Well, I guess I should finish up my (insert restaurant name here) post. After previous visit, it became very clear that Pho was "King" only in name at this restaurant. Rather, it seemed that Hu Tieu ruled, and Pho was just a figurehead, if you will.
The Missus was anxious to try out some of the other items on the menu, so we returned. Andy, the young man who served us remembered us(I'll tell that story later), and provided the same friendly service.
On this visit we started with the Cha Gio Hoa Tien(whole shrimp and pork eggrolls - $5.95):
Four egg rolls with a whole shrimp and well flavored ground pork along with some very fresh greens(lettuce and mint). The Nuoc Mam Cham was very well flavored, just sweet enough, with a nice salty-fish sauce flavor, and not watered down in the least. Though we prefer our Cha Gio made with rice paper which provides a nice light crunch, these were pretty good.
I ordered a rice dish, the Com Thit Nuong, Tom Nuong, Tau Hu Ky(Grilled pork, grilled shrimp, shrimp paste, with Jasmine Rice - $6.45) sheesh, what a mouthful.
We both thought the presentation was fairly well done. Didn't look to be a lot of food, but I sure was full after finishing it off. The two tiny grilled shrimp were pretty much an after-thought, and though served de-veined(sometimes a rarety in Vietnamese restaurants), it was a bit over cooked and on the tough side. The grilled pork, had been nearly sliced into strips, that were still attached at one end, I'm guessing to accommodate quick cooking and making it easy to separate. First off, the meat had a "cured" texture, very firm and chewy. Surprisingly, the flavor was very mild, and was brought to life with the provided Nuoc Mam Cham.
The fried bean curd wrapped shrimp paste was another story.
At first glance, I thought this was going to be pretty greasy. But I was very, very, wrong....the outer "shell" was very crisp, and the shrimp paste interior was excellent, full of shrimpy goodness!
I'm not sure if I'd order a Com Dia(Rice) plate again, but that Shrimp Cake sure was good.
The Missus, still fascinated by the Hu Tieu, ordered the Hu Tieu My Tho Kho (Rice Noodle with soup on the side - $5.95):
This had everything but the kitchen sink in it...lets see, in the bowl was shrimp(okay), fish ball(ditto), squid(I ate that, it was ehhh), BBQ Pork (never had a shot at it...must've been pretty good), liver, intestine, and heart(hmmm). The dish came with a nice bowl of broth that was even more mild than on the previous visit.
What the Missus really enjoyed was this:
This was a fairly rich bowl of broth flavored with tomato, garlic, and ground pork. As you can see the oil content was fairly high...the flavor was similar to a tomato-meat sauce for pasta. The Missus dumped the entire bowl, along with a good amount of fragrant Chinese Celery, and dug in.....She was in fine slurping form.
The Missus informed me that the noodles were a perfect al dente, and kept that texture for the entire meal.......
So for us, Pho King is not about the Pho, in fact we'll just stick with the Hu Tieu here. The young Guys working the place are very nice, they seem quiet at first, but were cracking jokes by the time we were leaving.
My previous post can be found here.
Pho King Restaurant
4658 El Cajon Blvd
San Diego, CA 92115
Another reason why the Missus likes to eat here.
During the end of the meal, Andy came by. And as we chatted, we come to find out that he thinks the Missus looks just like a local television personality. Who, I couldn't figure out( Michael Turko??? he-he-he). Boy, was the Missus smiling from ear to ear.....and Her head expanded sooooo much She had problems getting into the car! And yet She always says flattery will get me no where........
"it ain't right!"
we were going to try pho king the other day for lunch, but ended up (once again) at saigon. creatures of habit, i guess.
Posted by: toisan | Thursday, 30 August 2007 at 09:31 PM
Hu Tieu My Tho Kho is one of my favorite vietnamese dishes! That pork and tomato broth/sauce is usually really oily...and I have no idea why. I'd rather have a less oily version.
Posted by: Christine D. | Thursday, 30 August 2007 at 10:41 PM
Wow I didn't expect part 2 to be so soon =) My sister and I will go to this place for the Rice Plate tomorrow. That looks so good. I always get the Hu Tieu My Tho all the time. Time for a change! It'll be Com Tam tomorrow =) Isn't that sauce soooo good. Just like how I used to have it in Sai Gon, just less oil.
Posted by: yummieyummy | Thursday, 30 August 2007 at 11:14 PM
your waiter, Andy, ought to put his comments inside fortune cookies. By the way things sound, he would be stellar at it.
Posted by: RONW | Thursday, 30 August 2007 at 11:49 PM
Hi Kirk! gheez, you made me drool re: shrimp cake....was the inside pure shrimp? omg, I'd like to try some!
have a good week end!
Posted by: thess | Friday, 31 August 2007 at 02:22 AM
...and now you know why I try the fried bean curd/shrimp paste whenever I see it on the menu...
Posted by: Cathy | Friday, 31 August 2007 at 07:58 AM
Maybe Andy was thinking of Lee Ann Kim of KGTV (?):
http://www.10news.com/kgtv/153216/detail.html
Posted by: Trent | Friday, 31 August 2007 at 11:11 AM
Turko?! Man, are you ever gonna get it.
Posted by: dave | Friday, 31 August 2007 at 11:26 AM
I wonder if they have "pho" in the name for the same reason Chinese restaurants all used to have teriyaki on their menus. Pho is more popular and well known than hu tieu. It's hip. It's trendy. I mean, if they were "Hu Tieu King", would they get as much business from Vietnamese cuisine noobs?
Posted by: Chubbypanda | Friday, 31 August 2007 at 12:27 PM
Hmm, Kirk. Unless your Missus is bald and has facial hair...
Not knowing what your misses look like, I've come up with these options to add to Trent's Lee Ann Kim:
Marianne Kushi:
http://www.nbcsandiego.com/meetthenewsteam/1288073/detail.html
Marcella Lee: http://www.cbs8.com/news_team/lee.php
Charisse Yu:
http://www.10news.com/kgtvnewsteam/11440139/detail.html
Angela Chee:
http://www.fox6.com/content/news/bio.aspx?content_id=e0b17311-a07f-4399-90d1-a4e9e669bf9f
Posted by: Carol | Friday, 31 August 2007 at 12:36 PM
You have to yell out Turko's catch phrase: "IT AIN'T RIGHT!"
Does the Missus resemble Sasha Foo?
http://www.kusi.com/about/bios/news/1838181.html
My husband and his friend had lunch at Pho King. The friend didn't like the pho broth (too sweet). The husband had hu tieu (not sure which one), and said it was ok (his standard phrase if he likes something).
I've never had hu tieu before so I'll be sure to try it the next time I see it on a menu.
Posted by: Sandy | Friday, 31 August 2007 at 02:48 PM
Hi Toisan - You should give the Hu Tieu a shot here....
Hi Christine - The Missus really seemed to like it. I don't know if she'd have enjoyed it if it were much more oily.
Hi YY - Actually, we ate there a while back. I'm usually a bit behind.
Hi RONW - LOL! Everybody would leave with a smile on their face.
Hi Thess - Have a great weekend too!
Hi Cathy - This was the extreme exception and not the rule. I almost never order the shrimp paste by itself. Most of the time it's very oily, and the shrimp paste is overcooked and tough......
Hi trent - Who knows....
Hi Dave - LOL! You do "get" that I'm joking, right?
Hi CP - LOL! I have problems enough with the name of the place as it is.....
Hi Carol - I dunno......saying She looks like someone is asking for trouble....
Hi Sandy - Wow, that little paragraph sure did get some response, huh? Personally, I thought the Hu Tieu Mi was better, the missus enjoyed the Hu Tieu My Kho.....
Posted by: Kirk | Friday, 31 August 2007 at 03:44 PM
Hi Kirk--you sang the praises of that Hu Tieu My Tho Kho so enticingly that I just had to go get some for lunch. That is definitely one tasty dish--and that beef/tomato sauce really makes the dish. And putting in a dollop of the chile oil stuff really kicked it into the stratosphere. The guys who waited on me were so cute, though--they gently double-checked to make sure the Caucasian Lady knew she was ordering a dish full of organ meats. :-)
Posted by: mizducky | Friday, 31 August 2007 at 03:54 PM
I went there and ordered the rice dish yesterday. You're right, the shrimp paste is good. I'm usually very picky about shrimp paste and this is one of the best version. As mush as I enjoyed the rice dish, I came back again today for the Hu Tieu. I can't resist their Hu Tieu =)
Posted by: yummieyummy | Saturday, 01 September 2007 at 02:41 PM
Hi Mizducky - Pretty good stuff, huh?
Hi YY - Just can't pull you away from that Hu Tieu! ;o)
Posted by: Kirk | Sunday, 02 September 2007 at 07:59 AM