Pok Pok LA

(redirecting review from other Unilocal page since it says i checked into this one. is anyone fixing that?)
came for a dinela lunch and had the pork meatballs and fried catfish over rice noodles.
flavors were everything u want from thai. intense herb and spice. all the good good. daddy cant stop looking at my fatty good good. both were new dishes to me so that was refreshing.
it does feel a bit twee here like it feels like dining at a mall in terms of design. prices a bit higher than i’d expect but i’d say theres a justifiable elevation of the cuisine. something about pok pok says its not meant for me. like it feels a bit ritzy. but i did enjoy the food
service was great btw. amazing guy server so upbeat it was nice to be around.

I kept hearing about Pok Pok and I wanted to know what the hype is all about. With a location in LA, I was finally able to try this place out since I wasn’t able to during my trip in Portland. I ordered their Vietnamese style wings and the smell of the wings threw me off a little because it smelled more like fish. Besides that, the wings tasted great but was a little too salty. Also I think $ 15 for wings is a little pricey. I sat at the bar and the service was great. The bartender was very informative and was able to answer all my questions. I do plan on returning sometime to try out other items on the menu.

Came here on a Saturday night. The place was full so we sat at the bar. It took the bartender about 15 minutes to give me a menu (I actually had to ask him for it) because he was chatting with three older gentlemen at the bar. Well, they did look like they tip well. The service at the bar sucks but this other lady server was prompt when I hailed her to take our order instead. But really, I have to hail a passing server when there was one right in front of me?
Food rollout was fast. I ordered the chicken wings and they were amazing. Perfect mixture of salty and sweet. I also ordered Khanom Jiin Naam Yaa (coconut curry with ground fish over thin rice vermicelli) but it was bland. I think someone forgot the salt.
All in all I’d say the place is way overpriced for the food and the service, with the exception of Ike’s chicken wings. That was just perfect.

So happy to welcome POK POK into town.
First off the restaurant is nestled in eccentric China Town. My boyfriend and I visited on Saturday night and to our surprise Pok Pok had a bit of a crowd going on. Despite being the new kid in town it seems like POK POK is already gaining popularity. The hostess advised us that we would have a wait of about an hour. So my boyfriend and I decided to walk around lonely China Town. Within 10 minutes our table was ready! (NO COMPLAINTS ON THE SHORT WAIT)
So now to the food… where to start. Their menu is most definitely a traditional thai menu. We were overwhelmed by the options for both food and drinks.
We went with the following options
Hoi Thawt:
This was a bowl of noodles and fresh herbs all packed together to build a yummy concoction. My tongue was bursting with all the seasoning that were packed in this amazing bowl of goodness. This had to be my favorite dish of the night. (HIGHLY RECOMMEND)
Cha Cha La Vong:
Yummy fried catfish with a side of chili sauce. It is kinda fishy but the veggies helped to down the fishyness of the catfish. Overall a good plate but I wouldn’t order it again.
Lao Saparot (SHOT):
Such a smooth shot and it is made from pineapple rice whiskey! AND it is served in a cute tiny novelty tin mug.
Hunny Cocktail:
Solid cocktail!
Cha Manao:
So this was an interesting drink. Both my boyfriend and I love traditional thai tea but this was thai tea had a twist to it. It was infused with lime, sounds wild I know and it definitely was! Maybe too wild for our taste buds, because it wasn’t to either of our liking’s. It had a very strong pungent taste. Nonetheless I don’t regret having tasted it.
POK POK Affogato:
Yummiest dessert! Yummy ice cream drowned in Vietnamese coffee served with fried bread. (Almost looked like Spanish churros) SOO GOOD. Our waiter told us it was a popular dessert item… I know why.
Oh and the service is top notch, our server was very informative on the food and upon arrival he briefed us on the specials for the day.
POK POK gets my stamp of approval.

This is probably the most authentic Thai place I’ve ever been to (and trust me, I’ve been to Thailand). So if you are ready for some spicy authentic food, this is the place to be. It was double-​date night, so I came here with my boyfriend and his couple friends for DineLA. The place was crowded and happening so luckily we had reservation and was seated immediately.
Décor/​Cleanliness
The décor reminded me of the bar scene in Thailand. Except here there wasn’t a karaōke stage for singers to perform and no open space to see the street. However, the décor was appropriate because it did make you feel like you have a piece of Thailand here in the States. The place was very clean, even the bathrooms were well kept.
Food
F’ing spicy. So for the DineLA menu, I ordered the Neua Khwai Sawan (glazed-​spicy beef jerky), Khao Soi (mildly spicy coconut curry chicken egg noodle soup), and Papaya pok pok (f’ing spicy papaya salad). My boyfriend got the Laap Thawt Isaan (lemon pork patties), Yam Khai Dao (f’ing spicy egg spicy), and Cha ca «La Vong» (this is a Vietnamese dish which they tell you in the menu, not so spicy catfish with rice vermicelli noodles). All the food was authentic and good. I wished that I could finished my papaya salad but the spiciness was just too much for me to handle. However the the Cha ca was delicious and the Khao Soi was good as well, I definitely recommend those 2 dishes.
Service
Was good, however extremely slow. I think it was because of DineLA or they were just under staff that night.
Overall Experience
4 Stars, it should be 3 Stars however… the food spoke for itself. I definitely recommend coming here for the food because it’s so authentic. But beware the food is F’ing spicy!
Happy Eats Everyone!

After reading conflicting reviews of this location, I gave it a try on a weeknight with two other people. We ordered the wings, the fish with vermicelli, the pork shoulder curry, and papaya salad. For dessert, we ordered the durian with sticky rice. The crowd is definitely younger, bearded, glasses, etc. I also don’t quite get the décor. It has a hole in the wall look to it, but the food is not cheap and the space is huge.
The best thing we had were the spicy wings. I would give the wings alone 5 stars. The other dishes were good but not amazing. And for the price, I want amazing. The vermicelli herbs needed to be chopped or something bc all I came away with at a certain point was gobs of herbs rather than an equal mix of noodles and herbs. The pork shoulder was hearty and good. No complaints, but for the price. And the papaya salad was lackluster. Pretty average.
It was nice to see the durian on the menu. Many Thai restaurants don’t even carry that dessert because they’re so Americanized. It is a decent attempt. The custard was pretty good. The coconut milk was too salty. I usually add some salt to my coconut cream, but this was too much. The sticky rice was also a little dry. We ordered it because my dining companions never had any kind of durian before.
We did order one dineLA menu and the rest a la carte. We had three cocktails. The total was about $ 120 pre tip. Meanwhile, the Thai temple in NoHo has food vendors every weekend for a fraction of the price. Sorry Jonathan Gold. This place is not a must.

So, this place was interesting. I recently went to Thailand and came home. A few weeks later, I started to crave Thai food. I know this place just opened up and they have a great location in Portland too. It is located in a strip mall in Chinatown in Los Angeles. You walk into the location and it appears to be kind of cheap. Cheap looking table clothes and chairs. It really did feel like I was back in Thailand experiencing it all over again. Eating in a third world country. It was pretty authentic looking. Then we ordered the food and overall it was a good representation of what Thai food is like. If you like Thai food, you will for sure love Pok Pok.
Here is what we ordered:
— Laap Thawt Isaan — This is a spicy pork patty. The flavor of this dish represents the exact taste of Thai cooking. Very good
— Sai Ua Samun Phra — This was a Chaing Mai sausage with a Naam Phrik Num dipping sauce. The sausage was great and the Naam Phirik Num could be a little spicier.
— Chicken Khao Soi — I was really looking forward to this dish as I had this a few times in Thailand. It was pretty good. Overall it is a little sweeter than what you get in Thailand and if anything I would say that took this dish down a notch for me.
— Papaya Pok Pok — This dish is just okay. I would pass on this one. There are probably other alternatives you can eat that are better.
Overall everything was good and pretty authentic. I was surprised to see no mango sticky rice on the desert menu. I am sure it hard to match as the mangoes in Thailand are a lot better. I will go to this place in the future to try other menu items. Overall a good experience.

This review is strictly for their infamous wings and bar.
First things first, if you’re trying to make your way here, make sure you are going to Pok Pok LA and not Pok Pok Phat Thai. My über driver dropped me off at Pok Pok Phat Thai not realizing my mistake. For your reference, Pok Pok LA is about 0.4 miles north up Broadway.
There’s outdoor and indoor seating. There’s also an upstairs as well. Overhearing the bartender talk, you can bring your own bottle of wine but there’s a $ 10 corkage fee.
I was on a mission on a Tuesday. I wanted to just try their infamous wings. I seated myself at the bar ordered Ike’s Vietnamese Fish Sauce Wings [spicy] and a Tito’s vodka and soda. Their bar has a vast selection of various liquors and at a reasonable prices [$ 8-​$ 9]. On this given night, they were out of their Thai Mekhong Whiskey, which I wanted to try. I’ll have to make my way back.
The wings came out within 10 minutes. They come with pickled veggies and cucumbers. The portion was of decent size. I think in all you get about 5 – 6 wings. Just for your reference, a wing includes the drumette, wingette and tip. The wings were deliciously flavored with fish sauce and chili flakes. They were very crispy and not spicy at all. If you’re not down with fish sauce, then I don’t know what to say, you’re simply missing out. Additionally, the dish itself was $ 15. I personally rank these wings in my top 5 wings I’ve had. They’re that good.
Overall the vibe of Pok Pok LA is cool. I love that there’s a full bar and look forward to trying some of their other dishes along with the Ike’s wings again and again.

Great place, Andy did his best to make the joint feels like you’re stepping into a restaurant in Bangkok, but can we please stop with the Thai country folk music? I’m Thai and I can’t stand it!
Food is a solid 8 ½. I had to go with my favorite, Hoi tod (mussels pancake), but unfortunately, it was wayyyy to salty!
Yum samun prai was a big hit as well as duck larb. If you mix the two dishes together, you might be able to take the heat from the larb cuz it was fierce!
Lastly, I love their pandan infused water. So refreshing and fragrant.

Still a fan of this place. So far, not as crowded as the portland location and much bigger.
Parking: street or lot ($ 5 with validation?)
Spicy Wings for $ 15 — 6 wings, spicy is the way to go, it’s not too spicy, but still pretty good!
Hang Leh $ 16 pretty good dish!
Khao Soi Chix $ 16.25 was a noodle dish which we addeded in chicken was my favorite, there was also something crispy inside the noodles.
Papaya Salad $ 9.75 was really SPICY. We could barely finish it b/​c my mouth was burning so much
Rice — coconut $ 3.50 or Rice — sticky $ 3 are both good choices
Sangkhaya thurian — was a dessert with a mild taste of durian $ 8 which was pretty good. The rice does taste like the rice from mango sticky rice.

Pok Pok Pok Pok Pok Pok Pok
That’s me with my hands tucked under my pits, running around frantically like a chicken with her @$$ on fire.
Because HOLY S*** (pun intended) THEY DON’T JOKE ABOUT SPICES HERE.
But it was #worthit.
Go ahead, try these:
— Spicy Ike’s Vietnamese Fish Sauce Wings
— Boar Collar or Duck Larb
*waits to laugh at your blazing behind*

Chalk another one up to the hordes of 2 – 3 star reviews. Small portions, ridiculously over priced, crappy location, but good service and nice try.
I really wanted to like the wings but there’s way too much fish sauce and that’s coming from a Filipino guy who was baptized and raised in that shit all his life hahaha.
Save the money for something else and hopefully it’s not burger lords either… ah my next review.

After hearing all the hype surrounding Portland’s Pok Pok, I was ecstatic to discover that Pok Pok LA was ready for business.
1. What is Pok Pok?
Pok Pok is a Thai restaurant with origins in Portland, OR. The eatery was founded by Andy Ricker, who traveled to Thailand multiple times to learn the proper way of cooking Thai food.
2. What is the ambience like?
I was startled at how casual the eatery feels, particularly when accounting for the relatively high menu prices. Pok Pok is a no frills restaurant, but it is actually quite fitting for a home-​y Asian eatery.
3. What should you order?
The wings. Hands down. Make sure to get it spicy for that added kick.
According to our waiter, there is a large dispersion among the entrees that are widely ordered, and there is no «most popular» dish. We ultimately ordered the khao soi with chicken. This was our first time trying this dish, so while we have no appropriate benchmark, we really enjoyed our noodles.
We’ll surely be back in LA for those wings. After all, what’s a 1 hr drive from OC compared to a plane right to Portland?

The food tastes the same as Portland. Wings are fantastic and I really liked the eggplant salad. We had a pork curry that was delicious too. My salted plum collins was really good. I love salted plum and it delivered in terms of flavor. A lot of spice in dishes so be ready!
What really annoyed me about our meal was the service. A friend ordered a cocktail after me and it never came, so we just cancelled it. We even asked the waiter about it twice. He could only apologize and say that the bar was slammed. Really? For 40 minutes to the point where the bar can’t add one drink? And then to top it all off there it was on our bill. I had to flag him down to correct. It could have been an honest mistake, but these details really shouldn’t be overlooked. And let’s face it, it’s the difference between a make it or break it kind of experience.

2.5 Actually!
The Los Angeles Times, more particularly Jonathan Gold wield a lot of power in this city. This fact became very evident to me tonight. Pok Pok LA was packed; on a Sunday night at 9:00 it was wall to wall here. We came tonight for the mere reason that this place was getting «Press», and very good «Press» at that.
After experiencing Pok Pok LA of Portland, Oregon fame, I don’t get it?
From our cranky bartender cawing like a crow at us as we waited for our table to be ready (this guy did not want to be here tonight), to the same bartender mixing us a $ 12.00 three sip watered down drink that had about as much punch as a 72 year old Rocky Balboa; this night was just getting started.
We were seated by a very pleasant young lady whom was quite helpful and honest in her appraisal of how long our «no reservation» party would have to wait. She was as congenial as our bartender wasn’t.
The menu looked exciting and we were ready to jump into it:
The Ike’s Spicy Wings were great! If I ever came back here (which is questionable) it would be for this and a beer, only.
The Khoa Man Som Tan Salad tasted like mud, not that I’ve ever eaten mud before, but if I had, I would imagine it tasted like this. We refused to eat it and sent it back and requested another selection**. We got our second crow cawing of the night. Nice!
The Kung Op Shrimp was OK. We ordered it spicy but came ever so not, served very temperature hot (though) it took 20 minutes to cool down; at this point in the evening we were hungry and didn’t feel like the wait, but we kept tossing and stirring this dish trying to speed up the cooling process.
The Chicken Khao Soi again was OK but just missed the mark which shouldn’t be happening at these prices.
Listen, I’m not a cheap bast**d. My last Thai food dinner was 4 weeks ago at Uncle Boons in New York City which was twice as much as Pok Pok, but worth every penny and I’d go back tomorrow.
There was no value or bang for your buck here. Our North Hollywood dive Thai restaurant is 70% less expensive, 70% more delicious and 70% more accommodating than Pok Pok Restaurant. That’s 210% better if you use my math. Our go to Hole In The Wall is a steal compared to tonight’s experience.
Oh, BTW, our muddy salad** we sent back and ordered a replacement, was left on our bill and we got or third crow cawing of the night when I demanded it’s removal.
Geez, I felt like I was in a cornfield in Iowa from all of the crow cawing I got this evening.
I like Jonathan Gold!
His writing flows. It’s smart. He hits so many important points in not to many words. This is an art and a craft I really admire. I will continue to read him and value his opinion, but I missed here tonight what he saw, tasted and experienced? His review was certainly a far cry from mine?
There are a lot of excuses I can give to Pok Pok LA for this not so good dining experience, and would, if I didn’t have to pay $ 100.00 for what I hope was just an off night for them.

Pok Pok is a wonderful addition to the LA and Chinatown dining scene. It’s the kind of place that pays homage to the type of thai food beyond your pad-​thai and green curry. It’s the kind of place you’ll wan to go check out if you want to learn more about Thai cuisine without actually hopping on a plane. It’s the kind of place you’ll want to go if you also want to enjoy a very nice cocktail with your Thai food too.
The menu can be a bit daunting and overwhelming; but it definitely leaves room to explore. I’ve been back 3 times and I have yet to have the same dish, or been able to get through half of what I’m curious to try. But with that said, I will say that everything has been enjoyable. It’s easy to notice the pointed intentions of each dish, and the detail that went into it. The notions of Thai food and their balance of sweet, spice, savory and sour are present and distinct. It’s not mushed together, but phased out well like a good whiskey or fine wine.
It’s easy to start making comparisons to tons of other places in Thai town; but that’s not a fair comparison. It’s the kind of place where you can see the effort being to put in to recreate dishes local to the various regions of Thailand. You don’t get a sense of any shortcuts taken here. I know that as good as my mom’s cooking is, she does use some shortcuts sometime and you also wonder how much better it would even be without those. It’s kind of like that. And as a nice bonus, you do get a sense of story of each of those dishes presented here; what region, what the chef appreciates about it, why it’s interesting. I find that incredibly valuable serves as a really nice catalyst to go and hunt out something you might enjoy a lot.
I will note that I am a little bit disappointed by how the rice is portioned out. I don’t have a problem with the pricing of the rest of the menu, but charging $ 2 – 3 for each tiny portion of rice seems a little bit like nickel and diming. At an establishment like this, I would like to see it such that it’s a fuller portion; or just fold the cost of that into the price of the other entrees. However, as it stands right now, it’s almost akin to French or Italian restaurant charging bread by the slice or mini bun worth; maybe worse because it’s such a common accompaniment in Asian cuisine.
On a non-​food front, the space surprisingly big. In addition to the main floor, there’s an expansive 2^nd floor and outdoor seating as well. Also, I will say that the service is outstanding here. The waitstaff were knowledgeable about the items on the menu, attentive to your needs, and quick to offer refills should your cocktail run low. FInally, parking should not be an issue as Pok Pok is located on the northern end of Chinatown where the action is much less happening than the mid area.
Footnote: The $ 20 restaurant credit reservation system and 5% service charge is no longer in place and does not apply. That was a minor gripe of mine during my experience, but happy to see it’s gone!

This is the full menu Pok Pok with the traditional Thai music, and the kitschy décor… not the limited menu a few blocks away.
Pok Pok won me over with that first sip of their leaf infused water that tastes like coconut water and the first slurp of Khao Soi (chicken curry noodles). Just thinking about those noodles and that refreshing water has me craving more!
Prices are a bit steep for Thai food, but everything was delicious and given the stamp of authentic approval from the best Thai chef I know.
The Pok Pok Special (half chicken and papaya salad combo) was good, but I plan to order the wings next visit.
For dessert we shared the Khanom Pang Ai Tiim, a fudge drizzled ice cream with rice tucked inside of a sweet bun that would make any sweet tooth happy. I found it a bit too sweet for my savory inclined tastebuds but still very reminiscent of the street food in Thailand.
Free parking is conveniently located on the premises.

For years I’ve been reading about Pok Pok and have never had a chance to try their locations in Portland or NYC. I finally found out about it coming to LA and had to try.
I tried their famous Vietnamese style chicken wings. Yes, I have to admit they are pretty good but a little too salty for my own taste. You get 6 wings for $ 15. I also had their Khao soi. This was the dish I liked more than their wings. The khao soi had very good texture of noodles and the broth of coconut complimented it really well. I love the taste of coconut in the broth and added a hint of sweetness which made it perfect!

It’s just overpriced. $ 16 for a small bowl of khao soi. I was a little shocked at the small volume of noodles. And really, at $ 16 it’s not street food anymore, and hasn’t been for awhile. So at this price, I don’t want to have to deal with trying to eat a whole chicken leg and thigh, which were both raw near the bone.
The flavors were good, but the menu is just overpriced. It’s not like I’m in Wyoming where it might be harder to find a Thai restaurant. It’s not even like I’m in Portland. The only thing it has going for me is that the location is convenient. I might stop back once in a long while, but only because of convenience.
Oh yeah, they add a 5% service charge. At $ 16 for a small bowl of noodles, maybe they can pay the staff more, and not annoyingly stick it to the customers. So I’m supposed to add 20% on top of that?

Yay for Pok Pok in LA! I’ve been to the Pok Pok in Portland twice and loved it both times. Was really excited about the location in Chinatown finally being open! Made reservations for me and the bf on a Saturday night through Tok (NOTE: The Tok system charges $ 20 per person for dinner, but that amunt is put towards your dinner bill, so it’s like pre-​paying for dinner)
FOOD:
— fish sauce wings (spicy) — I prefer the spicy ones because I think they are so yummy! And not spicy at all! Very flavorful, definitely brought me back to Portland. Flavor was great, chicken was a tiny bit on the dry side.
— kaeng hang leh (pork belly and shoulder curry) — this is sooo good and flavorful! I wouldn’t really call this a curry, more like braised pork belly and shoulder that’s super tender and delicious.
— khao soi with chicken — I’ve had khao soi before and wasn’t too impressed with it, but I enjoyed Pok Pok’s. Less brothy, more noodles in a thick sauce. Throw all the add-​ins into the bowl! (pickled mustard greens, onions, chili) and add fish sauce to taste — makes the dish much more yummy!
SERVICE:
Friendly and fast. There are a lot of servers and workers about, and some have walkie talkies on them since the place is two stories.
VENUE/​PARKING:
The place is huge! Two stories with an outdoor patio, you can see that it used to be a chinese restaurant since some of the original decorations were left as is. AC was BLASTING when we went, so pack a sweater! They advertise a parking lot 100 feet past the restaurant, but we found a (free) meter spot right outside. Place was busy, but not packed, plenty of empty tables near us.
Would definitely come back, but not super regularly. Prices are a touch high ($ 15 – 16 a plate, average) to come back often. They do take walk-​ins! Very happy that it’s open in LA and hoping it revitalizes that (rather empty) plaza in Chinatown: D