Hoai Hue Deli/Food To Go

*** Hoai Hue has moved a couple of blocks west. You can find and updated post here.

I first heard about Hoai Hue during a conversation about Bun Bo Hue, that wonderful Spicy Beef Noodle soup originating from the city of Hue in Central Vietnam. In fact, several sources have told me that Hoai Hue makes either the best, or second best Bun Bo Hue in San Diego. So about 3 weeks ago, I finally made it to Hoai Hue Deli.

Much like the instructions I received for Chinese Kitchen, I wasn't given a name, just a general location, with one really good piece of information......it was downstairs from Hung's Tattoo Parlor and a AA office. I think this tells you about the neighborhood. The location is rather seedy, and the parking lot is full of double and triple parked cars(I park on the street). A Vietnamese coffee shop, Cafe Viet occupies the area fronting the street. Notice the bars on the windows. I immediately knew that Ed from Yuma would love this place.

The interior of the restaurant is small, with 7 little tables. There is one copy of the small (20 items) menu on the counter. You place your order, and declare whether you'll be doing take-out, or be eating on the premises.

On the table sits the standard plastic tray of condiments, a napkin dispenser, and eating utensils. I placed my order for a bowl of Bun Bo Hue($5), and had a seat. I had lucked out, and gotten the only open table in the place, and watched a steady flow of customers picking up take-out orders, all the while mentally rubbing my hands together in glee thinking, "man, all these customers can't be wrong, this place must really be good."

At last my Bun Bo Hue arrived, along with the garnishes.

As you can see, the garnishes left much to be desired; a sprig of mint, lettuce, some bean sprouts, 2 whole chilies, and a wedge of lime.

The Bun Bo Hue, was a whole 'nother story:

The broth was good, very balanced between the flavor of beef, spiciness, and just a hint of sour. The pungent flavor I enjoy in Bun Bo Hue was missing, but I added some of the shrimp paste from the condiment tray to bring it up to my taste. The thick slices of beef were tender and had a good flavor. The tendon was served in pretty thick chunks that were borderline inedible. But the star of the show was the Pork Hock.

There was a good amount of soft and flavorful meat, instead of the usual, "inner tube on a bone" that most places serve. I also enjoyed the vermicelli, which seemed to be a bit thicker than the noodles served in most Bun Bo Hue. Overall, a pretty good bowl of Bun Bo Hue.

At that point I thought, I'd just do a Bun Bo Hue Dossier post, except that a few menu items caught my attention. Well, there can be only a few menu items, since the menu was really small. So, I decided to return in a few days, only to be derailed by a nasty virus. In the interim Ed from Yuma managed to pay Hoai Hue a visit. His post on Chowhound can be found here.

So this past week, finally recovered, I talked the Missus into having dinner at Hoai Hue. As we arrived and parked on the street, the Missus turned to me and said: "You have got to be kidding?" Ah yes, we had arrived. We entered and walked up to the counter. This time,  when we tried to order, there was a communication problem....that is, no one spoke any English. Finally, someone from the kitchen who understood what we were ordering was found. There seemed to be at least 5 or 6 people working in the kitchen. Ordering done, we sat, and soon enough our food started arriving.

Banh Beo($2.75):

10 discs of rice cake smothered with ground shrimp, and topped with pork rinds and green onions, these had alot of flavor, and were much better than the version at Pho Tu Do. The Missus thought them a bit too fishy, but I enjoyed the texture and flavor.

Banh It($2.75):

These very filling balls of steamed rice flour were filled with shrimp and ground pork, and were not as oily as the version at Pho Tu Do. Our only complaint would be that these were served cold.

Banh Bot Loc($2.50):

Delivered steaming to our table were these tapioca starch dumplings wrapped in banana leaves. Those leaves imparted a smoky, tea-like fragrance and flavor to the Banh Bot Loc. The dumplings themselves were filled with shrimp and pork, and were the hit of the meal.

The Missus and I also split the Bun Bo Hue Dac Biet($6), the house special Bun Bo Hue, which came in a huge bowl.

The Missus has started enjoying Bun Bo Hue, Her favorite being the version at Pho Ca Dao. The difference, other than the quantity of ingredients, is the addition of two thick(3/4") slices of Gio Lua(Lean Pork Sausage). On this occasion, the three huge and thick slices of tendon were too tough and inedible, and the beef dry. I was wondering if the crew was just finishing up for the day, and perhaps things were just slowing down. The Missus enjoyed the noodles, She is not a fan of the vermicelli in most bowls of Bun Bo Hue, but enjoyed this version, though She found the broth lacking in rich saltiness and added fermented shrimp paste as well.

We ended up taking home about half of the appetizers, and enjoyed them a bit later on. As we were leaving we spotted two Women thoroughly enjoying themselves, they were having the same items we were, except they each had their own bowl of Bun Bo Hue. At the pace they were keeping,  don't think they were going to have any leftovers......

Hoai Hue Deli/Food To Go
4776 El Cajon Blvd Ste 106
San Diego, CA 92115

Open Daily 8am - 7pm

Comments

[Rachel]

Hmm at this stage for me the thought of tough tendon is a bit of a turn off but that soup does look tasty. I like how those appetizers remind me of yum cha items. How were the shrimp and ground pork fillings? Did you re-heat the rice mounds and did they taste better? The first appetizer looked really different and the ones steamed in the leaves look like they could have had a nice chewy texture.

[ed (from Yuma)]

Glad you had some of the appetizers that I saw other folks eating that looked so good. Next time I will explore more.

Maybe I got lucky with the tendon, but I liked the big chewy clumps.

Great pics, as usual!

[Fred]

Not quite on topic, but I figured I'd ask. Do you ever get strange looks from people while taking pictures of the food? Or restuarant staff who don't like you photographing things?

Oh oh and I dropped by Sammy Sushi for lunch the other day. Great service and great food. They asked me how I had heard of the place, but I didn't want to get into a whole thing about having read about them here and knowing (but not knowing) yourself, so I told them I had noticed the sign as I drove by. Thanks for the recommendation; I'm going to take my cow-orkers there one of these days!

[eatdrinknbmerry]

Kirk, i'm also on the hunt for a great bowl of Bun Bo Hue. I noticed that the soup is usually light/watery. I wonder if I can find that wonderful heartiness of a Niu Ro Mian bowl.

[Chubbypanda]

Have you ever noticed that some of the best food comes from mom & pop hole-in-the-walls? Although this place seems a little too hole-in-the-alley-wall for my normal comfort level, I'm seriously considering giving it a go during my next business trip down.

[Kirk]

Hi Rachel - The fillings for these were much tastier than the previous version we had. They were okay reheated, but not good for the microwave, and should be steamed.

Hi Ed - They are worth trying out.

Hi Fred - I do occasionally get strange looks, but I'm pretty discreet, and most times no one even notices.

Hi EDBM - Most Bun Bo Hue are almost clear with some chili oil or powder sprinkled on the top. I do enjoy mine a bit richer in flavor, but if you check out the Bun Bo Hue photos on Noodle Pie's blog, you'll find that the broth is pretty clear, even in Vietnam. I also enjoy my Bun Bo Hue with a pretty good amount of fermented shrimp paste. I've found that the versions of Bun Bo Hue I enjoy have a nice balance of spicy, salty, and sweet.

Hi CP - Yes, it's those Mom and Pop Strip Mall treasures tha make eating worthwhile.

[Andy 食神]

the food looks great.... and you guys look like you enjoyed the view from behind steel bars.. ahhaha...

i've only been reading your blog for a few weeks.. and I gotta ask...

how can 2 ppl eat so much food? or does the doggie bag do wonders for a second meal or late night snack?

[Kirk]

Hi Andy - Leftovers are a wonderful thing! Sometimes for than a meal or two(or three) What you see are usually 4 meals for an entire week. Believe me there are still instant ramen days, and visits to our favorite places in between.

[lela]

ok call me picky. i ate there last thursday after reading your review. i ate the bun bo hue i thought it had a weird bitter after. i also had banh bot loc which was very dry. i was kind of disappointed. then again i ate there about 11 years ago before living in san diego and was not impressed.

[Kirk]

Hi Lela - Never had that experience with the Bun Bo Hue at Hoai Hue Deli...and I've eaten there several times. Perhaps you should give Mien Trung a try?