Now the folks behind Hug Isan have an offshoot that opened a few weeks ago named Lenox Thai, at 1217 First Avenue near 66th Street in the starchy Lenox Hill neighborhood of the Upper East Side. Rather than focusing exclusively on Isan food with all its showy larbs, jerkies, and grilled chickens, it heads right for homestyle dishes from across northern Thailand.
The brightly lit interior is even smaller than Hug Isan, with two tables and a narrow bar against the window, seating seven in total. Nevertheless, a delightful mural of a home kitchen scene graces one wall, making it a pleasant place to eat, though the business is clearly aimed mainly at carryout. The manager is Cindy Lech and the chef, borrowed from Hug Esan at least for a while, is Jintana Khamphaiboon.
We tried six dishes. Sa cool veggies ($10) is the name for wonderfully gooey orbs of tapioca starch filled with crushed peanuts and aromatic herbs and alliums. They are also a bit sweet, making them an irresistible starter, especially when wrapped in the accompanying lettuce leaves and cilantro. They are native to both Thailand and Laos - just across the Mekong River from Isan - and I'd never seen them in a Thai restaurant before.
[
add
]
[
|
|
...
]