Los Angeles, CA 90027
(323) 467-8935
Sunset Siam. Located adjacent to the Best Value Inn on Sunset Boulevard, one might easily bypass this nondescript Thai eatery. Upon hearing that they serve a sweeter version of the classic Chinese breakfast within a Los Angeles Times food article, I decided to venture the unchartered four blocks east of my apartment for the good of ethnic foodies everywhere. Interestingly, this area of Sunset lies on the border of Little Armenia and Thai town—an area peppered with Armenian groceries and famous cheap eat staples such as Zankou Chicken. The tiny establishment was packed with local Thai’s slurping savory rice porridge and munching on Chinese fried doughnut (youtiao), while a Thai television station blared local news from Bangkok.Inside, we were handed menus with pictures of various breakfast items. We decided on the “Hong Kong Rice Porridge,” the “Chinese doughnut” and the “Tofu with sweet gin
ger syrup.” Growing up, my Chinese mother would make porridge (xi fan) with leftover rice from the previous night’s meal. This dish was especially great during the winter time and we’d “spice it up” with a salty pickled egg or dried pork. The “Hong Kong Rice Porridge” at Sunset Siam came in a large bowl with pieces of chicken, pickled egg, and scallions. The saltiness of the pickled egg blended nicely with the meatiness of the chicken and crisp, yet refreshing flavor of the scallions. The tofu with warm ginger syrup contained large pieces of soft tofu in a sweet and spicy ginger broth. The Thai youtiao was a bit heavier than the typical Chinese version, but truly delicious in the condensed milk dipping sauce. 
Overall, I enjoyed the “Thai” version of this classic Chinese breakfast. Our meal came to a whopping total of $11. Aww, yeeaah.
1 comment:
Wow, that certainly is cheap! I must check this place out sometime. I believe that those are preserved eggs (or thousand-year-old eggs) in the porridge. I may be wrong, since I've never eaten pickled eggs before, but those in the picture really look like the preserved duck eggs that I ate when I was younger. Anyways, I'd much prefer salted eggs in my porridge. =)
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