Zabb Elee

I was craving the Basil pork belly and we went back for dinner. It wasn’t the same as I had before. THe picture clearly showed a red sauce in their menu and the owner and chef told me that it was a dry chili sauceless dish. Umm. can you explain the picture in the menu and my other Unilocal review?
The food wasn’t as great as my previous experience. The beef jerky was REALLY hard, they made the pork belly in the wrong sauce, the meatballs didn’t have any flavor excitement and the wide rice noodles lacked sauce and flavor.

This place has completely changed from Phien’s Kitchen and it is a down fall. My girlfriend and I wanted to get some papaya salad today so we chose this place. We ordered papaya salad, beef on the stick and rice with beef dish. The papaya salad was super sweet and it did not taste like anything we got from Phien’s kitchen and beef on the stick was super hard but the sauce was good. Rice with beef dish was nothing special. We both did not finish our foods and barely touch the papaya salad. It was a disappointing visit. The place is nice and clean with a few flies in the dinning area. Not going to visit again unless they change the owner or something.

Went here today. The menu has expanded quite a bit since the Phien’s Kitchen days, but they simply have photos rather than descriptions of the dishes. However, the photos look great, and everything looks delicious.
Lao sausage: so tasty, and very similar to the recipe Devon’s mom used.
Papaya salad w/​salty crabs: Amazing, but I didn’t quite know what to do with the crabs, though. Super hot, as we requested.
Fried Sticky rice: good, a nice textural difference from the standard fried rice.
Beef Larb: Really good, with lots of fresh herbs, a nice acidic bite from the lime, smokey grilled beef and bits of tripe for chewy texture.
Crispy pork w/​holy basil: Again, really good, with meaty pieces of pork belly, and a great tasting sauce.
Not what I’d call «cheap eats», but good value for the price, and everything was intensely flavorful. I would say that, given the higher number of menu options and value, I like this place even more than I liked Phien’s.

We’re here for a Thursday night dinner. Decided on this place solely based on Unilocal search and reviews.
Chicken satay appetizer: five big and tasty long pieces of chicken on sticks. Mild flavored marinade. A few pieces of pickled veggies.
Spicy string beans main dish: beans were fresh and gently stir fried. They were nice and crispy not overlooked. Spiced with garlic and chopped hot peppers in a brown sauce.
Kra pao Kai-​kai dao combination platter: chicken chunks with stir fried basil, hot peppers, onions, and green peppers. Spicy enough for my wife, but I dosed mine with the Srirachi sauce. Big pile of rice to accompany. Had a fried egg atop. Quite good.
Wife and I ate our fill and there was plenty of good food for our student son’s meal when his night class gets out.
Friendly waitstaff. Interesting décor in the small dining area. Very fair prices for the servings. Reading prior reviews there was a remark about slow service — ours was quick, accurate and just right.
We liked it and will probably return. We recommend.

Love the food there!!! The menu has pictures of different dishes, they all look so good that u want to order everything off the menu… It was so hard to decide which one to pick… So, I finally picked # 5, 8 & phở Lao for my son and an order of sticky rice…
I’m still craving # 8 right now!

There are a lot of South-​east Asian restaurants in Lowell, but very few specialize in Laotian cuisine — and I mean REALLY specialize.
Formerly Phien’s Kitchen (also Laotian cuisine), Zabb Elee has pretty much retained all of the interior atmosphere. The drink menus are the same, but you’ll notice the menu has changed drastically. All of the menu items now have pictures above the names! Not only that, but every photo looks delicious and you can literally order what looks most appealing to you and not be disappointed. You have to be careful on some of the soups — they are actually «family style» and meant to be shared.
Another big change you’ll notice is the portion size, and I mean something in the range of 30% more food for the same price. The spiciness of some of the dishes has also been toned down, but not so much that it takes away from the flavor.
Service is a little slow, and food might take a little longer if you have a party of four or more — but you can rest assured that it will be quality.
My favorite dish here is the «Kadna Mu Krob», which if I had to translate poorly would be: «Chinese-​Broccoli-​with-​something-​something-​Roast-​Pork». The sauce compliments the veggies very well, and the pork has tender side with a crispy skin. It’s slightly less spicy than it’s predecessor, but the portion size makes it worth every penny.
Be sure to try out this hole-​in-​the-​wall hidden in a residential area. It really is a nice change of pace from Khmer cuisine. Did I mention you can request certain dishes to be cooked Khmer-​style?

We went after reading the reviews for Phien’s Kitchen only to find it has was replaced almost a year ago by Zabb Elee. Nice, small restaurant in a residential area of Westford Street. Portions were very big, food was spicy and tasty. There was only one other table, and yet the food came out rather slowly. Might not be the place to go if you are in a hurry for lunch. The server was friendly and helpful though clearly reading his e-​mail on his smartphone. Zabb Elee does take credit cards, unlike it predecessor. I will definitely be back, though I will split the spring rolls 4 ways instead of 2, they were huge.