LeDu Thai

[honartvandelay]

What do folks think of LeDu? I tried it a while ago and they’ve now opened up closer to the house. I got Khao Soi and thought it was fine but nothing special. Wondering if I should give it another chance.

[Skillet Doux]

FWIW, that pretty much tracks with my experience. I went last fall not too long after they opened, and came away feeling like it was... fine.

Ledu - Somtum.jpg (531.21 KiB) Viewed 578 times

Som Dtam Plata Laos Style
Solid enough somtum, if a little lightweight for my tastes. I crave the funk.

Ledu - Tom Yum.jpg (459.85 KiB) Viewed 578 times

Dtom Yum Shrimp
Ditto the tom yum. Felt much more focused on the spice than the aromatics and the funkier elements. Very clean. Too clean for my tastes.

Ledu - Sadtor Shrimp.jpg (518.47 KiB) Viewed 578 times

Sadtor Shrimp
This was just disappointing. It's "sator shrimp," and 95% of the dish is... pork? And I kinda feel like if it's a sator bean dish, there should probably be more than three sator beans in it. I know a lot of people aren't fans of sator beans because they're kind of pungent. (I'm a fan.) But either do it or don't, ya know?

Ledu - Crab Curry.jpg (518.33 KiB) Viewed 578 times

Gaeng Crabmeat Turmeric
Not bad, decent flavor. Again, just felt kind of underpowered and light on the funk. And barely any crab therein.


I do really want to get back and give it another try, but I'm kind of in the same place as you. I'd feel a lot better about it if I heard some good things about it first. Really felt to me like they were pulling punches.

[exit2lef]

What do folks think of LeDu? I tried it a while ago and they’ve now opened up closer to the house. I got Khao Soi and thought it was fine but nothing special. Wondering if I should give it another chance.

For me, LeDu is a nice middle ground between the modular menu at most Thai restaurants where any protein can be paired with any preparation, resulting in some unfortunate combinations, and the no-compromises approach of Lom Wong, where I love the food but don't always like being told to order everything at once and having my time at the table limited. I see value in all three tiers of Thai restaurants, but LeDu fits perfectly when I want something a little more adventurous than the standard American Thai menu but with a relaxed pace and dishes served in courses. I have sampled all the dishes that you and Skillet tried and have generally liked them.

I crave the funk.

I often see the word "funk" here, but I'm not really sure I understand the meaning. For me, "funk" has two uses: 1) In music, where the connotation is thoroughly positive 2) More rarely, to describe a bad mood like depression or a bad odor like sweaty socks. The connotation is not at all positive. What does it mean in this context?

[Skillet Doux]

I often see the word "funk" here, but I'm not really sure I understand the meaning. For me, "funk" has two uses: 1) In music, where the connotation is thoroughly positive 2) More rarely, to describe a bad mood like depression or a bad odor like sweaty socks. The connotation is not at all positive. What does it mean in this context?

Usually fermented flavors, sometimes offal. Think fish sauce, shrimp paste, liver, stinky tofu. Sometimes you get some funk out of stuff like kimchi or sauerkraut. Stinky cheese. Controlled rot. Those deep, grungy (usually umami-rich) flavors that kind of dance with what people think of as "off" or spoiled flavors, but harnessed for good.

No universal definition, of course, but that's how I use it and I think most people who do are thinking along the same lines.

[exit2lef]

Thanks. It sounds sort of like the second definition, but as you say, "harnessed for good." When it comes to food, I like it to be somewhat funky but maybe not at a George Clinton level.