Thai One On: Sanamluang Cafe
Many call Sanamluang Cafe the most authentic Thai in Thai Town. Others know it as the preferred late-night post-drinking noodle stop (the restaurant is open until 4 a.m.). Sanamluang calls itself "The Best Noodles in Town."
At 3 a.m., just about any noodle might seem like, no metaphor intended, the best noodle in town. So I decided to try Sanamluang in the cold light of day.
The first rainy Saturday in many months presented a great opportunity. When I arrived just after 1 p.m., both the tented patio outside and the medium-sized room with three seating areas inside were fairly empty.
The menu is numbered, encompasses appetizers, salads, and noodle dishes (both soup and dry, more than 20 overall, with various options), as well as more usual Thai dishes. The glossy photos make every numbered option seem enticing. Over a wall of booths hangs a mosaic of lighted photos of more dishes, all with accompanying numbers. The effect is dizzying; were I there in the wee small hours under the influence, I might find it hard not to order everything.
I started with the first appetizer on the menu, Bao Chai; these are traditional Chinese bao, round flattish dumplings filled with chopped greens, available steamed or deep-fried. Since I've had plenty of steamed bao, I got them deep-fried.
The spongy dough bubbles when it hits the boiling oil, leaving the dumplings pockmarked with tiny bumps. The dumplings come with a hot-sweet sauce that balances the mildly bitter greens very well. Granted, the bao seemed to have absorbed a lot of oil, but they were really good when they were hot: crunchy, spongy, bitter, sweet and hot all at the same time. Delicious and nutritious grease-bombs!
Soup noodles are great comfort food for rainy days, so I ordered Roasted Duck Noodle Soup. The broth was seasoned delicately with anise, and had a subtle duck taste. There wasn't too too much of it, the way there seems to be sometimes with ramen. The flat noodles were not overcooked, and the duck was in slices with browned skin and -- pleasingly -- no visible fat. Nestling in the bottom of the bowl were some greens, crisp bean sprouts, and scallions. I could and will order this again.
The atmosphere at Sanamluang is that of a busy coffee shop. There are no frills. The varied menu includes some dishes with exotic ingredients like pork maw and pork blood, along with combination noodle dishes that include meat and seafood. Service is polite and fast; prices are low and only cash is taken. My fried treats, a big bowl of soup, and Thai iced tea cost $13.24 -- a lot of food for the price. I was not the only solitary diner. I was, however, the only one reading The New York Review of Books.
Sanamluang Cafe
5176 Hollywood Blvd
Hollywood, CA 90068
(323) 660-8006
No website, but check Yelp.
Photos from, in order: On Flickr: Fuzuoko, BenChristen; and Beth Kopley.