Thailand is very high on my list of places I would love to visit - if I could ever learn to handle flying more than a few hours at a time.

I am very drawn to the culture, the architecture and - of course - the food.

If you are a fan of Thai food as well, then there is absolutely no better place, outside of Bangkok, than the parking lot of the Wat Thai temple in North Hollywood, CA.

On the weekends, vendors line the temple lot cooking and preparing authentic recipes from pad thai to sticky rice. Not only is the food authentic and delicious, but the price is phenomenal. No matter what you choose, you’ll get generous portions and for about $3-$5 per plate. One of my favorite things is $2 Thai iced teas! You really can’t beat it.

But - bring cash as they do not accept cards there.

Twenty percent of sales from the Wat Thai "food court" support the temple—they use a charming token system to sell the food—so really it's a bake sale of sorts. Only the best bake sale you've ever been to.

Basic Etiquette -

Whenever you visit the temple, it's worth remembering to be respectful, as this is a place of worship. This means adhering to a more modest dress code, taking off your shoes when entering the temple, never pointing your feet towards statues of Buddha or altars of worship, and generally behaving quietly and graciously.

The most common offense visitors make is to pose for a photo or selfie with back turned to a Buddha image.