Oct 11, 2008
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Paradise Island Vietnamese Cuisine

While the reincarnated place may be unassuming in appearance, I found nothing modest about the full-flavored pho bo, a soothing soup comprising oxtail broth, noodles and tender sliced beef, accompanied by Asian basil, bean sprouts and lemon wedges. Even livelier was a bright yellow curry coconut chicken soup with vermicelli noodles. Canh chua, hot and sour soup, with shrimp wonton, was at once reminiscent of and different from Thai tom yum soup.

The simultaneously refreshing and fiery goi du du translated into a salad of shredded tart green papaya topped with spicy grilled beef and crushed peanuts. Goi cuon tom, more commonly known as summer roll but described as a soft salad roll, was a simple, sprightly rice-paper wrap holding shrimp, bean sprouts, lettuce, fresh mint, crushed peanuts and vermicelli. I liked the crisp fried spring roll with a savory pork, vegetable and shrimp mixture. Like almost every dish, it came with nuoc cham, a blend of vinegar, fish sauce, chile and sugar.

While the stir-fried rice noodle and shrimp melange called bun xao came off as bland and humdrum, I couldn't get enough of a fried rice dish with shrimp, basil and Chinese sausage. Even better was the goi banh cuon, pasta-like steamed thin rice crepes enfolding ground baby shrimp and scallions and crowned with skewered grilled chicken sprinkled with crushed peanuts. I later learned that the handmade crepes are available only some of the time.

A thin rice-paper crepe accompanied a rich, resonant chicken curry laced with eggplant, string beans and coconut milk. Another winning item was basil prawns, large shellfish sauteed with snow peas, lotus root, mushroom, squash and Asian basil in a light and subtly incendiary sauce. But what the menu called Phong Peng salmon was an outright flop, the bits of fish fried to virtual woodiness. In marked contrast were juicy flavorsome grilled marinated pork chops with lemongrass and a perky pickle salad.

Keep in mind that the place is new, its dining room somewhat understaffed. And while you can get an abbreviated Chinese menu on request, why bother? Most of you already know where to find wonton soup. But pho? That's another story and, these days, one with a happy ending.

Reviewed by Joan Reminick, 9/19/07.

Hours: Lunch, Monday to Saturday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.; dinner, Monday to Thursday, 4 to 10 p.m., Friday and Saturday, 4 to 11 p.m., Sunday, noon to 10 p.m.

Assessment

Cuisine

Price Range

Wheelchair Access