A number of new Thai restaurants have opened in the LA area. One of the latest is Sweet Rice in Gardena. Sweet Rice shares ownership with Bowl Thai, another Thai restaurant in Gardena. Sweet Rice resides in the Pacific Square Shopping Center off of Redondo Beach Blvd.
The interior is set up as a counter service restaurant. This fast-casual concept allows owners to operate with lower overhead and helps create a lower price to the customer. Their self-serve station has utensils, napkins, Asian sauces. Small and medium-sized bowls create an environment for sharing.
Their menu features “Thai Breakfasts and Desserts”, food that Thai people consume in the morning. These include soups, Jok (rice porridges), curries and Kao Kai Jeow (Thai omelets). Popular stir-fried dishes like pad thai and pineapple fried rice are available at their sister restaurant, Bowl Thai.
The Food Experience
Tom Yum soup ($9.99) appears on many menus and I wanted to experience their version. The Tom Yum soup is made from chicken broth and is slightly sour. It struck me of a Vietnamese soup with a Thai twist. The broth is light and tangy and includes herbs and fish balls and pork rinds. Of you drink the soup as I do, you’ll find that the red chile powder has settled at the bottom making for an even spicier experience.
It’s unfortunate that the Thai consider Ba Mee Nam ($9.99) to be ‘peasant’ food and don’t prepare this dish. Fortunately, Sweet Rice does and I found the broth to be similar to Vietnamese pho without the aromatic star anise. The chicken-based broth includes roasted garlic oil. Egg noodles are used instead of rice. Other ingredients include bits of ground pork, fish cake, fish balls, bean sprouts, and cilantro.
Quite a few customers order Khao Soi. The combination of coconut milk, chicken stock, yellow curry, and shallots provides a delicious foundation. Sweet Rice’s version includes a substantial amount of egg noodles and less broth.
I immediately ordered Kao Kai Jeow ($12.99) when I learned that they use real crab in their omelet. Onions, scallions, and cilantro accompany the crab. The use of fish sauce gave the egg an umami flavor. Other Kao Kai Jeow options include chicken, pork ($9.99) and shrimp ($10.99). The large omelet comes with steamed white rice.
The creamy coconut ice cream ($3.99) and nicely compliments the savory options. For an extra $1, you may select three toppings. I chose lychee jelly, red beans, and fresh coconut. Sticky rice and fresh mango is a seasonal dessert.
While young Asian customers dominate the scene, older Asian boomers dined as well. On my most recent trip, a group of four grabbed small bowls and ate family style. The guy next to me was eating khao soi and proudly stated: “I could eat here every day”.
Sweet Rice (inside Pacific Square Shopping Center, near Tokyo Central and Main Market)
1630 W Redondo Beach Blvd suite 4, Gardena, CA 90247; 424.344.2054