When Lac Viet first opened in the North Market, I heard they had the best pho bo (Vietnamese Beef Noodles) in town. And I made haste, and headed over, for lo, I do love me some pho. But I was disappointed. Very disappointed. Although the staff was very nice, and they gave me a nice little plate of accoutrement - mint, holy basil, cilantro, regular basil, lime, sriracha, etc. - the broth really didn't have any flavor. But everyone kept going on and on about how great it was, how good their sandwiches are, etc. and so on Thursday I decided to give it another try.
First of all, I would like to apologize to any purists that I am not going to accent the Vietnamese words properly. I am not that savvy, I guess... or I'm just that lazy.
I had heard their sandwiches were wonderful, all on French rolls with pate. As a side note, I was at a winemaker's dinner with a local well-known Industry Person (by this I mean restaurant industry), and this person was scoffing at the notion of a restaurant offering French/Vietnamese fusion cuisine. Now, I'm not going to get all preachy here, and I know that in the U.S. we tend to teach our own version of U.S.-centric history, but here's a new flash: France ruled Vietnam for almost 100 years. Rather recently, in fact. Before that, they had colonies nearby. You can read about it here. Okay. Now that we've got that squared away, on with lunch. . .
I wanted to order more food so that I could have a broader range, but they were starting to get really busy for lunch, and Husband was waiting and hungry, so I'll have to leave that for another time. The one thing I really wanted to try but couldn't was Ca phe sua, iced coffee with sweetened condensed milk. Just what I need.
I selected 2 sandwiches; first of all, Banh mi Thit, French bread topped with ham, chicken roll, mayo, and pate. Secondly was Banh mi thit bo, grilled beef with mayo, lettuce and pate. Both were very tasty, if the bread was a little crumbly. The beef was really well seasoned before grilling. For both sandwiches, the first bite was good - you just shrugged and said "yes, it's a good sandwich," and then the flavors start to blend and it just got better and better. Below are picture the banh mi thit (chicken) on the left and the banh mi thit bo (beef) on the right. Sorry about the picture quality. I don't have sugeon-steady hands or a tripod. Yet.
The pho bo was much better this time, but still seems to be lacking in really rich beef flavor. I believe this is considered a more authentic pho bo - being a mild, clear broth suitable for breakfast consumption. My favorite pho locally is at Haiku, although I can never go there because the service is THAT BAD. It is possible that I like a more Americanized version, full of meaty beefiness. If so, I am willing to accept that. I do have this dream where I make my own pho bo, slaving over bones and short ribs and assorted spices, but it takes days to do it right. Stay tuned. Ooh - then I can have a pho epic. I can hardly wait.
I would just like to reiterate, because it's so rare to get good service, that the family who runs Lac Viet are really nice people - if you follow the link you can tell by their picture. They are always smiling and they will even help you with your Vietnamese if you ask.
Info: Lac Viet is located inside the North Market at 59 Spruce Street, Columbus, Ohio 43215, (614) 221-0777
