Snow Monster - Westminster (Little Saigon)

After dinner at Da Nang Com Tam Tran Qui Cap - Westminster (Little Saigon), my friend Ivan and I went across the street for dessert. Actually, I was heading toward TeaZone Lollicup - Westminster (Little Saigon) for their matcha green tea snow bubble when we spied this crowd from across the street.

Ah! So that's where Snow Monster is located! In February 2013, I received an email from someone from Snow Monster who mentioned that she was a fan of the blog "for many years now" and inviting me to try a "fairly new dessert called Taiwanese shaved snow."

"Fairly new"? Really? Because I first blogged about shaved snow back in 2007. She wasn't sure if I had "tried or heard about it." I think I have when I've blogged about shaved snow not once, but twice, thrice, and a fourth time.

Look, I don't expect everyone to remember every blog entry I've ever written, but I do clearly state on my contact page to use my searchbar before emailing me. Don't pretend to be a fan or try to sell your product as something I don't know about when I've blogged about it multiple times and years ago. A simple search before contacting me would have cleared that up. She offered a large shaved snow and a Belgian waffle sundae, and asked that if I had anything negative to say to tell them in person. And to blog within two weeks after my visit. Geez, I can buy my own shaved snow, thank you very much! Pet peeves aside, at least the Snow Monster name was now on my radar?

Anyway, I wasn't going to hold that minor annoyance against them, especially since shaved snow sounded like just the thing on a hot summer evening.

Au Coeur de Paris Patisserie & Boulangerie - Westminster (Little Saigon)

This story is a bit rambling, so bear with me. It starts several decades ago, when I was in high school and attended a weekend retreat sponsored by the Rotary Club. Our guest speaker was Bob Farrell, co-founder of Farrell's Ice Cream Parlour and Restaurants, who sold the chain and became a consultant and motivational speaker. He talked about customer service.

The story goes that a man, who wasn't dressed so finely, walked into a bank to cash a check. He asked the bank to validate his 50-cent parking ticket. The teller refused. He asked to speak to a manager. The manager backed up the teller and also refused to validate the customer's parking ticket. So he said he wanted to withdraw all his money and close out his account.

Sure. Because how much money could this scruffy customer possibly have?

The teller's face paled.

Apologies were rendered.

And refused.

The customer withdrew $1 million.

He promptly took his money and deposited it in the bank across the street.

Decades later, the story stayed with me. I thought it was just a story. Turns out, the story is true -- in October 1988, John Barrier, who made his money renovating houses, went into Old National Bank (now U.S. Bank) in Spokane, Wash. to cash a check and had his 50-cent parking validation refused. So he withrew $1 million. He took his money across the street to Seafirst Bank, who made it a point to treat Barrier well. But whether he had $1 or $1 million, was charging 50 cents for parking worth losing any customer? Farrell's pickle principle is about businesses doing what they can to make things right for the customer. Don't be so tight-fisted about the small stuff, that you lose loyal customers.

Now, my story is on a much, much smaller scale.

Umami Burger - Anaheim

After finishing the Disneyland Half Marathon, I was staaarving. While racing, I teased Valerie Chinn and her husband about taking them to Quan Hy Vietnamese Restaurant - Westminster for the best banh beo (Vietnamese steamed rice discs with dried shrimp) in town. But Little Saigon was too far away when they still needed to get back to their hotel to get ready before check-out.

Then I remembered that Umami Burger opened in Anaheim last year and a bit of Googling turned up that it was only 1.1 miles away. The clincher was when I told them that the burgers were made with Nuoc Mam (Vietnamese Fish Sauce) and that people waited for three hours for tables when Umami Burger opened this summer in New York City.

Disneyland Half Marathon - Anaheim - Part 2

When I last left off, the official half marathon pacer was passing me by (See the tiny orange flags in the center of the photo below?) If I was behind the required pace, I could be picked up by the sweeper vans at any time and driven to the finish line, which meant no medal.



I had sent my friends, Valerie Chinn and her husband, on ahead and now ran alone. Despite being behind the orange flags, there were still a good three or four dozen people behind me.

I wasn't last!

Just barely.

I briefly chatted with a woman who came out from Florida to run the half marathon until she ran ahead. Then another woman, who said she always walked behind the orange flags, but hadn't been swept up yet. And she had completed seven of them! So feeling a little encouraged, I figured as long as I stayed within sight of the orange flags, I would hopefully avoid the sweeper vans.

Except the orange flags were moving farther and farther away, until I couldn't see them at all.

With no one else to talk to, I finally put in my earphones and continued my run/walk. If I make it, I make it. If I don't, I can always try again. Now, I know 16-minute miles aren't extraordinary, but I'm slooow. My high school days of running crosscountry and soccer were looong behind me. My usual runs these days are around 18 minutes. I can do 15 minutes, but that's if I'm only running a mile. I'd already done five miles, which was the most I'd ever done at one time.

*Huff.*

*Puff.*

*Whimper.*

Did I mention it was 90 degrees that day?

Disneyland Half Marathon - Anaheim - Part 1

At the beginning of the year when I was back in Portland, I met up with my friend, Valerie Chinn, who happened to be in town too. (I recounted the story before of how her dad, who went to high school with Bruce Lee, saw the one-inch punch in person.) While catching up, she mentioned that she and her husband were planning to run the Disneyland Half Marathon and asked if I'd be interested in joining them. Ever since I went to see lil' sis finish the Disneyland Half Marathon, I've had it in the back of my mind as something to do one day. Valerie's husband is a serious racer though, having run half a dozen half marathons and almost as many full marathons in the past few years. But when she mentioned that she mostly walked the races, I figured I could do that.

She alerted me when the registration opened a few weeks later. This was the eighth year for the half marathon and the first year Disneyland was offering a 10K as well. Doing both, back to back, was called the Dumbo Double Dare. The 10k and the Dumbo Double Dare sold out within hours. The Disneyland Half Marathon sold out the next day. So just a heads up that if you want to do this, be prepared to pony up a chunk of dough and to do it fast. Registration was $175 for me. When lil' sis ran it three years ago, it was $150. *Gulp.* That was a lot of money, but it'll only get more expensive each year, so I bit the bullet.

My plan was to run three days a week -- two short runs on weekdays and a long one on weekends, adding a mile every other week. I figured it was doable if I trained for nine months. Ha! With my dad in town for several months at a time to work on the house, a sprained ankle, and just life in general getting in the way, I ran a few times a week, but never more than 5 miles at the most.

All too soon, race day drew near and I was woefully unprepared.

Ha Noi Avenue - Westminster (Little Saigon)

In December 2011, LT, a commenter on my Golden Deli - San Gabriel post suggested I try Ha Noi Avenue for Nem Ran Cua Be (Vietnamese Crab Egg Rolls), made Hanoi-style in a big square and then cut into quarters to be eaten. Now, that's the kind of recommendation I can get behind!

Although, I have to mention that I've eaten crab egg rolls at multiple places in Hanoi, including at the reputedly best in town, Bun Cha Dac Kim at #1 Hang Manh, and I have never been served square egg rolls before. My favorite crab egg rolls in Little Saigon are at Vien Dong Restaurant - Garden Grove (Little Saigon) and Quan Hy Vietnamese Restaurant - Westminster (Little Saigon), but those aren't square either.

I've driven past Ha Noi Avenue numerous times and was always amused by the signage which seemed to scream, "Notice me!" I asked my friend DP, my source for Little Saigon gossip, about the restaurant and she said that the original owners of Hanoi Restaurant sold their business and then opened Ha Noi Avenue.

It took me almost six months after the tip for me to finally visit. It's a little removed from the main drag of Little Saigon and closer to the freeway, a convenient stopping off point on my way to San Diego to visit lil' sis, so I asked Tony of SinoSoul if he wanted to check it out with me.

RA Sushi Bar Restaurant - Tustin

In early February, I was invited by Lauren Campbell of Beach House | Penthouse PR to dine at RA Sushi Bar Restaurant - Tustin to taste their new menu items. When I said I couldn't make it down to Orange County in time for the blogger dinner, she let me schedule it at a more convenient date and time.

Perfect. Because then I was able to invite my friend DP since she works nearby. Except, she was working at home that day and had to drive down for our dinner. Doh! I got to RA Sushi first and noticed that the bar and restaurant areas were packed. Good thing I had a reservation. While waiting for her to arrive, I ordered a Ginger Blossom drink, Hendrick's Gin, St. Germain, muddle strawberry, pink grapefruit juice, lime juice, and a splash of ginger ale. Girly, fruity, and yummy.

Nuoc Mia Vien Tay - Garden Grove (Little Saigon)

Before this past weekend, the last time I was in the area and stopped off at Boulangerie Pierre & Patisserie (Garden Grove) was in February 2010. It was another day of exploring too many Little Saigon eats starting with Ngu Binh Restaurant - Westminster, then Thanh Tam Bakery - Garden Grove (Little Saigon), before grabbing desserts and fresh sugarcane juice for the drive home.


Nuoc Mia Vien Tay in Garden Grove really started the whole fresh squeezed sugarcane movement in Little Saigon long ago. What? You didn't know there could be such a thing as a fresh squeezed sugarcane movement?

Foodbuzz 24x24: Exploring Vietnamese Regional Cuisine, North, Central, and South, in Little Saigon

When the last helicopter pulled out of Saigon 36 years ago, the Vietnamese population in American numbered in the thousands. Today, there an estimated 1.6 million Vietnamese Americans, with more than 135,000 of them in Orange County, the largest community outside of Vietnam. I've written extensively before about the history of Little Saigon and by extension, Vietnamese American history. So let's move the discussion further to how food and culture assert themselves into the American landscape.

In my musings on American cuisine, I argue that our food is made up of ethnic absorption and mass popularization. American cuisine is a reflection of America itself. Our strength lies in our ability to absorb other cuisines and their culture. No more so is that evident than last month's addition of banh mi, the Vietnamese sandwich, into the Oxford English Dictionary. These days, with trendy bars hawking banh mi sliders and Korean Americans selling their version of Pho Bo (Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup), having a few Vietnamese dishes enter the American lexicon still doesn't really tell you much about the cuisine.

Needless to say, Vietnamese cuisine is far, far more than sandwiches and beef noodle soup.

Taste and Explore Little Saigon; Help Japan

Part of my aim for the blog, whether consciously or subconsciously, is to show others what's available around them so they can discover it for themselves. But I also get that venturing into new territory can be intimidating. I've long believed that the best way to learn about another cuisine, and by extension another culture, is through someone you trust introducing it to you firsthand. Learning about food through a friend makes unfamiliar dishes familiar, and teaches you about another culture without the prolonged history lectures.

The other aspect of blogging that keeps me engaged is the sense of community that gets formed -- learning from each other, making friends, and uniting over common goals. I don't often talk of current events, but it seems impossible to ignore the devastation in Japan following last month's earthquake and tsunami. Not that natural disasters and their toll should be ignored, just that my ability to do much about them seems miniscule. People do what they can with what they have, and I've always left it at that. A lot of bloggers have been reaching out to do what they can to help -- distributing socks, making quilts for survivors, or selling photography manuals for charity.

Recently, I pitched to my advertiser, Foodbuzz, the idea of exploring northern, central, and southern Vietnamese regional cuisine in Little Saigon for its monthly 24, 24, 24 series. It was accepted. Yay! And while I've done this a few times before, applying the stipend toward the cost of supplies or treating my friends to a nice meal, I'd rather use the stipend this time for something more.

So this coming Saturday, April 30, just in time for the anniversary of the Fall of Saigon, come explore Little Saigon with me.

For a $50 donation, or more if you wish, which will also include several meals, you'll have me as a culinary and historical tour guide to Little Saigon.

Seasons 52 - Costa Mesa

After lunch at Kappa Ramen - Anaheim, lil' sis and I went to South Coast Plaza to do a little shopping before an early dinner at Seasons 52.


I was actually invited to a blogger preview luncheon back in late August, but couldn't make it because of work. I was intrigued by the fact that the restaurant boasts that nothing on the menu is more than 475 calories. No oil. No butter. Nothing fried. How good could the food possibly taste then? Well, according to Gourmet Pigs and Tony of SinoSoul, who both attended the luncheon, it was one of the better media meals they've eaten.

So bummed I missed out. But, the very gracious Marguarite of Marguarite Clark Public Relations, who arranged for my Kappa Ramen lunch invited me to dine here too. I figured since I had to drive down to Orange County for one, why not both? It served as a great half-way point to meet up with lil' sis. Early November was the best time for both of us. I forwarded her the menu and links to both restaurants, and lil' sis eagerly anticipated what she wanted to order.

Kappa Ramen - Anaheim (Closed)

Kappa Ramen opened in a sleepy strip mall in Anaheim back in September. And unless you live near it, or in Orange County, you might not have known. So when Marguarite of Marguarite Clark Public Relations invited me to dine there, I figured it'd make a good halfway point for me to meet up with lil' sis.

Did I really need a free ramen meal? Probably not. But, would I have ventured into Anaheim if I hadn't been invited? Probably not either.

That's how it works sometimes.

TeaZone Lollicup - Westminster (Little Saigon)

After lunch at Banh Cuon Tay Ho 4, we headed across the street to TeaZone Lollicup for a few drinks for dessert.


I know Lollicup is a chain, but the matcha green tea snow bubble here is seriously the best I've ever had. It tastes like real matcha green tea, without any weird sweetness or after taste.

Banh Cuon Tay Ho 4 - Westminster (Little Saigon)

After I left the "Images at War's End" exhibit at Camp Pendleton, I was making pretty good time and realized I could squeeze in a quick lunch. I messaged my friend DP to see if she was free since she said recently that there were a few restaurants she wanted me to try. But after we saw that one of them was closed, and because I hadn't blogged it yet, we ended up across the street at Banh Cuon Tay Ho 4.

Images at War's End: Refugee & Marine Images from Col Waterhouse Collection & Marine Staff Photographs from Camp Pendleton Archives - Camp Pendleton

After making a quick breakfast of Feta Cheeseburgers to a wide-eyed oldest nephew who was excited at the prospect of anyone cooking for him, I headed off to Camp Pendleton, the reason why I went down to San Diego in the first place.

I had a later shift at work that day and had been meaning to check out the "Images at War's End: Refugee and Marine Images from the Col. Waterhouse Collection and Marine Staff Photographs from Camp Pendleton Archives" exhibit before it closes at the end of this month.


Camp Pendleton might not mean much to you unless you're military or Vietnamese-American, in which case, I suggest reading my post on Little Saigon and Vietnamese American history first to get you acquainted.

On April 28, 1975, General Paul Graham was told that Camp Pendleton was one of four military bases in the United States that would receive and house refugees from Vietnam. The other bases were Fort Chaffee, Arkansas; Eglin Air Force Base, Florida; and Fort Indiantown Gap, Pennsylvania. The refugees were then dispersed across the country, into every state and as many as 813 zip codes.

In 36 hours, the marines worked around the clock to build eight tent cities and to provide water, food, clothing, medicine, electricity, power, and security for the first 18,000 refugees. By October, Camp Pendleton had been home to more than 36,000 refugees.

Lil' Sis Ran the Disneyland Half Marathon!

Discouraged from the job hunt after lil' sis finished school, she decided she needed a goal. I thought she was crazy when she told me she signed up to run the Disneyland Half Marathon.

Lil' sis has weak ankles! She'll fall down! She doesn't run! Much less run for 13.1 miles straight!

Week by week, I watched as she added mile after mile to her routine.



I can't see!!!

After all that hard work, I have to see and photograph when lil' sis crosses the finish line!

Behind the Scenes: House Foods America Corporation - Garden Grove

I've long-known of House Foods as the purveyor of tofu and instant mixes like Japanese curry and Chinese Mabo Tofu Sauce, but I had no idea that its House Foods America Corporation was based in Garden Grove. House Foods Corporation started in Osaka, Japan in 1913. Its first American branch, to mainly sell curry mixes, opened in Los Angeles in 1981; the tofu manufacturing facility opened a few years later.

The tofu-manufacturing branch in Garden Grove opened in 1997. It takes 20 minutes to make a block of tofu here; and 55 million pieces of tofu are made a year! The soybeans used to make the tofu are grown in North America and are not genetically modified.

House Foods America Corporation has three parts: making and selling tofu and tofu-related products, importing House Foods' products, and managing the chain of Curry House restaurants.

House Foods America Corporation recently installed a $1.65 million 213kW photovoltaic solar electric system, which will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 527,861 pounds per year, or the equivalent of planting 6,139 trees. I was invited to tour the facility by Milena Perez Schmidt and Vladimir Lapin of Dentsu Communications.
And while solar power is good and all, you know I really just wanted to check out how they made the tofu!

Brodard Chateau Vietnamese Cuisine - Garden Grove (Little Saigon)

After lil' sis's graduation, we toyed with various locations in San Diego for dinner, Chinese family-style or fancy steak house? As circumstances dictated, I alerted oldest nephew to a last-minute deal on JetBlue from Long Beach to Portland so he could come home for his brother's graduation, we ended up in Orange County for dinner. Since it was a special occasion, I suggested Brodard Chateau Vietnamese Cuisine. That was just as well since the number of people attending grew from our immediate family to more than a dozen people.

Brodard Chateau is from the same family as the original Brodard Restaurant - Garden Grove (Little Saigon), but fancier. The restaurant's facade is a Swiss? French? chateau-like building. According to The Orange County Register article I read in 2006, the 8,000-square foot chateau opened with 25 employees and operating costs of $100,000 a month. Pretty pricey by anyone's standards, but for a Vietnamese restaurant, unheard of. Was Little Saigon ready for an upscale Vietnamese restaurant?

I think the fact that it's still around four years later says so.

Thanh Tam Bakery - Garden Grove (Little Saigon)

After we left Ngu Binh Restaurant - Westminster, I asked my dad's friend's daughter if she wanted some che (Vietnamese pudding) since were passing by Thach Che Hien Khanh - Garden Grove. She wavered, but in the end, decided she might as well maximize her eating experience while she was in town. So after getting some dessert to-go, I headed further east because my friend DP told me her current favorite Vietnamese sandwich shop was Thanh Tam Bakery.


On the Westminster Avenue side though, all I saw was Thanh Tam Billiards. My friend sent me to a pool hall for banh mi? This couldn't be right? Or could it?

Kim Lien Produce - Westminster (Little Saigon)

While waiting for our table at Ngu Binh Restaurant - Westminster, we went a few doors down to check out the tropical fruit at Kim Lien Produce. I've noticed more of these shops that specialize in selling only fruit cropping up in the last year or so.