This past weekend, after returning from our last trip, I was craving some "comfort food"….which at that time meant noodles…and in this case Beef Satay Egg Noodle "dry" ("Kho"). So, of course Minh Ky came to mind. Especially since I've been going here since way "back when". In fact, it was one of my last stops before the Covid shut down in 2020. What has recently changed is the ownership of Minh Ky. I was interested to see if things were different after the change of ownership. I did wait until we got back from our last trip and visited this past weekend.
Upon arrival there were some things that were totally the same….for instance; that parking lot is still terrible. The back parking lot is now totally run by Paris Bakery and there are warning signs posted not to park there. The sign for Minh Ky however, is quite shiny and new!
Though the interior looks the same.
I noticed that prices have gone up since my last visit in March of last year, though my guess is that prices have risen everywhere. The Mi Sate Thit Bo is now $11.95 and guess what? There's now a 50-cent upcharge for getting it "Kho" (dry).
Still old habits die hard, and I really wanted to see if my favorite dish from Minh Ky had changed with the ownership. The young lady working said they've kept the kitchen staff.
There was one thing I quickly noticed when my bowl arrived; the portion size seems a bit larger than before. Also, the sauce was a lot "redder" in color and while it had a decent savory-nutty – pungency, was also saltier than I recalled. The beef was not quite as nicely velveted and was on the chewy side, though I've had that happen on previous visits.
The broth at Minh Ky had usually been on the weaker and blander side of the scale and perhaps it was me really focusing in on things; but take a look at how pale that soup is. It just speaks for itself.
There was a good amount of tomato and onion. The noodles, which were provided in abundance were really undercooked, hard, and brittle.
I'm not quite sure if it was me really focusing on things or what? But the couple on the table behind me was having a lively debate. The young man said that his egg noodle dish was not quite up to par and was very salty; the young woman said her won ton soup was just the same and the kitchen staff is the same. She punctuated the argument by telling the young man "I've been coming here my entire life, you never came here until we met 5 five years ago, so you obviously don't know what you're talking about!" Touche!
So, while I did detect some differences; I'll need to return in a couple of weeks….or months, this was obviously not quite to my liking, and see.
So, tell me; if you've been to Minh Ky since the ownership change, have you detected anything different with what you had?
Minh Ky Restaurant
4644 El Cajon Boulevard
San Diego, CA 92115
The rice was perfect, but the sauce was greasier and milder in poultry flavor than what we'd had earlier and the turkey meat was more chewy/tough as well. 
And even though it seemed pretty busy along the whole 500 meter route, there was a laid back vibe to things. And so, we actually enjoyed this night market more than the 
The woman working was quite a good salesperson. She saw the Missus and I walk up and immediately started conversing with the Missus. And apparently this tactic worked as we got a Hujiao Bing – a pepper bun. 
As you walk within the park, you'll come across amazing trees. An example would be the "three generation tree". Where one tree grew upon another, each serving as a base for the next generation, a symbol for all who some here.
There were very nice wooden paths and bridges making Alishan a very easy visit. Perhaps too easy for the Missus as She was getting kinda bored with the whole place. Whereas I enjoyed the view and the trees. Oh the stories they could tell!
It was cooked to a perfect medium rare, loved the beefiness. I was told this is grass fed beef, so I expected it to be more toothsome. The cauliflower was delicious; at least that's what the Missus said as She quickly poached them all from the plate. The jalapeno mashed potatoes were quite creamy and not really spicy at all.
