The menu at Natalee Thai might not initially strike you as unusual – the dishes that you will see at Thai restaurants all over America, such as pad thai and pad see ew, are on there and, judging by the descriptions and images alone, are pretty much as one would expect.
But as is usually the case with great food, the devil is in the details. Natalee Thai (both this location on Venice Boulevard in L.A. right on the border of Culver City, and also the Beverly Hills location) prides itself on being authentic.
A brief introduction at the front of the menu reads, “Creating and presenting traditional dishes passed to us through generations and refined into a delicate and subtle culinary art. These time-honored recipes are prepared with only the finest ingredients, making use of fresh local products whenever possible.”
When you’re listing “authentic,” “fresh,” and “local” as selling points, you’re immediately ticking three major boxes. Add the fact that the room is airy and open, modern with elements of tradition, and the staff is welcoming, then the first impressions are great.
They’re only compounded when we’re served with a Thai iced tea, which looks amazing before we even taste it. Deep red with a separate level of orange that needs to be stirred in, the drink looks like lava. It tastes great, too – creamy and sweet, yet refreshing. There’s a tart tea aftertaste that is also wonderful.
The larb comes next, which is on the salad menu but that’s a stretch. We get a pile of minced chicken, gloriously sautéed with red and green onions, cilantro, crunchy roasted rice kernels and much more. It’s served with a lime-garlic dressing and some baby romaine leaves. The meat is zesty and vibrant, and it works well when paired with the simple crunch (and convenient base) of the leaves.
The stir-fried morning glory (or pak boong) is deceptively delicious. It looks like a pile of greens when it arrives, but the water spinach is fried with soy bean paste and whole cloves of garlic, and the whole concoction is rich and fragrant. They have managed to make greens feel decadent.
The “hot stuff” stir-fry was cooked mild for us because of our own aversion to very spicy food, and that might have defeated the point based on the name of the dish, but it’s still lovely and not at all bland. The pork is prepared with basil and pepper, and there’s a hint of aniseed in there that we couldn’t place, but that works perfectly.
The pad see ew is great – the thick, soft noodles plastered in the thick and rich brown sauce. It’s not massively different to anything we’ve had before, but it’s still top-notch.
The final dish we were served was the clear winner – steamed sea bass filet, cooked with green onions, ginger and black mushrooms, and served with baby bok choi. This dish has everything we love about Thai food – it’s fragrant and light, and you can taste it before you actually take a bite. In this case, the fish just melts in your mouth, and the the ginger compliments rather than overpowers the flavor.
Again, it’s the attention to detail that makes Natalee Thai stand out. Don’t be afraid to compare dishes that you’ve tried elsewhere, because these guys are doing it right.
Natalee Thai is located at 10101 Venice Blvd., Los Angeles; 310-202-7003. Open 11:15 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. everyday except for Friday and Saturday. when the hours are 11:15 a.m. to 11 p.m. Go to nataleethai.com for more information.