There is no such thing as appetizers in most Asian countries. Everything is brought to the table at the same time (at home) or as cooked (at restaurants). Appetizers are a Western concept. Personally I like to use a few bites of gỏi cuốn to cool off the heat of pho.
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Yes, although there can be a progression of dishes where it is thought appropriate to start with certain flavors, textures, temp., and spices, and for that to change and develop in different ways throughout the meal. Usually in more formal, multi-dish dining.
Finally got to try Vietnam’s Central this weekend. We went Saturday night 8pm. It was pretty crowded. The owner was very friendly, good service. We had the spring rolls, beef pho, stir fried noodles and the grilled pork over noodles. The spring rolls were ok not great. Was hoping they would be Nem (with the glass noodles, mint, etc.) but this was more bland. The pho was, again, ok but not great. The broth was a bit thin and while it had a nice beefy taste it wasn’t as flavorful or rich as I was hoping. Inside the broth it basically just noodles, broth and sliced beef. No herbs or other vegetables/aromatics, etc. They really need to put more effort into the Pho. The grilled pork over noodles was pretty good, as were the stir-fried noodles with chicken (plenty of fish sauce and lime which was nice).
They don’t have their liquor license yet (should be another 4 weeks), so you can bring your own.
Maybe it was an off night, I’ll try again when I’m in the neighborhood, but I was disappointed in the food quality. The service was very friendly.
No sliced onions in with the noodles and meat in the pho? They didn’t serve you a plate of bean sprouts, thai basil, on the side for the pho? Usually both, and the broth is usually decent. It has it’s ups and downs. Lately I wish it were more aromatic myself. It was a few weeks ago, but has gotten a bit less so as you mentioned.
Is Vietnam central still worth trying? I’m confused between all of the mixed reviews I’ve read.
Don’t be afraid to try it. Nobody has said it was bad.
Yes there were a few sliced onions in the bowl but definitely not a side plate of things to add to the soup.
Sounds like the server screwed up. It’s their job to put that together and serve to you. You should have asked. I assume you have had pho before and have had the bean sprouts, lime, basil, and sometimes sliced chjilis served on the side?
Just went to Vietnam central today for lunch.
Ordered an iced coffee with condensed milk, the van summer rolls, hot and sour soup, and veggie potstickers.
Iced coffee was slightly different in taste (too much ice compared to the coffee).
The summer rolls were amazing! Never expected it to have a refreshing taste with the sauce inside of it as well as the sauce served on the side.
By far, I agree with you JMF, that the hot and sour soup is light, tangy, and refreshing. I’ve never had a better soup. it was high quality. Overall, the flavors blended well with each other.
The potstickers were succulent and had a different texture compared to other dumplings I’ve had. The sauce on the side was extremely tasty (it might have had fish/oyster sauce).
I loved the experience, but didn’t understand the prices. Way to expensive for the portions.
The chef is commendable.
We tried Vietnam Central for the first time for lunch the other day and liked our experience. We are by no means experts on Vietnamese food, but enjoyed our food and kibitzing with the owner and server. It was lunch, we were not starving , so shared the fried spring rolls, the lemon shrimp starter and stir fried noodles with chicken. All were tasty and nicely prepared. None were spicy, but we had a trio of spicy sauces on the table to augment whatever we chose. And, by the way, they were doing a brisk business.
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