Out of this world good! A variety of dishes and flavors and every single one was on-point. read more

Great food. Great cocktails. Cute date spot. Always able to get a table in a reasonable time. Staff is wonderful.

Haven't been back to Thip Khao in several years! I think the experience here is very dish dependent. The place is bright and the waitresses were very friendly. We asked for recommendations because we couldn't really decide what to get. The potato puffs were interesting - much sweeter than anticipated and almost tastes like baked apple and sweet potato. The chili fermented rice was just ok, but the crispy coconut rice was delicious! The combination of flavors and textures in this dish was on point! I'd go back for this dish and mix up the others to be honest. We didn't try any desserts but would like to next time read more

Quite possibly my favorite restaurant in DC. Laotian food is the love child of Vietnamese and Thai - the best of both worlds and the culinary gem of Southeast Asia. Every dish at this restaurant is an adventure for the senses - both in texture and flavor. Upon entering, you're greeted with a mouthwatering scent of savory and sweet aromas. Enjoy a tiny amuse-bouche of cucumber and chili paste to get the taste buds going. But prior to diving into the main dishes, be sure to try the PIING HUA JAI KAI (chicken hearts on a skewer). You'll be amazed how tender and juicy heart muscle can be. Here are my favorite dishes, and I suggest you try all of them! Salads - NAEM KHAO HU MUU - crispy rice with pig ear and sour pork. This salad has a delightful combination of textures (crispy, chewy) and a beautiful array of flavors (salty, sour, sweet, savory). Served with lettuce wraps, you won't be able to fill them with enough of this delicious mixture! KUA MEE - rice noodles with caramel fish sauce. Noodles are great, but the sauce is the star of this dish! You don't need to add protein. Just get the noodles and get one of the dishes below to accompany. KHAO SIIN/MUU HAENG - crispy sesame jerky. I don't know how they get the sauce to so thickly coat the beef, but Oh. My. God. This is the best jerky you'll ever have. And you'll forget all about that dry leathery junk you buy in plastic bags. Finally, my favorite favorite FAVORITE dish of all time: *drumroll* MUU SOM - sour pork belly with wood ear mushrooms. I have dreams of this sour pork belly. If you're the type that shies from anything that says "pork belly", get ready to have your world turned upside down. The delicate mushrooms are so mouthwatering and perfectly accompany the amazing sour pork belly. How do they do it?! I don't know. It doesn't matter. Just order it and you can inbox me your thanks. read more

One of the best meals you can have in DC. Make sure you make a reservation & order the pig ears!

Went here for dinner on NYE. First of all, reservations were straightforward via Rezy. Also, they actually had availability on NYE which was impressive for a top area restaurant! I actually got a really late reservation online and called in the day of and asked if they had any openings earlier and they kindly switched our reservation to an earlier time. Service here, in person, was also excellent when dined! It was my first time having Laotian food. It was a tantalizing cross between Thai (my favorite) and Vietnamese, and very very flavorful as you might imagine. We had the Kua Khao Jaew Bong (fermented chili fried rice with egg, fish sauce, thai basil, etc) and the Khao Soi soup (wide rice noodle soup, fermented soybean-tomato sauce, hon shimeji, cilantro, onion, lettuce heart, fried garlic). Both were EXCELLENT. The soup was reminiscent of Ramen but with wider noodles and a more flavorful broth due to the fried garlic and fermented soybean-tomato sauce. For dessert we had 3 scoops of ice cream: pineapple-coconut-fish sauce caramel, coconut-pandan, and pineapple-thai bird chili! They were all amazing, especially the latter 2 (the first tasted a lot like butterscotch). And the pineapple-thai bird chili WAS actually spicy - kind of awesome for ice cream. Anyway, ambiance is great 9/10. A lot of great seating, although some of the smaller tables that seat 2 people are pretty close together. Probably still a great date night spot, though! Highly recommend if you are into trying out new cuisines! read more

Outstanding food and service. All good f the food was great but the sausage stood out. I could eat it all day.

I was very excited to try this restaurant, I drove out from nova, made reservations which required me to pay $20 to book. The reservations came with no instructions about parking or how to reach the restaurant, I drove 40 mins to get there but only to realize there is no where to park on the street or garages. I drove around for 25 minutes looking for parking but there was none available except for a 20 min walk away which made no sense due to already being late. We called the restaurant 7 times over the course of 30 mins but the phone went straight to voicemail. I emailed the owners to reschedule but received no reply and I'm out $20 for the reservation. I would recommend to look elsewhere if you're commuting into coming here, or for this business to communicate to their customers where to look for parking as many businesses already do. read more

We ordered delivery from here through post mates, while I would usually not recommend this as someone's first experience at a non-delivery restaurant, I had no option in the matter. Either way the food here is very good, everything we ordered was delicious. The must trys are the pork skewers, beef jerky, and the crispy rice. The jerky is addictive, it's crispy but sweet and spicy. You could easily eat a whole thing of it and not even know it. The pork skewers are flavorful and juicy. The crispy rice is a great vessel for other things but it's delicious on it's own as well. All in all I was very impressed and would return. read more

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I was charged $20 for reserving a spot here, I could not find parking after looking for over 30-40 minutes, I called the restaurant multiple times and no one would answer or respond to us. I was charged $20 and was not refunded even though I was unable to make the reservation due to parking, I asked for the money and they blatantly ignored me. What a shady practice for a business that has been successful in DC, many other better options for thai food. read more

Spicy. Crunchy. Delicious. Fresh flavors. Love the sticky rice and quail especially. Love to visit whenever I'm in NYC

Came for the 2nd time. First time was good. But this time 60% of the dishes (we ordered 6-7 dishes) were salty beyond sanity. We couldnt finish the meal and had to take home most of it. The server did not say anything when we said the dishes were salty. We did not expect anything in return but just an acknowledgment so that they can improve. Tips were auto included. Would have put the minimum 15% instead of 20%. Not coming back. read more

Thip Khao - Salty fried rice, laab and papaya salad. - Laotian Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

My recent move to the DC area has me searching and finding all new food scenes. I have not yet lived in a city that offered Laotian cuisine. With that said, Laotian food does have similarities to Thai cuisine. Truly, this restaurant is a gem. It is very popular, located in the Columbia Heights neighborhood. There are limited street parking available, and ~7 min walk from the nearest metro stop (Columbia Heights stop / Green or Yellow lines). It a medium sized restaurant, definitely not large, nicely decorated. I would highly recommend a reservation, or you can expect a long wait especially if you come on a weekend. The first time we did not make reservations and ended up eating at the bar, which is full service, a little tight given that it's family style meals, but offered happy hour between 5-7! Really good way to try foods for a cheaper price. My food recommendations: 1) Tam Mak Houng - papaya salad. This is generally an appetizer but it is a must have. There are several papaya salads on the menu, this is the most traditional (I think, according to my Laotian best friend). Essentially, it tastes most similar to the ones we make at home. It is SPICY, and funky (due to the fermented shellfish)...and I love it. At home, we eat papaya salad with pork rinds. Here we ate it with the fried pig ears! 2) Hu Muu Todd - fried pig ears. Again, a funky food item. It has a weird texture that I hope you are brave enough to try. It pairs really well with the papaya salad, or alone with the dipping sauce (that I'm a huge fan of). 3) Laab - This is ground "meat" that is flavored with a citrusy salty sauce. A staple in Laos culture as well. It is served with purple sticky rice in a cute little rice container. Feeling adventurous? Try the alligator. I went with the chicken, but will try alligator another time. For main dishes, you really can't go wrong. I haven't tried them all yet but I really enjoyed the Khao Poon (which is curry based) and the Chuenh Paa Sa Moun Pai which is the crispy catfish. There are gluten free and vegan options here, and even a symbol that denotes "Go to the Jungle" for the adventurous foods. My best friend is visiting soon - so we will definitely be back. read more

Thip Khao was my first Laotian cuisine experience and it did not disappoint. The Kua Mee was delicious! It's noodles with tofu in sauce, with a few too many bean sprouts on top. I asked them to hold the fish sauce and they did! I tried the curry puffs everyone was raving about but it looked like a McDonald's apple pie. Cocktails unfortunately missed the mark, I don't know if it was cheap liquor or odd ingredients, unfortunately wasn't as creative as they wanted it to be as they tasted bad. The hostess, a young black woman didn't catch her name was very friendly. You'll need a reservation for Friday night as this place is packed! It is frustrating to see 6 empty tables and be told they are being saved for someone. Well if all of them aren't here, start giving a few away. read more

Attempted to dine in after calling to see if we needed to make a reservation and they said no. The person on the phone said that we could simply come by and walk in. However, when we arrived at the restaurant after coming from Bethesda on the Metro, the business owner said all of the tables were full and that we had to sit outside. He asked why we didn't make a reservation? Well, we said we had called an hour before and the person on the phone said we didn't need it. But the guy kept insisting that we couldn't dine in. We were obviously disappointed and were about to leave. Then they sat us down at a table outside saying if a table indoors gets open, we can get in. Received some waters, but after waiting 10 minutes, no tables were open and it started raining. So, we found a different Laotian/Thai restaurant down the street, and we decided to leave. Bad customer service and rudeness, didn't try to accommodate customers who tried to dine in after calling in and trying to make a reservation after saying we didn't need one! Lost new customers forever! I wouldn't recommend this restaurant to anyone!!! read more

First of all, I'm Laotian and I had such high hopes for this place since Lao cuisine is hard to find. But man, the papaya salad (tham mak hoong) tasted like lime juice and fish sauce! The tomatoes weren't crushed or blended In the salad. You couldn't tasted any other flavors. The beef jerky was on the sweeter side and other few dishes were so-so. Purple sticky rice? It's not usually served with the entree but used in desserts. Albeit it wasn't sweet; odd nonetheless. I told the waiter and he said he would tell the cooks. At other establishments, when feedback is given, the cooks/ management staff comes out to address the issue/ compliment. As we left, the hostess avoided us, made no eye contact and so we just left. The food wasn't good and the prices don't justify the experiences, service or food. read more

First time trying Laos food. Some strong dishes, other dishes fell flat Strong - laab with chicken was yummy, a tad on the sour side for my taste, Piing Kaw Muu (pork shoulder) was probably the best dinner dish, really juicy and well seasoned Weak - Muu Som (pork belly). This was a big disappointment because pork belly is one of my favorite foods. It was overly salted and oily. Didn't finish this dish, which I can't even remember the last time I didn't finish a pork belly dish. I know it's probably not made in house but the iced tamarind was also way too sweet, it was like "Mexican soda" levels of sweet. Decent - Kua Mee (wok rice noodles). The noodles themselves have a good crispy texture, the other ingredients are alright, felt a bit lacking. read more

Sunday was our very last day in DC (nooooo...), and we wanted to hit up just two more spots! The first was Thip Khao, and the second was Baked & Wired. This Laotian restaurant was featured on many DC must eats lists, so we definitely had to make our trek over to eat here. Parking around this restaurant is pretty horrendous, but we got lucky when we snagged a spot after driving around a few neighborhood streets. The restaurant is clean and modern, with big open windows in the front that lets in lots of natural light. Although it was pretty dreary and cold that day, it wasn't terribly dark outside. Between the three of us, we decided to order everything that sounded delicious and everything exotic. You can order off the standard menu, or you can order off the "jungle menu." Obviously, we went with the latter. We had pig's blood sausages, fried pig's ears, minced alligator (yum!), fermented snake head, crispy catfish, spicy goat curry stew. Surprisingly, we were able to finish almost all of the six dishes we ordered! Everything was that delicious. With Fiola Mare as a fantastic first meal in DC, I was glad Thip Khao was a fantastic last meal. read more

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The DC food scene is that much better with Thip Khao around. I have never had Laotian food, nor would I have thought that I would eat Laotian food anytime soon. When my boyfriend and I found out that this place exists, we knew that we had to go. The restaurant is small, but this only adds to the charm. The restaurant is modern but is well-decorated with Laotian-inspired traditional designs and sculptures. There is even a painting on one side of the room of the, I believe, owner's parents. It really makes it all feel like you're a guest at a Laotian family's home, added to the fact that a few of the servers we spoke to were from Laos. For an appetizer, we ordered the Chuenh Peek Gai (crispy chili-glazed chicken wings) because we have a thing for chicken wings and like to see different cultures' takes on it. We were not disappointed in the very least; when they say crispy, they really mean it! They were perfectly crispy on the outside and were juicy and tender on the inside, along with a great, unique flavor. For our mains, we ordered the Khao Siin/Muu Haeng with beef (crispy sesame jerky) and the Moak Paa Nongbon with catfish (steamed inside banana leaves) to share. The crispy sesame jerky was delicious and nearly perfectly cooked. I particularly liked the sweetness of the meat. My boyfriend and I also really enjoyed the fermented chili-fish sauce that came with it. We started dipping everything we had on the table into that sauce! As for the the catfish, I had high expectations. Unfortunately, it was too salty for me to the point that it made it difficult to finish, which is why I'm deducting a star. The one positive I will say about it is the presentation in the banana leaves and the use of dill. It was also a nice treat to be served the dark sticky rice in small wooden baskets along with our meal. I am sad to say that at the end, we were too full to order dessert. Would we go back? Yes! I would love to try other things on the menu, particularly the "Feeling adventurous? Go to the Jungle!" dishes. read more

Thip Khao - Moak Paa Nongbon with catfish - Laotian Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

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My whole life, I have been Laotian food deprived. What's worse is that I had no idea until Thip Kao. Thankfully, I appreciate the schooling! Tasty schooling, too... As others have noted, there are some unique menu items here when you take a stroll over to the aptly named jungle menu. Perhaps I am not so bold, or maybe my dietary principles are just that limiting... either way, I stuck with the traditional menu. I love the markings G for gluten free and V for veg*n. Makes things easier! They also have the little icon for 'jungle' menu items- if you feel like being more adventurous. What to eat is up to you, but I am plenty happy with the numerous salad choices, including some spicy green papaya salad and green mango salad (tam som and tam muk moang). In the noodles, curry and soup section- everything I've tried or seen is delicious in taste or sight or both! Red curry with basil (ghang phet), rice vermicelli with curry (khao poon) and fresh veggies and wide rice noodles (kua mee). The drink menu is abounding with choices, but enjoy how you pick your poison there. Because dessert matters, ummmm, mango sticky rice! Even if you had sticky rice with your meal, you know you want more for dessert. Here, they top it with chopped mango and crunchy rice pieces, or at least I think that's what those green and toasted crunch components are! If the food isn't enough, the attentive, friendly, knowledgeable and efficient staff will help you feel well taken care of for your meal. On top of that, the decor is elegant and modern. In addition to creating a spectacularly unique and flavorful menu, they took the time to train their staff and decorate the space. I don't know anyone who's been here who didn't like it! Just don't be surprised at waiting on the weekends for dinner - best make reservations or order takeout! read more

Delicious Thai food in DC. We went on the earlier side (6 pm) on a Friday night and had no issue getting a table, though probably best to have a reservation. The drinks were delicious - I like the green mango in particular. The food also was amazing. I enjoyed the khao siin, per the waiters recommendation, and the naem khao huu muu. We also got the khao long for dessert which was a little more savory than expected. I probably wouldn't go back for the dessert but the entrees were truly delicious. read more

This was my first experience with Laotian cuisine, and it definitely left me wanting more! I easily made reservations on Resy a couple of days in advance for 8:15pm on a Friday. Absolutely do this, or your wait will probably be an hour. We were seated at a small table right behind the host stand upon arrival. I appreciated the server immediately asked about allergies even though we do not have any. The drink list was smallish but still satisfactory, and I was surprised by the number of ciders they have; 6 if I remember correctly. Whichever one I had, pear and something, was refreshing. The complimentary cucumbers with the spicy sauce on top ended up being a great palate cleanser. All food items are brought out when ready, so while our app was first, my husband received his meal far before I received mine. Luckily, he shared. We started with the Siin Haeng (crispy sesame jerky, ginger, sriracha). There is also a pork option in addition to our choice, the beef. This was absolutely delicious! I loved the heat on the jerky and the spicy sauce. The meat was nicely cooked and the portion was quite sufficient.Both my husband and I ordered off the "Jungle Menu". He chose the Paa Tod (crispy catfish, spicy fish sauce, red onion, mint, cashew) and I ordered the Pon Paa with pork (charred eggplant stew, padaek, mushroom, cilantro, soft poached egg). The Paa Tod was very flavorful and had a nice spice without being overwhelming. The catfish was nicely crispy and I liked the texture the cashews added. I do not really like catfish but this dish was excellent! The Pon Paa also had a nice kick to it! The pork was plentiful and nicely seasoned. Lots of eggplant and mushrooms. The soft poached egg made the broth richer and was a nice addition. Service was great during our meal! I loved what I ordered and can't wait to return for the Goat Curry Stew! read more

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I came here last night for a friend's birthday dinner and had a fantastic experience. Being a lover of all Asian cuisines, I was disappointed in myself for not knowing of this restaurant earlier! Drinks - they have a full bar where many people enjoy their time at while they wait for a seat. they have a great selection of spirits, interesting cocktails and beer/cider. My friends had a couple cocktails including one that had rye whiskey and pomegranate which was really good. The rest of us enjoyed our beer selections - I started with the House Lao beer and the Right Proper saison (go local breweries!) Their menu is meant to be family style and half of their dishes are 'jungle-style' as in they are quite adventurous in the meats & parts of animals that they serve. Loved that immediately! We also had a vegan who was able to find many dishes that he could eat. Starters - pork jerky (must!), fried quail, chicken hearts (long time fan and was not disappointed), sweet potato puffs, and pork blood sausage (so good) Mains - pork belly (delicious!!), spicy fried rice with pork (it was soo spicy but delicious), wok fried noodles (pad Thai-esque and equally delicious), fried pork with an amazing coconut sticky rice side, and fried catfish (great spicy sauce too), the vegan had a vegetable noodle soup that he really enjoyed. We were unfortunately too full for dessert but I will definitely be coming back!! read more

The concept of the restaurant and the unique options from the menu (such as the "jungle" side of the menu) was what intrigued me and what made me make reservations as we visited DC. It was very busy when we went, and we did have to wait a bit longer for our food - but I understand this as we were out on a Saturday night. I ordered the Laab E'Kae, and this was the most bright and refreshing salad. I loved the spicy flavors, the brightness of the apples, the texture of the minced alligator with toasted rice powder.. it was definitely the favorite of the night. It came with a pouch of delicious (sticky-ish) rice on the side. The main dish I ordered I was less impressed with. I ordered the Moak Paa, which was catfish steamed inside banana leaves with herbal rice paste and mushrooms. There was far too much dill flavor for my liking and while it came with another rich pouch on the side, I would've like to have something else along with the catfish and mushrooms. It was too much of one taste and texture. Anyways, I give this restaurant bonus points for the creativity, the presence of the "jungle menu", and authenticity of their flavors and foods. The waiter was able to explain the menu and any questions we had very well. I would love to go again, just to try any of their dishes (especially on the jungle side). read more

Thip Khao - Moak Paa Nongbon - Laotian Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

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The only Laotian restaurant in DC, this 2018 Michelin-recognizes restaurant was well worth the visit! From the moment we walked in, we were impressed by the friendly staff and how quickly the place filled up for lunch. They have a solid range of options including a "jungle menu" for those craving items out of the ordinary (alligator was one thing on the menu). We really enjoyed the small dishes, especially the beef jerky and the chicken wings. While the larger dishes were tasty,, we'd recommend getting a sampling of smaller dishes as your meal (probably 2-3 per person). The portions were a good size and prices were very reasonable! We look forward to our next visit! read more

Another rare 5-star rating for me! But WOW, I was just so blown away by how amazing this place was! Our group of 5 knew we wanted to come here SO SO BAD, we did have one heck of a time trying to make reservations (we tried Monday, Tuesday, and finally got through on Wednesday - the day we had anticipated going). A little bit on their reservation process: Yes, you almost certainly want a reservation although you can put your name in upon arrival... wait times can vary considerably. Also, they do NOT offer online reservation / phone app reservations. This is old school where you need to call up on a phone and pray someone answers. No, they do not always answer. No, you cannot leave a voice mail requesting a reservation. No, they do not apparently accept future reservations on Tuesdays.... that remains a mystery to me. Nevertheless, we called immediately on Wednesday at noon when they opened, and secured our spot for 5 at 7:45PM that night. We arrived on time and were promptly seated, the place was PACKED. Our server: amazing. He explained the best way to order is family style, choosing from a few appetizers and probably MAX 3 entrees. We were all like, "this guy doesn't know how much we can eat...." HAH, we were mistaken. First appetizer: SIIN HAENG (Beef jerky, $12): It is not the american style beef jerky you may be envisioning (tough, dry, etc). These were slices of beef perfectly tender, flavored in ginger and crispy sesame, served with that amazing coconut rice that makes you want to die right there and then. They provide a small dipping bowl of sriracha for some extra spice if you wish to add it. GET THIS, GET IT NOW. This easily provided enough for all 5 of us to try and have extra to go around, In fact, I believe everyone got about 2 pieces. SO GOOD. Second appetizer: NAEM KHAO (crispy coconut rice with sour pork, $12)- NOT SOUR, do not be alarmed! At least, not sour in the way I would believe it to be with my american brain. We asked for the peanuts to be provided on the side due to nut allergies, and this was not an issue at all. They provided large lettuce leaves to scoop this delightful dish into. Think of it kind of like a fried rice... except not at all like fried rice and 1000x better. This was amazing. Highly recommend. They even offered to bring extra lettuce! *also note, there are some VERY spicy peppers hidden among this dish, they are like a dark red... be warned. Our expert on spice *ie: eats ghost peppers on the reg., said they were "pretty spicy*) First entree: KHAO SIIN (Crispy Beef Jerky, $15)- ok, we like our beef in this group. This is also served with the deliciousness that is coconut sticky rice - I have nothing negative to say at all about this, it was so damn good. Second entree: KUA MEE (wok fried rice noodles, *added chicken* $14): think of this like a type of pad thai. We again opted for the peanuts to be removed. But it was delicious and very much resembled a standard pad thai... please do not take that to mean I am uncultured or something, but that's what it reminded me of! It was incredibly delicious and also easily fed our entire table with enough for additional servings. Third entree: OOB BAE (spicy goat curry, $15)- this is served in a pot (we could have easily asked them to separate in small bowls but did not), and is a traditional goat curry - rice served on the side. More like goat stew really.... but not stew, perhaps goat soup? The broth is thinner, has veggies, the goat meat is DELICIOUS. And you get a lot of goat meat too, none of that skimpy shit. Huge chunks. Enough for our entire table to taste. We ended up just kind of putting the rice on our plate and throwing some of this delicious stew/soup/whatever on at the end and had no regrets. There was no room for dessert. There were also no leftovers or any morsel of food left behind. We ate EVERYTHANG. And were comfortably full, close to too full, at the end (and yes, this is a mix of ladies and gentlemen, not like we were eating like birds here). So all that being said, WITH an order of a bottle of the house red ($30) AND two cocktail orders, the tab came to a *shocking* $28/person. FOR FIVE PEOPLE. EXTREMELY REASONABLE HERE. This is easily going to be one of my new favorite places. The timing of the food was quick, efficient, and the server was pleasant and helpful every step of the way. Even when we badgered him for recommendations, etc. Also - they are able to accommodate spice levels for *most* everything. read more

Thip Khao - Laotian Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

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A bit far from central DC where the main attractions are but well worth the uber trip for highly flavorful Laotian food which is basically a mix of Malasian & Thai food - spicy, tangy and pure yumminess. Definitely try to get a reservation or else you'll be waiting upwards of 90 mins on a bad day. We didn't have a reservation, so after waiting for nearly 40 minutes, we were able to snag a couple of seats at the side of the bar which was basically a mini table. We took two chairs and let another couple use the remaining chair. CHUENH TAOHU - Crispy squares of tofu in a light sweet and tangy chili glaze - great for vegetarians. Sizable dish and delicious over rice. LARB W/ ALLIGATOR - Tender ground alligator which really does taste just like chicken, spiced with chilies and tangy with fresh citrus + mint. The few slices of cucumber and radish don't seem like much but they do help cool down the palette. This also came with the purple sticky rice, which is nicely dense and almost tasted a tad sweet. PAD THAI W/CHICKEN - Thick sweet tamarind paste and nicely cooked rice noodles with a good portion of chicken and fried egg. All around yum-o. read more

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Thip Khao has gotten a lot of press for its legendary Laotian food, and I see why! My favorite part is the strong flavor profile of the dishes. Sour, salty, herbal, tart, umami. It's a go to when I'm craving warm cozy dishes. We ordered the wide noodle soup and herbal tofu; a good balance. read more

Thip Khao - Laotian Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

Very disappointing experience this past Sunday - my girlfriend and I have been going there for years. Loved the Secret Jungle Menu before the pandemic hit! Level of spice this time was anemic. Honestly been hit or miss, one visit fantastic, a different day luke warm or like yesterday a fail. Papaya salad with salted seafood and even regular Tom Sum both inedible salt licks without a hint of the taste we were used to. GF also insisted that the Papaya salad papaya texture was incorrectly shaved/cut/prepared - she's a Cambodian, can make Papaya salad correctly herself, and loved what excellent papaya salad Thip Khao used to make. The Tamarind soy appetizer which used to have a delightful burn now nothing but soy mcnuggets in a sweet tamarind sauce. We both had catfish entrees, catfish was fried perfectly but not a hint of spice even tho' we asked for spicy and extra (Lao) spicy. read more

The food is great! I've been there twice now and have not been disappointed. The first time i was there for happy hour. I got a bunch of appetizers like pig ear and chicken skewers and fried chicken. I nightly recommend coming for happy hour! This second time I actually had a full meal. Shared between 3, we had papaya salad (spicy but not too spicy, great with a side of sticky rice), blackened fried quail( nothing special but tasty), steamed catfish (cold dish with tartness from tomato's maybe tamarind?), and red coconut curry. The red coconut curry was for sure the star. read more

I walked away from here having the best dinner that I have had in a long time! I have friends that are involved in the Lao community in the Bay Area. Every year we attend the Lao New Year to celebrate by eating and dancing. It is my favorite time of the year. When Eater.com listed Thip Khao on the essential 38, I had to go. From the moment that I walked in the door and smelled the fish sauce I knew it was going to be good. We ordered Green papaya salad - one of the best that I have ever had! The perfect amount of heat, just a little burn on the lips. Not too sweet. Laab w/alligator - this was the highlight of the evening. Amazing fresh herbs in every bite. A sauce that should be served with a straw. Snakehead - this was good, but as I got deeper into the bowl it got a little too salty. I liked the flavor and the heat. Tamarind soup w/shrimp - the surprise of the night. It was spicier than I expected. At times I could not tell if it was the chemical or the heat that was burning my tongue. It was a good burn. Purple sticky rice - it was free with the entree. Who does that?! What did I learn today? Sorry 2 Amys, Thip Khao has replaced you as my go to restaurant after getting off the airplane. What else? I live more than 2000 miles away. Looks like I am headed D.C. more often. read more

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Chef Seng is the bomb. Eat more Lao food! Pigs ear, chicken heart, jerky, sour pork nam khao. You can't go wrong. What a gem. If you're near seven corners, go to padaek which is also run by Chef Seng. read more

Came with girlfriends for Sunday lunch. They don't serve cocktails for lunch so that was disappointing :( but the food made up for it ;) Sour Thai Iced Tea: 3/5 Lemon+Thai Ice Tea w/o the milk. It was interesting...definitely very sweet. I had to water it down a lot. Not sure if I would get this again Coconut Juice: 5/5 Fresh coconut out of the shell. It's a bit pricey $8 but it's so refreshing with a hint of coconut milk. The waitress cut it open for us after we were done with the juice and the coconut meat inside was delicious!!! It's just so fresh that I'm now hooked!! Beer Lao Dark: 4/5 It's dark but not as dark as I would expect it to be Cigar City Margarita Gose: 4/5 sour ale not too sweet Hu Muu Todd: 4/5 Fried Pig Ears...very crispy~ it's perfect with beer...portion was pretty generous Sai Oua Luad: 5/5 Blood Pork Sausage... really loved this dish!!! the pineapple soybean sauce that came with it was amazing and perfect with the sausage Laab E'kae: 3/5 minced alligator salad...this one is the only dish that I may not get again. It was toasted with lots of herbs that I don't know what I'm eating...It was good but comparing to other dishes this is just ok Muu Som: 5/5 AMAZING PORK BELLY!!!! OMG I would totally go back for this one. it's a bit sour but perfect with the pork belly. It is a bit on the oily side though but is perfect with the purple rice that came with it Kua Khao Jaew Bong: 4/5 Fermented Chili Fried Rice...this reminds me of Thai fried rice. It's well flavored. My only complaint is that I asked for this with sausage but I could barely find any... This is one of the restaurant that I would definitely come back when I'm @ DC area. It is pretty busy even at lunch time so definitely make reservation if you know you're coming here~ read more

As a self-proclaimed DC foodie, co-contributor to the instagram @dcbucketlister and a recent visitor to Northern Thailand I was eager to get a reservation at this Laotian restaurant I've been hearing so much about! Here's what we ordered: (See pictures below) Muu Som: 4/5 - Rice cured sour pork belly with wood ear mushrooms, toasted chili, and puffed rice created a tangy yet savory and subtle spicy flavor and was a great way to start our Thip Khao experience. I for one don't think you can go wrong once you've included pork belly in a dish! Tam Som: 4/5 - Classic green papaya salad made with fish sauce, tomatoes, tamarind, chili, palm sugar and crushed peanuts. After just visiting Thailand we were familiar with this dish and relished the chance to try another version of it. It did not disappoint and gave us the spicy sweet mix we had been dreaming of! Siin/Muu Haeng: 5/5 - This was a crispy sesame jerky made with ginger and served with sour chili sauce can be made with either beef or pork. We got the Pork Jerky which was so deliciously sour and smoky when paired with the spicy dipping sauce the flavor became irresistible and we actually ordered a second plate! This time trying the beef which was equally as flavorful. If I had to pick a favorite I would definitely still stick with the pork as it was an explosion of flavor I will surely be back for! Gaeng Phet: 4/5 - Red coconut curry is up there with my top soups I've ever had so when I saw they had a classic looking curry on the menu I was quick to order a chicken Gaeng Phet. It was as suspected...creamy, spicy, and full of flavor. Pour this over rice and have a party. Chuenh Paa Sa Moun Pai: 5/5 - Crispy fried catfish with a spicy fish sauce combined with lemongrass, mint, cilantro, cashew, and to top it off the most perfect flavor explosion fried shallots. Dipping the catfish into the spicy sauce was one of those dishes that instantly transports you to Asia sitting along a river eating a fresh meal prepared by locals. It was incredible. Hu Muu Todd: 3/5 - Crispy fried pig ears with tamarind salt and fermented chili-fish sauce. If you have ever had chicharrones and were not grossed out by the fattiness and the texture of the cartilage you should give this dish a try. It is very savory and salty and when dipped in the fish sauce combines for an excellent flavor and one that I personally would enjoy snacking on again. That being said if you do not like the fatty chewy texture this might be a dish to avoid. Not Pictured Dishes: Chuenh Nok: 4/5 - Crispy chili glazed wings were delicious. If you like wings these are a solid choice. Tam Muk Houng Phet Phet 4/5 - This papaya salad dish brought the heat...seriously. We were warned by our server that we may not be able to handle it so of course we took this as a challenge. We we're able to survive the ordeal with just a little bit of sweating and and muttered cursing. If you do not like spicy food you should avoid this!! It honestly is a delicious dish but was difficult to continue eating after the initial bite puts you into a spice coma..eater beware! Overall Review: 5/5 - All the dishes combined for a delicious dining experience that transports you to a different culture. It was my first step into Lao food and will certainly not be the last. Chef Seng has an amazing thing going with the @LaoFoodMovement and Thip Khao should definitely be on your #DCbucketlist for restaurants to try in DC! read more

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All five of us shared 6 different dishes and all were delicious! We'd go back there again!

Probably my favourite place in DC. I've tried most of the vegetarian/vegan menu items, and all of them are so, so good and each dish has unique flavors. Honestly I recommend anything. The laab is a classic and a great appetizer for sharing. The crispy potato puffs are kind of like a sweet samosa. And for mains, the awk is delicious, and also pretty different to some other dishes on the menu (that have more in common with other southeast Asian cuisines). The red curry (gaeng phaet) is an excellent red curry. The only dish I was a little underwhelmed with is the steamed banana leaf dish (moak paa). It just was a tiny bit bland. Also, happy hours are pretty good - at the bar, beer Lao, scotch and sodas - but the only vegetarian option is the crispy tofu. It's definitely delicious but also not really the most exciting thing on the menu. read more

Driving to this place, it felt like I was going the wrong direction for good food. This place has unique flavors in complex menu items that you cannot find elsewhere in DC. A small setting, this restaurant maximizes its space to allow more to enjoy the food. As a vegetarian, I was able to find a few options, and the staff were able to accommodate. The curry puffs are a must with the warm soft potato curry and sweet glaze. The curries are flavorful with distinct flavors that separate from Thai curries. The glass noodles are silky and perfectly cooked. I highly recommend this restaurant for a random dinner, special occasions, lunch with friends. read more

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One of our favorites. Their food is fantastic and I especially appreciate that they have a lot of vegetarian/vegan and gluten free options for my mom who is celiac vegetarian. They also make it very easy to order and understand any required mods. Try the Naem Khao Thadaeu (crispy coconut rice salad). read more

This was my very first time here with friends In first we had to wait for 25 minutes cuz the restaurant was packed, when we were seated our server came in fast she nicely greeted us and asked us if we want drinks, we or see some drinks and they came in fast, I have to say I was a little confused cuz I was not familiar with the sort of food. My friends and I ordered 3 appititizers and 5 entries which was all very good. We have the wings, beef jerky, vermicelli noodles curry bowl not sure what the real name) shrimps fried rice, fried fish, papaya salad, and some dessert. Over all the food was very delicious a little too salty to my taste and I eat salty and the dessert was expensive a d overly sweet, that's why one star is missing. But like I said over all food was excellent servers were very attentive and nice. Definitely coming back here with more friends. read more

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I've never had Loatian food before, but have heard a couple of friends talking about this place. I also wanted to branch out on where I eat in DC, so made a reservation for a weekend lunch. Make sure you have a reservation, as this place gets crowded, even on a weekend lunch. They don't use any online reservation service, so you'll have to call, like the old days. Other than that, it's fairly easy to make a reservation and score a table, based on my experience. There were 4 of us, which I think is ideal as you would probably want this as a family style meal so you get to try as much dishes as possible, and also because the portion is quite generous. Since it was first time here for all of us, we went for the more conservative route, and skipped the jungle menu. Food we loved: beef jerky, pork sausage, red curry with shrimp, lettuce wrap. The food is so colorful, and the flavor is good, spiciness is well balanced. Food we didn't like as much: papaya salad with fish sauce and peanut (there are two papaya salads on the menu). the papaya was not shredded evenly, it was somewhat bland yet too fishy as the fish sauce was overpowering every other flavor in the dish. Sadly, it was the only dish everyone left of after a couple bites. Service, it was good overall, water was constantly filled, the menu was well explained for us first timers. Will definitely come back and try more items!! read more

Thip Khao - Lots of colors, lots of spices! - Laotian Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia