It’s a meat patty with a crispy wonton chip on top.
The broth is the delicious sour, sweet, slightly spicy broth you get in the zeed noodles.
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Was more or less guilted into having the boat noodles today by a very kind woman from Phuket who professed she didn’t actually eat any of the dishes Luv2Eat serves because she prefers blander dishes…
Anyway, the boat noodles here aren’t very good, at least the ones I had tonight. The broth was very heavy, remarkably earthy without much complexity, Like a bad mole or something. And texture wise, it was quite silty. I’m used to a little sediment, but this was like sipping on dirt. Not much offal if you’re into that kinda thing.
Jade noodles were on point.
Moo Deng Tom Yum was comforting. Not particularly sour, served with glass noodles, hardly any spice at all, though she encouraged us to order it medium. The pork patty was interesting. A bit barnyard-y, pretty earthy, but it’s still just ground pork so it ain’t too crazy. Our waitress said it was the second most popular dish on the menu with the Thai clientele… Interesting.
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I found myself at Luv2Eat last night. I don’t really know why, I guess I just wanted some spicy noodles and a good thai tea.
They make one of the best thai teas of any Thai spot to my taste buds, really nice.
I finally got the jade noodles and they are very solid. I ordered spicy and it barely registered to me, but my other friends couldn’t handle it, so who knows. The noodles themselves were stunning though. Perfectly al dente, chewy, with a saccharine quality that cut through the heat and tang of the rest of the dish and went awesomely well with the various preps of pork. These are $22 noodles if served at Bestia. Shockingly good, probably the best noodles I have ever had at a Thai spot honestly. The pork preps were also very good. In particular, the simple sliced/roasted pork was juicy and pleasant, as if it just came off the carving board of some $100/person high-end hotel buffet where most things are complete shit, and the roast that is fresh carved briefly becomes your golden calf. The lettuce was also really fresh and actually added a nice crush and noticeable vegetal component to the dish. With the huge portion size, this dish feels strangely underpriced at $11.
They are doing khao soi now…I decided to be my ludicrous self and get the $18 “combo” that includes fucking everything…crispy pork, duck, chicken drumstick, beef shank, whole egg, and some other shit. This was a bit of a mistake in retrospect but it was fun. As a khao soi this was terrible. It did not taste like a khao soi really at all… but then again I am not really an expert per se, I am just saying it tasted nothing like khao soi at Night Market, Pok Pok, Palin, etc… that I have had. It tasted very heavily of cinnamon, and was closer to Singaporean noodles I have had. I actually enjoyed it because of that, but it was not really a khao soi. Still tasty, and interesting. I would order a more minimal version next time though.
I got Hainan Chicken because I needed something bland for my suffering friends, and it seemed to me to be utterly horrible. I am not sure I knew you could get chicken so dry…just a stunningly bad dish. Even the semi alright sauce on the side and the broth poured over it could not help it much.
On the opposite end, moo ping here is super simple pork skewers…but holy shit are they amazing. Pork feels a grade above the stuff used at most Thai places and it shows off amazing savor, smoke, marinate, and fat. So fucking good. Took me back to the jade noodles…almost seems like two different chefs made the jade noodles and the moo ping and everything else haha
I guess they added some Phuket-Hokkien style noodles to their specials menu for people like @set0321 's friend. Mee Pad Hokkien sounded fascinating on paper with a ton of fishballs, squid, shrimp, etc… plus poached eggs. It was cooked well, and plesant, but not very interesting. It seemed very much on the bland side to me, even though the bits of seafood were cooked perfectly. Just not very interesting, not what I really wanted to eat, but something a bit more interesting for those that can’t handle Thai heat in its extremes I guess.
Wrapped up the meal with fresh mango and sticky rice. Possibly the best version I have ever had. Spot on ripe mango, luscious and gorgeous. The sticky rice was hot, not overly sweet, and fucking spectacular. I was extremely happy to have this.
I am surprised they don’t sell alcohol here, it would be a great place for it. But anyway, the meal was sort of uneven, with some things being shockingly bad, or bland, but some things being rockstar level awesome. Luv2Eat continues falling into a category of place that you need to know exactly what to order, but if you do, then it can be extraordinary. I genuinely think those jade noodles are the best Thai noodles being made in LA at the moment. Sapp might be a little more interesting with the crab and such but they can’t hold a candle to Luv2Eat’s in terms of the actual noodles; damn.
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Generally agree with your take. Every time I go with friends I get my usuals (Nam Tok beef, Jade noodles, Moo Ping) and then try one other thing. A couple times it has fallen flat, other times I’ve run into truly great things like the Zeed noodle soup.
When I want a very satisfying plate of spicy noodles, and it’s just me, I go an order a bowl of those jade noodles. It is my favorite noodle dish in LA period–thai or not.
Out of pure self-interest, what are you other top noodle dishes? I almost agree, I can’t really think of a noodle dish in LA I would rank above those jade noodles. Maybe the tsukemen at original Tsujita, but probably not.
For certain health related reasons I have not eaten nearly as much in the noodle department in the last year as I used to, but my other favorites are probably:
–Pici with lamb ragu at Bestia (not on the menu last time I went though…annoying).
–Orecchiette with sausage and bread crumbs at Osteria Mozza.
–Chilled oroshi udon at Marugame Monzo
–Lasagne at Angelini Osteria (if this counts)
–Cold soba with unagi at Ichimi Ann in Torrance
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Not @Haeldaur but my faves are:
Boat noodle at Saap
Wonton Boy for …Wonton noodles
Green Chili ramen at Kitakata
Bun Bo Hue at Ngu Binh
Pork and pickled mustard, lamb noodles at 101 Noodles Express
How does the bun bo hue at Ngu Binh compare to their mi quang?
You ever have the orchicette and sausage at Bucato?
I have to admit, I don’t really think of noodles and pasta dishes as the same oddly enough. But thanks for sharing 
Tsukemen at Silver Lake Ramen
Jade Noodles at Sapp
dan dan mien (hand torn!) at 101 Noodles Express
Everything I’ve ever had at Marugume Monzo has been amazing. The Uni in cream sauce is like a bizarro world where japanese invented alfredo sauce w/o cheese and it’s awesome. An on the other end, the roast duck udon was rich, but still light, noodles done perfectly, and delicious slices of duck breast.
But, yeah man… Those noodles. I miss L.A.
Nice review. re: booze, they wouldn’t even let us BYO.
Maybe I’m done with the place. The level of spicy is just stupid. Mine and the girl’s guts are ruined. No matter how much we like the heat, it’s not worth the pain of today. Or I’ll just stick to boring jade noodle soups etc.
This was FIRE
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what is that bottom left?
some fried spicy catfish… that shrimp paste dish is crazy though… that fried rice is unbelievable!
The jade noodles were really spicy?
That was for the 3 year old. No we get the adult stuff. and are dying… 4 attempts at spicy #2 already… kill me
Agreed. The “mild” jade noodles were difficult for me.
just think of it as a free colon cleanse
Finally, someone puts this Luv2Eat spice thing in perspective. Thank you! In reading the reviews, it was hard to separate the regular eaters from the heat freaks.
Oh dear. Our body does a pretty good job of cleansing itself .