**** Van Hoa has closed
Were you the same kind of kid I was? My Mom would have fits trying to wake me on most school mornings. I should have trademarked the phrase "just 5 more minutes" since I used it so much…..our alarm clocks didn't have "snooze buttons" in those days, otherwise I'd have worn that out. Once up, I'd dilly-dally, even volunteering to do chores (gasp), in order to avoid school. Finally, worn down by the irresistible force that most Mothers are, I'd be on my way. Lucky for me, I lived only a half-block from my Elementary school….
Unfortunately, there's still some residual "dilly dailiness" left in me. Some mornings, I'll be up very early, but am not very motivated at the prospect of work. I'm trudging around, trying not to wake the Missus up, wondering how I can justify taking my own sweet time (make te-de te-de…). Reluctantly dragging my procrastinating self out of the house and to the car, I eventually find myself on the freeway. But wait, I don't need the freeway to get to work! Taken over by some other-worldly force, I get out on El Cajon Boulevard, and end up at a destination like Van Hoa Restaurant.
There are a few Vietnamese restaurants like Van Hoa, which resides in the shopping complex on the corner of 54th and University, that open early…I mean early, as in 6am early. At 630 am the sometimes psychotic parking lot of the shopping center(which houses a location of Vien Dong Market) is empty, and you need not worry about having to park next to the last demolition derby Ford Fairmont in existence in North America. At 635 in the morning, I'm not sure you can get Pho at Van Hoa, but as you enter the restaurant, everyone is hard at work, making Goi Cuon(Spring Rolls) and various packaged snacks that you see at places like 99 Ranch Market. There are sacks labeled with "La Chef Bakery" lining the tables, and I place my order for the Egg McMuffin of the Banh Mi world, the Banh Mi Trung(scrambled egg banh mi – $2.75):
For some reason the bread feels more crusty in the morning, and the scrambled egg is lightly doused with a soy sauce concoction, that is both salty and sweet. I readily admit, that for some, the combination of pickled veggies, cilantro, and scrambled egg is a bit odd, but I enjoy it. I sometimes just have the sandwich in the car, at the risk of strewing crumbs everywhere…..
But there is one thing that never changes, sustenance puts me in a much better mood, and the world is a much nicer place. I also feel guilty for not being fired up for work after watching everyone in the restaurant working so hard. Maybe I'll be able to face the world today…………
A word of caution; like all other versions of Banh Mi, this one has Jalapenos, so if you do not tolerate hot peppers for breakfast, or not at all, please proceed at a careful cadence.
Van Hoa Vietnamese Restaurant
4016 54th Street
San Diego, CA
Open at 6am Mon-Sat
Open at 7am on Sundays
In part 2, we'll check out the Pho at Van Hoa, along with several of the other Banh Mi.