Viet Kitchen

December 6, 2011 Update: Viet Kitchen has closed. The space it occupied is now home to Asiana Sushi, which will be reviewed here in early 2012.

It’s an awfully long way -- over 700 miles -- from Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam, to Saigon, the large metropolis in the southern portion of the country. While the distances within Phoenix don’t stretch into the hundreds of miles, it’s still quite a jaunt -- over 20 miles -- from Viet Kitchen’s original location along the 101 Freeway in north Phoenix to its new second restaurant in the heart of the city. Although a northern invasion was something U.S. armed forces fought during years of war, this migration from north of south should be welcomed by all who want more dining options in Phoenix’s urban core. While there have been Vietnamese restaurants in Central Phoenix for decades, it has been 20 years since we’ve enjoyed one actually located Downtown.

Viet Kitchen’s new urban quarters are in the ground floor of the Orpheum Lofts, one block from the Central / Washington (westbound) and First Avenue / Jefferson (eastbound) light rail stations. Viet Kitchen replaced a Mexican fast food restaurant and inherited its bare bones decor, including some “order here” signs. Initially, there was confusion about whether the restaurant was full service, but it’s now clear that orders are taken at the table. This is a rare Vietnamese restaurant with an open kitchen. It’s great to have a steaming bowl of pho at the table, but even better to see big pots of broth simmering on the stove. If there isn’t a lot of decoration on the walls, at least there are good views of pedestrians and trains outside on the street.

The menu is a sort of “greatest hits” of Vietnamese cuisine with representation of several different regions and specialties. Expect noodle soups like pho, dry noodle dishes like bun, banh mi sandwiches, and some interesting salads and stir fries along the way. The menu is not exactly the same as “up north.” Wisely, the Downtown restaurant emphasizes more vegetarian choices. Still, the authenticity seems to hold up well, without a lot of needless watering down of the food in the name of safe businesses lunches. It should be noted that the prices here are somewhat higher than at a lot of strip mall joints -- not outrageous, but expect a banh mi sandwich to cost closer to $5 than $3 here.

To start a meal at Viet Kitchen Downtown, opt for any of the egg, spring, or summer rolls -- most of them available in both small and large orders.The cha gio have a pleasant crunch on the outside with a seasoned ground pork interior. A generous plate of lettuce and herbs adds some greenery to the indulgent fried appetizer. Vegetarian spring rolls stuffed with tofu are the best meatless choices among the starters. There’s also a crepe on the menu, but it’s texture is a bit gummy compared to some other versions around town. The most interesting way to commence a meal, though, is the “beach bun,” a cleverly named rice cake steamed and topped with shrimp and vegetable and herb garnishes.

Viet Kitchen’s pho is distinctive. Expect a strong aroma of star anise to waft out of the bowl the moment it’s set at the table. The mix of flavors in the oily broth is stronger than at many other local noodle soup purveyors, but still nicely balanced. As expected, there are several different types of beef pho, along with chicken and meatless versions. Any pho can be supersized to an extra large version, although it’s hard to see the need with Viet Kitchen’s already generous portions. There’s even bun bo hue on the menu for anyone craving Central Vietnam’s spicy, meaty specialty. For noodles without soup, the numerous bun dishes top vermicelli with grilled meat or shrimp, lettuce, and herbs.

Reflecting a colonial influence from French rule, Viet Kitchen also offers an assortment of banh mi on fresh baguettes. The usual suspects in this category have fillings such as pate and grilled pork, but for something different, try the ca ry banh mi. This might be the ultimate open-faced sandwich combined with the concept of a French Dip. A sliced baguette is presented alongside a bowl of chicken curry. Dip each piece into the peppery, aromatic sauce based on coconut milk, scooping up pieces of poultry and vegetables along the way. One the sauce is soaked up, the remnants left in the bowl -- mainly chilis and lemongrass stalks -- show how the stew acquired its satisfying flavor.

In terms of food and service, Viet Kitchen’s new location is doing just fine. The challenge now is to draw business beyond the weekday lunch hour instead of succumbing to the “Downtown Disease” of limited hours of business. After starting with an ambitious schedule of weekend and evening hours all week long, the restaurant then scaled back to lunch only. Now, it's giving dinner a second try every day except Sunday, when the restaurant is closed. The physical distance from north Phoenix to Downtown is large, but the psychological distance can be even greater. Enjoy Viet Kitchen six days a week with the hope that enough support will sustain the expanded hours.

114 W. Adams St., Phoenix AZ 85003
(602) 262-5535
http://www.vietkitchenaz.com

Hue Gourmet

There’s one sure way to tell when any type of “ethnic” food has become mainstream in the United States: It occurs the moment the cognoscenti start differentiating between the cuisines of the country’s various regions. With Italian food, those distinctions have existed for decades. Popular “red sauce” Italian has its roots in immigrant traditions from Sicily and southern Italy, while northern Italian fans might celebrate risotto and osso bucco. The same has happened more recently with Chinese restaurants branching out beyond familiar Cantonese classics to offers specialties from Shanghai and the rest of that vast country.

view from the food court

Now, the same trend is occurring with Vietnamese food, and it’s not just about the classic political distinction between north and south that divided the country during two long decades of conflict. Almost everyone knows that Hanoi is associated with pho, the celebrated soup of beef and thin rice noodles, and Saigon is generally thought to have some of the world’s best street food. What about the middle of the country, though? For a vertically elongated nation like Vietnam, the middle is Hue, an historic former capital of the country located roughly at the midpoint of its north-south axis.

banh canh cua (spicy crab soup)

Hue Gourmet is an obviously-named restaurant serving that region’s own specialties. It’s one of many recent additions to the food court at Mekong Plaza, a short walk from the Sycamore / Main light rail station in west Mesa. As with its neighbors at the casual north end of the shopping center, it’s an informal little order-at-the-counter place. The menu is written on whiteboards over the counter and is limited to fewer than two dozen items. The seating at colorful tables is shared with neighboring restaurants. Be patient when waiting at the counter. Often, the staff are in back cooking but will come out to the front as soon as they are able.

cha cio tom (shrimp egg roll)

It appears that almost all of Hue Gourmet’s customers order a big steaming bowl of bun bo hue, the restaurant’s signature dish. This is not pho, but instead a meaty soup made with thicker, more cylindrical noodles combined with sliced beef, slivers of “pork loaf” (sold in rolls at the counter), and pork knuckle for extra flavor. Cubes of congealed pork blood sometimes makes an appearance in the bowl, but none were evident here. The table salad served with the soup includes herbs, shredded cabbage, and bean sprouts. For added flavor, there’s one container of chili oil and another of shrimp paste for a taste full of salt and unami.

bun bo hue

Although the City of Hue is sometimes known for its vegetarian traditions, the restaurant Hue Gourmet is all about meat. In fact, a lot of its food resembles a southeast Asian version of charcuterie. The pork skewers come wrapped in foil and look and taste like something halfway between a hot dog and a cylinder of pate. There’s even a version that adds minced escargot to the dish. Another charcuterie option with a French colonial influence is the patechaud, in which puff pastry encases a pork filling. All the rich pork-based dishes are a departure from the lean cuts of beef typically associated with pho.

banh beo

Slightly less meaty but equally tasty are appetizers made of flat, thick rice noodles. Banh beo are essentially rice coins topped with shrimp flakes and served with a fish oil sauce sprinkled with sliced chilies. Bahn nam are larger dumplings of rectangular shape steamed in banana leaves. Staff are happy to show customers how to unwrap the leaves, anoint the dumplings with sauce, and then slice each one into manageable pieces. While this dish has ground shrimp inside, another version with clear dumplings has pork and whole shrimp with the tails still on. All these menu items come several to an order, making them ideal dishes to share as appetizers.

banh nam

There’s no liquor license at Hue Gourmet, and most drinks come from the soda fountain. For something made on site, try the limeade. It’s tangy, refreshing, and copious in its 32-ounce cup. There’s no dessert on the menu, so stroll over to the nearby frozen yogurt shop iTwist if there’s room after the meal. As an outpost representing Vietnamese regional dishes now gaining some local exposure, Hue Gourmet doesn’t water down its food for American tastes and may not be suitable for picky eaters. On the other hand, it’s a new adventure in southeast Asian cuisine for anyone tired of pho, banh mi, and other dishes that have now become part of the mainstream.

limeade

66 S. Dobson Rd., Mesa AZ 85202
(480) 251-7429




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Mobile Food Court

Neil Diamond songs are among those cultural artifacts that never really go out of style. Remember "Brother Love's Traveling Salvation Show," the title track from Diamond's 1969 fourth album? In that song, Neil tells us to "pack up the babies” and “grab the old ladies" as an audience gathers to be inspired by an touring evangelist. Those lyrics may be about religion, but these days what seems to inspire people is traveling food. Food trucks have become a trend because they allow relatively low cost innovation without the risk of choosing the wrong location. They also allow existing establishments to reach customers outside their immediate zones of influence.

Compared to some other cities, Phoenix has been seen as lagging in food truck culture, with Maricopa County's strict regulations most often cited as the cause. Regardless of the reasons for the delay, mobile eateries are becoming popular here, and new Mobile Food Court (MFC), which occurs each Friday from 11 AM to 1 PM on the grounds of the Downtown Phoenix Public Market, is an attempt to cluster and cultivate the best of the bunch in one convenient location just two blocks south of the Roosevelt / Central light rail station. The Mobile Food Court is an outgrowth of the recently-formed Phoenix Street Food Coalition.

The setting is not glamorous. It's essentially a parking lot with some shade canopies. Nevertheless, the organizers have made it work by circling the trucks on the perimeter like an old-fashioned wagon train and then placing long tables in the center. The seating is effective because it not only allows for groups of all sizes, but also encourages mingling among customers who have never met before. It's one of the most social dining arrangements in town and a nice enrichment of the sometimes frayed urban fabric of Downtown.

The exact lineup of the MFC varies from one week to another, but during the initial weeks, there have been about half a dozen regulars. Some, including Short Leash Dogs, are known from the farmer’s markets at the same site. Short Leash offers hot dogs from local purveyor Schreiner's combined with creative toppings and Indian naan in lieu of the usual soggy buns. A crowd favorite is the Noki, in which a beef hot dog is adorned with pinto beans, cheese, and green chilies, but you can have your dog just about any way you want -- even with mango chutney if that's your thing.

Breaking down boundaries among cuisines is equally important at Sunshine and Spice, which takes Mexican-influenced streets foods and fills them with Asian-inspired fillings. Teriyaki beef, barbecue pork, coconut curry chicken, and mushrooms are all available as components of tacos or burritos. The chicken is probably the most mildly flavored, while the mushrooms, not content to play the role of a token vegetarian entree, burst with flavor from their sesame soy glaze and accompanying guacamole and wasabi sauce.

Updating a comfort food classic is the theme at Paradise Melts, a brightly-decorated truck devoted to the humble grilled cheese sandwich. Paradise Melt will be happy to make a standard sandwich, but also lets customers experience its own creations, including a reuben, a veggie sandwich on sourdough, and a “Cali-melt” that blends Havarti with roast turkey and avocado into a smooth mix of ingredients that contrasts appropriately with the slight crunch of whole wheat bread. Even the beverages are distinctive, with house-made (or should that be “truck-made”?) iced chai and lemonade both refreshing options.

A different approach to sandwiches is found among the po’ boys offered by Riteway Catering, a truck devoted to barbecue. Standard menu choices include pulled pork, hot links, and a Caribbean beef sandwich nicely adorned with pickled onion. There’s also a monthly special with a bit of cross-cultural flair, most recently a Korean po’ boy. The side dish is tater tots -- maybe not organic, local, or artisanal, but who can really resist them? There’s also a monthly cobbler or pie for dessert.

Speaking of dessert, most visits to the MFC should end with a stop at AZ59Chevy, as its known on Twitter, the truck operated by Scottsdale-based Sweet Republic, an ice cream shop not only recognized locally, but also in nationwide media such as the TLC Cable Network and Bon Appetit magazine. Sweet Republic offers everything from uncommon flavors like “I Love Bacon” and lime-basil sorbet to uncommonly good takes on traditional flavors such as Madagascar vanilla and Belgian chocolate.

To be sure, this list is not comprehensive.Trucks will come and go, and that’s part of the appeal of a mobile food court. Since this event occurs only one day a week, it’s unlikely to undermine the lunch trade at nearby restaurants. Instead, it’s a chance for customers and potential restaurateurs to try something new. Hot dogs, grilled cheese, tacos, barbecue, ice cream, and more all in one central and accessible location -- it’s almost as much fun as a classic Neil Diamond song.

14 E. Pierce St., Phoenix AZ 85004
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