G. Snyder

Bun Bo Hue at Nong Lá

Nong Lá Café, the latest addition to the strip of Sawtelle Boulevard often known as Little Osaka due to its concentration of Japanese eateries, is offering something a bit different than most of its neighbors -- instead of ramen and yakitori, diners will able able to get a taste of Vietnamese specialties like pho tai, cha gio, and thit noung (grilled pork skewers).

Of course, a Vietnamese restaurant opening may not mean as much to those on in the SGV, Chinatown, or down in Westminster's Little Saigon, but for those on the Westside a place without a title involving a number or a soup-based pun (Pho Show, we're looking at you) is something of a godsend. Nong Lá owners Victor and Elaine Phuong are intent on showcasing the family recipes they grew up with in nearby Monterey Park, and based on the amount of interest the sleek and modern space has generated since it's grand opening last week, things are looking up for the brother-sister duo.

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T. Nguyen

Bowl of phở

You know you're hungry. You know you want Vietnamese food. But that's all you know -- you're all set with no place to go. Well, with our handy flowchart, you don't have to be paralyzed with indecision. As long as you have a general idea of the type of Vietnamese food you're craving (phở, bánh mì sandwiches, neither), just follow the arrows on the chart, and they'll point you to just the right place. It's your decision-making, processed.

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Vietnamese food on the Westside? It's not that uncommon, but we are always pleased to see more of it.

On Monday night, Vien Cafe opened on Pico Boulevard just east of La Cienega. The small, friendly cafe offers pho (both beef and chicken), half a dozen varieties of banh mi (including classic charcuterie, soy chicken and sardine), spring rolls, banh xeo (crepes), several variations on bun (cold rice noodles) and a good array of vegetarian options.

Jim Thurman

Fried fungus tofu from VP Tofu

We've written about V.P. Tofu before, and with good reason. When it comes to all things soy, it's hard to top the small Monterey Park storefront. We've featured their soy puddings, ranging from plain with ginger syrup, to pandan and black sesame flavors. But, until now, we've neglected one of the best tofu items to be found anywhere in Greater Los Angeles -- fried fungus tofu with clear noodles.

While "healthy" and "fried" are contradictions in terms, fried tofu is a common item in the San Gabriel Valley, where it routinely shows up on menus at large restaurants and tiny teahouses. As good as fried tofu can be, either in standard or salt & pepper form, it pales compared to this.

When stepping up to order, don't look to the wall menu. Instead, look to the counter top, where you'll see a few laminated pages held together by a single metal ring. Leaf through and you'll find it, listed as "Fried fungus tofu w/ clear noodle."

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Flickr/Cathy Danh

Com Tam Thuan Kieu

Com tam is pure Vietnamese soul food, jagged shards of rice broken in the threshing process, repurposed as lunch -- com tam with a bit of scallion oil is among the cheapest and most delicious things you could eat. As with such former poverty staples as quinoa or chestnut flour, com tam acquired a certain peasanty cachet -- by the time it made it to California a couple of decades ago, it was more expensive than the best jasmine rice (it was actually broken on purpose, some said), and it quickly became a fixture on Vietnamese menus here. When properly cooked, its texture becomes less like rice than a kind of fluffy, chewy couscous, brilliant at absorbing flavors from dribbles of fish sauce and random splashes of oil.

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J. Ritz

Waiting for a table in a crowded restaurant is rarely the highlight of a night out. If there's a bar to pass the time and get things rolling, better. If not, a smartly designed overflow space is always appreciated. Gingergrass in Silver Lake has given its clientele the latter in the new Bia Hoi annex next door on Glendale Boulevard, with more plans to come for the compact space.

The narrow room "functions as two places for us," explains Gingergrass owner John Himelstein. "At night, it's snacks and our lounge and waiting area." Come January, it will serve as a bakery, café and convenient grab-and-go deli during daytime hours.

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T. Nguyen

Spice Table's "Cold Cut" Banh Mi Sandwich

We take the inexpensive bánh mì for granted. This wonderful Vietnamese sandwich isn't supposed to cost more than a few bucks. Almost any bánh mì in the San Gabriel Valley -- with any number of meats, pâtés and pickled vegetables stuffed in a freshly baked baguette -- will set you back three paltry dollars. As if that weren't enough, Bánh Mì Che Cali offers a buy-two-get-one-free deal every day of the week. When someone makes a bánh mì for over $5, some people are skeptical. Angry, even.

As our mother likes to remind us, the upper classes in Vietnam have been known to feast on sandwiches slathered in foie gras pâté and other luxurious meats, while the poor make do with cold porridge and colder phở. Closer to home, a small but growing number of restaurants are reaching beyond the traditional bánh mì, using higher quality ingredients and non-traditional stuffings. Cases in point: both The Spice Table and ink.sack's bánh mì are well over $3. For this edition of Food Fight, we see which of the two serves the better bánh mì for its price.

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Anne Fishbein

the invisible restaurant critic

Dear Mr. Gold:
What's your favorite place to eat Hue/Central Vietnam food in Los Angeles? Also, do you ever venture down to the O.C. for some eats?
--Brian Tran, via Facebook

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Courtesy of Larchmont Larder.

It's not quite a restaurant opening or a pop-up, but Saigon Noodle House is moving in with Larchmont Larder. Starting today, the Vietnamese-French restaurant will set up kitchen in the cafe and deli during the evenings. The in-house restaurant will operate Tuesday through Thursday (5-10 p.m.), Saturday (5-11 p.m.) and Sunday (noon-10 p.m.). Chef Phuong Tran plans a noodle-heavy menu of market-driven dishes.

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T. Nguyen

The counter at Banh Mi My Tho

Sure, the San Gabriel Valley is home to countless strip mall bánh mì joints, and Bánh Mì My Tho is no different. Almost. Walk inside this tiny, shiny Vietnamese sandwich shop, and you'll think you've been transported not to Vietnam, but maybe the best gas station convenience store, ever. On your right, boxed green tea peek out from stacked cardboard boxes. On your left, lotto tickets waiting for your bubbles like a Scantron answer sheet.

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