Houston Vietnamese Restaurant Question

Haha...I know what you mean about the funny looks. My wife still uses a fork everytime we eat Pho. Not only are we the only white folks eating at the trailer, but my wife has to go and ask for a fork!

 

It's cold out here. I want some Pho. Not that anyone in this little town serves it. Those of you in big cities, take advantage of the diversity instead of just eating at the same national fast-food chains.

(even though I cannot use chopsticks to save my life... I pick them up and can't do anything with them. So I have to ask for a few pieces of white gringo silverware, and get laughed at. Whatever.)

 

I second all the comments on Vietnamese food.

I used to not be such a fan of it until a former GF turned me on to it and I eat it almost every day now.

Unfortunately this was after I moved from Houston so I got no recommendations. If anyone is looking for good Vietnamese food in Minneapolis - St. Paul I could name a few.

Also has anyone tried Vietnamese Crepes? I think they're called "Thanh Xeo", very good if you can find a place that makes them.

 

I see you guys always talk about dumplings. I wonder what they actually are. We don't have dumplings in the menus of the Chinese restaurants in California here.

What's wrong with using a fork? I am Asian and I always use a fork to eat in the Chinese or Vietnamese restaurants even when the white folks around me are all using chopsticks.

 

You have noooo idea what you're missing! Dumplings are awesome!

Check your local grocery. Not the best, but you should be able to find some frozen dumplings-chinese style. Basically, they're some sort of meat or veggie stuffing wrapped up in a thin, wide chinese noodle. Dip them in dumpling sauce, and enjoy.

 

Close. Ban Xeo. Darn good though - I only have homemade. Who makes it in restaurants?

 

I've only found them made in the smaller, hole-in-the-wall places. These places make the best food anyway. Banh cuon is another dish that not a lot of places serve. There's a place on Bellaire that serves banh xeo AND banh cuon.

 

I really like Pho King.

 

the pho ga i eat is chicken based...i just checked so i didnt sound like a complete idiot. and i think pho just means noodle soup, right?

 

I am Vietnamese and I've been to just about every pho place you can imagine.

For me, nothing is better than Pho Binh (other than homemade pho of course! But you'd need a Vietnamese grandmother for that). Beechnut at Wilcrest.

-nos

 

Pho Binh is pretty good but it's a bit too much like mom's for my taste. Has a bit of a medicine taste to it which my mom likes to do for some reason. Pho Danh is probably the most popular amongst my friends. it's located in the Hong Kong mall on Bellaire. Broth is clean meaning it's not fatty like Pho Saigon's with all the fat floating at the top. Service sucks though as they don't refill your water or tea unless you were begging for it in the desert.

Pho Binh and Pho Danh would probably be the top two on my lists. Pho Saigon is near the bottom though. I commend them on their gratuitous amounts of meats though but the broth definitely leaves a glossy look on your lips from all the fat.

 

Pho Sho

 

I generally go to Pho Cong Ly (sp?) near downtown. However, from this thread I've got a list of new places to try. How does Cong Ly rate amongst you connoseurs?

 

Cong Ly is kind of a fast food chain, right? I've seen several locations in Houston and Austin.

I like those dry noodle bowl things (yes, I know, they're designed for white people ). I would often get those instead of Pho.

Anyone reading this who lives in Austin, by any chance? Which places did you like there? I often went by Pho Hoang (?), off Rutland, when I lived there.

 

This thread is about Vietnamese food, not your sexual habits.

 

Yeah it's in that shopping center. it's on the same side as that Ocean Palace. If you were facing the market it'd be all the way to your right in the back.