Phee, Phi, Pho, Phum - I smell delicious Vietnamese food.

I apologize for the delay in completing this travel log.  Upon returning home, the jet lag has been a beast, and I have been a little over-committed.  With that said, I will be finishing up this series of postings over the next couple of days.

After finishing up our walking tour of District 1 (Saigon), Jeff hailed a taxi and we were off for a late lunch. The restaurant was not very far, but like me, Jeff is a little bit directionally challenged when reading maps. The place we were heading to is pretty famous, so there was not much of problem communicating with the taxi driver. From the pictures below, you would think that we were stuck in rush hour traffic, but this was about 3:00 PM local time and the traffic was moving along at a rather brisk pace.

Saigon Traffic

They are coming to get you....

We arrived at the restaurant in about 10 minutes. Walked in and sat ourselves at a table in the back.  The table was preset with the fresh lemon grass, basil, cilantro, sliced chiles, and bean sprouts to be used to spice up our bowls of Pho. Luckily the menu was printed in both Vietnamese and English - so Jeff ordered three bowls of beef Pho and three Tiger beers.

 

Noodle Bar Extraordinaire

A little digression is required here.  There is a rather large Vietnamese community in the Raleigh area, so we have quite a few Vietnamese restaurants as well as a few others that also have Pho on the menu. However, when ordering it at home, I always pronounced the dish as "Foe." In Vietnamese it sounds more like "Fuh." 

The meal was delivered quickly and Jeff set about giving us a Pho demonstration.  Before being brought to the table, the bowls were prepared by placing the noodles in the bottom, then the spices, followed by a couple of spoonfuls of shredded, raw beef. Then boiling broth is poured over the contents in the bowl. When the bowls arrive, you then push the beef down into the broth so that it continues to cook, add your desired herbs, a heaping helping of bean sprouts, and a few chiles to add some spice.  Give it a stir, and start shoveling it in. 

Jeff came well prepared - he had stopped off by the concierge desk before we left the hotel to borrow a set of western-style silverware for dad. That was very thoughtful - and it was put to good use.  This was the most delightful Pho that I have ever tasted. Very flavorful, filling and inexpensive (the bill was about $8 USD).  A perfect way to start our feeding adventures in Vietnam.

The chiles are so hot that you can't leave them in for too long.

Assume feeding position

Since Vietnam was formerly a French colony, they take great pride if the flavors of their foods.  They are also the only country in SE Asia to have a continuing love affair with pastries and breads. Everything that we ate during our stay here was both simple and very tasty.  The Vietnamese have every reason to be very proud of their cuisine.

After Pho we headed over to one of Jeff's favorite bars for a few mojitos. We diligently watched their preparation so that we could mimic it when we returned home, as these were without doubt the best mojitos I have ever tasted. There must be something about that wet, fresh, brown sugar and fresh sugar cane stir stick that makes them so delicious - or it could have just been the atmosphere and the company.  Probably a combination of both.

Following drinks, we walked back to our hotel for a little napping. Tonight we are heading out to eat with the locals at an outdoor seafood bar. Crabs and beer baby!