UPSCALE VIETNAMESE RERSTAURANTS

I love Vietnamese food! I saw a coupon for 20% off my entire food bill at ‘Saigon on 5th’ restaurant in my uptown coupon book so I decided to give them a try. They are located in Hillcrest and I went there for dinner from work; Screg couldn’t join me because he had martial arts. The décor was nice, but I should have known that I was going to be disappointed. As their logo said “Fine Vietnamese Cuisine” which means it’s an upscale gourmet restaurant and it was going to be Americanized and not authentic.

Of all the Vietnamese restaurants that I have gone too on El Cajon Blvd, University Ave, Linda Vista, Mira Mesa and Clairemont/Kearny Mesa, I think I’ve tried them all and for the most part I’ve never been too disappointed. At these restaurants I’m use to the squirt bottle of plum and hot sauces on the table so that they are within reach; this way I can put as little or as much as I want in my Pho. I love the rich beef broth flavor that these restaurants provide in Pho.

At Saigon on 5th, I ordered a chicken broth Pho and they served it with a small amount of plum and hot sauce in a little dish on the side. I wasn’t too crazy about the taste of the chicken base broth. I also ordered the fried spring rolls and the fish sauce that it came with was watered down. Out of curiosity, I also wanted to try their peanut sauce to see how it tastes and that too was a let down. The last time I was this disappointed was when I went to ‘Rice Jones’ another upscale Vietnamese restaurant in Hillcrest, same concept as ‘Saigon on 5th’,Canine told me that Rice Jones folded. What the hell was I thinking, upscale Vietnamese food; never again!