Restaurant review: Marin’s first Laotian restaurant offers lively, fresh flavors

The proliferation of Thai restaurants in the Bay Area show how this cuisine is a crowd favorite. And if you enjoy Thai food you get an added bonus at Laos Kitchen on Fourth Street in San Rafael — Marin’s first Laotian restaurant.

I will return soon to taste some of the many Thai offerings, but for this review I wanted to concentrate on Lao cuisine, which is, of course is influenced by the culinary wonderlands of its neighbors: Mynamar, China, Cambodia, Vietnam and Thailand, but with some special culinary tricks of its own with ingredients and techniques. So I asked our server to guide us to the Lao choices on the menu.

Laos Kitchen stays away from including any of the Francophile modifications that infiltrated during the 1886 to 1954 French occupation of Lao Indochina.

Delicious cooking aromas and a colorful room invite you into the restaurant. Tables on either side flank three long, high, contiguous tables with high-backed stools down the center of the room with brightly lit lights hanging from a suspended wooden beam. A few high-backed stools are at a shelf table in the window looking out on Fourth Street. Bright wall hangings and fresh flowers on each table and a friendly welcome from the staff create a welcoming feel and give you an inkling of what to expect.

The presentations of the food are just as lovely as the room’s decorations. Mostly plated on black ceramic plates, some brushed with gold that provide a dramatic backdrop to the colorful food.

The menu is a little challenging to navigate, but includes soups, bowls, salads, barbecue and grill, and small plates followed by sides, drinks and desserts. Then there is a list of items without headers but listed as available lunch or dinner. It’s a good idea to study the menu before you go or ask advice from the accommodating staff as we did. Dishes are available at mild, medium and hot spice levels, but you can request a side of hot sauce if your dinner companions like their food on the milder side and you want some heat.

There are dairy- and gluten-free items, but just one vegan dish. There are lots of vegetable choices but if you’re seeking vegetarian or vegan ask your server since fish sauce is used in many of the sauces.

Soft drinks including Thai iced tea and coffee along with fruit-based drinks ($5) as well as a short list of California wines by the glass, $8 to $14 .

Dishes have numbers as well as names so I have included both for ease.

We started with an appetizer, Lao Sausage, No. 30, ($14) that, while not made in house, are a must. Two plump, tight-skinned, grilled sausages lay on a rectangle of banana leaf with a square bowl of chunky hot sauce and small portion of steamed vegetables. The sausages are cut on the diagonal and easy to share. Pork and herb filled with the hints of lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves make these tightly stuffed sausages irresistable.

So often Egg Rolls are huge, thick shelled and greasy. Not here. Listed as No. 20, Laos Kitchen’s Egg Rolls ($12) were smallish with a crispy crust and served with a plum sauce. We were off to a good start.

Other appetizers include Fresh Spring Rolls ($12), Chicken Satay ($13) and Calamari Todd ($14).

Our two salads ($15 each) shared some of the same ingredients, but they were different enough to make them both interesting.

The Nam Khoa Todd, No. 42, featured seasoned and fried rice ball shards that were tossed with chunks of skinless, fermented pork sausage, peanuts, cilantro and a sprightly dressing of fish sauce, lime juice, chilies, a bit of sugar and garlic ,and served over torn lettuce. The bright flavors and great texture made this a favorite.

Sautéed ground pork tossed with a zesty lime-ginger-chili dressing and shreds of carrots, onions, cilantro and fresh mint leaves served with romaine leaves made up Nam Sod, No. 44. We piled the filling onto the leaves and ate them out of hand. The fresh flavors were vibrant.

Yellow Curry with chicken ($18), No. 8, sent us to Thailand. Slightly sweet yellow curry with coconut milk was cooked with carrots, onions, potatoes and boneless chicken. The flavors in the curry were deeply flavorful. An order of Black Sticky Rice ($3) created a dramatic contrast to the yellow curry.

House-made desserts ($5 to $9) include Ice Cream ($5), Ice Cream with Coconut Sticky Rice ($8) and Coconut Sticky Rice with Egg Custard ($8). We were fortunate it was mango season and so we tried the Coconut Sticky Rice with Mango ($9). On a black rectangular plate slices of perfectly ripe, deep yellow mango were lined up on either side of coconut cream, coated square of sticky rice garnished with a yellow nasturtium. Lovely and delicious.

So much about this restaurant is about its freshness, lovely presentations, textures and lively flavors. It’s a wonderful introduction to Laotian cuisine,

Ann Walker is a North Bay freelance food writer. Email her with suggestions, comments and questions at ijfoodwalker@gmail.com.

Laos Kitchen

Address: 887 Fourth St., San Rafael

Phone: 415-456-4490

Website: laoskitchensanrafael.com

Reservations: Yes

Cuisine: Thai and Laotian

Seating: Indoor

Noise level: Moderate

Dogs: No

Liquor selection: Wine and beer

Gluten-free selections: Yes

Vegan/vegetarian selections: Yes

Parking: Street

Hours: 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and 4:30 to 9 p.m. daily

Summary: Marin’s first Laotian restaurant offers freshness, lovely presentations, textures and lively flavors in a welcoming environment.