I felt a little under the weather this morning and was thinking I need a great “comfort food” Vietnamese style. So I went with my father to another “old school OG” Vietnamese restaurant called Pho Nguyen Hue. This restaurant has been around for years, I think it was maybe one of the first Pho places in Little Saigon. My father calls this place the “gossip center” since it is full of older clientele who knows good Pho and there is always a group of old guys out front sipping their coffee/ Tea and smoking and just “kickn it” talking about politics, social stuff, and in general the happenings in Little Saigon.  I think it is very European in culture and I hope to be one of those guys when I retire.

So what is the best thing at Pho Nguyen Hue? Obviously the Pho, but I came for my version of “Chicken Soup for the Soul” Chao. Chao or sometimes called rice Con-gee or Rice Porridge has been around for centuries. It is very simple to make, Basically it is a pot of rice and water that has been slow boiled to a porridge consistancy and mixed with chicken or beef broth with hints of ginger, green onions and depending on what meat you want to add, fish, beef, chicken, shrimp or pork. I had Chao Bo which is ground up seasoned beef. My father had the Chao Long, which was the soup with all of the insides of the pork like intestines, heart, kidneys, blood jello in other words the crazy stuff you see Andrew Zimmerman or Anthony Bordain eats when they go to Vietnam.

I myself I like a simple cooked Chao Bo (ground beef) but one of the thing s that Pho Nguyen Hue has that I grew up with is Vietnamese Blood Sausage. Sounds Yummy Right? Before you gag, this was something I ate before I knew what it was so I was already accustomed to it. Pho Nguyen Hue makes this dish very well. with pieces of blood jello, rice, and basils all rolled up in a steamed sausage and sliced to be dipped in a very salty sour brine shrimp sauce. So I hope I didn’t gross you all out but if you have an adventure to try something unique and COOKED and especially authentic you must order the sausage. Finally to accompany our Chao was a fried long donut fresch  with is salty and cooked golden brown. It’s like a crispy donut/crouton on top of the soup for some crunch.

 Live a little dangerously and  I promise you won’t be sick. Pleaes comment me back if you venture to try out the Chao Long or the blood Sausage. The Hungry Buddha Belly gives Pho Nguyen Hue 4 RUBS OF THE BELLY. 5 alone for the Basil Blood Sausage.  FEAR FACTOR HERE WE COME!

Here is a quickie, after my great lunch at Huynh I had to stop at one of my favorite places for CAFE SUA DA- Ice coffee with condensed milk and French bread. As you know the French occupied Vietnam for years and before it was Vietnam it was called Indochina. The French did make a big impression and influenced food and culture as well. The place I like to get a great cup of coffee is at Banh Mi Che Cali. This place specializes in great Vietnamese deli sandwiches, bread, snacks, spring rolls, the usual affair of a deli in Little Saigon. When you walk in this place the wift of butter and fresh baked baguettes puts you in a European enthusiasm.

 The other reason I love this place is that they make CAFE SUA DA the old way. Using deep French roast coffee (probably Cafe Du Monde French Roast brand)  with chicory to smooth out the bitterness that is associated with strong coffee. The old ways of making Cafe Sua Da is truly an art. It is usually done by pouring hot boiling water in a an individual metal coffee drip and slowly brewing by gravity into a cup with a couple of tablespoons of sweetened condensed milk. Most places in Little Saigon want to take the cheaper method and use regular cofee with adding Coffee Mate or worse whip cream to become more of a “frappacino” instead of an espresso type of milk with rich milk. One taste will keep your caffeine buzzz going for hours and has a tastes of sweet milk and a slight bitterness like your first bite of chocolate.

I bought a couple of baguettes for later and a cup to keep me going through the day. I give 5 RUBS FOR THE ICE COFFEE AND 4 RUBS FOR THE BREAD. With so many French Bakeries in Little Saigon I will have to provide you another blog on all the different types of French Bread and pastries in the area for another day.

Home Cooked Goodness found at Huynh Restaurant in Little Saigon. This corner restaurant is a “Diamond in the Rough” Huynh is a small restaurant very well decorated with modern décor. What I would recommend there is their spectacular “Home Cooked” food that only costs $5.95 each. I would suggest ordering at least 3 entrees and share among friends Family style. On this day for lunch the Hungry Buddha Belly ordered 3 of 15 many delicious items on their menu. They do have the norm such as pho, but this place is not known for pho.

I think they have the best Soy Sauce BBQ short ribs, which are covered with a sugar broiled coating with thyme and parsley to finish. SHHHHHCH! That was my mouth watering Sorry. The other item I ordered was the CA KHO TO, which is a salted filet of catfish, cooked in a fish sauce, garlic, ginger and reduced down in a clay hot pot. This was my second favorite item, especially with white rice. The salty but delicate fish is a great sweet and salty taste to the fragrant rice.

To keep in the fish theme, I also ordered a whole deep fried Tilapia with a ginger fish sauce on the side for dipping. Fresh fish FRIED? What could be more heavenly? Tilapia can be a little tricky to eat since you cant eat the bones but almost everything else is a crispy treat and dipped in the garlic, ginger fish sauce it was an explosions of flavors only like my Moms can make.

Finally, with all of these entrees I had a very traditional Vietnamese Sweet and Sour Catfish soup. The Soup is cooked with celery, bamboo shoots, tomatoes, soy bean sprouts, pineapple chunks, lemongrass, and fish stock. This soup eaten with a little rice brings me back HOME to the days when my mom made dinner for me.

\Huynh Restaurant deserves 5 RUBS OF THE BELLY, the highest marks for great Vietnamese food. Truly traditional and authentic family food. Also you know the place is good when their Hungry Buddha Belly Statue is proudly displayed. Oh Yeah, I rubbed it for luck as well.

Huynh Restaurant is located at 9500 Bolsa Avenue #B, Westminster CA 92683, (714) 531-7379, Casual and CASH ONLY.

How many of you Buddha Heads have watched a good old style martial arts film where the swordsman fly in the air like “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon”? There is a place in Little Saigon that specializes in old school style cooking with authentic cooking methods. LUC DIHN KY is located in a old strip mall that need remodeling however I love the decor which is straight out of an old Kung Fu movie. You know where usually it is like a “Asian spaghetti western” where the mild mannered hero is eating his roast duck and then all of a sudden some bad ass villain walks in and starts pushing the waiter around. All of the chairs and tables are wooden and Chinese style with place-mats that have the 12 Chinese horoscopes on them. By the way I am year of the DOG.  I have added a picture of the decor for you to enjoy.

Luc Dinh Ky specializes in 3 things. First is their Won Ton Soup. It is the best in Little Saigon in my opinion with every bite of ground season pork is half of a shrimp wrapped delicately in a egg noodle slowly cooked in a chicken and green onion broth with fresh Chinese broccoli and spinach added to enrich the broth with veggies. I highly recommend to order this soup as an appetizer or accompaniment with your entree.

Second, Luc Dinh Ky brews and manufactures their own tea. It is a refreshing ice tea that is supposed to cool your body down as well as calm your senses. It is a stress free tea, sweeten slightly with honey. They actually brew and bottle their tea and is sold throughout Little Saigon in Asian markets. But the thing I like most is that it is bottomless and free with your meal so drink up and relax.

Last but not least is what I think most people come to enjoy. Food that is cooked with century old methods. COM TAY COM-A hot clay pot. Basically they fire burn these hot clay pots and put rice with toppings of beef, vegetables, pork, chicken, fish or seafood. Usually the rice is put on and then their is an assortment of toppings on their menu that you can pick from. I suggest that most people get either their special pot which is a little of everything or their BO LUC LAC COM TAY COM which is their stir fried beef and onions over rice. The beauty is that its not just rice but the slightly burnt crispy charred rice on the bottom that you have to scrape with a spoon. Also every dish is served with a soy sauce and spicy chili sauce on the side just in case you need to “kick it up a notch”.  I have a picture of the Bo Luc Lac and I ordered the Beef Stew clay hot pot.

 I give LUC DINH KY 5 RUBS OF THE BELLY, for great price (cheap), authentic old school food and giving the Hungry Buddha Belly a chance to relive one of my fantasies as a Kung Fu Master.

Luc dinh Ky is located at 9812 Bolsa Avenue, Suite 100, Westminster, CA 92683, (714) 839-6813, Very casual, kids are welcome, CASH ONLY. Not to be confused with Luc Dinh Ky 2 which is a block down. That place doesn’t serve it in clay pots.

img00065.jpg 

Shout out to my Flip (Philippine) friend Marvin who I think had a conspiracy to kill me with over indulgence and “redline” my cholesterol levels at this “hole in the wall eatery”, At first this place is truly nothing interesting in décor or appearance with a couple of your standard booths and tables in a strip mall which with the name MAGIC WOK, I thought “not another Chinese fast food place. Definitely NOT! Locals only, all Phillipinos enjoying one dish that is commonly ordered here.

Marvin or “Marbeen” as his mom calls him, mentioned that a co-worker mentioned this local Flip food joint specializes in PLATA. What is PLATA? Well, if you knew you were heading for Hell and you want to add Gluttony as one of your sins, you would need to order this dish. PLATA is a deep fried crispy pork shank or leg with skin on it. It looks like fried chicken but the meat is not moist and white but all crispy from the outer skin to the insides. In other words it is like eating all of the crispy goodness of the pork. To accompany this “devilish” dish is to dip it in a sweet “au jus” sauce made from the inners of the pork.

We also ordered the traditional EGGROLL, which was similar to a taquito with ground pork and a BEEFSTEAK plate, which was a marinated beef stir-fry with onions. Overall the value of the meal was great since it was very affordable and the most expensive dish of  $8.95 was the PLATA. One bite brought me back memories of when Marvin and I were college roommates and he one day cooked a whole packed of bacon just to eat with rice. TOTAL GLUTONY.

This Hungry Cholesterol Free J Buddha Belly give this meal 4 RUBS OF THE BELLY. for indulging in one of  the Deadly Sins!!!

Magic Wok is located at 11869 East Artesia Boulevard, Artesia, CA 90701, (562) 865-7340. Please click on the title of the image to see picture.

My travels as a warehouse management system implementer frequently take me into big industrial areas.  After all, that’s where warehouses are!  My frequent challenge is to find decent places to eat in these industrial areas.  One “chain” restaurant that keeps showing up in these industrial areas is Farmer Boys.  They are a cross between a fast food restaurant and a sit down burger establishment.  You order at the front counter, take a number, find a seat and wait patiently (or impatiently in my case) for the food to arrive.  The décor is a down home country style with pictures of roosters in barns, Norman Rockwell style paintings and country music in the background.  I will say that the service here is superb!  The cashiers are super friendly and attentive.  There must be a company motto somewhere that prizes hospitality, because every worker there was friendly and ready to help.  I did notice that the drive through had an awning covering that said, “Thank you for coming!”. So, let’s get to the food already!  The menu consists of classic American fare.  Hamburgers, patty melts, fried goodies, etc. are the staple.  I ordered the BLT combo (sandwich, fries and a coke).  After all, what goes best with bacon than more bacon!  I am all too happy to sacrifice my waistline for the good of the blog!  Anyway, immediately what set this sandwich apart from the normal BLT’s is that Farmer Boys uses applewood smoked bacon.  Ok, first of all, yum to bacon… long live bacon… up with pork and porky goodness!!  But, applewood smoked bacon… oh yeahhh buddy!  One thing Farmer Boy are not, and that is stingy.  There was ample amount of bacon (say it with me baaaccccoooon – yum), tomatoes and lettuce.  The sandwich was served with a side of fries.  Now one thing I hate is getting a side of greasy, soft, cold fries.  This was most definitely not the case here.  The fries were crisp and well salted.  They were also the medium thickness fries that crisp up nicely (I can’t stand the thick steak fries – in case you were wondering). So, all in all, the Farmer Boys experience was definitely a good one.  I’d go back and given that I am in these industrial area’s a lot, chances are I’ll be trying more stuff.  On the Buhhda fast food scale, I give Farmer Boys 3 ½ belly rubs. - Scott Buhhda

Hello hungry bellies out there! I am finally giving you one of many great restaurants in Little Saigon that I go to. This is a true secret and I don’t think anyone of my friends know about this little gem. Alas, the shroud of mystery is revealed in the heart of Little Saigon at an old strip mall that has been around ever since I have moved to CA and even before the area was officially named “Little Saigon”.

First of all let’s go over the ground rules of most places in this town.

1. Don’t expect great service. The service is the same everywhere at all restaurants and don’t take it personal. They treat their most common customers as well as new ones the same. Not Rude but indifferent.
2. If the waiter or waitress seats you and then stands near by to take your order right away don’t be bothered with it. They assume you know what you want since most restaurants specialize in a particular dish so they are waiting for an order of how much and how you want it.
3. Also got to order drinks at the same time when ordering food.
4. Always pay cash. Most restaurants in Little Saigon don’t take credit cards, and if they do I would consider them “fancy”.
5. You can ask them what their specialty is but most likely they will try to explain in their limited English skills. Some places have picture books since I do notice that a lot more Mexican families eating at these places. I think they know good, fresh and cheap food. Best value in town.
6. Fish Sauce “Nuoc Mam” is king in this town. If in doubt dip it in Nuoc Mam and it all tastes good.

With all of that being said check out DA NANG TRAN QUY CAP tucked in the corner of a strip mall in 9607 Bolsa Avenue, Westminster, CA 92683 near Bolsa and Bushard Street.

This place specializes in 3 types of food varieties. COM TAM -which is a broken rice dish with various versions with BBQ pork, Grilled Shrimp, Quiche, on the side. It is like a Vietnamese version of Hawaiian plate lunch. Except the rice is literally broken. The jasmine rice is cut in half to give a more fragrant flavor in every bite as well as having a texture similar to couscous in your mouth. I always imagined that they have kids with small hands cutting each rice kernel in a factory somewhere. I will review this dish on another day since this place ranks as top 3 places in my opinion for Com Tam.

The other dish is the “Darth Vader” of noodles to its well-known brother Pho. It is a popular dish in Vietnamese cultures named after where it is originated in the old imperial capital of Central Vietnam, HUE. The rice noodle used in this soup is different (much thicker) from the one used in Pho. The noodle is most similar to the Japanese soba noodle in size and texture. The broth is prepared by cooking bones for a long period of time, as well as a large variety of different spices including lemon grass and chili. In this belly warming soup usually includes thin slices of marinate beef shank, chunks of well-cooked oxtails, and pig’s knuckles. It can also include cubes of congealed pig blood (jello blood). Before I gross you out, it is a delicacy but honestly I usually order this soup without the HUYET (jello blood). If you are adventurous GO FOR IT. This soup is very similar to Menudo but with a more robust flavor in lemon grass.  BUN BO HUE is similar to Pho in the sense that it is commonly served with bean sprouts, lime wedges, cilantro sprigs, and thinly sliced banana blossom. Bun Bo Hue is one of my favorites on a cold day or if I need to sweat out any chills that I have. You marry flavors of sweet, spicy, salty, sour, and blend in the accompaniment of the fresh vegetables, sprouts, and banana blossoms it makes this soup complete.  I understand now why this dish is revered to be a staple of the old imperial capital of Vietnam.

The second dish, I had was served as an appetizer, BANH BEO, This light rice noodle/crepe style dish is steamed in a little sauce dish and then topped with finely minced shrimp, sauté green onions, fried shallots/garlic, and fried pork rinds for crispy accents. You have to scrape the noodle off of the dish and add a sprinkle of the “Vietnamese Holy water” (NUOC MAM-FISH SAUCE) and then slide it all in like an oyster shooter. I think this place makes one of the best Banh Beo dishes in Little Saigon.

Overall, Da Nang Tran Quy Cap earns a 4 AND HALF RUBS OF THE BUDDHA BELLY. I would give it a 5 Rub but the service taints the rating. Check out my secret and introduction to Central Vietnamese food. COME TO THE DARKSIDE!!! J

HAPPY BIRTHDAY Christina!!! I recently had a nice lunch at a Villa Amalfi on 480 North Main Street, Corona, CA 92880 and took a friend/co-worker out for her special day. This place was a very nice Italian restaurant that was a little upscale in appearance but seemed to be a local favorite. Definitly a step from a Mac Grill or an Olive Garden (not blog worthy places). We were well greeted and seated a formal style table (real cloth table linens). It was a quick lunch so I ordered the MEAT LOVERS PASTA, which included sausage, meatballs, mushrooms and melted mozzarella chees on top sprinkled with italien parsly and basil all in a rich red tomato sauce. I added more basil because I like it that way. I was very pleased with the food tastes and it seemed very fresh and not commercial. Christina ordered the CLAMS WITH PASTA IN A WHITE GARLIC SAUCE. and it looked great as well. Losts of clams both in it’s shells as well as mixed in with the sauce. The portions were generouse and after I was done I still had some home for dinner later. Great 2 for 1 meal, eh?

I give Villa Amalfi 3 AND HALF RUBS OF THE BELLY, and look forward to going back again sometime soon to try other items.

Hello Buddha Bellies out there, for breakfast I often don’t follow the traditional American “round eye” favorites like pancakes, eggs, bacon, sausage, etc.. but usually opt for hot noodles or at times treat myself to a nice salty greasy DIM SUM. If you haven’t had a Dim Sum experience before I highly suggest it. I think one of the things that I love about eating Dim Sum is that there are  so many variety of foods and flavors. Every dish is it’s own unique tasting. My family and I had a quick bite at SEAFOOD PARADISE in Westminster, CA and it is a “fix” for my cravings but it those not come close to quality, taste or uniqueness to other Dim Sum Houses. Nothing really to be enthused about at Seafood Paradise even though it was Zagat rated a few years ago and the walls are adorned with articles of the restaurant. My opinion is that it has lost it’s charm over the years and is sort of runned down as well with the service. We were 4th group to be seated in the place when it opened but it seemed like everyone was running around like headless chickens and very disorganized.

I give Seafood Paradise a generouse 2 RUBS OF THE BELLY for their Dim Sum. I would not eat there for Chinese food though but only if I am having super cravings of DIM Sum.  I will save my comments for Dim Sum on better places in the near future.

I had a special dinner with my two close friends of mine Joe and Steve that I haven’t see in months and to celebrate we decided to try someplace that I would never thought I would eat at. The Hungry Buddha Belly knows his vietnamese food very well and know where to get the best of anything Vietnamese.  Being so close to Little Saigon Westminster I can appreciate the vast assortment of foods for great prices near by but The S Restaurant being the closest true Indochine food to my home has been opened for over 2 years and I have never been in it until tonight. It is “S” because Vietnam as a country geographically looks like an “S”.  I usually feel that most high end Vietnamese restaurants are the biggest rip offs since you can get the same food for rock bottom prices in Little Saigon. However, you can’t approach this place like that. I have been told from my friends that they make Vietnamese food slightly different.

My first impression was WOW what a very elegant and chic restaurant. If you didn’t tell me this was a vietnamese/chinese restaurant I would never guess it. It has very nice hints of Asian influence in its decor, a beautiful lounge and bar area where big plush soft leather sofas await you to order the many special unique martinis they have to offer including the fully stocked bar. The atmosphere is very relaxing and warm. I have been told they got the same designers who decorate PF Changs and when remodeled form an old Bennigans restaurant they spent a 2.5 million budget. Definitely money well spent with real wood and rod iron screens hand blown glass lighting fistures and various Asian themed artwork through out adorning the walls. I have to say the detail of this restaurant is very nice it does exudes what it claims “Sensuous, Stylish, Superb”. The hostess was dressed a beautiful traditionall Vietnamese dress seated us quickly. Our waiter Brian was very attentive and knew his Vietnamese food. The odd thing was that he was American/white and he pronounced all of the food correctly in Vietnamese, that was very surprising to see and hear this since a tall Caucasian gentleman schooling me on what Vietnamese food was. Obviously very well trained and knew his food as well, big ups to him.

So I had a special martini called LYCHEETINI. which was unique since it had 2 lychees on a bamboo stick mixed with vodka, a splash of cranberry and lychee juice, great way to warm up the belly and refresh the palate for the tastings ahead. Another added touch that I liked was that not only did they have a wine list but a tea list as well with all types of asian teas ranging from Korean, Japanese, Chinese, and Vietnamese. Maybe one day I will try out a tea to get the my YANG UP

For appetizers there were many of the same items I see on other vietnamese menus like spring rolls, egg rolls, etc… however we decided on 2 starter that I don’t usually see and was claimed “special”. We ordered a cool and refreshing CA Cuong a Vietnamese ceviche with fresh fish, shrimp, in a lime vinaigrette mixed with peanuts, shallots, and mint all served in a martini cocktail glass for show. To add to the crunch fresh fried shrimp chips accompany the ceviche to which you put the seafood salsa on. One bite it was like busting through a wave at the ocean in my mouth. The second item was a hot and rich escargot baked in a Thai coconut basil curry sauce with toasted french bread for dipping. YUMMY! The escargot was not chewy or tough it was very well prepared with melt in your mouth characteristics, plus a little heat from the curry kept me in check for the Asian flavors that was to come ahead.

For the entres we decided to get a family style dinner approach since we all wanted to try what each of us ordered. There was the BO LUC LAC a french/Asian inspired filet  of beef stir-fry with garlic, shallots and a sweet soy sauce cooked to a very nice medium rare served with rice and some pickled cucumber salad. My friend Joe claims it was the best Bo Luc Lac in Little Saigon, I would have to differ since Steve and I agreed that it was good but it was no match to Kim Su’s version. I will have to blog about that restaurant another day.

We also ordered seared scallops topped with black bean sauce and julienne ginger, Chinese chives and drizzled with olive sesame oil. This dish was very sweat and salty and the scallops were cooked to perfection. I like the garlic, nutty sweet flavor of the black beans to accompany with the jasmine rice I had with it. This dish I heard was very good with their Chilean sea bass as well. The final entre we had was the best item that I think sold me as fine dining and definitely unique to any other Little Saigon eateries that I have been to. I would highly recommend with extra stars to this dish get the CA NUONG LA CHUOI which is the halibut fillet bedded with sliced of ginger and topped with cilantro pesto, baked in a banana leaf on top of lemongrass sticks. This dish was sooooo goood and so simple that I thought I was back in the mother country. The halibut was very moist and flaky with blends of lemon grass, ginger and the hint of banana from the leaves and the cilantro pesto perfumed the fish with it’s natural flavors. Presentation and function of the leafs is nice when they plate it and serve it to you.

 Now my friends and I unusually after a big meal like this don’t order dessert. We are not dessert type of guys however I was intrigued to find out what desserts does a fine Vietnamese restaurant offers? There were a couple of items that sound appealing to try. The one items that we didn’t order which we should of have on the menu was Chuoi Chien a batter dipped banana topped with rum caramel sauce served with ice cream. Brian our waiter suggested the mixed berry frangipan (a berry pie) with ice cream. I ordered the Espresso Kailua Flan- coffee custard baked with Kailua liquor and topped with a golden caramel sauce. Joe claims that they make the best tiramisu around. Now I like tiramisu and have had it in all types of places as well as fine italian restaurants but this was a bid claim expecially coming from a Vietnamese place. Quickly the assessment of desserts, the mixed berry fangipan, ok, nothing exciting there. The Kailua Liquor flan not bad, a little strong on the coffee flavor but I understood what they were trying to execute. BUT the TIRAMISU TRIFLE was the BOMB!!! It was the best if not tie for first on any tiramisu dessert I had. The Tiramisu had layers of marscopone cream, butter sponge cake drizzled with Kailua and espresso and chocolate shavings served in a large red wine glass. Stick a fork in me because I am DONE GOOD!

Overall the S Restaurant gets 4 AND A HALF RUBS OF THE BELLY for decor, service, unique approach to Vietnamese food and fine dining touches. I definitely would go back on special occasions or a very nice night out with the wife (leave the kids at home) and be treated to a special experience. Be prepared for an expensive night but well worth the moment.

The restaurant is located at 545 Westminster Mall Drive, Westminster, CA 92683. www.sfinedining.com.