After having the Com Tam Dac Biet at Nhu Y, the Missus was wondering if there was better to be had. After all Nhu Y was one of those "old time" places. Heck, I first visited back in 2006! We were driving down Convoy when the Missus asked, "when was the last time we were at Phuong Trang?" Well, I had to think about that one! Turns out, it's been over a decade! It's a place I've dubbed as the "gateway Vietnamese Restaurant" in San Diego.
Still, since the Missus wanted to search out some broken rice, it as time to return?
Walking in was like entering a time capsule…….the place hasn't changed since our last visit!
The service was fairly perfunctory; but that's kind of how it's always been. How it's always been…..I could use that phrase here a lot.
The Missus got the Com Tam Dac Biet ($15.95).
This was as expected, the broken rice was hard, not fragrant. Well, if you think about it, it probably fills the traditional definition of broken rice; the damaged, "inferior" rice. The thit nuong, the char grilled pork was flavorful, but quite chewy, the bi, the shredded pork and skin was cold, though it had a decent amount of roasted rice powder and a nice stretchy texture. The "cha" the egg-pork "loaf" was also cold, mushy, and bland. The bean curd with shrimp paste wasn't crisp, but at least it tasted quite good; a nice savory flavor.
The nuoc mam cham was pretty good, not overly sweet or watered down.
At least this was better than the version the Missus ordered during our last visit to Pho Duyen Mai. The visit which kind of "kicked off" the Missus's search for some decent Com Tam.
I ordered the Bun Tom Thit Nuong ($15.95), the grilled shrimp with char grilled pork.
The shrimp were actually decently grilled, fairly plump, and not rubbery. The flavor was quite muddy-fishy though. The pork was the same as what the Missus had. The bun looked like it had been sliced up and were short strands.
If you take a close look at the photo you'll notice something. You can see all the greens under a thin layer of bun.
My goodness, this was at least half "salad".
While this was not a bad meal, it was fairly mediocre, "middle of the road" Vietnamese to us. As it kind of has been to us for the last 15 years or so.
Phuong Trang
4170 Convoy St.
San Diego, CA 92111
Current Hours:
Wed – Sun 11am – 8pm
Closed Mondays and Tuesdays