341312 Thu Nov 09 17:43:47 -0800 2006 18 2 Los Angeles Area 0 2008891 I had a great dinner of Seven Courses of Beef (Bo 7 Mon) with several food blogger friends last night that got me thinking about how little I've tapped the glorious culinary jungle that is Orange County's Little Saigon. "Beach", our host and local guide last night, confided to me that most restaurants in Little Saigon specialize in one dish that they each do really really well, and often these dishes may not be on their menus. Intrigued, I decided to go on a tasting tour of Little Saigon to search out the best Vietnamese specialty cuisine the area has to offer. So, I put to all of you Little Saigon locals these questions: If you were going on a tasting tour of Little Saigon, where would you eat, what would you eat, and in what order would you visit the restaurants? Since I want to go, but can't afford to vacation in Vietnam at the moment, please take me on a tour of the country through the food. - Chubbypanda http://epicurious-wanderer.blogspot.com/ Thu Nov 09 17:43:47 -0800 2006 25806 Chubbypanda 1 2009042 Interesting question chubbypanda! Being Vietnamese and growing up in the OC, I've had a lot of experience with the restaurants in and around Little Saigon. One thing that has stuck in my mind is that vietnamese people are very fickle when it comes to food. With that in mind, if you see that a restaurant has been around for a long time, chances are they are doing something well - the bad ones don't last very long. This theory holds true for the most part, except for the older restaurants which are getting by on their former reputation (read: Dragon Phoenix) and aren't houndworthy anymore. Like visting Vietnam, the best way to explore Little Saigon is to pick either the South or the North, and move your way across the country. Coming from the South myself, I would say you should start in the South and move North, so I would suggest DaLat Bistro to start the tour. Directly across from Mile Square Park, at the corner of Brookhurst and Heil it sits unassuming. Inside you can get a beautiful $12 steak and fries meal, but what you really want to order is the Mi Dac Biet. It's the house special noodles, with chicken, shrimp and pork. It's served dry with a delectable sauce, and a cup of hot chicken broth on the side. It's also the cheapest item on the menu, around $5. Making our way north, you'll hit Bun Bo Hue So 1 at the corner of Brookhurst and McFadden. It really is the #1 Bun Bo Hue in the area. Delicious slices of tender beef in a spicy, slightly sour broth. If you're like me, order it without the little cubes of coagulated blood, but do add some of the dry chili pepper paste on the table into your soup, as I like it spicy. A bowl here will set you back about $5-$6. Again heading North you reach First Street/Bolsa Ave. This pretty much is Little Saigon, the stretch of Bolsa between Brookhurst and Magnolia. Instead of heading towards the mass of Little Saigon, let's instead turn East down Bolsa Ave. At the corner of Bolsa and Newhope are two excellent restaurants, Newport Seafood and Trieu Chau. Newport Seafood is well known for their fresh lobster. Price will vary during the season from $8.99/lb to $12.99/lb, and most lobsters are 3lbs and up. They bring the lobster to your table alive to get your approval on the size, and then whack it to pieces and stir fry in garlic, butter, black pepper, jalapenos and green onions. The result is absolutely delicious. Wash it down with a nice Heineken. If you have enough people to get more food, do not miss the bo luc lac here (diced beef in garlic/black pepper). It is easily the best one I have had, and they are very consistent with the quality of this dish. The kung pao chicken isn't terrible either, if you're in a large group. But of course, the lobster steals the show. Next door is Trieu Chau restaurant, which has been on this corner for...forever! Which means it is good. It is only open in the morning to about 2pm, they close when they run out of soup. This is the best noodle soup you can get. It's very authentic, it's always crowded, and a great deal for $4-$5/bowl. Make sure to order some of the fried chinese donuts to dunk into your soup. As we head from East to West on Bolsa, you'll hit the mass of restaurants in Little Saigon. I can't say much about them here, as I don't find the majority of them to be chowhoundworthy. They're decent at best, and we use them mainly to stave off hunger than to have a food experience. So if you like the touristy food, go ahead and venture down Bolsa Ave between Brookhurst and Magnolia. Hit the Phuc Loc Tho Asian Supermall, as well as any of the grocery stores there. Just don't eat too much :) Heading North on Brookhurst, you will reach Pho Thanh Lich at the intersection with Hazard. This is my favorite Pho place. The broth is yummy in my tummy, and you can replace the normal bottom round "tai" meat (the raw meat in pho) with filet mignon for a small upcharge. Always order the tai on the side, so you can cook it in the broth to your desired doneness. If you do not do this, when they pour the scalding hot broth into the bowl in the kitchen, all of your tai will come out well done. A bowl of pho here will set you back $6-$7 but it is so worth it. Heading North to Westminster Ave, you'll run into Brodard restaurant. This place is famous for the Nem Nuong Cuon, or spring rolls made with bbq pork paste. 4 rolls for $5 and a small cup of orange dipping sauce. These are the best! They are wrapped in rice paper skins, with lettuce, pickled veggies, a small crispy fried egg roll wrapper tube for texture, and the delicious bbq pork paste flavored with garlic and nuoc mam. Dip this into the sauce provided (which for some reason contains bits of ground pork and crab meat) and have a little taste of heaven. Continuing West, you'll run into Thanh Son Tofu factory. Here on Westminster between Brookhurst and Bushard, you can buy some freshly pressed Tofu (hot off the press!) along with fresh soy milk and fresh tofu pudding. They all sell some of the best banh cuon for takeout that you can get. Be sure to try the green tofu pudding, which is pandan flavor, which comes with a side of sugar syrup and coconut tapioca milk. Delicious! $1 for 1 brick of fresh tofu, $1.50 for a quart of soymilk and I think about $2 for the large container of soy pudding. Banh Cuon for $2/lb and freshly fried tofu, 8pcs for $1. Continuing west, you'll get to Pho Bolsa at the corner of Magnolia and Westminster. This place has very good Pho Ga (complete with all the requisite guts and ovaries), but I really like the Pho Ap Chao here. Basically, it's similar to the chinese chow fun with gravy. Thick rice noodles stir fried with crisp vegetables, your choice of meats (beef for me please!) and a light gravy. $7 Turning north onto Magnolia from here, you'll hit an In N Out at Trask. Behind the In N Out is one of Little Saigon's newer restaurants, Brodard Chateau. This place isn't really vietnamese, but I include it here as a fun date place within Little Saigon. The inside is dark, yet fashionably decorated. It's very clean and hip, which is good for a date. So check this restaurant out when you get a chance, the food was very good, but the atmosphere was something I never thought I would find in Little Saigon. Phew! I hope you enjoyed the tour. The only other suggestion I have is to round out your meal, head over to a che place for dessert. Che is the vietnamese soupy sweet dessert, and Hien Khanh is the place to get it. There is the old store, which is one block east of Thanh Son Tofu on Westminster, but I like the new location in the T&K minimall on Bolsa just east of Bushard. I like the che thai, which comes in soupy coconut milk, with lychees, gelatin strips and other goodies. About $2-$3 per large serving. Next time you go, call me up so one more chowhound can join you. I'm in the area :) kk5 Thu Nov 09 18:23:09 -0800 2006 2008891 31764 kingkong5 2 2009083 Excellent. This post is a keeper! Thank you! http://elmomonster.blogspot.com Thu Nov 09 18:36:40 -0800 2006 2009042 11757 elmomonster 3 2011283 Hey Elmo, *eyebrow waggle* Up for some more eatin' adventures? - Chubbypanda http://epicurious-wanderer.blogspot.com/ Fri Nov 10 15:54:20 -0800 2006 2009083 25806 Chubbypanda 2 2009503 AWESOME post. Thanks so much. Reminds me I am due for a trip to Bolsa. Thanks! Thu Nov 09 20:36:07 -0800 2006 2009042 10601 MEalcentric 2 2011280 Awesome! This post is taking up permanent residence in my briefcase. Thank you so much. - Chubbypanda http://epicurious-wanderer.blogspot.com/ Fri Nov 10 15:53:46 -0800 2006 2009042 25806 Chubbypanda 2 3146882 I've never been a big fan of pho. I like the idea in principal, but... sometimes it's the lack of beef broth flavor, sometimes the low quality of meat. Thank you KK5 for your Pho Thanh Lich recommendation. Ordered it with the rare steak and filet mignon on the side. Broth was rich, full of onions and anise. Beef was top notch. Also included in the "outrageous" six dollar price, was a small bowl of a coconut flavored creamy/pudding-like dessert with all sorts of rice treasures. Westminster is a loooong drive for me. This was worth it. Wed Nov 21 18:28:36 -0800 2007 2009042 13296 Sandra W 3 3147326 Sandra, I've got to say, there's so many of us on this board that freely write about the good food we've experienced and freely share it with others. All of this time and effort doesn't come for free however, and I sometimes I wonder why we put time aside to create writeups of our favorite restaurants. What exactly do we get out of this? Personally for me, I've shared meals with a bunch of chowhounders, and learned about some really great restaurants I would never have discovered otherwise. And to hear you speak of Pho Thanh Lich a year after we posted about it, that just really made my day. I'm so glad to hear that you liked it too. And next time you're down here, try the Brodard nem nuong cuon rolls too (the two shops are fairly close, and sometimes we will have the nem nuong rolls first and then head over for Pho Thanh Lich immediately after). Thu Nov 22 02:23:34 -0800 2007 3146882 31764 kingkong5 4 3147603 Brodard was one of my first Westminster restaurants. My plan was to hit that next, but... <sigh> next time. Several years ago (four or five -- eeks!) a large group of chowhounders had a fabulous meal there. It was one of our first large get-togethers. I'm partial to the banh cuot (khot?) Thu Nov 22 08:14:16 -0800 2007 3147326 13296 Sandra W 2 3456616 outstanding post. Mon Mar 03 16:57:10 -0800 2008 2009042 69693 anothernotch 3 3458496 Just FYI -- Trieu Chau closes by 5 PM at the latest -- it is really not a very safe neighbourhood and they just close early. Newport Seafood stays open later but do make sure you park your car in the lot and not on the side streets. Other great places in Little Saigon: Pho 79 (the OTHER corner of Brookhurst/Hazard) - almost as good as Pho Thanh Lich Pagolac (same plaza as Pho Thanh Lich) -- seven courses of beef / bo bay mon Pho 86 - they have the best morning pho (lighter broth before it's been boiled all day) Vien Dong, Brookhurst/13th - fantastic bun cha Ha Noi, wonderful skillet-fried catfish with dill (cha ca thanh long), great nem ran (cha gio, spring rolls) Van's Bakery, Brookhurst/15th - pandan waffles, banh su (cream puffs), sinh to (fruit shakes), and all the coconut-and-pandan treats you could want Com Tam Thuan Kieu, Brookhurst/13th - great com tam (broken rice plates) with wonderful cha (Viet quiche) on top, dau hu ky (shrimp paste-stuffed tofu) and lap xuong (sweet sausage) Boiling Crab, Brookhurst just south of Target - boil-in-a-bag seafood with Cajun spice, YUM. Don't wear nice clothes here. Banh Cuon Tay Ho, same plaza as Boiling Crab - banh cuon, obviously. Housekeeping's a little scary. Banh Mi Che Cali (several locations) - 3 for $3.50 French sandwiches, 3 for $3 che (coconut-based pudding) Banh Mi Cho Cu, Magnolia and Hazard - even cheaper sandwiches, delicious xiu mai sandwiches (meatball), goi cuon (raw rice-sheet rolls with shrimp and pork and herbs) Xanh Bistro, across from Mile Square Park on Brookhurst - beautiful ca kho to (fish in caramel sauce in a clay pot), delicious banana blossom salad, actually a nicer sit-down place than your usual place Tue Mar 04 09:17:59 -0800 2008 3456616 10811 Das Ubergeek 1 2009090 I remembered a few more highlights of Little Saigon for you. On First Ave between Harbor and Fairview is a small vietnamese restaurant called Favori. I believe they were the first ones to do the whole oven roasted catfish dish. I believe it's deep fried, then baked in the oven so the skin comes out crispy golden and the meat is juicy sweet. You grab some fish, stick it in rice paper wrapper with vegetables, dip in nuoc cham sauce and eat. You can get this dish most other places in Little Saigon now (even at DaLat bistro referenced above), but I pay homage to the place I found had it first, Favori restaurant. And easily the most addicting dish I have ever had is the House Special Chicken at Seafood Cove restaurant. While it's a chinese/vietnamese restaurant, I think it deserves mention because this dish is so good. Come there at lunch on weekdays and prepare to gorge yourself for $4-$6/pp. House Special chicken is diced dark meat, deep fried and served in a buttery garlicky jalapeno sauce. This place serves it the best, and if you try it, you will get addicted too. If you can go with other people, round out your lunch by also getting the bo luc lac, sauteed pea shoots, and the salt/pepper squid or shrimp. OK, that's it for now. I still have yet to find a good bun rieu place, or a good hu tieu place. But I, too, am searching. kk5 Thu Nov 09 18:39:08 -0800 2006 2008891 31764 kingkong5 2 2011287 You're the man. - Chubbypanda http://epicurious-wanderer.blogspot.com/ Fri Nov 10 15:54:59 -0800 2006 2009090 25806 Chubbypanda 1 2009440 One more highlight about Little Saigon - Coffee Shops! Now, any decent restaurant will serve the amazingly rich, super strong vietnamese (French) coffee known as cafe sua da (coffee with condensed sweetened milk on ice). But if you're a red-blooded american male you will love having your coffee at the Coffee Shops. Although we are a laid back and conservative people, boys are boys whereever you are in the country. We don't condone bikini bars or strip clubs in our culture, but you can have your fill of coffee and just a little eye candy at vietnamese coffee shops! $4 buys you a cup of iced coffee, and unlimited iced tea. I happen to like Cafe Vivid, on Euclid between Hazard and Westminster. In this center are 2 other coffee shops! Just sit back, chill, catch a football game on the plasma tvs and chat with your friends. Guaranteed good time and a truly vietnamese experience, because the coffee is most excellent. Thu Nov 09 20:16:33 -0800 2006 2008891 31764 kingkong5 1 2011290 I love Vietnamese coffee. Thanks for the reccs! - Chubbypanda http://epicurious-wanderer.blogspot.com/ Fri Nov 10 15:55:34 -0800 2006 2008891 25806 Chubbypanda 1 2350500 There's this cajun crawfish place down in Garden Grove that's absolutely amazing: Boiling Crab (714) 265-2722 14241 Euclid St # C116 Garden Grove, CA 92843 Delicious crawfish seasoned with tons and tons of spicy chili. Sooo good! Just be sure not to rub your eyes while you're eating - like my friend did - because peeling the crawfish with your hands gets them coated with the spicy powder. I also like Newport Seafood for their sour catfish soup. Yum. Sun Mar 04 01:12:08 -0800 2007 2008891 79438 renaissance 1 2351167 There's another Boiling Crab on Westminster/Brookhurst (Rite Aid center) that generally has more parking spots. Sun Mar 04 10:23:55 -0800 2007 2008891 68938 StivKaye 1 3457182 Great posts here - Just getting back from 2 weeks in Vietnam, I can't wait to try some. I had some work down in Westminster for 2 months and we went about 20 times to Saigon Bistro for lunch, tried most of menu, various curries (served with french bread), a house reddish fried rice, some nice steak salad kinda things, pretty tasty and an extensive french menu really good including steak frites, chicken cordon bleu, escargots, turtle soup (like i like at commanders in n.o.), good french bread....all the usual suspects, goat curry with potatoes, various spring rolls (fried and cold)....real casual, nice coffees...they treated us right and i hope to get back soon. 15470 Magnolia St Westminster, CA 92683 Mon Mar 03 20:16:29 -0800 2008 2008891 21455 jessejames 1 4129329 this is the kind of restaurant review i've been looking for! you've made me so hungry. thank you!!! Sat Oct 25 22:21:35 -0700 2008 2008891 183806 supersita