Tried quite a few dishes at this new restaurant that opened in Dec 2011 at 11990 Florida Blvd, and was quite pleasantly surprised. It was hard to tell what is good from the description of the dishes in the menu. Ask the owner for some recommendations. Tried the duck egg noodle soup; that's prob the best egg noodle I've had in town, up to the standards in Asia. Also tried the combo meat fried noodles-just excellent. The fried shrimp cake is a MUST try. Had the combo meat pho which was better than any I've had in town. The fried quail was nicely marinated and tender. Overall impression: a more UPSCALE Vietnamese restaurant than any in town, both in the quality of the food preparation, as well as the nice clean decor. I have been to many of the Vietnamese restaurants in town, and this one definitely stands out as my most favorite. You should try this restaurant, esp if you are in the mood for some nice clean tasting noodle soup. I was very thankful a Vietnamese friend of mine recommended this place to me.:thumb:
You can check the diners' reviews at Urbanspoon Viet Garden vietnamese cuisine - Florida/Airline - Baton Rouge | Urbanspoon Place getting quite popular...........
I went to a very upscale Vietnamese restaurant here in NC. I got some kind of duck...15" plate and 4" of food, but it was good. The guy that led us, was pretty hard core that the best and only Vietnamese dish was the "hot pot." He got a seafood hot pot and really liked it, but since it was not featured he termed the restaurant Vietnamese-American fusion. I am a barbque kind of guy, way over my head, but I would say in any Viet restaurant, try the "Hot Pot."
In a really authentic Vietnamese restaurant, the smell of the Ngoc Mam sauce is overwhelming . . . and nauseating to most Westerners since it is made from dead fish fermented in the sun through several stages of decay. The Vietnamese-American fusion is probably the way to go.
My go-to places in BR are Cafe Dang, Little Saigon, and the one next to Le's Market...how does it compare to those places? Upscale isn't necessarily always better for certain foods but if it is still authentic - that's definitely a plus. Pho Quynh is nicer but people tell me it's not as good as the others. Will have to check Viet garden out next time I'm in town.
I like Little Saigon, and is the usual place I go to for Vietnamese food; quite consistent and decent. Recently they closed because they were forced out by the landlord who decided to open their own restaurant there! Heard Little Saigon will reopen in the strip mall across from Florida. Viet Garden replaced Pho Quynh. If you like duck, try their duck with egg noodle soup; very well marinated , tender duck. Should try their pickled lotus root appetizer which is a cold salad with mixed veggies, cilantro, pork and shrimp. Very refreshing tasting salad. To me , they make a very nice flan for dessert, not as heavy like in a lot of other places in town.
I guess that shows I haven't eaten Viet food in BR in a little while since I didn't know about Little Saigon and Pho Quynh closing. Little Saigon is good but most people go there because of the great location (major intersection & next to Hong Kong market). I'll def try Viet Garden next time I'm in town. The duck sounds great. I love me some Banh Mi too. And the restaurant next to Le's Market, I was talking about is called Sa Dec Kitchen - great pho there.
Tasted their hot (spicy) beef brisket white noodle (short short spaghetti like noodles) soup. Quite good with a nice "zing"...moderately spicy hot. Also forgot to mention the grilled quail appetizer which is very tasty. You can't go wrong with it if you like quail. My wife really like the way they grill the chicken in the rice plate.
There are many many Vietnamese places on the MS Gulf Coast (huge Vietnamese population). One place is on the Katrina-ravaged Point in Biloxi where they fuse French Cuisine and Vietnamese. Strange, huh? They bake their own bread and serve Vietnamese Po-boys. My favorite is called the lemongrass pork Bahn mi po-boy. I think it's like $3 bucks for a footlong. Not in a great part of town. Not an amazing atmosphere, but very interesting po-boys. Try it next time you go to the casinos in Biloxi.
