Phien’s Kitchen was kinda like a diamond in the rough find. We’ve driven past this restaurant a couple times in the past and have never thought of trying it out. The exterior of the place didn’t quite appeal to us. But that one weekend, we braced ourselves and decided to try the place out as we’re looking for a place to have fun.
Nobody was dining inside the very simply decorated restaurant. I don’t think we’re that late for lunch. We weren’t sure what we got ourselves into and wasn’t just going to leave the place without giving it a chance. So here’s what we ordered.
1) Peak Kai /Chicken Wings (Bottom) @ $6.95 – Marinated in soy sauce, garlic and black pepper. This was definitely marinated in some turmeric powder as well. About 6 (or was it 8) pieces of crispy fried chicken wings in an order. It was juicy and so darn good!
2) Lard Nah/Fried White Noodles (Bottom Left) @ $10.95 – With pork, shrimp and squid. Fresh wide noodles with garlic snow peas, mushroom, baby corn and Chinese Broccoli. The price of this was quite steep for noodles in comparison with many other restaurants serving the same stuff. However, this plate of noodles was loaded with lots of mea, seafood and vegetables. Like many restaurants, there are usually more meat/vegetables than the noodles itself. I would appreciate a little more noodles. This noodles, is a little on the sweet side but not as sweet as the ones we’ve had elsewhere. We like it and had plenty to pack home. So, overall the price of this plate of noodle wasn’t that bad since one would eat it for 2 meals.
3) Fer /Beef Stock Noodle Soup (Bottom Right) @ $8.95 – Homemade beef broth with shaved beef, shrimp, squid, meatballs, scallions, celery and cilantro. Served with a plate of bean sprouts, fresh herbs and lime on the side. The husband couldn’t resist this beefy noodle soup and had to try it. It was slightly different than the Vietnamese Pho as this had shrimp and beef. Price for this was also steep in comparison to the many places the hubby’s had similar beefy noodle soup. For a start, the portion was smaller than most places. Hubby thought this was ok but did not fancy the meatballs. He commented that the meatballs have some odd spice/flavor that he did not quite fancy.
Overall service was ok. There were a couple customers doing take outs while we were there. I guess, we might return in the future for some Laotian meal. I googled Phien’s Kitchen and found out that they have a pretty good review on www.yelp.com; 4/5 stars. Apparently, their papaya salad and their sticky rice dessert is good. I’m already eyeing their sticky rice dessert! =)
Want some simple Laotian meal? Head over to Phien’s Kitchen:
586 Westford St.
Lowell, MA 01851
(978) 441-0014
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