Vietnam Restaurant

Sorry it's been a while, blog fans. The hubs and I spent Valentine's weekend in NYC, where we went to Colicchio & Sons (AMAZING service, impressive yet approachable food, great prices for Manhattan -- if you're travelling, try it!).

We're back now though, and we had lunch yesterday at Vietnam Restaurant.

Vietnam is located in a very modest building, across from a car garage and an upholstery place. Not exactly an ideal location, but the outside belies the nicely appointed interior and the attentive waitstaff.

We went a little before noon and found a healthy crowd. Obviously people appreciate the lunch specials, which are a good value. I had the chicken with oriental vegetables. It came with an eggroll, brown rice, and a cup of the soup of the day (chicken with mustard greens).

The soup consisted of a thin broth with plenty of greens and (as my husband pointed out) very little chicken. It was tasty though, and probably authentic and healthy.

My chicken with vegetables was served piping hot -- almost not edible, but once it cooled, it was good. Nothing was overcooked, the chicken was all-white meat and there was a nice variety of vegetables (carrots, cabbage, beans, etc). Did it stand out in any way? Not really. Was it healthy, cheap, and filling? Yes. Was that really all I can ask of a lunch special at an Asian restaurant in a not-so-nice area? Yep.

But if given the choice between Vietnam and Colicchio and Sons, take the latter.

Les Givral's Kahve

This is pho.



Pho is complicated stuff. It's a Vietnamese soup/stew comprised of clear broth, rice noodles, meat, onions and various aromatic herbs. Don't let that simple description fool you; there's a lot going on in a good pho. And the pho at Les Givral's on Washington is great.

First, a note on atmosphere. Les Givral's is eclectic. There's just no other way to put it. Take, for example, this thing built around the doorway separating the dining room from the counter:



I don't know what this is, but it's there and it works. That's kind of how the food is too.

I don't know what exactly goes into the broth that the pho is built on. It smells slightly like nutmeg. The soup is served with a large plate of extras, some that I recognized: basil, cilantro, lime, jalapeno, bean sprouts. I decided to go for it and chucked a bit of everything into the bowl. What resulted was a beautifully synchronous chaos. Any given bite might be spicy, or sour, or savory, but together it was all very tasty.

Pho is also surprisingly filling. I ate a little over half the bowl before I felt full. My only complaint is that the sliced chicken that they use in their pho is a little hard to eat. Shredded chicken -- the kind used on the sandwiches -- might be easier to eat with a spoon. That minor complaint aside, you're not going to find such a satisfying and nutritious meal for $6.45 anywhere else in the city.

My husband had a sandwich with barbecued pork. Like the pho, the sandwiches are packed with fresh ingredients (carrot, cucumber, hot peppers) and are very affordable ($2.75 ... I'm not kidding). However, they're a little dry for my American/must-have-mayonnaise taste, so I'd rather stick with the pho.

Les Givrals is a must-do if you're on Washington Avenue around lunchtime. Word to the wise: if you're going for lunch, go early. We arrived at 11:40, walked up to the counter, and had the food delivered to our table fresh and hot in ten minutes. When we left at 12:30, the line for food was literally winding out the door. People are starting to catch onto this little gem of a place.