A Visit to Saigon Vietnamese Restaurant

Yesterday, my hubby treated us to a late lunch at a Vietnamese restaurant. I've been bugging him a week before in going to one. I haven't been to a Vietnamese restaurant before, that's why I wanted to see and know the difference between Filipino dishes and Vietnamese one. Since Philippines and Vietnam are in Asia, there could be a lot of similarities and there should be a difference, too. So at last my curiosity was put to rest yesterday.

We went to Saigon Vietnamese restaurant, one of the few Vietnamese resto in Albuquerque, New Mexico. One of my friends told me about it and she said that they have very good grilled meat and it taste almost like the Filipino ones. So, I've googled some Vietnamese restaurant in town, and Saigon does have a very good review. So that's why I decided to choose this place.

We arrived at about 2 pm for a late lunch. There was just a few customers left after lunch time. We were greeted with a smile by one of the waitresses. She gave us cold water directly even before we ordered, which was very nice because my husband and son were already thirsty. It took us a while to choose what to order since it was our first time and we didn't know what is good. But I had read some reviews from other customers and they suggested some dish. I told my hubby to get the Rare Beef with Rice Noodle ( Pho Tai). And he told me to get a dish with fish, since he knows that I don't like fish, LOL! Just kidding! Being a Filipino, that's what I missed here most eating fresh caught fish. So I ordered the Steamed Bass with Rice Paper. And added some Tempura Prawns for appetizer and Avocado Shake with Tapioca.

 This is the Rare Beef with Rice Noodle Pho. It is a soup dish with very thin slices of beef that you put into the very hot broth. The dish comes with vermicelli noodles, green onions, thai-basil, cilantro, and Mung bean sprouts. What I observed about the veggies, is that they were very fresh. You can really taste the freshness of these vegetables. This is a very good portion for the price and even two to three persons can share this dish. We didn't know it was such a big serving that my husband and my son were so full when they finished it. I asked my husband what's the difference with this dish compared to the Filipino Nilagang Baka or Bulalo that I made for him. He said this one has more of the taste of the green seasonings, like the onion, cilantro and basil taste. While the Nilagang Baka has more of the beefy taste that he likes. He likes both dishes, but he said he likes my Filipino Beef Soup better, LOL! I don't know if he's saying that because he is afraid to get in trouble with me or he is telling the truth, hahaha. But I agree with him, I tasted it and what my husband said was right. It is both very good and has very distinct taste from each other. So both are good and are very good comfort food especially on winter months.

 This is the Tempura Prawns we got for appetizer. Big prawns coated with tempura batter and deep fried. Very good when dipped in their sweet and sour sauce.

A whole bunch of vegetables like carrots, bean sprouts, lettuce, cucumbers, and herbs like cilantro and basil which are very fresh and crunchy. This is for my steamed bass. The Beef Soup comes with the same bunch of vegetables.

This is the whole Steamed Bass, garnished with cilantro leaves and grilled onions. Too bad I didn't get a nice picture of it because I was holding my crying baby, ha ha.But I can say that the fish was cooked well and seasoned well, very good! So this dish comes with the fresh veggies and herbs, some rice noodles, rice paper, and fish sauce for dipping.

 This is the Vietnamese Spring Roll Wrapper or rice paper. It is harder than our lumpia wrapper. You need to dip it in warm water to make it soft.

This is the vermicelli noodle for the filling and the fish sauce for dipping. I love their fish sauce, it's a little sweet, with a little chili and garlicky flavor.

So this is how you put the filling on the rice paper. You put some fish meat, noodles, some veggies and herbs and then you roll it like a lumpia. I just scattered the fillings, so you can see what is put inside the roll.

And it will look like this. A fresh spring roll. And you dip it into the fish sauce and eat, eat, eat and enjoy!!!!:)

So that's our experience at the Vietnamese restaurant. We had fun wrapping the food while being full at the same time. Oh! I forgot to put the photo of the avocado shake. Here it is!

Yummmmy!!!! My son loves the shake more than my avocado shake at home because of the tapioca balls, ha ha, mine doesn't have any.

So if you happen to be in Albuquerque, New Mexico, you should try and visit Saigon, if you love Vietnamese food. Have fun and enjoy!:)