Smells like Home.....

Look what has come to town...Saigon also has Pizza Hut and KFC, but the ingredients used and menus are a tad different than we are used to, but the Subway is EXACTLY the same as in the States. It was, I am sorry to say, one of the most exciting parts of the week.

Dinner Date - Adult Version

We ate dinner at Com Nieu this week as part of the Consulate's monthly supper club, and I have to say it was the best Vietnamese food I have eaten so far. It was so delicious, I had to take pictures. Good thing I did, because we DEVOURED all of it.






The restaurant is famous for its clay-pot rice. The rice is baked in clay pots which are then shattered open. After that, the rice is thrown across the room to a waiter. I wish I had pictures of that, but let's just say that I got all excited and put my camera on some crazy setting, so all I got was this:



If you want to see the rice-throwing action, check out this video from Anthony Bourdain who visited the restaurant on one of his shows. Since he visited, the beloved owner passed away and the restaurant has changed location, but I still can't WAIT to go back.

Bia Hoi

Hanoi enjoys almost four seasons, so we enjoyed the fall-ish temperatures and the wonderful "Bia Hoi" culture - Bia Hoi means fresh beer in Vietnamese, and it is served, ice-cold, at sidewalk cafes. The beer is fresh-brewed every day and the light lager costs around 50 cents for a glass. Sitting for as long as you like, people come to catch up with one another, enjoy some pre-dinner snacks and literally, watch the world go by.

Ma'am - your pineapple is on fire.........

Originally uploaded by meredith w page

I don't know what it is about the Vietnamese, but man, do they love to set stuff on fire - I took my parents to the historic (and yes, touristy) Rex Hotel for cocktails and dinner - it was a blast!! The views are amazing, the food was surprisingly good, the cocktails were fabulous, and they have an 80 year old lounge singer that was delightful. And the company? Best part of the night - love you S&R.

burn baby burn

Originally uploaded by meredith w page

had an amazing Vietnamese dinner last night including these bad boys who are sweetly lined up around a coconut and then set afire, so sad and so delicious.

Mooncakes

Mooncakes are given this week to celebrate the harvest/moon/fall festival. Mooncakes are pastries that traditionally have a thick filling made from lotus seed paste and/or may contain a whole egg yolk that represents the moon. The top of the mooncakes are imprinted with Chinese characters that represent everything from longevity to harmony to the name of the bakery. They are a labor-intensive product, and can be quite expensive.

They are usually eaten in small wedges and served with Chinese tea. OR if are my oldest daughter, you eat a whole mooncake off the counter when no one is looking.

Enter the 21st century - you can now get mooncakes in a variety of flavors with different fillings while the pastry itself can be made of many different ingredients, including gelatin.

I am a sucker for beautiful packaging, and the little red boxes that hold each mooncake are darling, but when you see an entire store or booth set up with hundreds of these boxes, it is amazing.

The first two photos are mine, but I took the rest off of Google images.

Cheeseburger in Paradise

For this week's date night, I requested a great burger and a nice frosty mug of beer - see, I am such a simple girl! Now get out your maps kids - Saigon is situated closely enough to New Zealand that we are getting quite accustomed to great beef and great wine (and also great friends!!). We settled on Mogambo based on a recent article in The Word and also word of mouth.


Mogambo is also the name of a 1953 film set in East Africa with Clark Cable, Grace Kelly and Ava Gardner - hence, the decor.


It is a cozy, hole-in-the-wall dive. It was unfussy and uncrowded - exactly the perfect place, in my opinion. The beer was ice cold, the burger was AMAZING and my date was divine. I didn't even mind the "staff" on the wall.


This lovely woman is the owner and also, my new favorite person on the planet. Not only did she ask if I was Erik's daughter, but then she wanted to know if I was a ballerina. I.am.in.love. Now, she may be totally blind, but who cares with compliments like that?? (In my spirit of full disclosure, I did have flowers in my hair and an after-massage glow, so that may have also contributed to her confusion.)

If you ever find yourself in Saigon and don't stop by here, for a burger or a compliment, you are insane.

And honey - if I ever go missing, you are going to want to check Mogambo's first.

Pho

Phởơ is a Vietnamese classic. It is a delicious soup consisting of broth, meat or seafood, noodles and greens. The Vietnamese tend to eat Phơ for breakfast, and you can get it at roadside stalls, small cafes or fancy restaurants. It won't ever truly taste the same twice, which makes it a good dish for a novice cook.

The first ingredient you buy is this:

which is nothing more than a Phơ bouillion cube. It goes into a nice big pot of water with your chicken to start off your broth and to cook your chicken (if you are using it). I decided to use both chicken and beef.


After the ginger and onion finish roasting on the stove, you (or Ty because she has teflon hands) peel them, flatten them and drop them in the broth for added flavor.

Here are the rest of the ingredients we used:

1. Thinly sliced sirloin that you add to the Phơ right at the end - it cooks in the soup and it was delicious.

2. Spring onions and chives - also added at the end to cook in broth.

3. Bean sprouts and a green herb (seriously, it won't be long before Buon Appetit calls and offers me a job!!). These are not cooked, but placed on the table and people add to the top of their soup.

4. I wasn't sure Alli would eat rice noodles, so I bought teeny, tiny star pasta hoping to turn her soup into a chicken noodle-type deal.

5. Sliced limes and chilis are also placed on the table for diners to add at their choosing.

6. Cooked rice noodles and the cooked chicken that has been shredded.

Alli and I have been reading this book, so I thought now might be the right time for her to try out soup. Her declaration - "This is the best dinner ever!"
In all fairness, she is a tad dramatic, but it was lovely that my second foray into Vietnamese cooking resulted in something the WHOLE family could eat.

Ratings - 4 out of 5 lotus flowers - easy to prepare, family approved, healthy - not sure I had my ingredients to broth ratio right and I think it could have been more flavorful

AND NOW.......

In the spirit of sharing, I am happy to add on this little segment called "Keeping it real" where, when possible, I will share my mess-ups, mistakes, oopsies and catastrophes.

I had planned on just adding the star pasta to Alli's Phơ when it was steaming hot and thought that the pasta would cook (somewhere all Italian grandmothers are shaking their heads in disgust) but it turns out, that doesn't work at all. So they got tossed, but on the flip side, it forced Alli to eat the rice noodles which she loved.

and I may have accidently set fire to one of our kitchen towels by leaving it on an electronic burner.

Where the magic happens....

Not that kind of magic, you saucy minx.

Welcome to one of the world's smallest kitchens. Although that doesn't sound very nice, so from now on, I will refer to my kitchen as charming, cozy, and efficient. That's better.

An Ode to Hidden Valley.

Oh, Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing - how I miss you.

I think so fondly on our time together.

And I dream about a time when we may be reunited.

Your cousin, dry power packet of dressing mix, is no substitute.

Do you miss me as well?

I should have brought you along on our journey.

I underestimated your power over me.

Perhaps you will one day travel to Asia.

Until then, I will be waiting with baited breath.

ViêtNosh

I thought that you, my loyal reader (hi to all 4 of you!!), may be interested to know more about what we are eating and drinking here in Vietnam. So from time to time, I am going to fill you in on the local cuisine and what we can't get enough of. More about the foods we can't stomach ̣̣̣̣̣̣̣(which would be nothing for my dear hubbie) and the desserts we are devouring. And the fresh fruit? Oh my! And I have sacrificed myself for you the reader and am happily sampling all of the cocktails that Saigon has to offer, and yes, you are welcome. Lots of info on what we can get in the stores, what we miss (which is luckily not much) and all the new goodies. Hence, ViêtNosh is born. I love saying Hence, it makes me feel fancy.

Stay tuned....