Mi Ngoc So 1

*** Update; Mi Ngoc So 1 is gone and has been replaced by Thai by Tara

While stopped at the traffic light at the intersection of Linda Vista Road and Ulric Street a few months back, I noticed that a new business had sprung up in the little strip mall on the corner. The place was called Mi Ngoc So 1, and replaced Linda Vista Food To Go as small Vietnamese take-out joint that made what I thought was so-so Banh Mi, but pretty good spring rolls. I made a mental note, and is the norm for me, just up and forgot about the place for a few months. Finally, with the onset of some pretty chilly weather, one of those poor little brain cells of mine managed to rub up against another...and I remembered Mi Ngoc So 1.

One of the first things you'll notice when you enter this tiny restaurant is how small it is...which will lead you to wonder how the heck they managed to actually fit 6 tables into this small space.

The menu is typical of these Vietnamese-Chinese Noodle Shops, Egg and Rice Noodle soups, Fried Rice, and Fried Noodles. As is also typical of these type of shops, the prices are very reasonable. There are three middle aged women working at Mi Ngoc So, kind of makes me feel nurtured in a way....

On this day, I decided to try the Beef Sate Egg Noodle Soup($4.75):

I find Vietnamese Sate Noodle soup interesting, no two versions are the same, and some are vastly different. The usual ingredients that I notice in most of the "sates" are chilies and garlic, it is also usually a on the salty side. In fact, once when the Missus had a bad cold, with the  terrible side effect of not being to taste much, I took Her to Tan Ky Mi Gia for the Beef Sate soup, which is a bit pungent, spicy, rich, and salty. This version was not quite as salty as I'm used to, and the spice was muted as well, though the garlic flavor came through. The egg noodles were the usual thin crunchy egg noodles, just how I like 'em. The few slices of beef were too thick, and had the metallic flavor of old beef, and was not very good. Still, not a bad bowl of noodle soup, and the hot tea was free, altogether after tax was just a shade over 5 bucks.

Today, was a heck of a windy, blustery, and cold San Diego day, and since I was in the area, I thought I'd drop by again and try out something else from the menu. This time I had the Won Ton and Dumpling Egg Noodle soup ($4.50):

Okay, just so you know, the Won Tons are the round dumplings...and the dumplings are the long "dumplings". As is pretty much the status quo for this type of won ton, the filling was a dense pork meatball, and the dumpling filling was an elongated dense meatball with a piece of shrimp attached. The Won Tons had a decent pork flavor, but the dumplings were kind of flavorless. All told 4 won tons, 4 dumplings, and other than 2 pieces of Char Siu and green onions there wasn't much else, unlike the super loaded version at Minh Ky. The scalding hot broth was on the lighter side, with a decent but not overly salty flavor, kind of in between Minh Ky and Luong Hai Ky. The egg noodles had not been cooked long enough and were still super hard, I had to leave them in the broth for a few minutes before eating.

Still, with a pot of tea(free) lunch came out to under 5 bucks, and I was out of there in less than 30 minutes and on my way, my belly full of hot soup. On some days, that's more than enough!

Mi Ngoc So 1
2405 Ulric Street
San Diego, CA 92111

Open - Tues-Sun 8am-8pm

Comments

[clayfu]

hum i looked at that as i was driving by today for dinner. INstead my friend wanted to go to Meng trang.

guess what? close at 6:30 haha.

i think i'll go to this place for lunch soon

[Christine D.]

We've been having the same kind of weather up here, which is perfect for noodle soups!

Did your chopsticks drop into your bowl in the last picture? Kinda looks like it.

[Sara]

Mr. and Mrs. You are so wrong! Cannot believe that you could even think that the whole meal was bad. We have been eating at oe's since they opened. Joe, the owner, and his wife Kim have dedicated their lives to making this business a success! One of them is always in the shop and continually watching what is being made. Their pizzas are wonderful - try the artichoke adventure.

Joe and Kim have turned this into a fun place - music, TV and TV games - it is a family restaurant.

We for sure will be back.

Sara

[Beach]

Sara,
Are you reading the same thing we are reading?

[sher]

Too bad that won ton soup didn't taste as good as it looks. It made me quite hungry.

[clayfu]

i hear the chicken wings there are so good! (i have no idea what sara is reading)

[The Guilty Carnivore]

I think this location was the first place I had Vietnamese food at in San Diego back in 1996. [nostalgic tear in my eye]

[Kirk]

Hi Clayfu - Hey man, what's with you and Mien Trung.... This place is pretty cheap, and unlike what a lot of restaurants do these days, they don't charge for tea.

Hi Christine - You know, I had the silly notion of placing my chopsticks in the bowl to add some color and contrast to the photo, without realizing that it would look like I threw them into the soup!

Hi Sara - I'm sorry, I have no idea what you are writing about...

Hi Beach - Hmmmm.....I chose the wrong day to quit taking my medication????

Hi Sher - It's not bad for under 5 bucks.....

Hi GC - Wow, I'm sorry, it's sad to see places that hold memories for you disappear.

[Cathy]

Oh, I think Sarah is writing about my blogging about "Eat at Joe's- if you dare"...Joe has some mighty strong proponents out there, who are privately writing me some nasty e-mails, but all I know is I got a bad meal and I blogged about it. With photos.

[Cathy]

Sorry- the blogging was done on February 19 this year- I can't link it via this comment area. -C

[Kirk]

Hi Cathy - Ok, I follow.....of course with TV and games...who needs great food, right? ;o)

[Junichi]

Owners have moved to the bay area. It is now a Thai restaurant. R.I.P. LV Noodle Shop. I will miss their fried rice.