Los Angeles is a diversified community of many types and styles of restaurants. Perhaps one of the more popular foods comes from Thailand. Like all things in life, there are some restaurants that take extra great pride in presenting their foods. One such restaurant is Wirin Thai Restaurant, a family owned restaurant owned by Jiraporn Namprasit and her family.
For nearly 20 years, Chef Jiraporn has kept the tradition of Thai cuisine.
On this occasion, Tom Hallick, formerly known for his role as Brad Eliot on The Young and Restless, and films such as Hanger 18 was my guest with his wife Yin Jiang. Ms. Jiang, a concert violinist with Andrea Bocelli, has traveled extensively with her husband across the globe. Their evening of dining and celebrating their anniversary was extraordinary.
Culinary Journey
The evening began with some Thai tea for Yin and me and a cold Thai beer for Tom. Chachoengsao, brewed in Thailand is their most popular beer, along with Singha. Annie, our waitress served us appetizers consisting of crab cakes with plum sauce, crispy calamari, and some vegetable spring rolls.
Hallick, after partaking in the appetizers raved about the appetizers with delight. “This is fabulous,” he said. Ah, yes it was, but that was just the beginning for a hungry man’s appetite.
We were then served Tom Kha Kai Soup, the most popular soup of Thailand. It is prepared with shrimp, mushrooms galanga, vegetable, spices from Thailand and lemongrass.
With good conversation on the film business and the elections, we were now ready for our main entree. A Papaya Salad prepared with green papaya, ground peanut, tomato and green chili, mixed with a spicy juice was very tasty.
Even more tasty, Hallick said, was the vibrant Duck Salad. It is prepared with duck strips in a lime juice and fish sauce, which is mixed with sesame oil, a little sugar, some Asian fish sauce, freshly squeezed lemon juice, garlic, some fresh mint leaves and a touch of red pepper flakes.
Noodles are very popular in Thailand. Pad Thai, one of the main entrees we shared, is prepared with handmade soaked rice noodles, mixed with eggs, chopped firm tofu, then flavored with tamarind pulp, garlic, red chili pepper, palm sugar, served with lime wedges and chopped roast peanuts,with a balance of sweet and sour. That is one of the best Thai dishes I have yet to taste.
Another entree was the Vegetable Pad Thai, served with flat noodles, pan fried with mixed vegetables, egg, and tofu in a black bean sauce. The Roasted Duck in a green curry with shrimp fried rice was my favorite.
All the servings at Wirin Thai Restaurant are large, so be prepared for a feast. Our culinary journey ended with coconut ice cream, just enough to finish off our taste buds.
Wirin Thai Restaurant is located in Venice, on 2308 Lincoln Boulevard, a half a block north of Venice Boulevard.
Hours of operation are 11 am – 11 pm seven days a week. Call (310) 397-1727 for catering youe event.
Celebrity Scene News awards 5 stars to Wirin Thai Restaurant.
