Saap Rai brings a Thai-Lao menu to the middle of O‘ahu Market’s butcher counters. The new ten-stool stall, which opened about a month ago, serves dishes including Lao sausage, Penang curry and fried fish fillets. Its name combines common Lao and Thai words meaning “what’s delicious?” or “delicious food, no worries.”
Bo and Mang Sisouthone, who also own Thai Village restaurants in the Waipio and Kunia shopping centers, run the stall, according to HONOLULU Magazine. Mang trained in Thai cooking, and the menu brings Thai and Lao dishes together, including curries, noodles and crispy rice salad.
The stall draws on its Chinatown surroundings for ingredients: most arrive daily from nearby vendors, while the meat comes from Bo’s butcher stall, B&M Meats, according to Honolulu Magazine. The magazine reported that Bo makes 160 to 200 pounds of Lao sausage every other day.
What’s On the Plate
The Lao sausage plate costs $16 with one scoop of rice or $18 with sticky rice. The owners recommend the yellow curry, and name the $18 Penang curry, made with peanut butter, as another pick. The $18 nem khao—a crispy rice salad—is also on the menu; the Sisouthones say it is gaining popularity on the continent as more people discover it.
Lao dishes in context
For broader context, Serious Eats identifies sai oua as an herbal pork sausage among Lao and Isan dishes. The guide also notes that naem khao often incorporates thinly sliced banana flower, which adds bitterness and floral notes. These are general descriptions of the dishes, not a description of Saap Rai’s sausage or its version of nem khao…