Bites, Sips & Side Quests — Episode 3 • Ankeny, Iowa
An Edible Outing
Sometimes the best food adventure is only a few minutes from home.
We slipped into Hoang Khao – Lao & Thai Cuisine just before 4:00 on a Saturday afternoon. It was quiet when we walked in, but that didn’t last long. By the time we were into dinner, tables were filling and the place was coming to life.
First impressions
The dining room is clean, comfortable, and nicely put together without feeling fussy. Mok took care of us, and the service was superb from start to finish — friendly, attentive, and happy to answer questions.
My one tiny gripe came before the food even hit the table: the sign out front blends into the painted wall enough that it’s surprisingly hard to read. The food, thankfully, has no such identity crisis. 😂
Let’s eat
We started with the Chicken Egg Rolls and a Thai Iced Tea. The egg rolls were hot, crisp, and packed with flavor. Kim said they were the best she’d ever had. I thought they were very good too — but she was ready to hand them the trophy right then and there.
Kim ordered the Chicken Pad Thai. I went with the Triple Delight at heat level 3 — chicken, beef, and shrimp served with rice. Mine had this wonderful ginger-forward spice to it, enough heat to keep things interesting without covering up everything else. The rice was perfect too.
Everything tasted fresh, both plates were generous, and there wasn’t much left to argue with when we were done.
The little basket that explained the name
This ended up being my favorite little moment of the night.
One of the tables near us had a small woven basket delivered. Kim noticed it immediately, and eventually her curiosity won. She asked Mok what it was.
She told us it was how they serve their sticky rice — traditional sticky rice in a woven basket. Then she explained the connection to the restaurant itself: Hoang Khao means “rice stalk” in Lao.
The restaurant’s story goes even deeper. The family behind Hoang Khao has lived around rice farming for generations, and the name is a nod to that history. They’re also the family behind Pad Thai Garden in West Des Moines, carrying Lao and Thai dishes forward from recipes passed through the family rather than written down.
Suddenly that little basket at the next table wasn’t just another side dish. It tied the whole place together.
Next visit, the sticky rice is mandatory. We have unfinished business.
The verdict
This was an easy win. Great service from Mok, fresh food, a comfortable room, and a menu with enough Lao and Thai dishes that we barely scratched the surface.
Would we go back? Absolutely. We’re already curious about what we didn’t order — and next time Kim is getting that woven sticky-rice basket onto our table.
Hoang Khao – Lao & Thai Cuisine
1325 SW Oralabor Road #200
Ankeny, Iowa 50023