The sound of monks chanting, the smell of satay, and the heat of the papaya salad will make you forget you are in a pretty bleak part of North Hollywood.

Wat Thai is not a restaurant. It is actually the largest Theravada Buddhist Temple in the United States and the center of a pretty active Thai community. However, vendors set up food stalls selling a large variety of Thai street food every weekend.

Wat Thai is located near the Hollywood Freeway (170) at the crossing of Roscoe Boulevard and Coldwater Canyon Avenue. I'm not sure how late the vendors stay, but I've been there as late as 3pm and the place was still jumping. The way it works is that you go up to a booth, where you get tokens ($1, $2, and $3), and use these tokens to buy food from the vendors. And what food it is…

The papaya salad is fiery but irresistable. The fried plantains sprinkled with sesame seeds are more addictive than crack. And, of course, there is the large assortment of meat on sticks, always crowd-pleasers. The exception was the lobster satay, which I found bland. But I probably just didn't go to the right vendor. The basic rule of thumb is to look for the stall with the longest line and follow suit.

After you've eaten your fill, you can wander into the temple for a look-see, but be respectful, as this is a place of worship.