360713 Tue Jan 16 03:34:36 -0800 2007 7 1 San Francisco Bay Area 0 2192887 Went Friday night to Pagolac. The plan was Bodega Bistro, but we thought we'd try something new for its own sake. Once was enough. The big disappointment was the raw beef salad. The beef had been overcured and no longer tasted much like beef, and the raw onions overpowered the bit of taste the beef had. The pile of fresh herbs on the salad, as well as with other dishes, was tasteless: perhaps winter isn't the best time to expect flavorful fresh herbs, but other restaurants don't seem to have trouble getting herbs that taste like herbs. The catfish claypot was alright. A serrano (?) chile had cooked with the caramel sauce and fish in the claypot, and even though I tend to be a spicehead, I thought the chile blotted out other flavors. I like Vietnamese claypot best when the flavor is a balance of fish sauce, caramel, onion, and black pepper, and Pagolac's lacked that balance of complementary flavors. We liked the five-spice chicken, which is grilled and chopped into little pieces. Nice char, not over-sweet. I prefer Yummy Yummy's versions of all three dishes we tried at Pagolac. At Yummy Yummy, portions are more generous and the menu offers more variety. If I had to stay in the neighborhood, I would have been much happier down the block with banh xeo and bun cha ha noi from Bodega Bistro. Tue Jan 16 03:34:36 -0800 2007 10032 david kaplan 1 2193279 Isn't Pagolac known for beef 7 ways? Or has that changed since they re-opened? Tue Jan 16 08:31:11 -0800 2007 2192887 11577 Pei 2 2194581 They definitely still have the beef 7 ways....when I went there I noticed people having that meal at a nearby table. I liked the meal I ate at Pagolac last month, but I wasn't that impressed either. I'm definitely interested in trying the other places you mentioned (Yummy Yummy, Bodega Bistro) Dave MP Tue Jan 16 18:46:38 -0800 2007 2193279 21930 Dave MP 3 3329712 I had beef 7 ways there a couple of months ago. It was basically 7 courses of beef that all tasted the same (all with that same sickly sweet fish sauce). I was so bored with the lack of variety in flavour that I was gave up eating more than one bite of anything. Thu Jan 24 16:42:30 -0800 2008 2194581 12891 vliang 1 3307353 Best thing at Pagolac to me are the grilled meatballs wrapped in Lot leaf- very simple, very good. I also like that it is a clean place with good service. Their cha gio imperial rolls are also pretty good, although not Vung Tau II good. I've had the catfish and thought it was pretty good, although I don't remember it being spicy. Fri Jan 18 00:12:15 -0800 2008 2192887 40489 P. Punko 1 3309416 link Fri Jan 18 13:08:00 -0800 2008 2192887 10264 rworange 1 3329416 Lately I have been underwhelmed by the basic Pho (w/ say slices of thin beef I believe called "Pho Tai") at the restaurants around the Clement/Geary area of Richmond. I am willing to cross the park to the Inner Sunset in search of a good Pho. I just saw Yummy Yummy recommended on TV. Any suggestions on what I should try (in addition to my Pho)? I agree, I thought some things I had at Pagolac were good but not "knockouts". Thanks for any advice! Thu Jan 24 15:26:02 -0800 2008 2192887 81896 boomer13 2 3329461 I like Yummy Yummy a lot. Not sure which 'hood you live in, but I find the style of YY very similar to Lotus Garden in the Mission (around Mission and 28th or 29th). The bun and pho are equally good; at Yummy Yummy I like the bun cari ga (chicken curry noodle soup) with thicker noodles substituted to the too-thin ones that are standard (they get mushy). Thu Jan 24 15:36:13 -0800 2008 3329416 19097 pane