Posted by: rabi4 September 19, 2011
Vietnamese Delight
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Vietnamese Delight

 

 

 

I’m coming down with a cold and I’m craving Pho – the translucent Vietnamese noodle soup, which is probably our Nepali Thukpa’s older and sexier cousin. A few months ago my friends and I were talking about how there is only two kinds of food actually missing in Kathmandu – Vietnamese and Lebanese. I think Lakhey does the latter but I’ve never eaten anything there so that’s just my bad, but up till this nice little joint opened up in Maharajganj Nepal really didn’t have a Vietnamese place to call our own.

 

My friend and I had been talking about taking a trip across town to visit a place we’d been told had recently opened and we’d been warned it was quite pricey. We finally made our way a few weeks ago and it was better than we’d hoped. The place isn’t up-scale which is fine because that means prices can’t be that bad and they really weren’t (maybe they re-did the menu from when our other friends went) because between the two of us we had Iced Tea, Vietnamese Coffee, Shrimp Fresh Roll, Tofu Fresh Roll, Half-Beef and Half-Veg Vietnamese Sub, Cabbage and Tofu with Rice and Pho Noodle Soup for a whopping Rs.1300+.

 

That was a lot of food – enough for at least three people, but we were hungry when we left Patan so were starved when we ordered. Obviously we over-ordered but I’m proud to say we wiped our plates and bowls clean. It was easy to – the food was good.

 

The Iced-Tea was sweet and the Vietnamese Coffee was strong – not much to discuss there really. The Fresh Roll has been a long time favorite of mine and I was seriously craving them in Kathmandu so I’m thrilled to find a place that serves them. It is like Spring Roll only the casing is like transparent chapatti and a million times softer while the inside is filled with lettuce, cold vermicelli and shrimp (or Tofu in my vegetarian friend’s case). It’s a light and beautiful snack – the peanut and fish sauce that come with it, though, is what gives the snack that great kick.

 

I’m not a huge fan of Chinese cabbage, but friend says she liked her dish (so you Veg folks know what to get). I, on the other hand wolfed down my half of the non-veg Sub. It was on the Special’s board and the Vietnamese owner had been quite confident of it so we’d given in (The cooks were really nice and were happy to do half-veg and half-non veg). The bread might have been a bit too crunchy for me (but I do have very little experience with Vietnamese Sub so maybe that’s how it’s supposed to be) but the filling was divine – the thinly sliced carrot had to have been marinated in some tangy sauce, but it was the meat that stole the show. I can’t recall beef melting in my mouth like chocolate, but it really did here. The Sub would be a great lunch. Then the feature attraction of Vietnamese cuisine – Pho!

 

Happy to inform you that it did not disappoint – as anywhere else, it was served in a large bowl and had a generous offering of soup. The thinly sliced beef and chopped onions gave the soup the simple but distinct flavor. The noodles were a bit too chewy for my liking but I was just so excited to be eating it I didn’t even care. I have to admit the Pho was missing the bean sprout and classic herb – something kind of minty that is served up and down any Vietnamese spot in New England, which is where I’d been introduced to the dish. It’s a bowl that a child could swim in so you can imagine how stuffed I was then.

 

But, I’m not complaining. If you work or live in the Maharganj area, I am jealous. Hopefully they do well enough to open a branch Patan-side so I can frequent the joint on an almost daily basis.

 

Valley foodie gives the place 4/5 for being clean, efficient and serving great dishes with lovely service (1 point off for being so far! Haha)

 

Since Valley Foodie can’t cook and hates to clean up after creating havoc in the kitchen while frying  eggs in place of a “real meal” the only option she has is to explore and to eat. You may think such an individual could not provide solid food reviews, but really, it’s the opposite (because she watches Master Chef). Anyway, who says the way to a man’s stomach alone is through food?

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