"Ok, that's an order of Yakisoba and Chicken with Lemongrass - be about 15 minutes". Now normally when I hear something like this; I'd be afraid, very afraid. The kind of fear that is associated with signs that say 'Authentic Cantonese, Szechuan, and Mandarin Cuisine'. Except in this case I overheard this at Dao Son Noodle House on El Cajon Blvd. Dao Son, I'm told literally means 'Hot Chef', and he's not kidding. There's even a little neon sign above the restaurant sign that say 'Hot Chef'.
The spartan interior could be dropped into any number of Asian restaurants, but the aroma, ooh the aroma, garlic, chilies, "shoot me now and put me out of my misery..." The service was friendly, and the Chef himself let us in the front door. We looked over the menu and placed our order, and an entire carafe of water was placed on our table.
Our first dish was the Special; Fried Catfish with Eggplant - ordered medium-hot ($6.99):
This dish was a winner! The catfish was battered and fried perfectly. Crunchy on the outside, moist and tender on the inside. The eggplant seared on the outside, with a wonderful molten, creamy interior. The sauce was nice and spicy, and the peanuts added a nice textural component to the dish. This was the best dish of the night.
The next dish was the Garlic Chicken - ordered medium hot (5.99). Boneless, Dark Meat chicken was marinated, than battered and fried and served with a nice and spicy garlic/chili sauce, and is topped with scallions and tempura "bits". The chicken was tasty, and the sauce (seems like it was sambal based) was hot enough to bring sweat to my brow. The scallions and tempura bits added a nice counter-point to the whole meal. The only gripe I had about this dish was that the chicken pieces were pretty large and we only had chopsticks so there were some problems managing the pieces. Also, the batter was very savory and crisp, but very hard, almost like a shell, I'm thinking that this was a corn-starch based batter. All of this is relatively minor. If the chicken were smaller and bite-sized, the crunchy texture would be viewed as a positive attribute.
The last dish was Garlic Fish - also ordered medium hot ($5.99). I had thought that this would be the same as the chicken dish, but was pleasantly surprised. First off, the fish was coated with bread crumbs, and there was the distinct taste of lemon grass all through the dish. Other than the addition of lemon grass this was essentially the same as the chicken dish. The fish was prepared well, though the fish was relatively bland, the toppings and sauce made up for any deficiencies.
We left Dao Son, satiated, and looking forward to another meal. The flavors had been unique and distinctive, and the food well prepared.
So tonight we did Dao Son part 2, this time we did take-out, and decided to order a few other dishes. We ordered the Red Chicken ($5.50) medium hot. This is almost a perfect dish! Chicken stir fried over high heat, in a spicy "red" sauce that is both 
sweet and spicy, with tomatoes, red peppers and chili. This dish is a keeper! On a whim we ordered the Yakisoba ($4.95). This dish was not bad, flavorful, with the distinct taste of sesame oil, and well prepared, but unremarkable except for one thing; the noodles. The noodles were great, they had a nice crunch and reminded me of "fried saimin" 
. The last dish was Shrimp w/Lemon Grass and Garlic sauce ($5.99). Basically the same sauce as the Garlic Fish, but this was one spicy dish, nose bleeding hot! There's no slow-burn here, it's in your face!
Dao Son, has interesting, and very well prepared, flavorful food. The price is also right! We've added Dao Son to our "rotation" and will be going back often. The menu is varied with everything from Yakitori and Yakisoba, to Sate Chicken and Lemongrass Shrimp. This range of dishes would usually scare me away, but in this case, the "Hot Chef" does a good job with preparing all the dishes that we've had so far. The service is fast - I was unable to get through on the phone for my take-out order, so walked in and ordered. I was told it would take 15 minutes???? Now the restaurant was half-full, and the phone was ringing off the hook. I got my food in 10 minutes, and all the tables were also being served. Impressive.
The bottom line? Good hot and spicy food from the "Hot Chef".
2322 El Cajon Blvd
San Diego, CA 92103
(619)291-5051
Lunch:
Mon-Fri 11:00am-2:00pm
Dinner:
Sun-Thurs 5:00pm-9:00pm
Fri-Sat: 5:00pm-10:00pm
Hi Kirk,
Good job with the photos and the commentary. I think the food looks good here, except for the fact that it was all deep fried. I know...I know. I eat tons of deep fried stuff here too and I really need to stop. I think I'm actually putting on some weight. LOL!
Posted by: Reid | Sunday, 10 July 2005 at 01:34 AM
Kirk-7am on Sunday morning and I am wanting something spicy and garlicy....I usually get take out here and order the lemongrass chicken (spicy!)as well as the red chicken. Both are really good. I've hesitated to order the garlic fish as I thought the sauce might overpower the fish. Usually it's both brothers on working but one time I saw an older woman prepping in the back...a mom or aunt? I really like supporting these family restaurants.
Posted by: Jack | Sunday, 10 July 2005 at 07:22 AM
How fascinating! How do you find these places! I'm intrigued because this restaurant sounds like it's neither Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, Korean, or Thai, yet it has elements from all. It sounds like a different species of restaurant entirely. What is it? If you didn't take those awesome pictures, I would have imagined something else!
Posted by: elmomonster | Sunday, 10 July 2005 at 08:06 AM
Hi Reid - I know, most of it is deep fried. But the Red Chicken is not, it's stir fried and I think one of the better dishes. But heck, if I'm going to use up my "batter points" on something I'll use them up here. Thanks for the compliment on the photo's I'm trying - though still not up to your standards!
Hey Jack - I should known that you'd probably have been here! I agree that we should support these family run businesses - still believe in Ohana, right? All the times we've been here, there's been a young lady (Chef's Wife?), and a young infant sleeping in an infant carrier placed on the middle table of the restaurant - he/she's starting early in the family business. Also, have you tried Ba Ren? If you like spicy and garlicky, it's a great place!
Elmo - When I lived in Hi, there was always a "buzz" about food - this new place or that place...we were always on the look-out! I've never quite lost that habit. "What's for lunch" was probably one of the most important parts of the day. I know the thought of Japanese Noodle House/Vietnamese Food can seem a bit strange. But in this case it works, more often than not, it doesn't.
Posted by: Kirk | Sunday, 10 July 2005 at 08:29 AM
Ya know, coming to the States you automatically get a mix of cuisine. I cogitate this particularly when I'm doing something "Asian". My father is from Spain, my mother from Georgia (north of Florida, not Russia) with Irish/Scot/Indian/German/English stock from WAY back. Here I am in California stir frying Vietnamese Cao Bahn? (Sorry, can't make the accent in Cao) Heck, I don't really know what Cao Bahn is! That's just the name on the package. I'm really making chow fun which, as far as I know, is Chinese. We ain't just fusion cuisine, we is fusion everything! That said, I need some New Orleans fritters, Mallorcan apricot coca, and a hot Vietnamese coffee for here please.
Posted by: Jo | Sunday, 10 July 2005 at 08:39 AM
Jo - Yes, we're exposed to a variety of food products and cuisines. But especially on the coasts and in large cities.
Posted by: Kirk | Sunday, 10 July 2005 at 01:52 PM
True enough and more so now than when I was a kid. When I was little we had one Chinese restaurant in Jacksonville, Fla (at the time, the world's largest land mass city). It was called "Chopstick Charlie's. We loved it until we moved to LA and figured out that we were eating something closely akin to Chun King (remember the taped cans?) There were no Japanese restaurants, no Mexican, no nuthin! Heck, we didn't even have Taco Bell until I was 18! That was built on Beach Blvd. at Arlington. The world has come a long way gastronomically. But as you point out, get away from the big cities and costal areas and there ain't nuthin! The eats are still prime, but it's a whole different world and much more "secluded".
Posted by: Jo | Sunday, 10 July 2005 at 08:50 PM
Jo - I distinctly remembering being in a "chinese restaurant" in Arkansas(desperate for was I), and asking for soy sauce and getting a bottle of La Choy, ick! Actually, I've got a ton of stories like this.....I'm sure I'll get to all of them in one way or another.
Posted by: Kirk | Sunday, 10 July 2005 at 09:36 PM
Actually - that was desperate for rice....
Posted by: Kirk | Sunday, 10 July 2005 at 09:37 PM
::laughing:: Oh yea, that must have been a shock and a half! La Choy... THAT was the other brand I was trying to think of. Seems they had a catchy little jingle at some point but I can't pull it up into my files.
I'm surprised you had trouble getting rice though. Southeners (at least where I'm from) eat tons of rice. Rice farming is big business in Louisiana and Texas. In our family we seldom had has mashed potatoes with our fried chicken (as you hear so much about) we had rice. And let me tell you, rice & gravy is a combo you can't beat with a stick! I'll have to make you a real southern style fried chicken dinner one of these grand ol' days.
Posted by: Jo | Monday, 11 July 2005 at 07:54 AM
Hi Jo - Once a bunch of us "guys" were in Cleveland and decided to make Kalbi - the only soy sauce we could find was....LaChoy. So how did we do it? LaChoy+Jack Daniels!
Posted by: Kirk | Monday, 11 July 2005 at 08:51 PM
Killer dude! ::laughing:: I bet that kicked you all in the butt!
Posted by: Jo | Monday, 11 July 2005 at 10:48 PM
Just went there tonight (July 23 2005) based on your review.
Great stuff!
We had the red chicken and the garlic crispy chicken heated to 7 our of 10 on their scale with mixed vegetables on the side.
Everything was awesome!
The sauces were very hot but so damn tasty.
Just the right amounts of garlic and heat.
Very recomended.
Posted by: Mike V. | Saturday, 23 July 2005 at 08:51 PM
Hi Mike - Thanks for commenting, and I'm glad you enjoyed your meal - I think that DaoSon is a real hidden gem, good food, good prices.
Posted by: Kirk | Saturday, 23 July 2005 at 09:45 PM
Hi Kirk! I was browsing your website for some good places to eat and decided to give Dao Son a try based on your review. It was awesome! After being a silent browser of your website, I decided to come out of hiding and tell you that your site has been a great reference for my husband and I whenever we want to be adventurous and try something new. Keep up the great work and thank you!
Posted by: Hannah | Thursday, 08 February 2007 at 07:33 PM
Hi Hannah - Thanks so much for the kinds words. I'm glad you enjoy Dao Son, and have some use for our humble little blog.
Posted by: Kirk | Thursday, 08 February 2007 at 07:56 PM
Hi Kirk! I just tried this place for the first time today after hearing about it endlessly, and it was fantastic. The spring rolls were some of the best I've ever had, I was eating them in my car on the way back to work! I also had the rice vermicelli with shrimp, and it was delicious. I think I will try and pick up some takeout from their regular menu to take home sometime. The red chicken sounds particularly good. Cheers! - Alice
Posted by: Alice Q. Foodie | Friday, 23 February 2007 at 08:26 PM
Hi Alice - I'm glad you enjoyed the food from Dao Son....I think it's "fusion" the way it should be done, with lot's of flavor!
Posted by: Kirk | Friday, 23 February 2007 at 10:07 PM
Hi Kirk! Been an avid but silent reader for a while now. Hubby was looking for a place to eat in the area and called me asking for a recommendation(knowing I was an avid reader)so sent him here. He came home raving about this place! He loved having curry udon at SanBan downtown(now gone). He had the curry soba here. So last night we decided to try this place for dinner. The catfish with eggplant is now on the regular menu-awesome! We also had the tasty red chicken and also vermicelli with pork and shrimp. Everything was delicioso! We'll definitely be back! Love your blog, we've tried many of your recommendations! Thank you!
Posted by: arlene | Wednesday, 02 May 2007 at 10:06 AM
Hi Arlene - Thanks so much for the kind words. I'm glad you enjoyed DaoSon, it's one of those places that people tend to overlook. I hope I'm able to provide at least a few more good places to eat for your Husband and Yourself!
Posted by: Kirk | Wednesday, 02 May 2007 at 08:20 PM