Vietnamese Cuisine. - Page 3

I like it, but it's not my favorite overall. The French still make a better broth and baguette, but I like the added spiciness.

Durian kicks ass though.

Saigon Grill. Theres one on 90th and Amsterdam and another at University Place and 11th.

Yeah, many of the Vietnamese restaurants in the NYC area are run by Chinese-Vietnamese. The flavors are very close, but just don't seem quite there. Since I'm new to the area, I'm still on the quest to find the perfect Pho and Banh Mi.

I'm just getting aquiantied with, it is neck and neck with Thai as my favorite Asian food.

Sounds like another fetish that only Edmorel can explain.

never found any good vietnamese food places in nyc, adequate but not good. they have a few good banh mi spots tho.

There's excellent Vietnamese food in Oakland's Chinatown.

I agree with the others that say Slanted Door is not real Vietnamese.

Slanted Door is fusion, but the chef/owner is Vietnamese and Vietnamese food is the foundation, as it were. It's a concept restaurant, and Phan is something of a celebrity chef, and celebrity chefs these days scoff at doing traditional cuisine from any country. They have to add their own twist.

As mentioned earlier, the Tenderloin has a lot of Vietnamese dives. There are also some in the Mission, which is where Slanted Door started.

And, did I mention, it's really goooooooooood.

I agree the Slanted Door is great. It had kind of a down period right when it opened in the new location, but now it is as good as ever.

+1 for pho and those fucking sandwiches!

I think the various Momofuku in NYC do fairly true Asian food, but are still kind of conceptual. The difference is that their conceptuality highlights native features rather than trying to fuse them with an alien cuisine (not that there's anything wrong with that). Have you had a chance to try them?

Also, any suggestions for Tenderloin restaurants? I was wandering around there once looking for an Indian restaurant, and witnessed a public cheering of someone running the wrong way on a one-way street trying to evade a police car that had been chasing him from the previous block. That's probably not the best place to look lost.

--Andre

Many Vietnamese dishes are also close to Thai cuisine in terms of flavors and ingredients.

As for the Chinese and French influence, it's difficult culturally and economically for a dominated people to fully emulate the excesses of their conquerors.

Vietnamese food is excellent.

Unfortunately most the items you find in restaurants, Vietnamese people don't actually eat on a regular basis, except for pho perhaps.