Night + Market is a hip Thai street food concept that has been on the Sunset Strip for over two years now and three words come to mind – hot, hot, hot! The chef is the son of the family who owns Talesai, the popular Thai restaurant which moved from Melrose to Sunset Blvd. many moons ago. To enter Night + Market you must go through the entrance of Talesai and veer to the right behind the curtain.
The place is loud and buzzing with large parties gathering to taste the entire menu. What caught my eye immediately were the large beer dispensers perched upon the tables to serve these large groups. As for wine – a nice selection of white, red and bubbles – with reasonable prices.
There were two menus, one being the standard menu and the other containing hand written specials in black felt tip pen. For snacks, Nuoc Mam Chicken Wings with Rooster Sauce – crispy fried drums and wings with a spicy but not too hot dipping sauce is the way to go. The chicken was tender and juicy and the crust was light and tooth tender. Moo Sadoong “Startled Pig” was our next dish – grilled pork with fresh basil, lemongrass and fish sauce dressing. The meat was cooked perfectly and it was served room temperature, I imagined it on a bed of greens but maybe that is just the LA in me.
Off the specials menu we ordered Nam Kao Tod which was crispy rice salad with spicy sour pork in a ginger chile dressing. The menu warns you that dishes here are hot but, this took it to a whole new level. It was crunchy and delicious but, it made you cry like a baby and I was definitely feeling this one for the whole next day.
Another special we decided to try was the Beef Tendon Panang with Roti. It was described as a curry but, I would go with a deep rich beef stew to better describe it. The meat was tender as could be with triangles of roti style bread for dipping. My husband thought this dish was fantastic.
Night + Market definitely delivers but if you can’t take it hot you better disclose that before you order.
Night + Market, 9041 Sunset Boulevard, West Hollywood, CA. (310) 275-9724
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