Most dishes are brought to the table simultaneously and are meant to be shared. We started with fresh pork and shrimp spring rolls, which were wrapped in rice paper and served with a mild peanut sauce. They ultimately whet our palate for the night’s special: fresh ginger Dungeness crab. It was battered and stir-fried rather than boiled, then served whole, almost like a soft-shell crab would look upon presentation. It was very messy to eat but extremely fun to pull off the crispy, delicious and somewhat sweet batter before getting to the meat inside. Dungeness crab is my favorite food, and I’ve never had it served in any way close to this, so it was a true delight.
The lemongrass chicken was stir fried with sweet white onions and curry to add a building but never overwhelming heat. We enjoyed it with crisp, fresh garlic green bean chicken (marinated in hoisin, soy and oyster sauces) and rice.
A really fun dish was the “birds nest,” which had crispy egg noodles shaped like—you guessed it—a bird’s nest. Filled with beef, chicken, calamari, prawns, carrots, zucchini, celery, mushrooms and broccoli, it’s placed atop oyster, soy, hoisin and tomato sauces, whose layered flavors are unique and worth taking extra moments to fully enjoy. You cut into it like a pie to take a portion and you can mash the noodles into the sauce to make them less crisp—or not. Either way, it’s delicious.
The pho was served last and came in a large bowl filled with chicken broth, fresh broccoli, onions, zucchini, mushrooms, carrots, rice noodles and boneless chicken. On the side were bean sprouts, fresh cilantro and lemon, as well as all sorts of sauces (soy, hoisin, Sriracha, chili paste, fish sauce, sliced jalapeños). It was perfect and fresh in every way.
Following the meal, they provided a bowl for our hands, which was filled with warm water and fresh lemons—a very nice touch. After that, we enjoyed lychee and mango boba (pearl tapioca) shakes. Both were like icy smoothies but with tapioca that’s dark and about the size of blueberries at the bottom. What you do is suck it up through a really wide straw, then chew on it (think gummy bear texture). What a great way to end an excellent meal.
