The closest place to us is Nam Viet in Cleveland Park, but it’s a pain to catch the H bus across Rock Creek Park, and driving there on the weekend always turns into a parking nightmare.  Plus their food still isn’t nearly as good at what you can get at Eden Center or at Pho 75 in Arlington.  So, Vietnamese has become a bit of a special treat for us.

We’ve even taken to stopping at this pho place in Harrisburg on  to see Lee’s family at Christmas time.  Every time I eat there, I think about or mention how I wish I could get some pho in Columbia Heights for Christmas.  You can therefore imagine my shock when last month I was walking home from the Metro and I spotted a giant sign on the side of a building that read, “Pho 14 Coming Soon.”

I stopped.  I stared.  And then I pulled out my cellphone and called Lee to announce my discovery.  Sure, I was less than 2 blocks from my apartment, but this news could not wait.

Now on my walks home from work, I peer into the window, trying to figure out how close they are.  For a long time, the windows were covered in brown kraft paper and I hadn’t been able to divine much except for the fact that they’d installed light fixtures in the ceiling. Around mid-February, purple bubble letters appeared on the window that read “Coming in Mid-March”.

Well, my friends, it is now mid-March.  The kraft paper has come down and I can confirm that there is a big flat screen tv, a tiki-themed bar area, and a very kitchy-looking fake stone fountain.  The decor might not be the greatest, but I don’t care as long as the food is good.  Apparently tonight was the soft opening, and Prince of Petworth gives it the thumbs up.  Pending final inspections, they will be opening on Thursday.  I will be there, ready and hungry.

Pho 14 Vietnamese Restaurant
1436 Park Rd Nw
Washington, DC

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Post tags: columbia heights, dc, park road, pho, Vietnamese food

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Ramen from Rai Rai Ken
Nestled on a quiet street in the East Village,  Rai Rai Ken is a little shoe box of a restaurant. There is an L-shaped bar that seats maybe 12 people, and chefs lowers steaming bowls of ramen over the edge of the counter.  Rai Rai Ken serves miso, shoyu, and curry ramen, along with a handful of other seasonal noodle dishes, appetizers, and yakitori.  This place kind of reminds me of the movie Tampopo and the protagonists’ quest for the perfect broth.  Rai Rai Ken’s is rich and multi-layered, and the egg noodles are fresh and wonderfully chewy.

Rai Rai Ken Japanese Restaurant
214 East 10th St, New York, NY 10003
(212) 477-7030

Chocolate Covered Bacon from Roni-Sue’s
Bacon + Chocolate?  How could we go wrong?  My friends and I saw this on Serious Eats and thought we’d make a stop at the Essex Street Market to give it a try. The first bite is all creamy chocolate, but then as you chew, all the salty, porky, bacon-ness starts to come out.  It’s very strange, fatty, and delicious.  Roni-Sue also make some great truffles.  Big ups on the coconut, pineapple, and toffee flavors.

Roni-Sue’s Chocolates
Essex Street Market #24, 20 Essex Street, New York NY 10002
(212) 260-0421

Korean BBQ at Kum Gang San
My aunt’s friend, a long-time New York resident, gave me two recommendations for Korean food–Kum Gang San and Hanbat.  They are only a few blocks from each other, so I let my friends make the final selection.  They chose based on which restaurant had the dirtier sounding name.  We feasted on grilled galbi, bulgogi, shrimp, vegetables, seafood pajun, and sake, all while being serenaded by a piano/cello duo that performed in this strange rock wall outcropping.  Their kimchi is especially good–so good in fact, that the placemats extol the its health benefits (children love New York kimchi, for it has no offensive smell!). Service was harried, and the restaurant was packed on a Saturday night. Ultimately, you can get Korean BBQ that is just as good, if not better, in the NoVa suburbs for cheaper.  However, it’s a fun place to eat with a group, and it fit perfectly with post-dinner karaoke plans.

Kum Gang San
49 West 32nd Street, New York, NY 10001
(212) 967-0909

Interlude: The Return of KTV
If you’ve ever spent some time in Asia, you’ve hopefully had the pleasure of experiencing KTV.  In Asia, they love karaoke and have these bars where you rent out a private room with your own tv, microphones, and drink service. The whole thing was freakishly reminiscent of the bars I went to in Hong Kong–unmarked building, nondescript elevator that opens up to a metallic, overly air-conditioned maze of rooms, all blasting pop music. I don’t know the name of the bar we went to and I’m not entirely sure I could find it again, but I suspect that 32nd Street between Broadway and Madison is filled with these places.

Uncle Ming’s
This was bar #3 of our Saturday night jaunt, so forgive me if my memory is fuzzy.  (The other bar was really small, crowded, and I can’t remember it’s name.)  Uncle Ming’s is this unmarked second floor bar somewhere in Alphabet City.  The space is dark and a sort of like cavern meets sexy French lounge decor. People make out on these couches by the window.  The bathroom door lock is broken.  The bouncer didn’t card any of us.  Everything was red.  But it was way less crowded than the last bar.

Uncle Ming’s
225 Avenue B, New York, NY 10009
(212) 979-8506

Free comedy show at Beauty Bar
This was actually my favorite bar of the whole weekend. It is resplendent with 60s kitch decor, including old salon chairs, bullet-shaped hair dryers, glitter, and beehives. We saw a free comedy show, which started out as truly abysmal and ended up pretty decently, with the last 3 or 4 comics actually being quite funny. The DJ also played some great music (sounded like the Ramones?) and the drinks were cheap, for NY and DC at least ($5 rail drinks). The only downside was that it quickly grew crowded and too loud to talk.

Beauty Bar
231 E 14th St – New York, NY 10003
212-539-1389

A good weekend all around, even though I didn’t make it out to Flushing to sample some bad ass Chinese food. It’s okay. I’ll be back soon. After all, I’m still hungry.

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Post tags: Bacon, bars, East Village, egg noodles, essex street, grilled galbi, japanese food, japanese restaurant, korean bbq, korean food, KTV, kum gang san, labor day weekend, new york, nightlife, nyc, ramen, shoyu, tampopo

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I didn’t review my last two meals, Rasika and DC Coast. I’ve eaten at Rasika three times and it has yet to disappoint. However, you might as well go whenever and order off the full menu, because the cost is roughly the same as ordering during Restaurant Week. DC Coast had the full menu for entrees only. My tower of crab (crab cake, soft shell crab, and sweet corn succotash) was lovely; the appetizers and desserts were just okay.

There, I just did it. I wrote a really boring, crappy recap of my meal. This is about on par with a Yelp review. I will just have to satisfy myself with the fact that I can do better (even if I’m not right now). Plus, I really need to lose my Restaurant Week pudge before I start eating out again.

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Today, OpenTable published the list of restaurants participating Restaurant Week (August 11-17). I have already booked all my meals for the week. Like my old co-worker, I’ve become just as greedy about Restaurant Week. After all, it only comes but twice a year. So I save it all up and eat 7 (hopefully all) delicious meals for $35 each. Here’s where I’m going:

Monday: PS 7′s
Tuesday: Oyamel
Wednesday: Vidalia
Thursday: Cafe Atlantico, Rasika
Friday: DC Coast
Saturday: Acadiana
Sunday: Eating burgers and hot dogs at my boyfriend’s summer office party. Blech.

This could all change upon further research or contemplation. That’s the beauty of OpenTable–you can search, book, and cancel all online. I’ve eaten at PS 7′s, Acadiana, Vidalia, and Rasika before and expect that I will get a quality meal. Sadly, Corduroy is not doing RW anymore; you used to be able to get the full menu for $30 and it was faaaabulous. My guess is that the rent at their new location may make it prohibitively expensive. Oyamel, Cafe Atlantico, and DC Coast are a gamble, so if you’ve been there, please let me know what you thought.

I’ve never booked this early before, and I have to say, it’s nice. There’s no need to go into your second or third choice, eat at 10 pm, or check OpenTable constantly in the hope that someone will cancel and you can nab the spot. It kind of takes the thrill out of it, but I’m really looking forward to eating at 7 all week. So go get yourself a reservation early–you’ve got three weeks to save up the cash and/or drop a few pounds before treating yourself.

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Post tags: acadiana, cafe atlantico, dc, DC coast, eating out, fine dining, open table, oyamel, PS 7's, rasika, restaurant week, vidalia

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Belgian food is starting to quickly become an overdone fad in DC. However, having spent most of my life in the Midwest, deprived of moules and frites, I just can’t seem to get enough of them. Plus, trying new restaurants gives me an excuse to eat french fries, even though I know they’re bad for me.

Two weekends ago, Lee and I made reservations for any early dinner at Brassiere Beck. BB opened about a year ago amid serious hype. Reviews seem to be mixed, but BB also keeps popping up in various best new restaurant lists. While that’s enough to make one a little hesitant, Brasserie Beck definitely exceeded my expectations on several counts.

Lee and I each ordered a salad ($13) to start – bibb lettuce with roasted beets and frisee with lardons and poached egg. I’m sorry there are no salad shots — I was so hungry that I forgot to take a picture. The beet salad arrived with thin slices of beet arranged in a circle and a little pile of lettuce leaves and minced red onion in the center. As an avid beet fan, I have eaten many a beet salad. This rendition was perfectly acceptable but not very memorable. The mustard dressing was very mild, and I thought the raw onion overwhelmed their delicate flavor. I think a gentle dressing works will with tender bibb lettuce, but a little more acid would have brought out the sweetness in the beets.

The frisee salad, on the other hand, was divine. Like, eyes rolling back in my head, weak knees, drooling a little divine. The presentation was also delightful – the mound of frissee was topped with a parmesan toast crisp and a perfectly poached egg. I love this flavor combination, but in the past I have noticed that this salad can become overpowered by the sherry vinegarette and becomes soupy once the egg yolk is mixed into the greens. What is notable about Brasserie Beck’s salad is that the salad is dressed just lightly enough to impart a vinegary pucker that is smoothed out by the richness of the yolk. But the best part is the addition of little deep fried shallots, which opens the salad up to an entirely new level of flavor suggestion and gives it greater textural interest. I would go back for this salad alone.

For my entree, I obviously ordered mussels and frites ($20). I’ve heard that the food at Brasserie Beck is very rich, and I did not feel hungry enough to order a regular entree ($23-$26). You can also order the mussels or raw oysters as an appetizer, but the mussels are big enough for a meal. I ordered mine with curry and apple; other combinations include the classic white wine, herbs, and garlic, as well as fennel and chorizo. The mussels come with frites and a trio of dipping sauces (mayo, curry mayo, and Marie Rose sauce – aka ketchup and mayo).

My mussels arrived in a huge yellow skillet which matched the screaming yellow broth. The food tasted as colorful as it looked; the apples were so spiced and salty, it was difficult to eat more than a few bites. While I thought the broth was too intense to eat alone, this intensity allowed it to impart greater flavor to the mussels. In the past, I have found that sometimes the broth tastes delicious, but mussels themselves are a bit bland. Personally, I would rather have my mussels taste better, but this might be off-putting for someone who loves to sop up the juices with their bread.

On the other hand, the frites tasted fabulous when dipped in the curry broth, putting the accompanying mayonnaise dips to shame. Brasserie Beck’s frites are very light and crispy. There is not a hint of greasiness; they have a wonderfully airy crunch that contrasts nicely with the creamy mayo. I like the Marie Rose sauce, as I find straight mayo a bit too gooey, but ketchup a bit too watery. That said, I do think the Marie Rose could have had a little more tomato flavor. The curry was the most flavorful of the three, and probably would have been my favorite if I were not already eating curry mussels.

Lee ordered the special, pictured above. I must be honest and say that I couldn’t completely understand our waiter (he had an accent and spoke quickly). I know it involved red snapper, balsamic reduction, basil, fried shallots, and that Lee ate it so fast that I only got to try a bite of it. I think that means it was good.

For dessert, I ordered the waffle du jour, and Lee had the bread pudding. The waffle was, in my opinion, the ideal balance of crisp exterior and light, tender interior. It was incredibly delicate and served with stewed blueberries and lemon ice cream. The bread pudding was much heartier–it was a dense cube of bread and chocolate. I thought the chocolate was a nice complement to the vanilla and egg, but the texture is quite thick. I personally prefer bread pudding that is custardy, but even then I still don’t care that much for it.

It would be criminal not to mention that Brasserie Beck has an incredible selection of Belgian beers. The beer list is more like a tome, and includes a detailed description of the flavor, color, and alcohol volume. You can also ask to speak to the beer sommelier (yes, a beer sommelier), who will make a recommendation based on your preferences. He spoke to the table next to us and was very knowledgable. Indeed, all the staff we dealt with were incredibly attentive, quick, and professional.

The thing I like best about Brasserie Beck is that it’s incredibly versatile. I know that versatile is kind of a strange word to use, so let me explain. Your dining experience is really what you make of it. You can go for a lighter meal of seafood, salad, or small plates, a special occasion meal, or a multi-course tasting menu. The mind-boggling selection of beer makes it worthy of a trip just for drinks and maybe an appetizer or two. You could spent a lot of money, or a little bit of money. The restaurant itself is broken up into a series of rooms and odd-shaped nooks, making it suitable for a large party or an intimate dinner. The atmosphere and menu are flexible enough to accommdate any of these possibilities. I will most certainly be back soon.

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So, is Ripert a cook, a chef, or both? Wait, do I actually care?

No. What I do care about is how my food tastes. Last night, I went to Westend Bistro for Lee’s birthday dinner. I had done some research via Don Rockwell and had learned that Westend Bistro was good but perhaps not awesome. (I also learned that Don Rockwell members are incredibly snotty.)

To start, we ordered two seasonal appetizers: rabbit rillettes with apple and celery and soft shell crab on a watercress, fingerling potato, and caper salad.

The rillettes were a bit over salted and one note. Mostly, you tasted salt, then the rabbit pate. The delicate apple and celery shavings were completely overwhelmed. As a personal bias, I’m just not that big a fan of spreadable meats. The mushy texture doesn’t do anything for me.

On the other hand, the soft shell crab was very good. I was a little skeptical of the flavor combination, but was very pleased when I tasted it. I am a die-hard soft shell crab fan, and this crab was perfectly dredged and fried. Very light and crispy, though a touch too salty. However, the light, tangy flavors of the salad balanced out the richness of the crab. This was one of those dishes in which you must eat all the components together on your fork to get the full experience. Apart, they are a bit pedestrian, but together it’s quite wonderful.

For our main courses, I ordered the braised veal cheeks with potato puree and wild mushrooms (pictured above). Lee had the special, roasted shoulder of lamb with white beans and pine nuts.

My veal cheeks were tender and served in a very rich pan gravy. Again, the sauce was a bit too salty. There was not enough potato on the plate to make up for the richness of the meat and sauce. The mushrooms were earthy and bursting with roasted flavor; the carrots were tender but not mushy and the sweetness was a nice contrast to the meat. If this had been served with more potato and carrot and a hair less salt, I think it would have been successful. That said, I don’t think it was anything earth-shattering–it kind of tasted like an upscale beef stew. Given that spring has officially arrived in DC, I think a dish like this is a little too heavy. I probably should have ordered fish or something lighter.

Lee’s entree was much more seasonally appropriate. I only had a bite, but the lamb was perfectly roasted: tender and pink, but not bleeding. It did not have even the slightest bit of gamey taste, though the layer of fat on the outside did. Unfortunately, like everything else, it was slightly over salted.

Dessert at Westend Bistro was our best course. We ordered the rhubarb tart and the nougat glacé (pictured above), based on a tip from DonRockwell.

The nougat glacé is basically a little mold of very creamy hazelnut ice cream, served with an orange sauce and candied pistachios. The best part was the edges, which had melted slightly and were incredibly smooth and rich. If you have good self-control, I recommend letting the dish rest a few minutes so the nougat can melt a little. I have a bad habit of rapaciously attacking my desserts and, after nibbling at the edges, began hacking at it very loudly with my spoon.

The rhubarb tart was even better than the nougat. The tart was served with a scoop of strawberry mascarpone ice cream. It tasted as good as it sounds, especially since the strawberries were fresh and the mascarpone made for an extra rich texture. The tart had stewed rhubarb pieces atop a firm, pear-flavored custard. I was expecting more rhubarb flavor, but I actually really liked the combination of tart/sweet flavors and stringy/custardy textures that resulted from the rhubarb and pear marriage.

Overall, my reaction to Westend Bistro is mixed. I would definitely return for the desserts, and I was impressed with the soft shell crab appetizer. However, the entrees were a bit disappointing, especially considering that they were between $20-35 a plate. Starters are $10-15, salads and soups $7-12, vegetable sides $7-10, and desserts were $9. (Funny, because bistros are supposed to be cheaper…) If I’m going to pay that much for my main course, I can get better food elsewhere.

That said, I believe you can eat at Westend Bistro for a better price. We did not try any of the sides, but the couple next to us was eating the mac and cheese for two, and it looked delicious (herb and breadcrumb topping, served in a little cast iron dish). If I were go to back, I would stick with appetizers, salads, sides, desserts, and some of the cheaper entrees (the burgers looked good, and the mac is big enough to be a meal for one). The more expensive entrees simply aren’t worth it. The dining experience itself is very pleasant–the waitstaff are very attentive, the atmosphere is friendly, relaxed, and the decor is warm and modern. In that sense, it is exactly what a bistro should be.

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My first trip to H St occurred several months ago in the form of dinner at Dr. Granville Moore’s and local band night at Rock and Roll Hotel. I’ll admit, I was kind of stressing out. I find that DC nightlife can be rather depressing due to certain breed of suburbanite that flocks to Georgetown and Adams Morgan on the weekend, acts like an obnoxious, then drives drunkenly home, thankful they don’t actually live in the scary city.

But I also keep reading about this mythical creature known as the DC hipster (or “hip-tard” by so-called suburban haters), mostly in the DCist comments threads. Since H St is still a little rough, I figured it might have just enough street cred to keep the striped shirt crew away. Like, there might actually be cool people there. People so cool, they would take one look at me and know that I wasn’t cool enough. I might walk into Granville Moore’s and encounter a sea of shrunken striped sweaters, unwashed hair, and Chuck Taylors. I obsessed that my poser status might be given away due to my lack of canvas messenger bag and 1970s ski vest.

It turns out that H St is cool. But not in the way I was expecting.

Granville Moore’s is this narrow room with exposed brick and dark wood. It’s warm if a bit dimly lit. The windows on the first floor are covered with metal grates, making it seem like you’ve walked into a basement. A bar runs along one wall and there are tables along the other; the upstairs has a similar set up. At 7 pm on a Friday, the place was packed, with a 30 minute wait. We were told by the “hostess” that, “There might be some room upstairs. You can go up there and check if you want.” This seemed a little unprofessional to me, partly because it was so crowded and the stairs were on the other side of the room. Isn’t it the job of the hostess to check if there are free tables? She later went outside to smoke/text message/chat with a girlfriend, leaving several confused patrons milling around aimlessly for a good ten minutes or more.

Despite the hostess, Lee and I decided to wait for a table. Granville Moore’s specializes in Belgian beer and cuisine. Neither of us had heard of many of the beers on their sizable menu, but we were starving, so something full-bodied and flavorful was in order. I ordered a Delirium Tremens Nocturnum, which was delicious: dark, creamy, a little carmel-y and a little bitter.

While waiting for our table, it became apparent that H St is not overrun by motley hipsters. The crowd was on the younger end, but not exclusively. I saw couples out on dates, co-workers of varying ages having a beer after work, groups of middle-aged women, double daters dressed to the nines, sports-bar types.

The menu at Granville Moore’s is small but well-conceived. The specialty is mussels and frites. There are 4-5 types of mussel preparations, from your basic white wine and garlic to more creative incarnations involving Italian or Spanish flavors. There is also a selection of sandwiches and a handful of other entrees. Lee and I ordered a bowl of mussels with pesto and Parmesan, fries with horseradish and curry ketchup dipping sauces, and a steak sandwich to share. The mussels were good, but I think I still prefer a traditional white wine preparation. We ordered a large fries, and they were nothing short of enormous. Imagine slicing a basketball in half and filling it with crispy, herb-y fries. They were excellent but way too big a serving, even for this fry-loving girl. The fries come with a choice of six dipping sauces; you can choose two when you order. The curry ketchup was a standout but the horseradish cream was a little bland. I just don’t think it did anything to compliment the fries, whereas the curry ketchup added a sweet, spicy tang to the salty crunch.

All in all, it was a very good meal—flavorful food, flavorful libations, and a surprisingly homey and relaxed atmosphere. One thing that I hate about DC dining is going somewhere pretentious and paying for mediocre food. Food at Granville Moore’s is tasty and reasonable. The mussels were $14 and those huge fries were only seven bucks. The beers do cost more, running in the range of $7-$10. When it comes to drinks, I’m about quality over quantity. If you’re interested in a lot for alcohol for a low price, you should probably go drink $1 Bud Lights at some shitty happy hour. But if you want to savor delicious Belgian ale with your mussels and piping hot fries, it’s really a small price to pay for a great reward.

Lee and I then rolled ourselves down the block to Rock and Roll Hotel. From what I could tell (it was very dark inside), R&R Hotel is a rectangular room with a small stage, a bar and some neat gothic light fixtures and mirrors. It is not terribly big, but like all good clubs, the bathrooms are covered with incoherent Sharpie marker graffiti. We didn’t stay very long, just to hear a friend who was in the opening act. But, what struck me was that the patrons at Rock and Roll were an even stranger mix than at Granville Moore’s. I saw kids who looked like they had barely graduated high school, as well as a couple old enough to be grandparents, and everything in between (including a few striped shirts). Hiptards, preptards, whatever. They were all there. And that’s why I think H St is cool. In a city that always feels like it’s trying to hard, it is a rare thing to find a place that is legitimately chill.

Better go now, before it gets too safe/clean/gentrified/condoified. Then you won’t be able to keep the riff raff out.

Granville Moore’s
1238 H St. NE, Washington, DC
202-399-2546

Rock and Roll Hotel
1353 H Street, NE, Washington, DC
(202) 388-ROCK

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Last weekend, I visited Front Royal, Virginia, about an hour or so outside of DC. I guess most people go to Front Royal in order to enjoy Shenandoah National Park and cruise along scenic Skyline Drive. I did neither. Instead, Lee dragged us to a vintage clothing store that turned out to be closed. But the afternoon was not completely lost. On our way into town, I spotted The Apple House. More specifically, I spotted a sign for the Apple House’s fresh, homemade donuts.

In college, we used to always pass an apple orchard on the drive down from Minneapolis. Occasionally, my parents would pick up a bag of hot, fresh apple cider donuts for me to bring back to the dorm. I like donuts as much as the next girl, but fresh apple cider donuts are a cut above the rest. Obviously I wasn’t about the miss another chance at apple donuts.

But this isn’t a story about apple cider donuts. It’s a story about pulled pork sandwiches and apple cider donuts. The Apple House is a quasi-restaurant/country store, selling jams, jellies, maple syrup, sparkling cider, and those horrible Vera Bradley purses. The restaurant only serves 2 things: bbq pork sandwiches and donuts. Seven dollars and fifty cents will get you an applewood-smoked pulled pork sandwich, coleslaw, beans, kettle chips, and a drink.

This is a fabulous sandwich. Pile on the sweet, yellow, creamy coleslaw, and you’ve got a mouthful of heaven. Sweet, smoky, mushy, saucy, creamy, and just a touch piquant. I’ve had a lot of pulled pork sandwiches in which the pork was flavorless, just smothered in some sauce. Here, the meat has a lot of salty, smoky flavor in its own right, topped off by a tomato-y sauce and sweet slaw. (Apparently the secret ingredient in this sauce is apple butter.) This is the kind of sandwich I fantasize about when my tummy starts a rumblin’. Finished off with a cup of cider and a cinnamon-sugar crusted donut, and it’s the perfect meal.

The Apple House
4675 John Marshall Hwy, Linden, VA
http://www.theapplehouse.net/

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Mostly, it’s not for me. I knew that, but this trip definitely confirmed it. Lee and I booked a cheap flight to LAX, rented a car, and headed across massive highways to Fullerton to attend Inspiration Weekend (not related to Jesus in any way). Downtown Fullerton is pretty cute, but it’s surrounded by industrial office parks, strip malls, and miles of asphalt parking lots. As we rode along in our rented PT Cruiser, belting out what few lyrics we know of “The OC” theme song (“Californnniiiiyaaa, here we caaaaaa-uhhhmme!”), it seemed eerily quiet. No one was out on the street. They were all in their cars.

There are subcultures in America and there are regional cultures. I am fully aware of how stereotypical it all sounds, but I walked away with a strange sensation of being surrounded by a lot of flash, but little actual substance.

But, enough of the creepy surface details. The only real saving grace about the OC (for me, anyway), was the food.

Lee and I had some fabulous pho and tried the famous In N Out Burger, as well as Carl’s Jr. We also ran across a 24-hour drive-through donut shop with awesome apple fritters the size of my face, and a family-owned chain of taquerias.

Pho 88
1121 S Lemon St, Fullerton, CA
(714) 773-4022

I think this was some of the best pho I’ve had. Granted, I have not eaten enough good pho in my short life, so take that for what it’s worth. However, it certainly trumps anything I’ve eaten in Minneapolis or at Nam Viet in Cleaveland Park. Lee had the traditional beef broth and I had a combo with mock duck, beef, and cured pork. In both cases, the broth was phenomenal–you could really taste the star anise, cilantro, meat, and vegetable flavors. We finished it off with Thai iced tea and Vietnamese iced coffee. (Thai iced tea is this bright orange, sweet, soy milk-y concoction, while Vietnamese coffee is an ultra dark, cold-pressed brew served with sweetened condensed milk.) Perfect for a hot summer day, and the whole thing was under $30.

B & B Donuts
925 S Harbor Blvd, Fullerton, CA
(714) 879-9670

Personally, there is nothing like eating something greasy and terrible for you after a hard night of dancing. I mean, why not replenish all the calories you burned (x3)? Anyway, late night dining options in Fullerton are pretty bleak. It’s donuts or fast food, and the donuts are way, waay better. While the chocolate glazed was decent — quite light, with a little crunch, the apple fritter was momentous. It was like eating a giant baseball mitt of fried apple and dough. The fritter was fried to a deep brown. Crisp outside, chewy inside, with a nice coating of glaze, cinnamon, and big chunks of apple. I would <em>almost</em> go back to Fullerton just for this donut. Except, I have no reason to go back to Fullerton.

Taqueria De Anda
Multiple locations, CA
http://taqueriadeanda.com/

It only seemed right to seek out authentic Mexican tacos while in Southern California. DC apparently has a dire shortage of authentic Mexican food, so I think I will be savoring the taste of Taqueria de Anda’s tacos for some time to come. It went something like this: Alicia and Lee drive around OC aimlessly, trying to find a taqueria. Alicia and Lee can’t find the first taqueria listed on GoogleMaps. Luckily, we find Taqueria de Andra across the street. The inside of this place is pretty bare bones and maybe not that clean. We immediately take this as a sign that the food will be delicious.  And it is. We order 4 tacos, ravenously inhale them, then order 4 more tacos which are snarfed down with just as much gusto. Standouts include the carne asada, al pastor, and cabeza (aka steamed beef head–a little chewy, but served with a refreshing green salsa).

In N Out Burger vs. Carl’s Jr.

I guess In N Out is just one of these cultural food institutions that’s become such a, well, institution, that no one stops to notice that it actually isn’t that good. Lee didn’t believe me when I told him that you were supposed to order it “animal-style” (with pickles, extra spread, grilled onions, and mustard fried onto each patty). Perhaps if we had been aware of all the special “secret menu” options, the burger would have been more impressive. The fries were also pretty weak–the color was weirdly anemic, not very crispy, or flavorful.

Carl’s Jr., on the other hand, totally surprised me. The Six Dollar Burger was amazing. Firstly, it was huge. Secondly, the flavor was a cut above other fast food burgers. Rather that a limp, gray, flavorless patty, the meat was thick, juicy, and tasty. The other toppings (lettuce, tomato, onions, cheese) were very fresh and colorful. (As you may have noticed, fast food vegetables seem to be consistently pallid and flavorless.) Sorry folks, but I’ll take Carl’s Jr. over In N Out any day.

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On Friday, Lee and I went out to eat Malaysian food at Penang in Bethesda. Penang is actually a small chain, and I’ve eaten at their restaurants in Chicago and New York. One of my favorite Malaysian dishes, which I first sampled at Penang in Chicago, is hollow vegetable (also known as water convolvulus) stirfried with chilies and shrimp paste (kang kung blachan). After some coaxing, Lee agreed to forgo beef in favor of this unknown vegetable.

However, when we attempted to order it, the waiter informed us that they didn’t have any hollow vegetable. We would have been satisfied with that answer, but the waiter went on to explain that kang kung has actually been banned in the US, which is why they don’t serve it anymore. Banned?! How can this be??? We ordered the beef rendang instead, and it was good, but no substitute for my beloved hollow vegetable. After dinner, I hit up the Google to find out if our waiter had been telling us the truth.

Water convolvulus aka “Chinese water spinach”, kang kung or kongxincai 空心菜 (Chinese translation: “hollow heart vegetable”) is considers a “noxious weed” by the USDA. You can only import it into the US with a special permit. Because it grows in water, raw water convolvulus may also carry water-born parasites. Cooked, it is a completely safe, but apparently a noxious weed. The point is, this is very sad because hollow vegetable is delicious and one of my favorite Asian vegetables.

For those of you that have never had the pleasure of munching on hollow vegetable (and, at the rate things are going, apparently never will unless you leave the country), it has a uniquely squishy-chewy texture. The stems are slightly crunchy at the outset, but give way easily because there is nothing in the middle. (If too mature, the stems will be tough.) The delicate leaves are soft and melt-in-your-mouth tender. The flavor is a bit woody and slightly bitter, a little bit like spinach crossed with chives. When stir-fried, the oil and flavors coat both the exterior and interior of the vegetable, allowing for a slightly greasy burst of flavor in your mouth. With the rich salty tang from the preserved shrimp and the popping heat of the chilies, it is truly divine.

Since a trip to South East Asia isn’t really on the budget right now, I believe the next best thing is to head north. There must still be hollow vegetable on the North American continent. This summer, I will be going to Canada and ordering myself a giant platter of kang kung. And, if the Canadian waiter tells me that hollow vegetable is banned, I will probably cry into my plate.

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