Jitlada Restaurant

02/27/09

Great food -- But, uh oh, the service is getting bad

by dvoetberg at Citysearch

We went to Jitlada on Friday, February 20, 2009. The service was very bad. In that way that LA restaurants become well known and the service starts acting like you're intruding on them. Not good. Orders were getting confused. Arrogant main waitress, etc.

• Pros: best Thai food
• Cons: Service

08/23/08

Best Thai Food in Los Angeles (Maybe even Thailand!)

by amandaco at Citysearch

Wow. What a friendly fantastic restaurant! Definitely the most authentic Thai food in all of Los Angeles. Stick to the specialties - you will find a translated menu of the specialty Southern dishes on the last page. The southern curry is incredible - truly the right kind of heat, very hot, very flavorful - it's the real deal. We also tried the deep fried fish with sweet chili sauce, a perfect pairing! Reminded us of our trip to Phuket and all the fantastic seafood we enjoyed there. So tuck in with an ice cold Chang beer and enjoy!

• Pros: Incredible food!
• Cons: It's popular so make a reservation!

05/30/08

Friendliest place in town-- the most authentic Thai you will find

by lmo1823 at Citysearch

Proprietor Jazz is one of the sweetest people I've met! Be sure to ask for her. I was there last night to find some crazy authentic southern Thai food-- I found it. The mango, shrimp and cashew salad was excellent. If you seek spicy food, this is the place to go. If you seek authentic ethnic food, this is the place to go. Don't be put off by the strip mall location.

• Pros: Seafood dishes, spicy factor, AMAZING service

05/12/08

Take me back to Thailand, Kop Kun Kah

by 4projectmayhem at Citysearch

I lived in the South of Thailand for a year and have been seeking some real traditional southern Thai for a long time. This place completely hits the spot. It is so full of authentic flavor. The owner is so generous and outgoing, she took me right back to Ton Sai. It is rarely crowded and well paced. A gem in Hollywood.

• Pros: food, service, friendliness, pace

03/05/08

Giant prawns curry favor at this venerable Thai Town eatery.

by Martha Burr at Citysearch

The Scene
Never mind the strip joint and 99-cent store across the street. Jitlada boasts attractive decor and two elegant dining rooms for savvy diners who want to go beyond basic pad Thai and satay.

The Food
Pick and choose from the lengthy menu. Dishes here can be uneven, but the treasures are well worth the search. Seafood is your best bet, starting with a steaming hot pot soup filled with mussels, shrimp, fish and squid, and complemented by lemongrass, lime, herbs and chili. Squid salad bathes delightfully in citrus and red onion, but the beef salad is tough. The outstanding "flame prawns" are magnificent giants, grilled succulent and tender, topped with a red curry sauce that kicks. Crispy fried garlic tops a pleasant Bangkok duck, and whole pompano fish is fresh though overloaded with sauce. The catfish, shrimp, and squid are consistently good.

12/11/07

Fire from the bowels of hell

by ctm_420 at Citysearch

If you like spicy food... and I mean REALLY like spicy food like you have a strange masochistic attraction to it, then Jitlada is the place for you. I always seek the best, most authentic thai food in Los Angeles and this place definitely sets the standard.

We ordered the mango salad, the kau kling with beef, and the green curry with fish b*lls.

The mango salad is similar to the green papaya salad. We opted for cooked shrimp over the dried shrimp. This dish was a precursor to what was in store. The salad had the heat I expected. Hot but not incapacitating. I would guess this dish was around 200,000 SU.

The Kua Kling with beef is a dark brownish-greenish curry that's seasoned with tumeric, a pinch of lemongrass, and a dash of hate. Be warned. If you order this dish (and get it Thai hot), it will send your senses into critical mass. This is definitely the event horizon of spice. Once a bite of this curry touches your mouth, you will be cursing the guy who convinced you to try it. That being said, if you love heat, I DARE YOU to eat this dish. I laughed, I cried, I agonized, I craved more. The endorphin rush from this dish is like getting punched in the stomach during org*sm. This is the hottest thing that I've ever tried in my life. It's a violent heat and definitely not for the novice spicy foodist. It comes served with raw vegetables on ice in attempt to cool the pallet, but they only mask the sheer brutality of the fire and the relief is brief at best. This dish is easily 400-500,000 SU. I'm warning you a second time... this dish will F*CK YOU UP.

The Green Curry with Fish B*lls is Matt Groening's favorite dish. It's easy to see why. This curry comes in the large bowl variety. It's hot. It's a green curry... but to be quite honest, I couldn't really taste it because I was busy battling for my life against the Kua Kling. Still, the fish b*lls are bomb dot com and definitely worth trying.

enjoy.

• Pros: Heat level, authentic thai cuisine, variety, friendliness
• Cons: parking

09/18/07

Spiciest Southern Thai food in LA. Best customer service and feels like family.

by rrstudiocity at Citysearch

I go to all of the Thai Resturants in Hollywood and know most of the best. But Jitlada is so special and tasty that not to try it would be a shame. The food we had for lunch included one of my favorite Thai fooods I have every time I am in Thailand. That is Steam Mussels with Lemon Grass and other herbs. The quality of the mussels were the best I have had in LA for a long time. They melted in my mouth and the flavor of each bite was almost like a seafood dessert!!!. But the soup that comes with the mussels was so delicious that what we did not finish we took home to eat later to be served over rice. The main dish was a rice dish called Kao Mok Kai which means chicken with flavored yellow rice. Wow!!! the chicken seasoned with an exoctic Middle Eastern Flavor that is typical for Southern Thai food which is one of the reasons why you must definitely go to Jitlada. My two thai friends ordered some of the spiciest thai food I have ever had. Better stay away from the Southern Thai dishes unless you can stand it and have a vegetables on ice with a fire extinguisher near your mouth. I will always go back to the palace at Jitlada either with Thai friends who know what to order for you or just with my good friend A who also helps me so much with customer service. Come any day for lunch and take your time. Enjoy some of the most fantastic Thai food in LA

09/12/07

Awesome Thai

by neuroticin818 at Citysearch

I visited Jitlada after reading the review in the LA Weekly (as were most of the diners the day we went) and was blown away. The food was extremely flavorful and the service was very friendly. As with most people who read the review, I ordered the mussels and the kua kling with beef. As a person who LOVES spicy food, the kua kling was heavenly, though you have to make sure you tell them you want it traditionally spicy, lest they "turn it down". It was spicy, but also flavorful, which I've noticed isn't the easiest thing to do in other restaurants. We also had the sweet and sour ribs which was a perfect complement for the spiciness of the kua kling. I've found our 'go to' Thai joint in Jitlada!

• Pros: Great food, great service
• Cons: None really...

04/20/07

Don't be Jealous of Jitlada!

by nsofia at Citysearch

Jitlada is the best Thai food in Los Angeles-- with a superior menu that is authentic and refined, Jitlada offers AMAZING seafood specialties such as secret menu item, whole fried seabass covered in cumon, chili, and lime. Every dish I have tried is spectacular--and the service is exceptional. A GEM!!!!!

03/23/07

A surprising little gem in a weary section of Sunset Blvd.

by davemandude at Citysearch

Food made with love and pride, delicious, generous portions, smooth attentive service, owners dedicated to an excellent dining experience which they deliver.