chan dara

the first time i went to chan dara, it was for jenn's non-bachelorette party -- a girls' night out to celebrate her upcoming nuptials. it was perfectly located, especially w/the arsenal just two doors down. (who could EVER forget the do-rag guy? O. M. G.)

this time i went w/amanda who actually said that she'd never really had thai food. i'm thinking, in all four years that you've been in school -- AT UCLA AND IN LA -- you've never had THAI food?! and you have asian friends?! if so, then they've totally done you a disservice, they're not your true friends, and you should dump them RIGHT AWAY.

the reality is that thai is one of the most ubiquitious asian cuisines on both coasts. so to not have tried it by the time you're a senior in college is just absolutely ridiculous. (unless you're from the midwest or you grew up in a bubble.) and simply put, you've been shafted. needless to say, it was time to get amanda caught up to speed.

i gave her the option of eating cheaper thai food elsewhere, but she decided to splurge on chan dara for her first real thai experience -- which totally earned my seal of approval.

walking in, we stepped into a room full of twinkling lights. (you'd think it was cheesy, but it really wasn't.) and we got seated promptly at a table under a skylight! it was pretty cool and i was quite impressed. i'm a big fan of natural light, so the more i get, the happier i am -- and the better the review, right?

for some reason, i thought amanda knew her food, but apparently she pretty much just knows italian. (which is kinda sad since i'm not the biggest fan of italian. *sigh*) so i took on the task of ordering for us. and considering that the menu was pretty extensive, this definitely wasn't the easiest thing to do. eek.

after furrowing my brows for quite a while, and consulting w/amanda (which did NOT prove fruitful -- yes, amanda, i still love you), i decided on the peking duck rolls (b/c peking duck is in and of itself an absolutely amazing culinary creation -- as derek will attest to), the chicken pad thai (which is a total thai staple that had to be ordered even though i don't like noodles), and the seared onaga w/lemon grass-ginger cream sauce (which had to be ordered simply b/c it was encrusted w/macadamia nuts).

as we were waiting, i got to check out the other customers in the restaurant. and i must say that it was a really good mix of dressed-up and dressed-down. like some of my other faves, palomino and nook, chan dara comes off as a place where locals (and newbies alike) keep coming back, simply b/c the food and atmosphere are just that fabulous. there's something refreshing about eating somewhere that people from all walks of life go to for great food.

the first thing that came to the table was the peking duck rolls. again, i was blown away when amanda said she'd never had duck before. i mean, are you KIDDING ME?! duck is, simply put, THE most amazing fowl on the planet. talk about amazingly succulent. mmm.... and these rolls totally lived up to their name, w/the roast duck pre-wrapped in the just-thick-enough flour tortillas. unfortunately, we couldn't *quite* figure out what the sauces were -- a circle of yellow on a pool of brown. i'm pretty sure the brown was the usual hoisin sauce that traditionally comes w/peking duck. the yellow, however, tasted like a really spicy mustard. i'm wondering whether it's the usual stuff that's on every table of every chinese restaurant.... at any rate, it had *quite* the kick, so we had to scrape it off and dip our rolls in the hoisin sauce underneath. needless to say, it was absolutely THE best way to start the meal. mmm....

we moved on to the pad thai, which was certainly yummy for pad thai, though not my favorite dish of the night, considering that i don't really like noodles. this was pretty much a staple that amanda had to try for the sake of educating her palate. the onaga, however, was certainly memorable. i mean, how often do you have something macademia nut-crusted?? while the fish was ever so slightly dry, it was perfect when eaten w/the skin and the sauce underneath. amanda flipped when she saw me eat the skin, but as top chef devotees know: if it shouldn't be eaten, then it shouldn't be on the plate. seeing as how the skin was on the plate, then it was meant to be eaten. and it was GOOD i tell you. as was the spinach and the mushrooms that came with the dish. the potatoes were totally unnecessary (seeing as how i hate them).

for dessert, i ordered the mango w/sticky rice, which is another staple that amanda had to try. while the mango could've been riper (which is difficult in the winter season, i suppose) and the mound of sticky rice could've been smaller (since it was HUMONGOUS), the combination of the two flavors was quite interesting (as always). to be honest, i think that both the mango and the rice could've been sweeter, considering that we were having dessert. but the contrast b/w the slightly sweeter mango and the milder rice, plus the variation in textures, was an interesting note to end the meal on. like a question mark lingering in the air. is it savory? is it sweet? are you sure it can be both?

the combination of atmosphere and food was decidedly well-done. so this is definitely a returner. as in, a place worth returning to. over and over and over and over....

chan dara
11940 w. pico boulevard
west los angeles, ca 90064
310.479.4461

http://www.chandarawestla.com/