more tales from the Orient

As a Vietnamese person from the Vietnamese mecca of Southern California, I often crave Vietnamese food, and luckily we have some pretty good places in KC. For a more exhaustive list, go two entries down.

Vinh Hoa: I really like this place. Just North of the River, on Burlington, it's the only place I have found that has decent Banh mi, or the Vietnamese version of a hoagie. The Banh Mi Thit Nuong is grilled/charbroiled pork with jalapeno, pickled carrot and daikon, cilantro on a French baguette. And the best thing is that the sandwiches are only like $2-3. Delish! I also really like their rice dishes, the com bi suon nuong hot ga, which is short grain rice with grilled porkchop, egg loaf (better than it sounds), shredded boiled pork and fried egg. The Vietnamese iced coffee will keep you up for days, and the soda chanh or lemonade soda is awesome. Everything is really good. This place is really cheap, really tasty, and you have the Vietnamese person seal of approval. Count it.

Now on to Thai food. Not my favorite stuff. When I was a kid, we went out to Thai restaurants all the time because it happens to be my parents' favorite type of food and that burnt me out on the stuff. The only dish I like, and thus the only dish I ever order is Pad Thai. And so, that's what I base a good restaurant on. If you can't make a good Pad Thai, I can't hang with you.

Thai Place/Arun Thai: now, their pad thai sauce has a more tomato/ketchup-y base, which is usually my favorite kind. However, I think the noodles come out too soggy, and the actual dish itself is kind of bland. The portion is large, and the dining rooms are nice, so it's understandable how this restaurant has become a favorite in the community. It is pretty expensive, but I guess the theme has been that almost all "nice" Asian restaurants are. It's edible, but not my first choice.

Lulu's: Now this is my first choice always. I'm a sucker for cute, trendy little mom and pop places like this. The bright green, blue and orange color scheme grabbed me from the get go. And the wooden booths, albeit uncomfortable, are cute and intimate. And the room is awesome. The pad thai is amazing, they have more of a peanut base, but the flavor is very subtle and not over powering. Accompanying the dish is the fried garlic which is on the table, and a few spoonfuls of that stuff will have you hooked for life. I am not crazy for the dumplings, since the wrappers are a little starchy, but some of my friends love them. The blazing wok bowl is good, lots of veggies and a lot of flavor. And the basil fried rice is outstanding. It's on Southwest, but it is worth the trek from wherever you are...and be warned, it's real crowded at lunch, when they have lunch specials.

Thai Orchid: On Mission, in a very nondescript location behind a strip mall. Very odd location, but surprising very sleek and clean decor. The pad thai was not bad, portion was smaller, but the chicken was juicy. To be honest, I don't remember much about the meal, which may tell you something, but some of my friends swear by this place. It's not bad.

I haven't tried Bangkok Pavilion, but it's on the list.