Lan Larb Chiangmai

Isan Thai food is the specialty at this austere, modern restaurant that borders SoHo and Little Italy. The kitchen punches up the sliced duck with pickled ginger and fans it out over rice. At lunch, the $12 price tag includes bok choy, clear vegetable soup fragrant with cilantro and scallions and a larb salad topped with minced chicken (or tofu), red onion, fresh mint, lime, roasted rice and chili powder. Isan Thai native Ratchanee Sumpatboon's food can be spicy, whether green papaya salad or green curry with tofu, so you might want to bring a six-pack of beer or pick up a bottle of Chilean sauvignon blanc on your way over; it's BYOB.