Thip Khao Restaurant

We decided to try out a restaurant that our buddies had recommended, but unfortunately, we found the food to be just okay. The flavors were a tad bit stronger than we had anticipated, but it was still pretty decent. In an attempt to explore new foods, we ordered the Hu Muu Todd (Fried Pig's Ears), but it was a bit tough to chew on. Nonetheless, we still had a great time together!

It’s our third night in DC and we picked another restaurant featured in the DC episode of Somebody Feed Phil for dinner this evening.

It took us just 20 minutes to get there from
the Smithsonian American Art Museum & National Portrait Gallery where we had spent the entire afternoon, involving only 1 line of Metro Rail ride. The restaurant is only 4 blocks north of the Columbia Heights station.

We ordered:
1. Chuenh Peek Gai (crispy chicken wings)
2. Piing with pork shoulder
3. Gaeng Phet (noodle in red curry sauce) with fried tofu which same with a side of rice.

My husband is very sentine to fish sauce and we don’t like the flavour nor the aroma of it. He said he could taste fish sauce in the marinade for the chicken wings. However, it must have been really mild as I didn’t notice it until he mentioned it and I rather quite enjoyed every bite of it.

The star tonight for me would be the red curry dish with fried tofu and rice noodle. The side salad with green onion gave an added aromatic punch to the richness of the creamy curry.

My husband’s favourite was the grilled pork shoulder. The flavours were rich and bold and balanced perfectly with steamed sticky rice.

We have to thank Phil Rosenthal for introducing us to Laotian food.

This is my new favourite place. Amazing dessert just the right portion. Finger licking food and great atmosphere. We went without reservations but got the seat. The service was very quick. We went on Friday so the place had a good happy vibe.

Craving an explosion of flavor? Thip Khao's got you covered. Their Laotian dishes are like a party in your mouth, with bold spices and unique textures.

Fantastic meal! We got the fried rice dish which was an absolute flavor bomb. It was spicy, smoky, savory, had some store fried peppers onions, scallions.

We also ordered goat curry. It was a delicious stew with a little tang, dill, goat was super tender, felt kind of homey.

Nice service but the restaurant is a little loud.

Didn't need a reservation.

Ultimately, pretty underwhelming given the hype. Some of the items are quite good, others sadly pedestrian. Service is equivalent to a local take-out place, and atmosphere -well, there really isn't any.

We tried the following items:

Tam Muk Houng G (Green Papaya Salad, Unfiltered Fish Sauce,
Fermented Shellfish, Chili, Tomato, Eggplant,
Lime, Garlic) - fine but not anything better than our local neighborhood spots

Kee Mao (Wok-Tossed Flat Rice Noodles, Chili-Garlic
Sauce, Fish Sauce, Basil, Bell Peppers, Onions) - disappointing, very lackluster in flavors and the noodles were overdone and soggy

Gaeng Phet (Rich Red Coconut Curry, Lemongrass, Basil,
Makrut Lime Leaf) - fine but just fine

Muu Som (Rice-cured pork belly, makrut lime, ginger, mushroom, toasted chili) - the only memorable dish, superb flavor and perfectly crisp pork

I am glad Columbia Heights features Laotian cuisine, just wish it was actually good.

Flavorful food for a great price, and a wonderful atmosphere. Really loved how kind the staff were, and I really can't describe how well they invited the spices into every dish. It's good to get a variety of appetizers and mains if you are with a group, and just share amongst all of you.

We also ordered some of the drinks; these weren't as yummy as the food, but an average 7/10. You'd be better off ordering a regular hot tea. The drinks had the hint of the Asian flavor, but something about the ratio was incorrect which listed the quality (e.g too much milk, the wrong mix of alcohol, etc). But decent overall!