and said; "yes, it's more spicy because the chef also uses dried chilies as well!" 

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The pork rinds provided a savory reprieve from the spiciness. As usual, Candice's recommendation was spot on.

I enjoyed my meals and the warm, friendly service at Pha Khao and it is perhaps my second favorite Lao restaurant in San Diego. While the presentation at Pha Khao is better, we prefer Spicy Lao Kitchen. Of course, now we're going to have to head over there….for comparison sake….yeah, that's the ticket…..

Pha Khao Lao Cuisine
5801 University Ave.
San Diego, CA 92115
Current Hours:
Daily 1030am – 9pm

Spicy Lao Kitchen Revisited

Lao Restaurants, Thai Restaurants

While walking to our car after our mediocre meal at Duyen Mai, the Missus looked over at Spicy Lao Kitchen and was suddenly craving the Moo Tod that we enjoy. It had been a while since our last visit, so we returned when the place opened at 11 a few days later.

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We were greeted and seated. Like before there was just one person working the entire front of house. She as very nice.

Looking over the menus; we decided on trying the Heavenly Beef but was told that it wasn't available on this day. So, we ended up ordering the same three dishes we had on our previous visit. It did take a while for the dishes to start arriving……but eventually, it made it to our table.

The Moo Tod was every bit as good as what we'd had before.

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Crisp as first bite, then giving way to a wonderful soft-porkiness. The seasoning seemed even better this time as the slices of pork was nicely dusted with chili powder. Like I've mentioned before, we don't care for Jeow Mak Len, which at least to us, doesn't add much to the dish.

Of course I had to get the Nem Khao.

Spicy Lao Rev 03 Spicy Lao Rev 04 This was much better than what we'd had here during our previous visit. Though still a bit short in the sour sausage department, the rice had a good ratio of crisp to regular rice. Each bite had a nice variation of textures. We could even make out a hint of coconut, though it was still quite mild in terms of spice.

And of course, we had to get the Goong Nam Pla; the naked shrimp. Whoa, this was even better this time around!

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We got this at a medium spice; it was good and spicy, great acidity, the shrimp had a wonderful texture with no off flavors. This was a wonderfully refreshing dish, especially on a super hot day!

Overall, a very nice, albeit long (took 1 1/2 hours) lunch. We'll make sure to return soon, when we have the time for a leisurely lunch. Hope they have the heavenly beef in stock when we revisit.

Spicy Lao Kitchen
5375 Kearney Villa Rd.
San Diego, CA 92123
Current Hours:
Tues – Sat 11am – 9pm
Sunday     11am – 8pm
Closed on Mondays

Hope all our SD "FOYs" are enjoying the cooler weather we're experiencing!

Revisits – Spicy Lao Kitchen (Kearny Mesa) and Vientiane Lao Thai Restaurant (Garden Grove)

Lao Restaurants, Orange County, Road Trip, Thai Restaurants

A pair of revisits to Lao Restaurants for your Monday.

Spicy Lao Kitchen:

The Missus was craving the Moo Tod and Goong Nam Pla that we had on our last visit to Spicy Lao Kitchen. So we headed on over. 

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It was 1230 on a Tuesday, but the parking lot in the strip mall was pretty empty and the restaurant had only two tables of customers when we arrived.

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I'm guessing that the soft opening crowds have now gone their way as the sign out front now says "Grand Opening". There was still one person working the front of house, but she did a good job and there wasn't as much of a wait as on our previous visits.

We ordered 4 dishes, three of our favorites here and one new item from the menu.

First to arrive was the Moo Tod thinly sliced pork belly, the crispness gives way to a nice almost creamy texture.

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Nicely seasoned, good salt and savory components. For us, the rather salsa-ish Jeow Mak Len, pretty weak in heat and flavor is not needed. In fact, all the jeow we've had here has been pretty weak.

Next up was the Nem Khao. 

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While still one of our favorite versions in San Diego, this hasn't been as good as what we'd had here on our first visit. The rice was in hard chunks rather than being crisp, there wasn't enough sour sausage nor spice as well.

Of course we got the Goong Nam Pla; the naked shrimp.

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This dish was a winnah; good spice, the shrimp tender, nice acidic tones. The shrimp had no off flavors and this was quite a refreshing dish.

We decided to try the Crying Tiger. We were asked how we wanted our beef cooked and said "medium rare". What arrived was definitely not that.

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The beef was on the tough side. Though the spice was decent it definitely needed more fish sauce, acid, and more toasted rice powder for that nutty flavor. This was pretty weak.

Still, even though it's still one server manning the front of house, our orders were taken in a timely manner and there wasn't an overly long delay for our dishes as on previous visits.

Spicy Lao Kitchen
5375 Kearney Villa Rd.
San Diego, CA 92123
Current Hours:
Tues – Sat 11am – 9pm
Sunday 11am – 7pm
Closed on Mondays

Vientiane Lao Thai Restaurant:

During our last Staycation, I had made plans to visit a locale in Carlsbad on the morning after our dinner at Jeune Et Jolie. Those plans however fell thru and after having our morning coffee, we had to decide what to do before check in time in Oceanside. The Missus had the idea of heading up to Westminster to visit our current Cha Ca Thang Long place, but we had just been there three times over the last couple of weeks. Then, I had the idea of revisiting Vientiane Thai Lao in Garden Grove. It had been almost 4 1/2 years since our last visit. It would be interesting to compare the nem khao tod there to what we'd recently had at Spicy Lao.

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So we headed on over and arrived at around 1130. The place was fairly busy and we got one of the two remaining available tables. Looking at photos from our first visit back in 2009, the interior looks like a total different restaurant.

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We placed our order and soon enough dishes started arriving. First thing to arrive was a large plate of lettuce and cilantro.

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Which came in real handy for the Nem Khao.

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The rice was crisp-crunchy and not in giant chunks like Spicy Lao, there was an abundance of sour sausage, and even pork skin! A hint of spice, a touch of coconut, perhaps even better than I recalled.

We had never tried the Lao Sausage here, so we ordered that. This was interesting in that it was sliced, then deep fried. Still it was much better than the overly dry and chewy version we had at Spicy Lao Kitchen.

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There were three things we really enjoyed about this sausage; the sausage casing and fried portions were crisp, without being hard or chewy. The rice in the sausage added a wonderful soft, tender texture. And the herbs really gave it some "life".

We also ordered the Lao Beef Jerky, which was on the harder side of the scale, but wasn't overly salty and had an interesting lemongrass-soy-fish sauce-sweet flavor.

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We saved most of this and actually ate it for breakfast! It keeps really well. Of course we need to try the version at Spicy Lao.

The one item we ordered that Spicy Lao does better is the Goong Nam Pla. What arrived at our looked nothing like what we'd had here on previous visits.

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First off, the shrimp were really chewy and gummy. It also had a muddy after taste to it. The sauce was provided on the side and though it had decent heat, lacked sufficient acidity, and the garlic tones we'd noted during our previous visits. Bummer.

Still it was great seeing that the nem khao here was still good after all these years! Funny thing, we thought we ordered a lot, but the couple on the table next to us ordered 6 dishes! Service was friendly and efficient. We need to return soon.

Vientiane Lao Thai Restauarant
10262 Westminster Ave.
Garden Grove, CA 92843
Current Hours:
Thurs – Tues 11am – 730pm
Closed on Wednesdays

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So, even though Spicy Lao is improving, we think they've got a bit to go to catch up to Vientiane. Though the shrimp there was much better!

Spicy Lao Kitchen Revisited

Lao Restaurants

After returning from our latest trip, there was one place the Missus wanted to eat at…..Spicy Lao Kitchen. It had been six weeks since our initial foray and we were interested to see how things were coming along. Based on our last visit, which took a bit over two hours, we decided to arrive a bit later and got there at 130pm.

Spicy Lao Rev 01

Things were a lot quieter this time around as only half the tables were full.

There was one woman working the entire dining room, a different one from the last visit. This time there wasn't a wait to place our order. However, just like our previous visit, it took 45 minutes for the first dish to arrive.

We had seen the Moo Tod ($10) on the menu and though it might be a good dish to try.

Spicy Lao Rev 02

Man, this was delici-yoso! The pork was crisp at first bite, but not hard, and kinda melted away into a nice, pork-bellyish creaminess. Great array of flavors; coriander-garlic-chili. As before, the Jeow Mak Len was the weak link, being too mild, and not spicy enough. It wasn't really needed.

Our next dish came out a few minutes later. Now, I'm not sure why the Missus ordered the Chicken Satay ($9)?

Spicy Lao Rev 03

But this was our least favorite dish of the bunch. The chicken was dry and bland. The sate sauce was really thick, like miso paste, and overly sweet.

Of course, we had to get the Goong Nam Pla ($17). This time we got it at a "3" heat level. And though it took a while to get to our table, this was even better than what we'd had on our previous visit.

Spicy Lao Rev 04

The tender shrimp had a decent amount of "heat"; but it was also seasoned better, great sour tones, loved the spice, and the presentation was also quite nice. This dish is a keeper.

And then there was a pause in the action……and 30 minutes later, our last dish, the Nam Khao ($15) arrived.

Spicy Lao Rev 05

We were just thankful the dish arrived. The couple behind us had already been eating when we arrived and was still waiting for their papaya salad! They finally cancelled that dish, paid, and left.

The nam khao was a confluence of textures, different variations of crisp, toothsome, and crunchy, with nice sour tones. We enjoyed the spice and the pungency of the onion. Sadly, this time, there wasn't quite as much sour sausage in the dish, and we missed that.

Spicy Lao Rev 06

Spicy Lao Kitchen still seems understaffed as indicated by us having another 2-hour lunch here. We're hoping that things get better as this place as we enjoy the food and the folks working a bit harried but nice. But we don't always have time for 2-hour lunches.

The place still opens at noon, but now is closed on Sundays.

Spicy Lao Kitchen
5375 Kearney Villa Rd.
San Diego, CA 92123
Current Hours:
Mon – Sat 12pm – 8pm
Closed Sundays