>Sum Taam is like eating fire. Most westerners won't touch it. I love it. You can probably get it in a Lao restaurant. BTW, don't be fooled by the food in a Thai restaurant, it's not really Thai style most of the time. Most of the places I've been to in the US when spoke to in Thai language they say, "Hey man, I'm chinese".

Yes, and there are a lot of other restaurants that have "Thai" dishes...but they are just regular dishes with a Thai-style peanut sauce (I still order this food sometimes though...I have a "Thai" chicken dinner last week at a restaurant; it was just a couple of chicken breasts with sauce). The Lao food that I have had has mostly been at Lao homes, at some Lao weddings, and at a Lao restaurant that is owned and operated by a Laotian family. I have only had Thai food at restaurants in Toronto where my Laotian friends have brought me when we were there for entertainment events.

I think Thai food is a little trendy, so restaurants will advertise Thai food for marketing without knowing how to make authentic Thai dishes, and we North Americans don't know the difference.

Take it easy,
Joe