Nong Lá Vietnamese Cafe - West Los Angeles, California

Address: 2055 Sawtelle Blvd, West Los Angeles, CA 90025

Items Ordered:

• Pho Tai Bo Vien - fresh rice noodles with rare steak & beef ball
• Bun Bo Hue - spicy lemongrass beef soup w/ vermicelli noodles, pork patty, & beef
• Cha Gio - crispy egg rolls w/ ground pork, shrimp, carrots & glass noodles
• Nem Nuong Cuon - rice paper rolls w/ grilled pork patty (not pictured)

Ever since reading on Eater LA that Nong Lá was open on the Westside, I was just itching to try the food. Luckily, I have friends that indulge my foodie needs, and we headed to the restaurant for lunch last week. The space was a little cramped but the wait at lunchtime was only about 5 minutes for 2 people. With my first taste of the pho broth & beef meatballs, I knew I would come back here for my Vietnamese food fix. The broth was lighter than most authentic Vietnamese restaurants probably due to the lack of MSG, but it still managed to be flavorful and hearty. It's also a huge bowl of pho, and I couldn't finish all of it (a first!). The bun bo hue was also tasty, but the spiciness level would have ranked in milder on the Scoville Scale than at other Vietnamese restaurants. Try the deep fried egg rolls too, they are crunchy and delicious, and I felt semi-better wrapping it in a huge piece of lettuce before gobbling it up. The only thing I wouldn't recommend is the nem nuong cuon...stick with Brodard's for that item. Service was very attentive, but they tend to forget some parts of your orders. I'm sure with time and experience the staff will figure out their kinks. I hope Nong Lá sticks around for awhile as I plan to come back soon!

--y

9021PHO - Beverly Hills, California

Address: 490 N Beverly Dr, Beverly Hills, CA 90210

Items Ordered:

• Pho Bo
• BBQ pork Banh Mi

You might be surprised, but growing up in Houston, I was surrounded by authentic Vietnamese restaurants as well as homemade Vietnamese food from my friends' houses. So lets say I'm a Vietnamese food expert ;). Why then did I go to a pho restaurant in the middle of Beverly Hills?? Cuz 1. I liked the name, and 2. I'm still on an epic search for authentic Vietnamese food in West LA --it's debatable whether I will ever find that elusive place. So how was 9021PHO? The pho broth was a little on the bland side, and I wasn't in love with it. I'd only rate it above Pho Citi on the Westside. However, the BBQ pork banh mi was surprisingly flavorful and the baguette was nice and crunchy, but I couldn't wrap my mind around the hefty price tag. Would I recommend a visit? Nah, save your money and taste buds for some Sprinkles cupcakes or Urth Caffe instead.

-y

Crustacean - Beverly Hills, California

Address: 9646 S Santa Monica Blvd, Beverly Hills, CA 90210

Items Ordered:

• Shrimp Toast - freshly minced shrimp on French baguette
• Herb Roasted Halibut - sauteed sweet onions, bell pepper, cherry tomatoes, and porta bella mushrooms
• Royal Tiger Prawns - charbroiled with An's' famous garlic noodles
• Frutti di Mare - mussels, crawfish, shrimp, and lobster with garlic noodles

Victoria and I debated where to eat for eat.snap.love's 1-year blogerversary for awhile, but once we saw Crustacean's menu, we had our hearts and minds set on eating those buttery garlic noodles. Stepping foot into the restaurant with its upscale decorations and ground-level fish tank, we realized we'd come a long way since our first post at Royal/T in Culver City.

Crustacean lived up to our expectations. The garlic noodles were richly flavored al dente strands with buttery, garlicky goodness and so were the tiger prawns. The herb roasted halibut was tender and perfectly seasoned. If we had any complaints, we suppose the shrimp and mussels in the frutti di mare could have been larger and had a nicer bite similar to the tiger prawns.

On our way out of the restaurant, we saw policemen and secret service attempting to escort a celebrity into the restaurant. Who was this mystery celebrity? Only TMZ will tell ;). Ah, the lives of food bloggers visiting the 90210 area code.

Thanks for joining us to drool over food photos at eat.snap.love this past year! Our goals for next year include:

1. Create a ranking of our all-time favorite cuisines
2. Have guest bloggers
   
3. Try not to go broke!

Happy Belated 1-Year Blogerversary!

--v & y

Brodard Restaurant - Garden Grove, California

Address: 9892 Westminster Ave, Garden Grove, CA 92844

Items Ordered:

• Nem Nuong Cuon: pork spring rolls
• Bun Bo Hue: tender beef shank with vermicelli in spicy soup
  
• Bun Cha Gio, Thit Nuong: bbq pork vermicelli with crispy eggrolls

Brodard is a super popular restaurant in the heart of Little Saigon. Pork spring rolls are a must order. A combination of sweet and savory pork with veggies and vermicelli, they are a delectable appetizer. I also got the bun bo hue, which was fine, but I wished it was spicier. Overall, , the meal really satisfied my craving for good Vietnamese food that day.

--y

Van's Restaurant - Garden Grove, California

Address: 14122 Brookhurst Street, Garden Grove, CA

• Banh Xeo (Vietnamese crepe with pork and shrimp)
• Banh Khot
• Nem Nuong Cuon (Spring rolls)
• Bun Bo Hue (Noodle soup)

Yes, I am Vietnamese and yes, Vietnamese food is my favorite cuisine. Living in West LA, the options are scarce and leave much to be desired, so trips to OC are always exciting for my taste buds. Van's is one of my favorite restaurants in the area. It is always a treat having their deliciously crispy banh xeo and banh khot. I always order these same two dishes. They are really greasy, but it's so good in the moment that it's worth the "ugh, I don't feel so good" afterwards! Oh, and the other dishes were decent too (obviously I'm playing favorites).

--v