Vietnamese Restaurants – Page 27

Revisits – Pho Cali and Coastal Crave

March 14, 2016 mmm-yoso Burgers, Gastropub, Pho, Pubs and Pub Grub, Vietnamese Restaurants

I know, rather strange bedfellows, but here goes.

**** Both this location of Pho Cali and Coastal Crave have closed

Pho Cali:

A recent weekend morning found me in Mission Valley. It's kind of interesting, when we first moved to San Diego, our condo was in MV, but these days, other than the Missus enjoying a shopping day, we almost try to avoid Mission Valley!

The last time I'd been to Pho Cali was back in March of 2006. They've survived the test of time, though their shop in Kearny Mesa didn't last, eventually becoming Pho Nhu Y. Still, 10 am on a Saturday morning……. I thought it would be interesting to drop by Pho Cali.

Funny thing, the service is totally like any pho shop on University….as in, "what you want"……..

Haven't not been here in 10 years, I took the #49, regular, which was $7.69. Basically the proteins minus the rare steak, which I didn't think was going to be too good. What was really interesting was the plate of herbs and sprouts, which has got to be, the most stingy plate I've seen to date.

It was so amazingly stingy….I enjoy bean sprouts in my pho and have requested more on occasion, but this seemed a bit absurd. So, while waiting, I decided to count the bean sprouts…..which barely filled the palm of my hand. There were exactly 27 bean sprouts on that plate. Perhaps I could have requested more…..but really, should I have to beg for my sprouts?

So, lets get to the pho. The broth had nice hints of anise, but was lacking in richness and had way too much msg, the tendon and all the other proteins, including a decent amount of tripe was good. The noodles were a bit over cooked and mushy, but overall, it was hard to over come the amount of msg.

The service is typically perfunctory…..

Such is the state of pho in Mission Valley.

Pho Cali
1400 Camino De La Reina
San Diego, CA 92108

Coastal Crave:

So, I did Mike's BBQ, where I mentioned the beer offerings were much better than Coastal Crave's, which meant I had to return. I try to do a bit of due diligence when possible. This time, I avoided any of the dishes I had before and went with a simple burger.

But first, I can still say; there's not much craft beer here….they count Shock Top as a craft beer….

The Coastal Crave Burger?

Well, this was interesting. The burger was made to a nice medium, but the exterior was almost burnt and quite tough. Really sad, because this could have been a decent burger. Instead, it came across as being a bit bitter. The brioche style bun was good, the fried onion rings ditto….so close.

The young lady working on this evening was a joy; I believe her name is Kristin, or something like that. So maybe, maybe, since it's up the street……though they've got to step up their beers….

Coastal Crave
3065 Clairemont Dr
San Diego, CA 92117

What’s the Missus Craving? Mien Trung

March 6, 2016 mmm-yoso Bun Bo Hue, Vietnamese Restaurants

It's taken awhile, but the Missus is slowly getting back to Her routine as well. This morning, in the midst of the downpour, while shopping at Whole Paycheck, the Missus said, "let's go to Mien Trung…it's been a while and I'm craving some Bun Rieu." Now this was interesting. As I noted before, the Missus hasn't gotten the Bun Rieu at Mien Trung in a while; rather sticking with the Hen Xuc Com (spicy baby clams over rice), since they changed up the noodles and weakened the broth for the Bun Rieu.

So this was going to be interesting…..

The verdict? Well, this was a mere shadow of the Bun Rieu the we recalled . It was not bad, just not as good. The real problem for us, besides the use of the "wrong noodle" (per the Missus) was the lack of crab and tomato flavor in the broth. The Missus ave me a taste and I had to concur, it was quite bland, something that bun rieu should definitely not be.

As for my Bun Bo Hue; it was better than I'd had here in a while. The broth was very hot, the noodles firm and slippery, with a strong lemongrass flavor, and the effect of MSG a bit muted.

And while I wouldn't count it among the best bowls I've had here over the years, it did the trick.

As for the Missus, I think She'll stick with the Hen Xuc Com……

Mien Trung Restaurant
7530 Mesa College Dr
San Diego, CA 92111

Circling Back to…Pho Van and Pho Ca Dao (El Cajon Blvd)

February 22, 2016 mmm-yoso Pho, Vietnamese Restaurants

Here are a couple of places I haven't been to in ages…..

Pho Van:

Man, would you believe the last time I was here was back in "the 'aughts"! 2006 to be exact……talk about a loooong time.

I ran around doing a ton of shopping during my first weekend back from our trip. I thought I should go ahead and visit this place since I pass it all the time and say to myself "I need to do a revisit".

So I parked in back of the place, walked in, had a seat, and ordered #4………I saw the "Tai" (rare steak) on the way in and decided to pass.

The veggies and herbs were pretty fresh, even the two small leaves of Ngo Gai. The broth was actually better than I had here on previous visits…..no good mind you, but better. It wasn't too salty, but had a slight bitterness to it, had to temper with all the basil, which helped a bit. There was a very slight flavor of beef, but not much else. The noodles were decent, in the clump at the bottom of the bowl, edging on starting to get mushy, but not cold. The proteins were a mixed bag, the brisket tasted off, the flank very tough, but tripe was nicely prepped. Not much tendon.

Typical old school pho shop service, perfunctory, quick, and to the point. Not quite sure when or if I'll return……but hey, if they're still around in another 5-10 years, who know?

Pho Van Restaurant
4233 El Cajon Blvd
San Diego, CA 92105

Pho Ca Dao (El Cajon Blvd):

While never a big favorite, I always enjoyed the tendon here, while the Missus used to enjoy the Bun Bo Hue here. I knew I hadn't been here in a while, but looking back at my old posts, I believe it's been almost 6 years! How quickly time flies!

The interior look pretty much the same as is the service, which wasn't bad….typical pho shop, but perhaps a bit nicer. The young man who seated me was pretty friendly.

Let's get straight to the pho….#4 here as well.

Man, I still love the tendon here; it's just the right texture for me, slight chew while still being very tender. In fact, all the proteins were good, in terms of flavor the flank, while stringy and falling to pieces had a nice beefy flavor. The broth on the other hand was quite bad….as in "where's the beef"…..flavor. It's like they don't even use beef bones to make pho here anymore. Along with being too defatted it was also MSG heavy…..such is the state of pho in San Diego.

Sad because the pho banh was prepped well with a nice pull. Sad that the broth just didn't do it for me…….in spite of the tendon, it's the broth that's most important part of my bowl of pho.

Pho Ca Dao
5223 El Cajon Blvd
San Diego, CA 92115

Pho Pasteur Anh Hong (revisit)

February 12, 2016 Cathy Salads, Vietnamese Restaurants, What Cathy Eats!

Kirk is on (another) vacation, Ed (from Yuma) is enjoying Yuma and Cathy is writing this post about food for mmm-yoso!!!

The weather in San Diego has been unusual so far this year, from freezing temperatures to heavy, flooding rains, damaging winds and then yesterday, temperatures in the 90's. It's confusing on how to dress-layering a sweater over a long sleeve t-shirt over a short sleeve shirt seems necessary. Then 'what's for lunch' diverges into thoughts of both warming soups to refreshing salads. A recent solution was found at Pho Pasteur, which I've written about, several times.
Not much here has changed over the years; still the same glass top over pink tablecloths and consistent food. The mall, however lost its anchor business on August 4 last year and it seems that permitting to rebuild has taken a very long time.

Since I am the 'always chilly' person lately, a bowl of my favorite Mien Ga (bean thread with chicken soup) ($6.99) was the plan for this meal.The add-ins were used for the 'second half' of this bowl, making the flavor profile a bit different, like a new bowl of soup. Both The Mister and I enjoy trying various versions of Banh Xeo ($5.99) and the pancake with its light turmeric flavor and crunchiness with fresh fillings of pork, shrimp, bean sprouts and mung bean was just right when wrapped inside pieces of lettuce and mint and dipped in the bowl of Nuoc Cham (sweet, salty and sour!).Two summers ago, I was in search of the best version of Goi Bo (beef salad) ($10.99) and after much comparison shopping, the final determination is that my favorite version is made at Pho Pasteur Anh Hong. The slices of cooked marinated beef mixed with the thin, thin uniquely sliced (regular and pickled) vegetables, chopped peanuts and basil combine to make this salad so satisfying as a meal.

All in all, a really good hot/cold meal.

Pho Pasteur Ahn Hong 7612 Linda Vista road San Diego 92111 (858) 569-7515

Noodling Around: Tim Ky versus Minh Ky

January 31, 2016 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Vietnamese Restaurants, yoso-silly

Man, it's really blowing outside. Cathy sent me a message saying the power out in her part of San Diego. I hope everyone is keeping warm and out of the wind!

Two weekends ago, I went up to Mira Mesa to get a haircut. I'll usually hit up a place for breakfast before my haircut; Pho Cow Cali or Pho Lucky. This time around I thought it was time for a revisit to Tim Ky which I thought was pretty good when I first visited, but was quite pedestrian on my last visit. It was fairly early, so just simple won ton and dumpling egg noodle for me.

This was pretty good, Better than what I had the last time around. The broth was light, pork-chicken, with just a touch of oil, savory, and not overly salty this time around. The charsiu was on the bland side and the two won tons were on the tough side, the 4 dumplings were also kind of chewy. The egg noodles were quite nice, good chew. Nice and simple, a nice breakfast. This got me wondering if this might be better than the version at Minh Ky.

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

So yesterday, before the storm moved in; under the overcast sky, I headed up to Minh Ky.

And while I usually order the Beef Sate Noodle – Dry here; I went with the won ton and dumpling egg noodle soup. Which, while packed with stuff, looked quite light.

The differences were quite striking. The egg noodles here were not quite as yellow as the version at TimKy and also thinner. It was also nice and al dente, the noodles probably went to MK as did the charsiu, the dumplings, and the won tons which were much more tender that I ever recalled having here. Perhaps getting here before the crowds descend (0830) makes a difference?

I think the broth at Tim Ky was slightly better, mainly due to the richness, but overall, I still think Minh Ky is better overall.

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

It was fun doing a nice simple comparison which started with going to my haircut appointment. My hair didn't fare so well. The guy who's been cutting my hair for ages; I'd followed him all over the place, Mission Valley to Serra Mesa to El Cajon to College to his uncles house (during a bad spell he was pretty much homeless) to Rolando, to Oceanside, then most recently Mira Mesa. Unfortunately, he had just quit the day before….and I needed to get my hair cut, so I had one of the other guys cut it…..so I now have quite the buzz. The Missus gasped when I got back home….but hey, it's hair, it'll grow back. One of the guys at work asked me why I just didn't shave my head…..looking at him (balding), I just said, "hey, I get to prove that I actually have hair…."

COMC Noodle Soup Edition: Revisits to – 777 Noodlehouse, RakiRaki, Santouka, and Sushi Yaro

January 26, 2016 mmm-yoso Japanese Restaurants, Ramen, Vietnamese Restaurants

Yeeesh….it's been a tough week and it's only Tuesday. I need my sleep and some time to regroup, so here's a Clearing Out the Memory Card Post for ya……. Not much verbiage…..mostly photos.

777 Noodlehouse:

While I think the Hu Tieu Nam Vang at Ly Heng has surpassed 777, you can't deny this is a good deal for $5.77……though the portion is a bit smaller now.

777 Noodle House
4686 University Avenue
San Diego, CA 92105

RakiRaki:

Can this place even serve the noodles cold upon request? The noodles a bit overcooked….the place a lot over-hyped…..still, if you must, I think the Rikimaru Miso Tonkotsu Tsukemen might be the way to go. I will say, there's much more pork these days and the egg, while still overcooked wasn't tragically dry.

RakiRaki Ramen and Tsukemen
4646 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

Santouka:

Because I had to after checking out the Flagship Store in Asahikawa….yes….we caught the train there.

While the broth and the pork didn't come close to what we had (no Santouka effect this time); I still think this is the best that San Diego has to offer when it comes to ramen.

Santouka Ramen
4240 Kearny Mesa Rd(In the Mitsuwa Marketplace)
San Diego, CA 92111

Sushi Yaro:

**** Sushi Yaro has closed

Not for sushi…..but I needed a break and dropped by to see Sam and grab a bowl of Soki Soba.

Nothing earth shattering mind you, but I like this style of broth….though it could be a bit richer.

Being really busy means I'm not able to hang with my friends…..I am so looking forward to doing so again soon.

Sushi Yaro
7905 Engineer Road
San Diego, CA 92111

Hope you're having a great week!

Revisit: Song Huong – Mira Mesa

January 17, 2016 mmm-yoso Bun Bo Hue, Vietnamese Restaurants

**** This location of Song Huong has been replaced by Saigon Corner

Time sure does fly, doesn't it? It's easy to forget about places you mean to revisit when they are tucked away from the main drag; such is the case with Song Huong almost hidden behind Vinh Hung Market. In fact, I'd totally forgotten about the place until someone mentioned that Chibugan, which had once occupied the Song Huong space; then moved next door had closed. It had me wondering about how Song Huong was doing. Then, as chance would have it, I heard someone recommending the Bun Bo Hue at Song Huong; I did recall it being decent, but nothing special. Still, you didn't have to remind me a third time…..

I had decided to go into the office on a recent weekend to catch up on things, so I decided to take a little detour to Song Huong.

Not sure if it was the strange set-up of the tables, which stretched from the booths…sticking out with four to six seats added. Or the sticky floors and tables. Or perhaps the overall mustiness of the place. It did seem that time has not been to good to Song Huong.

The women working here are very nice; though communication was a bit difficult at times. I did manage to order the Bun Bo Hue, now $7.

This was kind of an odd bowl of BBH. First off, no pork hock. The flank was super tough and the small slices if what looked like pounded beef tasted a bit off and was very tough. No cha lua, just some fish cake. The broth seemed to be dressed up pho broth, with mild hints of spice, but almost no lemongrass or even that quick fixer upper mam tom flavor. It was scalding hot though.

I'm not sure what to say about the noodles, which were different from the bun I'm used to having in BBH. This was hard and very, very slippery….more like undercooked wheat based noodles. The greens and herbs were plentiful, but starting to discolor and mostly comprised of lettuce.

I really don't know what to say about this bowl of soup. Maybe it was an off day? I gotta say, this was a rather strange bowl of Bun Bo Hue. It just seemed thrown together. It's been five years since I'd last visited….I don't think I'll be back anytime soon.

Song Huong
10550 Camino Ruiz
San Diego, CA 92126

Revisits: Pho Hung Cali and Pho Lucky

January 10, 2016 mmm-yoso Pho, Vietnamese Restaurants

For some reason, it seems to be much colder this year….if it's old age, moisture, or what, I'm not sure, but this year feels different. Could be this nagging cold that I just can't seem to shake as well. Of course that still doesn't stop having to run errands during the weekend. Good thing pho shop usually open around 8am. So here's a couple of nice steaming bowls….

Pho Hung Cali:

Since I last visited back in April, I'd been thinking of returning. I thought the pho was decent and worth the revisit.

Man this place is huge. I wonder if they ever fill it up since the parking lot is rather small. The service here was nice; especially the guy who goes around refilling the H2O….he's so friendly. Also, they still don't charge for hot tea.

Having not enjoyed the rare steak the last time through I went with #19, all the meat except the tai. It came out bellowing steam.

Meanwhile, the lime was yellowing, the basil had starting developing spots and the bean sprouts were turning brown. Granted, not the perfect weather for produce; but this was going south.

The broth was nice and hot; it was also clear, meaning that it was kept at that nice temperature; lightly bubbling, without a roiling boil, and the impurities were removed.

It was a bit too defatted for my taste; I appreciate a bit of richness in my both. The flavor was onion/shallot forward, with a good measure of sweetness. It was also a tad too heavy in terms of MSG as well. But not terrible and I'd easily say, it's better than anything in Kearny Mesa.

As for the proteins; thing were much more tasty this time around; especially the pieces of brisket, which were nice and beefy. The tendon was decent, it looked really nice, but was still a bit too hard for my tastes…not bad though. There was one tiny strand of tripe.

The noodles were perfectly prepared. And on a nice note, weren't in a tight clump on the bottom of the bowl. Yes, this does matter to me.

I thought this was a decent bowl. I think I'll even try the Pho Filet next time.

Pho Hung Cali
1060 Broadway Chula Vista
Chula Vista, CA 91911

Pho Lucky:

It was haircut time and Pho Lucky is across the street. Last time it was Cow Cali, so Pho Lucky get equal time.

Strangely not quite as good as on previous visits. The broth was nicely flavored; anise and onion forward, but was on the cloudy side. The noodles were perfect, but the meats all tasted a bit off. The flank was really, really tough…like eating rubber, the tendon; usually a favorite of mine was MIA. So, I've been here many, many, times and I'll allow it an off day…..or perhaps I should have just gone Banh Mi Bo Kho.

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

Midweek Meanderings: Bird Rock Coffee Roasters Morena Opens With Limited Hours and Pho Paradise Closes

January 6, 2016 mmm-yoso Caffeine Fix, Vietnamese Restaurants

Just a quick one on this water-logged Wednesday.

Bird Rock Coffee Roasters Morena:

It's no secret, that Bird Rock Coffee is a favorite of the Missus. From the first time we saw the sign last year on a quick trip to Stehly Farms, we'd been asking if the location on Morena, home to their roasting facility.

Finally, at the beginning of November they opened to the public, albeit with limited hours – 6am to noon, Monday to Fridays. I'm only able to visit when I'm running late for work or on holidays.

Still, my visits have been fruitful. On the morning of Christmas Eve, I dropped by and was shocked to see they had brewed a batch of the iconic Panama Geisha. We'd previously spent ten bucks for pour over at Bird Rock, and while this was just drip coffee, it was worth way more than the $2.15 price tag. Smooth, almost too smooth, aromatic….very nice.

I also noticed that the Kyoto Drip tower had been set-up. The really friendly guys here….they love to talk about the various aspects of coffee….heaven for a coffee nerd like the Missus, told me they were "dialing it in"…… I'm hoping they have some nice cold brew the next time I drop by.

I was also told they were considering the possibility of weekend hours……which I'd appreciate.

Bird Rock Coffee Roasters
1270 Morena Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92110

Pho Paradise Closes:

Right before the deluge hit, I decided to see what was up with Pho Paradise. I was somewhat surprised to see Eviction Restoration Notice posted on the door. Too bad. I once thought that the pho here had some promise, but my last visit here in November was quite disappointing.

One consistent thing about Convoy. There's no good pho to be had.

Pho Paradise
3904 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

Revisits: Pho Hut and Hinotez

January 4, 2016 mmm-yoso Japanese Restaurants, Ramen, Vietnamese Restaurants

Man, work has been busy. And there were a couple of cool/rainy days, where I just wanted a bowl of noodle soup, and some quiet. Here's where I went.

Pho Hut and Grill:

I didn't expect much based on my previous visits. I wasn't sure what to order and ended up going with the Mi Sui Cao, dumpling egg noodle soup, not cheap at $8.50, but based on those earlier visits, I really didn't want pho.

The bowl was generous and it was better than I thought it would be.

While the broth was a bit heavy with regards to the MSG, it wasn't bad, decent flavor. The egg noodles were done well…..the dumplings were typical, a bit on an under-performer because all of them were torn open and falling apart. Not bad….but perhaps a bit over-priced in my mind.

Pho Hut & Grill
5252 Balboa Ave
San Diego, CA 92117

Hinotez:

When I want a quiet lunch, I'll sometimes hit up Hinotez. There's usually no one sitting at the bar when I at there if it's early enough. And like other visits, the place was empty. Instead of the usual item I order; the Shio Ramen, I went with the Shoyo Ramen.

This was actually a bit better than the last couple of shio versions I'd had here in the recent past. It was piping hot, had a mild, but not too salty flavor. The egg was decent, but the chashu was again cold and dry. The standard issue noodles were prepared decently….could have been more firm, but was a tad better than average. It won't win any awards, but I wanted a quiet and peaceful meal and I did get that…..

Hinotez
7947 Balboa Ave
San Diego, CA 92111