mmm-yoso!!! is the name of this food blog. Cathy is writing. Kirk (and His Missus) are enjoying the holiday weekend.
The Mister said he would be responsible for breakfast on Saturday. At 7 a.m., I saw him on the computer, reading a menu.
We took a 'short' (83 miles one way) trip North. The craving for nem nuong (pork sausage) was overwhelming in the middle of this four day weekend. Both Kirk and His missus as well as The Mister and I have been to the 'original' Brodard; it moved South on the same main road (Brookhurst) in late 2017, from Garden Grove to Fountain Valley-so it is much closer to the 405. We arrived at the "new" Brodard location in about 75 minutes.
The side parking lot was empty,
as was the beautiful, spacious interior. (Business picks up later in the day; you can get on a waiting list online and the wait was 75 minutes at 2 p.m. yesterday).
We asked for hot tea; jasmine and strong!
One order of nem nuong cuon (grilled pork rolls) ($6) Heritage Berkshire grilled pork (fresh grilled- warm) wrapped in rice paper with lettuce, cucumber, carrots, cilantro, chives, daikon, mint and a strip of crispy fried egg roll wrapper. Served with the 'house special sauce'-warm: savory, spicy and sweet. The pork- I could just eat a plate of that.
Roasted duck spring rolls (goi cuon vit) ($9.95) Warm, roasted duck wrapped in rice paper with asparagus, scallions, cucumber and cilantro. Served with a plum sauce. This was quite wonderful and special.
It was breakfast. We ordered sole porridge (Chao Ca) ($7.95) It came garnished with roasted shallots, fresh ginger, cilantro and scallions and a nice plate of add-ins (lime, jalapeño, bean sprouts and cilantro). Fancy, tasty, filled with a lot of firm, tasty sole.
Instead of a Vietnamese crepe (banh xeo), we ordered the plate of several small crepes-the Luna rice cakes with shrimp (Banh Khot Tom) ($8.95) Small, light, crispy rice-flour crepes made with coconut milk and turmeric. Filled with mung beans, scallions and a large, plump shrimp and served with mint, sesame leaf, lettuce and pickled daikon and carrots. Great little bites.
If you look back at the first photo, that's the doorway to the left of the main doorway. You can walk in there to pick up an order, stare at the bakery offerings or just go ahead and order something.
cc has visited the new Brodard
Brodard Fountain Valley 16105 Brookhurst Street Fountain Valley, CA 92708 (657) 247-4401 website
One pistachio and one raspberry macaron. The almond topped, crispy pastry is filled with hazelnut cream (not sweetened) ($7.88).
I didn't know Brodard had moved to new digs. Time for a revisit!
Posted by: Sandy | Sunday, 07 July 2019 at 09:17 AM
The entrance isn't in an alleyway anymore, Sandy. A bit easier- to the 405 then Brookhurst exit, about three signal lights North, to the left- Golf Course is on the right-. There's a Denny's, Salvation Army thrift store and Albertsons (as well as a lot of other interesting places) in that parking lot.
Posted by: Cathy | Sunday, 07 July 2019 at 10:40 AM
Cool looking desserts!
Posted by: Soo | Sunday, 07 July 2019 at 11:21 AM
Your visit makes me want to go again! Their nem nuong cuon is the best. Nothing in San Diego comes close. It's also nice going early...no crowds and you can enjoy the ambiance. Nice selection of foods, especially the duck rolls. Nice getaway you had with the Mister. :)
Posted by: caninecologne | Sunday, 07 July 2019 at 03:09 PM
everything you tried sounded delicious!
Posted by: kat | Sunday, 07 July 2019 at 11:55 PM
Wonderful desserts here, Soo. I saw some people be seated, order and then they went up and purchased dessert to take back to the table.
The nem nuong cuon (well, everything) is made when you order, so the meat is just grilled and the other ingredients are so fresh and crunchy (along with the special crunchy egg roll wrapper), cc. The interior designer is the same person who did DTF, making this space a lot more special than the old place. The duck rolls were especially nice and different, making this trip memorable.
It was all so very fresh, Kat. Kind of fancy for a breakfast meal; I know if we lived closer, this would be a regular stop.
Posted by: Cathy | Monday, 08 July 2019 at 03:49 PM