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    Lao Esan Kitchen

    4.7 (140 reviews)
    ModerateThai, Laotian, Desserts
    Open 10:30 am - 8:30 pm
    Updated a few days ago

    Order Lao Esan Kitchen Takeout or Delivery

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    pad thai
    Rob B.

    So I've been afraid to try this place... Why? The last place that was here, was a Thai and Chinese fusion type of spot and I just heard bad things about their practices. Stuff like they cleaned or rinsed the mop in the same sink they prepared the food in. Just unsanitary things and I was concerned that this was perhaps the same business, just rebranded-still not entirely sure. Plus, the appearance kinda gave me fast food vibes-typically whenever a plus has that 'look-up menu' (a menu you have to look up at), it's the unhealthy, cheap fast food variety unseen at most every Thai restaurant. But, for some reason, I decided to give them a chance. And I'm glad I did. They may have my favorite pad thai in the area.I enjoyed it so much, I had to run it back again the next day. I'd also ordered the mango sticky rice. It was satisfying, just a little more syrupy than I care for. I forgot to get a picture of it. I only ordered delivery but I wouldn't mind stopping by in person and seeing how they do a number of my other favorite Thai dishes.

    43 - Pad Kee Mao (Drunken Noodles)
    Ricardo M.

    Went to the little hole in wall. Wanted to try this spot on the way to the lake. We ordered a cashew nut chicken and rice, pad kee mao, and a chicken satay. The food was delicious. The cashew nut chicken and Pad kee mao were my favorite. I didn't care for the chicken satay. We ordered everything at a medium spice level thinking it was going to be spicy. I would recommend just ordering it spicy if you love spicy food because medium level was not it. The atmosphere is nice for a small place and its super clean. Definitely a cool spot to have lunch at. The lady was super nice and kind. She provided great service.

    Lao sausage
    Cryetti C.

    Food:4 Service: 3.5 Ambiance: 3.5 I've never had Lao cuisine before, so I was really excited to try Lao Esan Kitchen for the first time. We came on a weeknight about an hour before closing and while they were friendly, you could definitely tell they were ready to close right on the dot. Because of that, I would recommend giving yourself more time and not coming right before closing if you want to relax, talk, and enjoy your meal. When we walked in, the ambiance was actually really fun. It is located in a random strip mall, which might throw you off a bit, but once inside it is light, bright, colorful, and full of nice ethnic decor. I really liked the vibe. We were hungry and ended up ordering quite a bit including the Lao sausage, nam khao todd , catfish, and pad see ew. Everything was actually very tasty and I would order it all again. The standout for me was the nam khao todd. It was crispy, fresh, flavorful, and just a whole bunch of goodness. I was really pleasantly surprised by how much I loved it. I also really enjoyed the Lao sausage and the steamed catfish. The pad see ew was good as well, but nothing that really stood out compared to the other dishes. Service was just right. Friendly enough but not overly attentive, and they were there when we needed things like water refills. Overall, I would recommend this place if you are craving Lao or Thai food. I would definitely return. Four stars all the way.

    47 - Pad Thai w/ Chicken
    Antonius B.

    Friendly quick service in a quaint family run restaurant. One of the best Pad Thai plates I've ever had. Sauce was amazing, chicken was tender and the plate had tons of flavor. Tried a bite of the Drunken noodles with beef and it was equally amazing. Best Thai food in the Valley for sure.

    Joseph C.

    Came to the Murietta area to visit family and was feeling adventurous to try some new cuisine. If you've never had Lao food before, Lao Esan Kitchen is an awesome place to try! The staff were some of the warmest and most welcoming people I've encountered. As someone unfamiliar with Lao cuisine, I appreciated how thoughtfully they explained the menu. Super genuine in hospitality. You can tell they care about sharing their food and culture. The ambiance gives cozy, home-style sit-down vibes. The kind of place where you can bring friends or family and order a spread. It feels comfortable and communal. Goong Gra Borg (4/5) Crispy shrimp rolls to start off our meal! The exterior had that light, golden crunch that doesn't feel greasy, and inside was tender, well-seasoned shrimp with a subtle sweetness. Dipped into the sweet and sour sauce, it balanced crispy, tangy, and savory in a way that made it more than "just a starter." It set the tone for the meal without trying too hard. Lao Sausage (5/5) Fragrant with lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves, each bite was savory, citrusy, slightly spicy, and incredibly juicy. It didn't feel heavy like most sausages do. Instead, it had this bright, herbaceous lift that kept me going back for more. It was bold without being overwhelming. This dish stood out to me the most. The Boat Noodle Soup (4/5) The broth had layers: rich and savory up front, then slightly sweet, followed by a gentle herbal warmth that lingered. It tasted like something that had been simmering all day, full of complexity and depth. Every spoonful felt comforting. Spicy Basil Crispy Pork (5/5) This one hit home for me. The crispy pork immediately reminded me of lechon kawali from my culture. It that same satisfying crunch giving way to juicy, flavorful meat. The garlic and basil didn't just sit on top; they infused the dish with fragrance and heat, making every bite aromatic and bold. It was savory, slightly spicy, and honestly addictive. Please please give this place a try, you won't regret it!

    Mango Sticky Rice
    Ray Tito A.

    Place is clean service good. Wife got laab gai salad, ground chicken with herbs like mint and a citrus dressing very refreshing give it a 10. Lao sausage also a 10 nice toasty skin herbs and meat taste yummy plus red sauce give it a kick of spicy. Mee khati coconut curry peanut noodles give it 8 not a lot of meat lots of noodles. Flavor is amazing wont get it again though. Last mango sticky rice give 8 still good wife says a lil off. Over all 5 stars good experience eating lao food. Lao sausage my favorite. Have a nice day!

    43 - Pad Kee Mao (Drunken Noodles)
    Lora B.

    This is absolutely the best Thai food I've ever had. Barely finished eating and I can't wait to come back already with more dishes I want to try than I can possibly eat in one seating. Noodles were saucy, spicy, and bursting with flavor. I got beef with drunken noodles and the beef was so tender too! The pad Thai was the best I've ever tried also. Place got pretty busy after we came in but our server made her rounds with everyone pretty well and the food came out much faster than I expected and was steaming hot. The location feels a little sketch, but inside is adorable with good music, vibes, and instagram worth decor. This is totally worth the trip and I'll be back very soon!

    Kareen-Grace T.

    I had been wanting to try this place since I found out it existed. There are few Asian restaurants in Lake Elsinore, so I was happy to come and support them. Husband and I finally had the opportunity to dine-in on Sunday for lunch. Others have described the atmosphere as warm and cozy. I will agree with that observation, and I'd go further by saying that it feels like I'm visiting a family member's home. Vibes are relaxed and informal giving me a sense of aunties and grandmas cooking in the kitchen. Service was friendly and ordering was easy. We ordered the calamari and Lao sausage for appetizers. Our entree dishes were the steamed pork, crispy pork with Chinese broccoli, and shrimp fried rice. A Lao style tomato dipping sauce came with the sausage and steamed pork dishes. It was tangy, sweet, and spicy. The way the lemongrass was mixed into the pork dishes took me back to flavor profiles of my childhood. This place fully deserves 5 stars for their food, service, and atmosphere. Hubby and I are already planning on coming back. I definitely recommend to give them a try.

    Thai Iced Tea
    Raquel H.

    The food here is delicious and so full of flavor. The Thai tea was the only think that was lacking, it had too much milk and it overpowered the actual tea. The restaurant is very clean and so are the restrooms. The staff is very friendly and attentive. The dining area is spacious and could accommodate a large party. There is lots of parking. The soup was my favorite m, the lemon flavors mixed with the coconut were perfect. The chow mien was also a favorite. I wasn't a huge fan of the fried rice. It was good but it was lacking something. Overall it was a great dinning experience.

    Bonnie Y.

    I didn't have time to dine in but everything looks great on the picture. It looks like a clean and a decent size restaurant. I ordered drunken noodles with pork to go. I asked for medium spicy level and it's spicy but good. I can't wait to go back go try more dishes.

    22 - Tom Ka (Spicy Coconut Milk Soup) 14 - Yum Woon Sen

    Today we decided to come to our favorite Thai place in the IE. Their food is authentic and delicious. I used to live in Los Angeles and would go to little Thailand to eat so I know what's authentic Thai food. Our favorites are the Pad Thai, Tom Ka soup and Yum Woon Sen salad. Service is good. Place is always clean!

    45 - Pad Kee Mao (Drunken Noodles)
    Grace A.

    We've been coming to this restaurant for a year and have ordered the same dish many times. Because my son has a milk, seafood and peanut allergy, I always double-check that the dish I order for him contains nothing he's allergic to and every visit we were assured it was safe. On our most recent visit, the dish unexpectedly came with peanuts. This was extremely upsetting and could have been dangerous. I messaged the owner afterward to share what happened, hoping for an explanation or at least an acknowledgment -- but I never received any response. At this point, I'm really disappointed. This wasn't just a small mistake; it was a serious safety issue, and the lack of communication afterward makes it worse. For families dealing with allergies, consistency and clear communication are essential. After this experience and no response from the owner, our family will no longer come here. I hope they take allergy concerns more seriously moving forward.

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    2 months ago

    Me and my friend went to eat here and it was absolutely delicious. Always my go-to spot in Lake Elsinore

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    The food is excellent, and the people are friendly. It's tucked away in the little shopping plaza, but it's worth looking for.

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    Page 1 of 4

    Ask the Community - Lao Esan Kitchen

    Did you change owners?

    Yes, they are the new owner.

    So they deliver for lunch catering to Riverside?

    Hi Dojo, if you order a minimum of $500, we will deliver. If you have any further questions, you can email us at laoesankitchen1@yahoo.com

    View All 4 Questions

    Spicy Noodle

    Spicy Noodle

    4.1
    (1.3k reviews)
    7.9 mi
    $$

    Sienna was fantastic! She recommended several dishes, so my boyfriend and I decided to order…read morefamily-style and try a few different things. We got the garlic soba noodles, steak stir-fry, and yellow curry, and every single dish was amazing. Not only was the food delicious, but it was also a great value. Our bill came to only about $69, including two beers, and we had enough leftovers for days! Sienna was incredibly attentive, friendly, and sweet throughout our meal, which made the experience even better. This will definitely be one of our new go-to spots. Thank you for a wonderful dining experience!

    Me and my husband walked in and there was no one in sight so we walked closer to the cashier. There…read morewas a young lady who said we'll be right with you and another gentleman just carried food and passed us by. We decided to grab some menus and seat ourselves at a booth... It took 25 minutes for our food to come out! There were only 2 workers and they seemed very busy with about 7 tables of customers. Perhaps they were UNDER STAFFED... TURN OFF: We saw a few tables with dirty plates and dishes that were not picked up or cleaned up after customers had already left... SPICY FRIED RICE: 9/10 probably their best dishes are fried rice. I had a chunk of bell peppers stuck together. The ratio of rice seemed less than the veggies and protein... DRUNKEN NOODLES: 8/10 Tastes more like a Pad See eew noodle dish. It had the dark soy sauce color on it and was in the sweet side... BOAT NOODLES: 8/10 The broth portion was generous and the noodles were nice and chewy but, it was on the bland side. I needed some fish sauce, sugar, vinegar and more condiments... We had to flag servers down for everything we needed even when we were the only ones left in the restaurant. Stuff like more napkins, condiments, check, etc. friendly service but lacked ATTENTIVENESS!!!!! LACK OF ATTENTIVENESS: disappears after dropping off food. Our THAI TEA came out after we finished and packed up our meal so we asked for it in a Togo cup... Despite our experience we stilled tipped generously $10 Tip even though our total bill was about $60... AMBIANCE: It's spacious but, needs to work on clearing the tables after the customers have finished eating... KEEP IT UP SPICY NOODLE!!!!

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    Inside
    Inside
    Spicy Noodle
    Storefront

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    Storefront
    E-San Rod-Sap

    E-San Rod-Sap

    4.3
    (458 reviews)
    39.9 mi
    $$

    been wanting to try display and finally, I was able to !…read moreThey close pretty early so it's pretty tricky for me to just go after work. Decided to go on one of the weekends after working out and this place is packed! Their price is super affordable, and their taste is authentic as well. You get to choose and build your own combo. It's like choose two or three items for your plate. They have handful selections of the curry and soup. I got their larb, mint chicken, catfish and Thai sausage. Everything's so good and we're all happy. They have a mini Thai Mart next-door. I grab one of the desserts because I was craving that one. Parking is hit or miss, limited space in a plaza, but the plaza is quite empty. things to notice that they don't really use their AC so it's pretty warm inside.

    I have a difficult time rating this restaurant. While I love the food here, the grocery store next…read moredoor, and have generally had good customer service experiences over the years, I have also experienced a racist encounter when I brought my Caucasian friend to dine in. Unfortunately, hearing the staff make racist remarks about my friend changed my perception of this place. The staff should be more mindful about openly saying racist things in front of customers in their language. Just because I don't look SEA doesn't mean I don't speak or understand the language. I hope the staff are more mindful of what they say in front of customers in other languages and avoid making assumptions based on someone's appearance. I genuinely enjoy their food, but experiences like this make it difficult to recommend the restaurant without hesitation. My favorite dishes here are the nam khao tod and the saku sai moo, which only available at the steam table on weekends.

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    March 2025 menu
    March 2025 menu
    3 item
    3 item
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    March 2025 menu
    Southeast Asian Food To Go

    Southeast Asian Food To Go

    4.9
    (63 reviews)
    35.9 mi
    $$

    Southeast Asian Food To Go is such a great spot! It's a…read morehidden Gem on Highland Ave. Can't believe it's been here for over a year, and I've passed by without knowing it existed. I'm so happy we stopped by today. The owners are so friendly and welcoming. The inside is very well maintained and tidy. They have a good menu as they serve different/variety of Asain dishes from Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. We ordered Thai: green papaya salad, Cambodian: beef/ chicken sticks, Vietnamese: Pho, Vietnamese: Bun luc Lac, Vietnamese: beef Banh mi, 6 egg rolls, and two Thai: teas with boba. The dishes are homemade with love. They taste like and feel like you we're invited to someone's home to eat grandma and mom's home cooking/ recipes. Definitely a great spot for some good eats!

    Excellent service and warm reception. Small place but clean and comfortable…read more Ordered Pad Thai but did not taste as anticipated. On the bland side lacking the usual bit of sweetness, sour, salty and peanuty all together. Nam Kao Tod Laosian dish not bad but a bit too spicy. Cambodian marinated Beef Sticks flavorful but meat not very tender and on the dry side. Fried banana was good. Had to rerun fried shrimp for being too spicy (good flavor though). Sticky rice and mango was good but overall it was a mix feed back of different tastes. May have to come back again and give it another try and enjoy more.

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    Khmer/ Vietnamese
    Khmer/ Vietnamese
    Thai / Laos
    Thai / Laos
    Closed Monday

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    Closed Monday
    Vientiane Lao Thai

    Vientiane Lao Thai

    4.2
    (1.6k reviews)
    38.3 mi
    $$

    This unassuming Lao cuisine restaurant is located in a busy plaza in Garden Grove. The portions…read morewere surprisingly large and delicious. The Fried Rice (Khoua Kao) was really good, our 12-year old son enjoyed that the most, and the flavor was a pleasant change from your typical fried rice. It was wok fried as you could tell from the charred rice edges. What we really came for was the Lao sausage which was served with a savory, jammy, chili sauce. Alongside the Crispy Fried Rice, we were totally satisfied!

    After having Vientiane Lao Thai bookmarked for a few years, I finally had the opportunity to give…read morethem a try. Located in the heart of Little Saigon, I'm embarrassed it took me this long to stop by, given the fact that all my SoCal visits forever revolve around this area. I came here with a party of 4. The restaurant is small in size so it fills up quite quickly. Seating is provided on the side for those who wait and placing your name on the waitlist is key. Lunch: *PAD SE EW (Combination $19.99)- Stir fried soft rice noodle with egg, chinese vegetables, and black sweet soy sauce. *PAD THAI (Sea food $20.99)- Fried noodles with choice of meat, eggs, bean sprouts, carrots, cilantro, and green onions. *JUNGLE PAPAYA SALAD $20.99- Shredded Green Papaya with thai eggplant, long green bean, ong choy, pork rind Food- Both noodle dishes were great. Noodles were coated well with the flavoring/sauce but still had a good bite to it. Noodles were not overcooked and the pad se ew had a very distinct charred tasted from the wok- DELICIOUS to say the least!! The papaya salad was what I was looking forward to the most. During the time or ordering, I request for this dish to be "SPICY SPICY" and asked for extra padaek. The server 100% obliged but I assumed the kitchen staff would balance things out with a little extra sugar and lime... that wasn't the case. The papaya salad was really spicy and really salty. I still managed to eat the dish but would have loved a more well-rounded mixture of flavors. Service was great. The two younger gentleman took orders, Rang up customers, and brought food out to the guests. They were kind, patient, and obviously followed patron's requests to a T. 4 stars. Next time I'll be a lot more clear in my request for extra padaek sauce and I'll have to try Vientiane Lao Thai's lod chong [green worms is what is used to call this growing up].

    Photos
    08.15.24
    08.15.24
    Crispy Fried Rice (nam Kao) $ 14.99 1.30.24
    Crispy Fried Rice (nam Kao) $ 14.99 1.30.24
    Chili condiments

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    Chili condiments
    OWL OWL Thai Lao Street Food

    OWL OWL Thai Lao Street Food

    4.3
    (362 reviews)
    51.0 mi
    $$

    The food at Second Owl Owl is outstanding. It's foodie friendly and also accessible to non foodies…read more If you like seafood, I highly recommend the sea bass larb. The sea bass was sushi-grafe fresh. If you like ceviche, you'll love the dish. The crying tiger was perfectly prepared. The sauces that came with the Belmont dish (papaya salad & grilled chicken) are good. Once sauce is a citrusey fish sauce and the other takes like it's honey-based. The service is outstanding as the location is great for walking around after a nice meal. Excited to bring friends and family here

    I was craving for some Laos food and wanted to try something new…read more First off, we ordered to go. The wife wanted to use the restroom. It says no public restroom on the outside, ok fine. But when went to pick up the order, they told her they didn't have a restroom. So what is it? You do or don't have a restroom. From my understanding a restaurant needs to have a restroom. Anywho, we got the laab and Laos sausage. Laab was pretty good. But the sausage was peculiar. I never seen it the meat with a reddish hue to it. Everyone I tried had a standard color to it. It was also dry as heck. It was so dry, Im like, did I order some jerky or something??? Overall, with the customer service experienced and item being below quality. I probably won't be coming back.

    Photos
    OWL OWL Thai Lao Street Food
    Fried rice combination, if you like curry with twist this is it :)
    Fried rice combination, if you like curry with twist this is it :)
    Butterfly Tea

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    Butterfly Tea

    Lao Esan Kitchen - thai - Updated August 2026

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