Lamoon: Family Inheritance

(This venue is closed.) The food of Northern Thailand — the first home of Arada Moonroj, chef and co-owner of Lamoon, in Elmhurst, Queens — "tends to be spicy and salty rather than sweet. It's also herbal, Arada emphasizes. Consider larb, a family of salads whose principle ingredient is often some sort of finely minced meat. Larb is a common dish in the Isan region of northeastern Thailand; in the last decade this style of larb has become a familiar sight on many New York restaurant menus. Isan larb, however, generally incorporates only a few seasonings; Arada relies on her mom's recipe, which uses 11. 'In every bite you can feel lots of herbs,' she tells us." Read more on Culinary Backstreets.