Little Saigon Adventures


Banh khot and egg rolls at banh khot lady.

Lives up to the hype the banh khot took me back to hoi a where I had it on the side of the road from a lady.

Egg rolls were also good but I think I prefer the rice paper egg rolls.

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Two Little Saigon restaurants make the LAT 101 (though Addison acknowledges that it probably deserves its own list). Ngu Binh classic, but never even heard of Nok’s Kitchen! Anyone been? Might try tomorrow although also that might be the worst day to try :slight_smile:

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Nok’s Kitchen is great, her specialty is homemade Lao sausages, which are grilled up and eaten with sticky rice. The last time I was there she was so in-demand from larger orders that she did not have packaged sausages available for walk-in customers, but if you see differently now please report back.

The ribeye and chicken skewers are also grilled up and just as good. Her papaya salad is more Thai than Lao unfortunately but delicious and a good meat break. Might also be the only place you can get salmon larb.

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Gotta jump on a call but so good! I got the Mee Ka Tee and a side sausage as one does :slight_smile:

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Just clarify, that’s Nok’s Kitchen? It’s gorgeous.

The spicy sausage and the pandan mango sticky rice are insanely good.

Everything I have had here is really good.

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Heading down to see a distant cousin. They likely will have suggestions but checking here just in case. Today is vegetarian day of the month for my mom. Open to dedicated vegetarian restaurants and places that please both omnivores and vegetarians.

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Bo de tinh tam chay pretty solid vegetarian but I’m not super into vegetarian cuisine.

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I’m not vegetarian but am mostly vegetarian at home. But here on my annual visit to LA, I definitely do not want to limit myself. I accomodate my mom but I find vietnamese and Chinese vegetarian restaurants a significant step down relative to all the great restaurants in socal for the two cuisines. Maybe we’ll luck out and find a couple of spots that are great with meat and veggie options.

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Probably not what you were thinking of, but Chua Duoc Su on Magnolia has some of the best vegetarian food that even a carnivore can get on board with.

It’s been ages since I’ve been there though so I’m not sure how or what they serve on weekdays.

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Sounds like you need to do multiple stops for lunch!

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Just got home.

As we were heading out, I asked my mom where she wanted to go for vegetarian and she replied she had prayed for forgiveness :rofl:. When it comes to vietnamese food in the OC, the flesh is weak.

Quan Mi in fountain valley for banh xeo and banh beo lunch. Cousin insisted on the FV location as it is cleaner. I didn’t notice any difference from the westminister location in terms of food quality and hygiene. Banh xeo delicious. I’m not a big fan of banh beo, I’d have preferred the pork shank. The old people wanted lighter fare. Mom loved the banh beo and fish sauce.

Stopped off at Thành thi bakery per cousin, who thinks it’s the best place for the sweeter things. Picked up Che ba mau, avocado pudding, flan, cassava cakes along with a party tray of 8 banhs. Haven’t touched the flan and have only eaten one cassava slice and a coconut banh, but very impressive. The dessert drinks were very good too. Definitely going to be our dessert place to visit for the OC.

Dinner at bien hen in westminister for hot and sour soup, razor clam and escargot in lemongrass. Clams were fine but unlikely to order again. The clams were hidden under a pile of shallot and nuts along with a side spicy green sauce. Barely detected the clam. I prefer the simple escargot in lemongrass broth and dipped in fish sauce. Nice big yummy snails. The canh Chua was finely balanced between sweet, sour and spicy. Served with noodles on the side which was a first for me. I have only ever had canh chua with rice.

All in all, a fine day of eating. Just not enough time to fit in all the great options in the area. We walked by ngu binh, brodard, etc.

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Ngu binh and Brodard next time!

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Your mom knows what’s up :joy:

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Thanks for all the information here, I regret that I could not eat more as we stopped by on the way back from Carlsbad. Bahn Khot Lady was well executed and I loved the textural contrast. Protip: if you get only shrimp or only pork they will need to make you a fresh batch. Really accentuates the contrast between the crispy outside and custardy inside. The staff are super nice too.

Thanks for the nudging us towards Bun Vit Thanh Da @Bagel. I don’t normally like the taste of dried bamboo and prefer my duck with crispy skin. The sum is greater than the parts and this was a welcome respite after having a bunch of heavy food the day before. Balanced broth and the dipping sauce for the duck was delicious. Cabbage salad under the duck was :ok_hand:. Big portion too!

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Glad you enjoyed! All credit to @hungryhungryhippos for posting about this place much further up in this thread and tipping me off.

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Foodmento’s Little Saigon trip

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Pho Thin 13 Lo Duc - Westminster

#4 Pho w/ stir fry rare beef :heart_eyes:

Get an order of banh quay (menu says bagel twist) to soak up that broth.

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Anyone been to Hu tieu da nhat

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it’s always out of the way for me, but Dylan Ho loves it.

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