*** Nha Trang has closed.
On a recent trip to Asia Cafe I noticed that a Vietnamese Restaurant had opened up in the strip mall across the street. I don’t think there are too many Vietnamese Restaurants in the area, so I decided to check it out.
The name of the restaurant is Nha Trang, and is located between a donut shop and Mexican Bakery. The interior had obviously been recently "freshened up", and though the furniture seemed a bit on the crowded side, the restaurant was nice and clean.
The menu is small, and consists of mainly Pho Bo(beef) and Pho Ga(chicken). The gentleman running the place dropped off a menu, basically a two page laminated sheet, and I placed my order.
I started with Goi Cuon(spring rolls – $3):
This version came with a little dish of Nuoc Mam Cham, which was nicely spiced, if a bit on the sweet side. The ingredients of the spring roll was very fresh, and you could tell it was rolled when ordered. I thought the spring roll was short on herbs, and was almost all lettuce and bun(rice vermicelli), making it rather "blah". It was also rolled too loosely.
As is my habit when trying Pho for the first time at any restaurant, I ordered the Dac Biet (special – large $5.25). Based on the Goi Cuon, I was ready to be underwhelmed. And when the bowl arrived I was not dissuaded in the least bit:
My initial reaction was that this bowl was on the small side, and the broth looked very light and low in oil
. The very skimpy amount and variety of garnishes was also uninspiring.
But as I dug into the bowl I noticed something….though the broth was not especially "rich" it was also not heavily salted, and I could taste a hint of a pleasant sweetness. The noodles were perfect, and though in a clump, the texture was great, a bit of pull, and not mushy. The meat, other than the tough and rubbery meatballs, was excellent….the slices of rare steak were soft and tender, same with the mildly beefy fatty flank. The two tiny strips of tendon was soft and buttery, I only wished that there was more of it.
I managed to speak to the Owner, who is very nice and pleasant. He and his wife used to run the Chinese Fast Food restaurant at this location, but decided to go back to their Vietnamese roots. He also told me that they take pleasure in serving fresher foods, and were planning to expand their menu. Since they had only been open for 2 weeks at the time of this visit, I’m sure they are still straightening things out. I just may check them out again in the future.
Nha Trang Vietnamese Food
4676 Market St
San Diego, CA 92102