I hate driving to LA, but when I do, I had to visit Hollywood's original Thai joint.
Parking: Parking will be difficult! They're located in a small plaza with very limited parking, but there is metered parking. We just happen to be blessed with a parking spot right in front of the restaurant.
Environment/Ambiance: Walking in, we were greeted by the waitress, asked how many were in our party, and seated. We arrived right after their lunch rush around 5pm, so we had the place to ourselves for a bit. Around 6-7pm, the dinner rush came in. I would describe the inside mid-sized with good amount of seating. It's definitely a traditional restaurant; we noticed the details of the plates and utensils. And yes, there is one bathroom.
Service: We had the honor of meeting a few of the owners, Peter and Allen. Everyone was very welcoming, nice, and funny. After placing our orders, throughput was under 10 minutes.
Food & Drinks:
Tamarind Marinated Wings - We started off with these as appetizers. I was very impressed with these because they tasted exactly like my GIL's when she made them. To eat these wings, my bf taught me to rip off pieces of chicken, grab some sticky rice, roll it into a ball, and dip both of them into the jaew sauce. So delicious! 10/10
Som Tham Lao (fermented papaya salad with Thai herbs and chili) - Since my bf and I been together, his aunt always made me papaya salad, so I had to try this for myself. I ordered this dish mild, and wow was it spicy. If your spice tolerance is low, I recommend anything less than mild lol. As you can tell, Thai foods can be spicy. The servers always ask what spice level you prefer. I really liked this dish though! Other than the spiciness, it tasted exactly like my bf's aunt's! 9/10
Boat Noodle Everything (signature boat broth with tendon, liver, beef, tripe, stewed beef, and beef balls topped with chicharons) - I looove this noodle dish! So much flavors from the meats and broth. They were very generous with the meats. 10/10
Jade Noodles (spinach egg noodle with BBQ pork, roast duck, crab meat served with sugar, ground peanuts and chili powder) - The servers taught me to quickly mix everything. If you let it sit for too long, the noodles will be stuck in its shape. These noodles were surprisingly not as spicy as I thought (but you can always adjust). The color of the noodles were so pretty and tasted even better. The meats paired well with the spinach noodles. 9/10
Mango Sticky Rice (seasonal) - Dessert time! This is my absolute favorite Thai dessert! The mango was sweet; not sour. Half the sticky rice was white, and the other half was blue. The server explained the color of the blue rice was extracted from a certain type of flower. And the coconut cream wasn't too overwhelming; perfect amount. 10/10
Pandan Juice - This drink was recommended to me by the owner. I thought this was very refreshing. The only Pandan I've ever had is Pandan milk tea, so I didn't have anything to compare it to lol. 8/10
Thai Tea - What's a Thai spot without Thai tea? This definitely tasted authentic. They mix the tea with ice (not blended). The ratio of tea to half&half was equal amounts. Wasn't too sweet for me, but you can always adjust sweetness level. 9/10
Pricing: Prices are $$ modern. Each dish can feed 1-2 persons if you share. I feel it's worth its...
Read moreThis is Hollywood’s Original Thai spot! Even though “Coffee Shop” is in their name, they only coffee they have there is Thai Iced Coffee. It’s an Undiscovered Gem you should know about!
First thing is first, Parking is a bit small, so if you need to, there should be some street parking across the street.
It's a hole in the wall kind of place, but that typically means the food will be good!
Everyone was very friendly! They made sure that everything came out okay! Made sure that our water was always full, they do a fantastic job!
Food and Drink:
🥢Boat Noodle Everything: It’s like pho, but with a richer broth. I’m not one for tripe or tendon, but everything together was delicious! It was a very comforting dish to start the meal with!
🥢Kra Pao Fried Rice: We had ours with chicken, and this must be my favorite Thai fried rice. With the bit of spice, it was delicious. After adding the squeeze of lime juice, it elevated the dish to a whole other level!
🥢Tamarind and Garlic Wings: My favorite thing ever. The wings were super crispy, the flavors of the tamarind and garlic all throughout, plus the fried basil on top of that to give it that extra essence just tops it all off!
🥢Sticky Rice: Most of the time, when I get sticky rice, I think of it as something of a dessert, Sapp proved me wrong. It was delicious and having that pared with either the boat noodle or the Tamarind and Garlic Wings was great.
🥢Mango Sticky Rice: I love the fact that there are two different types of rice here. Plus topped everything off with condensed coconut milk. The rice had a mochi like texture. The mango is a honey type mango, so you can be sure it’s a deliciously sweet mango!
🥢Thai Tea: You can tell this whole thing was made in house. It’s creamy, the tea was perfect. I need to try the Thai Iced Coffee next time!
There are a couple of menu items that I did order to go that I didn't get pictures of!
🥢Che Bo Trio: Ohh man, this was a treat! BBQ Pork, Crispy Pork, and Roasted Duck all on top of rice! Then you get the sauces to complement the meats. I enjoyed the crispiness of the crispy pork, and the flavors of the BBQ Pork and Roasted Duck.
🥢Pad Thai: This was a very light and comforting dish overall. It was full of flavor, wasn’t oily at all. And had to give the dish that hit of lime juice to marry the flavors together. Very much a favorite Pad Thai dish!
This place is amazing! Also got to appreciate the fact that they were the first Thai employer of Alternative Culture! And they have the Oldest Generational Ownership!
Check it...
Read moreWow! How have I not known about this spot until now? We were craving some South East Asian food that is authentic to its roots. Came here with a friend after finding out this is Hollywood's Original Thai Joint in the lovely Thai Town. It is located in a small plaza with very little parking. There's metered parking available on the street or free parking in the plaza. Though inconspicuous on the outside, this spot has so much to offer inside. Don't been fooled by the stained ceilings either, the food is spectacular!
We ordered the Boat Noodles with everything, Soft Shell Crab, Blood Larb Salad, Shrimp Pad Thai, and the Beef Pad Kra Pao with an egg. And OMG! Everything was amazing! I loved the apple relish that accompanies the soft shell crab. It acted as a nice palate cleanser to the fried appetizer. The broth of the boat noodles was so good! I haven't had great boat noodles in a while. The shrimp was cooked perfectly in the pad thai. We were told that the pad thai was actually more similiar to that of the noodles back in Thailand. It wasn't like other Thai spots that make it more saucy and wet to cater to other palates. That Beef Pad Kra Pao we ordered also had the perfect umami blend of spicy, sweet, and salty. Would definitely order it again! And that Blood Larb Salad? What a surprise! If you're feeling a bit adventurous, I'd give this dish a try. It had a nice kick that hits all the notes. No other Thai restaurants in the area have this dish as an option at all. They actually have a wide selection of salads that you cannot find in many other Thai restaurants.
Peter and his wife, Jane, are the sweetest people. Peter gave us great recommendations on what to order. He also gave us a little insight and background to the history of the restaurant. Their staff is also friendly and efficient. Service was nothing short of amazing. Definitely would love to bring my husband back here to try their...
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