664847 Wed Nov 04 22:50:30 -0800 2009 2 2 Los Angeles Area 0 5157258 Ok, so I was once in Bangkok on (western) New Year's Eve and got pretty drunk, but one thing that is *ahem* seared in my mind is the single bite I was given by god-knows-who of a salad so spicy that I would have broken out into buckets of sweat if I wasn't already covered in buckets of sweat from being in Thailand in the first place. Fast forward a few years and an hour of chowhound archive searching, and I'm pretty sure the salad I had was Som Tam, a spicy papaya salad. I'm new to L.A and am looking for a place within 20 miles of my nabe that might be able to deliver on my sweet drunken memories - quality is more important than spice, obviously, but I do crave some pretty intense fire in my fruit salads... Bonus points for places that will actually make the salad 'Thai Spicy' for people who aren't Thai! Thanks! Wed Nov 04 22:50:30 -0800 2009 1121813 eatmykant 1 5158001 There are many eatmykant -- Thai Town is a hop, skip and a jump from K-Town. Som Tum sounds exactly like the dish you had and you are in luck -- outside of Thailand it would be hard to find a place that has as much som tum -- done right -- than LA! I always order that dish "pet-pet" which is a) easy to remember and b) means spicy in Thai and c) the way the dish is meant to be (you are right they often make it un-spicy for the un-Thai). Almost all Thai places in Thai town make it fairly well -- excpet a few of the noodle only shops. Here are a few places that come to mind. Spicy BBQ is know for their Issan food and Som Tum is an Issan specialty (tho' served all over Thailand). Jitlada gets everything right, too. I had som tum there a few weeks ago, ordered pet-pet, and it is still stinging :) Welcome! Thu Nov 05 08:37:50 -0800 2009 5157258 11732 Ciao Bob 1 5158054 Krua Thai, in North Hollywood on Sherman Way and Ethel St., 12.9 miles from Wilshire/Western. :) Get it "Thai spicy" with raw blue crab. DEEEEEEEEE-licious. Also, juuuuuuuuuuuuust past the edge of your 20-mile limit is Renu Nakorn, in Norwalk... *drooooooooooooooooooool* Thu Nov 05 08:57:32 -0800 2009 5157258 10811 Das Ubergeek