Vietnamese Restaurants – Page 21

Saigon Pho & Seafood Restaurant (revisits)(City Heights)

November 28, 2017 Cathy Vietnamese Restaurants, What Cathy Eats!

Here you are, back at mmm-yoso!!!, reading about food. Kirk and His Missus are having a memorable time together and Cathy is doing the blogging.

These chilly mornings and warm afternoons have been pleasantly 'Autumn/Summer' for the past few weeks. Food choices are something The Mister and I have great discussions about each day near lunch time…hot or cold; spicy or mild; forks, fingers or chopsticks…

We've returned again to Saigon Pho & Seafood. (Kirk has been here, too.)

The signage hasn't changed, nor have the dual 'one way' entrances (both going in the same direction).
The giant fish tank is still here. The Goi Tom Thit ($12.99) pork, shrimp and jellyfish salad-always refreshing and vegetable filled. I do really enjoy celery and this salad has it, along with bamboo, carrots, mint and peanuts. The pork and shrimp are chilled and the meld of flavors are just right.
The soup, Mang Cua ($4.95 small) crab meat with white asparagus was just the right amount of flavors to have in one meal. The soup has egg, peas, carrots, bamboo, cilantro and onion and the small size is just enough for a light meal.

The Bo Bia ($4.25)- daikon and carrot rolls with Chinese sausage and egg are served with a peanut sauce. I've been trying sausages of various ethnicities lately and these Chinese ones were very flavorful and still warm when served. An amazing amount of flavors; different from the 'plain' shrimp and pork rolls we usually get. Trying different items from the menu has always been a winner here. Cha Banh Xeo ($8.95), a crispy crepe filled with pork, shrimp, bean sprouts, onion and mung beans is ordered before we look at the menu. Each Vietnamese place uses the same ingredients, yet each plate presented is unique in flavor. The sprouts here are very lightly steamed and the crispiness, combined with the crepe, pork and shrimp, wrapped in lettuce with some mint, dipped in the fish sauce is clean and bright in flavor.I tried this Bun Tau Hu Ky Thit Nuong ($8.95). Char grilled pork, rolled and shrimp in bean curd skin with cold vermicelli and salad greens, sliced cucumber and mint as well as pickled carrots, radish and chopped peanuts. This is so fresh, refreshing and flavorful on a hot day. The Mister ordered the stir fried shrimp and vegetables and was asked if he wanted crispy noodles and he answered in the affirmative. The carrots, broccoli and cabbage along with canned corn and the plump shrimp coated in a velvet 'gravy' on top of the crispy egg noodles was quite a comfort food. I decided to try the Tom Tai Chanh ($11.99)- rare shrimp salad served with lemon sauce. This was wonderful- the vegetables (carrots, cucumber, celery and radish) were thinly sliced the 'long way' with a potato peeler or mandoline and were just so very different. The shrimp were so plump and had been cooked in lemon (or maybe lime, it appears) juice. The addition of the fish sauce based 'dressing' enhanced all of the flavors.

It's always a fun and tasty adventure trying out the menu here.

Saigon Vietnamese Restaurant 4455 El Cajon Boulevard San Diego 92115 (619)284-4215 Open Sun-Th 9 a.m.-10 p.m. Fri-Sat 9a.m.-11 p.m.

Revisits – Tim Ky Noodle and Cali Baguette Express (Mira Mesa)

November 15, 2017 mmm-yoso Banh Mi, Sandwiches, Vietnamese Restaurants

A couple of more working during the weekend breakfasts.

Tim Ky Noodle:

It had been a while since I last visited. And even longer since I've had the Beef Sate Noodle here. So, I decided to drop before having to trudge to work on a Saturday morning.

This was better than what I've had here before.

While still fairly "light" in flavor compared to; say Minh Ky, the beef as fairly tender. The broth had just enough "edge" to it; that it went well with the beef. As you notice; I put a little broth in the spoon a piece of meat, and eat. Not bad at all. I do wish it had a bit more oomph…..and onions; but at least there was a "powdery residue" on the meat. The noodles were nicely prepared and the portion size very nice.

I left satisfied.

Tim Ky Noodle
9330 Mira Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92126

Cali Baguette Express:

Sunday has kind of been like the new Tuesday or Wednesday, or even Thursday recently. The days just kind of string together. Though I don't need to go in at 630 on Sundays. I get to have some breakfast. I hadn't been to the Mira Mesa location of Cali Baguette Express since we did our Mira Mesa Banh Mi challenge back in 2011. At that time the Bamh Mi at Cali Baguette tied for the favorite. Since then they've expanded a bit and have taken over the former location of Mama Testa.

Much like the City Heights location; this shop is pretty crowded with "stuff".

And keeping some of the décor from Mama Testa makes things look like a bit of a mish-mash.

I ordered the Banh Mi Thit Nguoi ($3.75).

I'm not sure what's going with all my old favorites falling by the wayside these days; from Izakaya Sakura to Pho Lucky. Amd now Cali Baguette Express? The bread was the biggest problem; pale, dry, lacking crustiness, and almost stale? Poor quality control.

With banh mi, it's all about proportion, when a key part of the sandwich fails; it drags the whole thing down. Maybe I should be happy that K sandwich is reopening.

Cali Baguette Express
9225 Mira Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92116

Unlucky at Pho Lucky?

November 12, 2017 mmm-yoso Pho, Vietnamese Restaurants

My revisit to Pho Mignon back in September had me wondering about Pho Lucky, which has been a regular stop for me over the years. Recently though I'd noticed that the pho here has seemed to go downhill a bit, which had me sticking to the Banh Mi Bo Kho.

So, a few days after my visit; I dropped by Pho Lucky. It had been awhile; in fact, I don't recall seeing the "No Fried Fish Welcome Sign" on the door before.

I wonder what event triggered that?

I went ahead and ordered my usual; the #4, flank, tripe, tendon, and brisket.

Things looked fine and that tendon was really good as were the noodles, just prepped perfectly.

The problem was the broth……

It was a lot more defatted than I recalled; gone was the nice anise tones I enjoyed, and worse of all, it was strangely "sweet". Egad! Was Pho Lucky joining the ranks of "Sweet broth brigade"?

The main reasons I enjoyed the pho here was for the flavor of the broth and the tendon. This just didn't cut it.

I intended to return fairly quickly to see if this visit was a fluke, but then we entered into that cycle of records temperatures. And then, when things cooled down; the amount of work heated up. My life right now include weekend morning conference calls. But, unlike regular work days; there's a short window of time before my call and I decided to drop by Pho Lucky to see if my last visit was just an off day.

I ordered the #4; went to wash my hands and this is what I got.

What the pho? I didn't order rare steak? Had they changed the numbering on the menu? I had just a short window of time before I needed to be in the office, so I just went ahead and had my bowl.

The rare steak was actually not bad; much more tender than I recalled; though I missed the usual amount of tendon and tripe. The broth was better; a bit richer, but more importantly, not overly sweet not too salty. I do think the days of nice anise and onions tones in the broth are gone though. Sad. The noodles were nicely prepared; the portion of sprouts was smaller than I recalled.

I rechecked the menu while waiting to cash out.

Hmmmm……#4 looks the same to me?

Maybe the Server didn't get enough of a caffeine fix before taking my order? I saw him chugging this down whenever he had a chance.

Well…whatever…it seems to be slim pickins' with regards to decent pho in San Diego these days. I guess I'm back to the Bo Kho here.

Pho Lucky
9326 Mira Mesa Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92126

Revisits – Mignon Pho + Grill and Red Moon Noodle House

September 27, 2017 mmm-yoso Chinese BBQ, Chinese Restaurants, Pho, Vietnamese Restaurants

So, our office was set to move after years in the Serra/Kearny Mesa area. We'd be heading a bit North. Thus, I decided to revisit a couple of places before we left.

Mignon Pho + Grill:

Or as Calvin's wife calls it; "pho for folks who don't like pho". I dunno, it had been a couple of years, so I decided to check them out again.

I went with the "Trolley Bowl" ($10).

The noodles were decent, though in clump, and the herbs and such were sparse though fresh. Still not sure why they serve ngo om (aka rice paddy herb), with its distinct flavor with the pho here.

The soup always seems to have kind of a bitter – tinny flavor to me. It's also quite weak and overly defatted. The proteins were tough and lacked flavor.

But, this place still seems to do good business. Perhaps it's the service which has always been friendly. Or perhaps it's the Lemongrass Fries, which is the best (only decent) thing I've had here.

Mignon Pho + Grill
3860 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

Red Moon Noodle House:

**** Red Moon has closed

Another place that I haven't been to in a while and haven't had great luck with. Though one of the folks that I used to work with really enjoyed the Singapore Noodle at Red Moon. So why not?

The really nice guy working brought me a fork to start? I had to ask for chopsticks? The dish, when it arrived, piping hot, looked quite impressive as it was topped with fried eggs.

Once you got past that though, it was a disappointment. The pork in this was really tough, almost hard.

There was way too much curry powder….it was definitely powder because it left a grainy, bitter residue on my tough. This was actually rather unpleasant to eat.

The noodles were too hard as well.

I took most of this home and had the Missus taste this……big mistake.

Folks have mentioned a "secret menu" (I've had the XLB, it's definitely bought frozen from somewhere else), but I've never received recommendations. So guess what? Singapore noodles….maybe that fork should have been a clue?

Really nice folks here too though….

Red Moon Noodle House
4646 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

I really liked the folks working at both places; but man, the food really didn't and hasn't been my thing here.

Pho 7 Cow

September 26, 2017 mmm-yoso Pho, Vietnamese Restaurants

Guess I really don't get around that much anymore. I didn't see this shop until I dropped by Royal Mandarin to pick up some salt-and-pepper chicken wings for a pot luck.

It was close enough to lunch time like 10:15 or so and I was feeling a bit hungry.

In spite of the rather "old school" name and logo, this place is really nicely put together. Well spaced tables, none of which are sticky, brightly lit, clean….Servers smile and wave you to your tables.

The menu has all the usual suspects. And while I'd usually go for a bowl of pho during any maiden voyage, it was still really hot and unusually sticky. And I saw someone having the Bo Kho as I walked to my table, so I went with the Banh Mi Bo Kho.

This was not bad at all. While not quite as rich as I prefer; there was a hint of beefiness to the broth. Anise and black pepper tones were more pronounced. Likewise, more of a soup than a "stew". I'm thinking things were done to not offend as there was only one piece of tendon to be had, but it was decently tender. Lots of beef, some with rather chewy connective tissue, but still rather tender, moist, no off flavors.

The bread was standard issue, but prepared well, crusty, nicely hot and toasted.

So it comes down to the "little things"; the two pieces of carrot were basically raw; I could have used more onion, and the broth was a bit too thin. But overall, this was pretty good, better than most I'd say.

I made a note to return…well, because you know how I am, right? Though I waited until things cooled down.

And I went with good 'ol number 1……while I'm usually not a big fan of the rare steak served at most pho places in San Diego (even my favorites), I usually order this just to get a view of how all the various proteins are handled.

I was rather surprised when I noticed there was Ngo Gai along with the usual basil, spouts, jalapeno, and lime. It was also very fresh, crisp, and fragrant.

The broth was on the thin and light side, though it wasn't as sweet as many versions I've had recently. Very faint beefiness and like the bo kho, nice anise tones. No MS-heebie-geebies for me.

A decent, passable, albeit overly defatted broth.

As for the proteins; the rare steak was passable, not overly dry, but still without much flavor. The flank and brisket were good, nice beefy tones, not overly tough. The meatball was the standard issue squeaky orb.

There was but one piece of tendon, which was nicely prepared, adequately tender.

The tripe had that somewhat soapy flavor that I'm not very fond of. And like the tendon, there was but one (thankfully) strand of it in the bowl.

Catering to their customer base I guess.

The noodles were done perfectly; decent chew, not mushy, and not in a tight clump at the bottom of the bowl. Some folks don't understand, that yes, it does matter to me. And yes, I will write 200 words to describe that bowl of pho I just had….. Because it does matter to me.

And, I was pleasantly surprised. As this was a totally decent bowl of pho. Man, it does seem like pho in these parts is getting better.

Nice service, there quite a bit of staff to customers, so things seem to get done quickly. The folks are pleasant. They seem to cater to kids and families. There was a play area at the back of the restaurant.

I'd certainly come here every so often if I lived in the area.

Pho 7 Cow
1025 Highland Ave
National City, CA 91950
Hours:
Open Daily 10am – 9pm

2018 Tournament of Roses Rose Parade float road testing. Small snack at Cream Pan-Tustin. Breakfast at BMC Pho-Hacienda Heights.

August 28, 2017 Cathy Bakery, Festivals & Events, Los Angeles County, Orange County, Vietnamese Restaurants, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!!, this food blog, usually has a story about how a meal or meals occurred. Today, Cathy is writing. Kirk and Ed (from Yuma) are busy with meetings and appointments and 'check off the list' stuff.

Saturday morning, leaving the driveway at 5 a.m., heading North. After about an hour, getting to the parking lot and stepping inside Cream Pan,

for the first time this year. It's mostly the same,

other than the slight (10¢) price increase for the strawberry croissant… …and the new, secondary check out area. Cream Pan 602 El Camino Real Tustin, CA 92780 Website
We purchased a ham and cheese croissant ($2.60) and a cheese crisp ($2.50) and jumped back on the freeway, heading to Irwindale and the new location of Phoenix Decorating Company, arriving before 7 a.m.. We passed the new Construction/Decorating 'barn' and saw some of the floats which were tested last month.

We noticed only three floats were lined up for testing this morning. "Story Time", the entry from the City of Alhambra features a bookworm reading the book 'Tales from the Alhambra', ladybugs flying, zinnias, leaves and lily of the valley.

The openings in the above photo are where the 'observer' and the 'driver' will be seated when the float is driving down Colorado Boulevard on January 1.

The colors are painted on the floats as a marking for the decorators and also in case of weather (in the event of rain or wind, the float might lose some of its natural decorations and people on the parade route will still see color).

The road test is for both mechanics and maneuverability of the float. Each float has at least three tests, the final test that everyone can get off of and out of the float in 45 seconds or less.
The Lions Club International entry to the parade, "Preserving Our Environment" will have a water feature- flowing around the rotating water wheel. The colors have not been marked yet.The third float tested on Saturday was this one from Trader Joe's- interesting in that there is a long hitch on both the front and the rear, which makes this a part of a multi-piece float.

Now you've seen floats in three stages of testing!

Phoenix Decorating Company 5400 Irwindale Avenue Irwindale, CA 91706 Website

Since this float builder location and part of Los Angeles County is 'new' to us, The Mister and I began to drive South and explore, looking for breakfast places as well as possible places to eat after we decorate floats in December.
Noticing this at the corner of Gale Avenue and Hacienda Boulevard,we stopped.

So much is offered here, but the banh mi menu (to the far right, just behind the cash register) caught my eye. I'm always on the lookout for a good banh mi (nothing in San Diego satisfies me any more since the fire of August 4, 2015, destroying the now almost reopened K Sandwiches). We were very pleasantly surprised. BMC has a 'buy two, get one' deal, so all three sandwiches cost a total of $7.50. We chose the #2, #4 and #6-BBQ pork, shredded chicken and egg. Each was prepared on wonderful, fresh, crispy crusted light bread, a spread of mayonnaise and topped with pickled daikon, carrots, cilantro and fresh slices of jalapeño. We were impressed with the char grilled flavor of the (plentiful amount of) pork and flavorful shredded chicken…oh but the egg… Crispy whites, solid yolks and just a perfect breakfast sandwich.

We will be returning here at some point to try out other menu items.

BMC Pho 1104 S. Hacienda Boulevard Hacienda Heights, CA 91745 (626)330-3765 Open daily 7 a.m.-9 p.m.

Bun Mam Thru the Years from Nhu Y

August 27, 2017 mmm-yoso Vietnamese Restaurants

We had a bit of cool down recently, which was great for having noodle soup. For some reason, I'd been craving Bun Mam; I hadn't had it in a while, so I decided to "scratch that itch" and headed to Nhu Y.

After being Nhu Y for a number of years, it seemed that the place went thru a couple of name changes over the last couple of years. Now, I think they're back to being Nhu Y. In spite of those changes; the heart of the menu has been the same for me. And the one item I get here is the Bun Mam, which has also gone thru a number of changes over time….I'll get to that at the end of the post.

Here's the Bun Mam circa August 2017.

I'm going to mostly stick to the broth on this post. Which was much "redder" than I recalled; more than the 2012 version. While it still has that rather swirly, darkish, cloudy, almost thick look and feel, this was much lighter than other versions. It was also less funky; I believe they don't use as much fermented fish paste as they used too. This had less of a savory punch and was more sweet and spicy.

As for the rest; well, I'm used to the catfish being on the muddy side here these days; the shrimp was actually deveined on this day. The eggplant was soft and velvety, the pork belly a bit on the chewy side.

I wore dark clothes and was careful to not spill any broth on my shirt.

After all these years; still a pretty good soup to have when you want something hearty and rich.

And I think they've gone back to being Nhu Y again….I think.

Nhu Y Restaurant
4712 El Cajon Blvd
San Diego, CA 92115
Open Daily: 7am – 9pm

As mentioned in the title and first paragraph of the post. The Bun Mam at this location has changed over the years. And just looking the photos tells the story.

From the first bowl of Bun Mam I had here in 2006.

Dark and pungent. The broth hit you from the first sip….perhaps not in the most pleasant way, but you just kept on going because it seemed to just get better and better. The catfish was quite good in those days and the pork belly was very "swiney" and tender.

In 2010 Nhu Y became Com Tam Thuan Kieu though the Bun Mam didn't change much.

To quote – "The broth was as before, salty, slight sweetness, pungent, and spice, all converging in a bowl."

Then, in May of 2012 my dry cleaner lady told me that Thuan Kieu had changed the recipe, so I dropped by and noticed that yes, it had indeed changed.

Less pungent fermented flavors and more spicy, sweet, tangy, and lighter. Though in terms of fragrance; "For the two women who stopped and sniffed the air and the one kid who actually whiffed his armpits when I walked past you at Nijiya after my meal. It was just me….'ol Mam Tom breath………."

By 2014; the place had become Com Tam Nhu Y. And it seems that the recipe had reverted back to a facsimile of the original.

This wasn't quite as thick and there's the addition of the stuffed jalapeno. It was still pretty potent though: "This was actually pretty close to what I had recently at Nhu Y Clairemont and I didn't have to wait until after 3pm to order it. Though that Hispanic couple who came in and sat behind me, then moved after my soup arrived may want that 3pm rule implemented here…."

And then the version I had at the end of last year.

Kind of on the "oily" side; a ton more shallot and garlic tones, the broth had started down the road of more sweeter than pungent tones. "It's quite a savory concoction……you want to make sure that you don't spill any of it on your clothes. Sammy will often follow me around the house after I eat this….must smell great to him!"

Who knows what the Bun Mam here will be like the next time I get that itch? I do hope it'll head back in the direction of that first bowl I had in 2006. At the least; I'm sure it'll be interesting.

Bolsa (revisit)

August 26, 2017 Cathy Vietnamese Restaurants, What Cathy Eats!

Here you are, reading mmm-yoso!!!, a food blog. This is a quick Saturday post, since Kirk, Ed (from Yuma) and Cathy are each out and about (in their own way) and still, there is some sort of food item that should be shared. This is Cathy posting.

Cha Ca Thang Long, turmeric coated, pan fried fish. This is one of my favorite meals, so much so, that I chose it as one of my birthday meals during 'birthday week' last year (the Mister and I were born seven days apart and our tradition is to go out to eat on each of those eight days).

We were on Mira Mesa Boulevard, avoiding traffic, and decided to stop at Bolsa before the final few miles home.

On this day, my dill and onion topped freshly pan fried turmeric coated fish plate ($15) was accompanied by the 'traditional' sides- lettuce, mint, chilled rice noodles, peanuts and a few pieces of Bang Trang Me (sesame rice crackers). Again, everything was perfect. The individual as well as combined flavors of this dish are cravable. The Mister wanted a salad of some type on this (another) hot day, and the shrimp, pork and jellyfish salad ($8) matched his cravings. The jellyfish is marinated in a vinegar/fish sauce and the resulting salad is sweet, spicy and sour at each bite. The lettuce, cucumber, mint and peanuts round out the vivid flavor combinations.

I hope your weekend is relaxing and not too hot!

Bolsa 9225 Mira Mesa Boulevard San Diego 92126 (858) 693-3663 open 9-9 daily Website

Noodling Around – Revisits to Minh Ky and Pho King

August 20, 2017 mmm-yoso Vietnamese Restaurants

It's been noticeably cooler the last couple of days. So, I thought I'd grab some noodle soup. As my post on Tu Thanh indicates; I'm trying to refamiliarize myself with City Heights.

Minh Ky:

I've done posts on Minh Ky so many times over the years. Though it's been maybe a year and a half since I'd visited. It was 830 on a Saturday morning; I'd be driving up to the office right after. I thought a bowl of egg noodle soup would do the trick, rather than my usual Beef sate Egg Noodle Soup "dry". Not quite knowing what to order; I went with the Combination Egg Noodle Soup.

Things were pretty quiet on this weekend morning. With the staff prepping condiments and stuff.

I couldn't believe the how much "stuff" was in my bowl of egg noodle soup ($6.95). Way too much noodles, I couldn't finish……

Good lord.

Like before; the char siu was decent in flavor if a bit tough. Squeaky fish balls, not a fan of the shredded chicken, he sliced fish cake was pretty good. But lordy, so much noodles! Which were nicely prepared, a bit of crunch and pull to them. The broth has gotten a bit weaker over the years and this was no exception.

I'd never been able to finish a bowl of noodle soup here…..until this day.

Service was a bit friendlier on this day. Maybe because when I arrived, the young lady had her hands full of produce and stuff and I helped her? Maybe that's why I got the jumbo noodle soup treatment?

Minh Ky Restaurant
4644 El Cajon Boulevard
San Diego, CA 92115

Pho King:

Can you imagine; it's been over a decade since that "Pxx Kxxg" Restaurant has been open?

And this parking lot has become just as bad as Minh Ky's right across the street.

I drove by at about 1030 am on a weekend and the place was pretty busy.

Noticed the 'B' in the window and also that when the couple complained about the blower over the door going full blast; the guy took a chopstick out of the receptacle, used it to press the switch to turn it off and returned it right back into the container! And….no one blinked an eye.

I ordered my usual here; the Hu Tieu Mi Kho; but apparently I didn't do a good job ordering and received the Hu Tieu Mi Nuoc. The place was super busy; so I decided to just have my noodle soup.

I'd never really enjoyed the broth at PK in the past, but this was not bad. Not too salty, a hint of pork, with a slight background umami. The fishballs and ground pork (hard for me to enjoy in a soup) were totally routine. The char siu tasted pretty good, but they serve it sliced really thin and almost shredded, so it's hard for me to enjoy. I enjoy the contrast of textures between the slightly crunchy egg noodles and the stretchy rice noodles. I'm also a fan of Chinese celery which is provided, along with bean sprouts.

So maybe I'll start ordering the noodle soups here again……

Pho King Restaurant
4658 El Cajon Blvd
San Diego, CA 92115

Funny thing, I went and did a quick search for previous visits to link to while typing up this post and found the same two 'fer, at least it would have been, if I got what I had intended to order at Pho King. Guess I'm a real creature of habit.

Pho SaiGon Bliss

August 15, 2017 mmm-yoso Pho, Vietnamese Restaurants

**** Saigon Bliss has closed

Yes, the name of this place is Saigon Bliss, go figure. A couple of friends who live in Serra Mesa really like this place, so I decided to give it a try. If I recall, this used to be Kinkos….I think. This strip mall sure has changed over the years…..

Much like Pho Kitchen and other shops, the décor is what I call "modern pho"…..bright colors, clean, and a few enlarged photos of Vietnam and pretty girls to create a sort of nostalgic connection.

The young man who runs the front of house is really, really, nice….though he really doesn't need to call me "sir" every time he speaks to me.

The folks who recommended this place to me told me I "needed" to try the Nem Nuong Cuon. So I did and it was obvious they've never been to Brodard, or even Duyen Mai for that matter.

The ratios were off in the spring roll, the pork sausage wasn't grilled enough and while I admire the place giving you a hefty slice, it made the texture lean to the rubbery side. There was a single sliver of fried egg roll wrapper in this, not enough to make much of a difference. The sauce was really thin, too sweet, and lacking in that subtle savory flavor that makes so many folks enjoy Brodards.

I also got some pho; just the regular "combination" ($8.50).

The basil was starting to brown on the edges and there was hardly any sprouts, so I asked for a bit more. Of course the nice young man immediately got it for me!

Over the years, I've notice the typical "San Diego pho" broth has changed. It used to be pretty heavy on the msg……now it's typical to have the broth severely defatted, taking away the richness, with a flavor that's noticeably on the sweet side. This fits that bill.

The tripe was the best protein, nice crunch, no off flavors, not much tendon in this, the rare steak was on the dry side, and I'm not a big fan of overly squeaky beef balls. And the amount was on the scarce side.

The noodles were adequately prepared; though it was clump city all the way.

Still, the folks here seemed to be trying hard. And so…..I returned of course. But I really wasn't sure what to order. The young man told me that the Bo Kho was his grandmother's recipe.

This was actually half way decent. Though the stew was way too thin and defatted for my taste and could have used more acid to bring out the tanginess, it was fairly beefy.

Sadly, there was no tendon to be found; but the chunks of beef were tender and there were no off flavors.

The bread was light, warm, and standard issue stuff.

If you don't like a rich bowl of bo kho and hate beef tendon, you might like this. Sort of bo kho not to offend. Not terrible though and the best thing I've had here.

With this under my belt….no pun intended; I decided that perhaps a third time might be a charm and the young man had told me to try the Bo Luc Lac ($13.95).

Man, look at all those onions! I mean, I understand they need to stretch the dish and such, but golly. The beef was on the tough side and too salty for my taste. The sauce provided was sort of Muoi Tieu Chanh, but it tasted strange….perhaps using bottled lemon juice. The butter rice, colored with what seems to be annatto was moist, tender, and the flavor not too bad. I think it was the best thing about the dish as the bo luc lac seemed like something one would throw together at home, it lacked finesse.

Still, the service here is really nice. I heard that they really take care of military and veterans here. It's a decent neighborhood pho shop and I actually think it's better than some of the places around Convoy and Kearny Mesa. So I hope they do well.

Pho SaiGon Bliss
3755 Murphy Canyon Rd
San Diego, CA 92123
Hours:
Mon – Sat 10am – 9pm
Sunday 1030am – 8pm

This strip mall right off Aero Drive has always been a bit of an "odd duck" to me. It still holds a Sizzler and I think the taco shop might be the only business that's been around for a while. I remember back in the early 2000's the cook at the Chinese Restaurant in the mall was from Hawaii and on weekends they'd serve stuff like loco mocos and other stuff. Man, that seems like so long ago now.