santa barbara pho

and why it’s so difficult to master the art of getting noodle soup to go

hi. for those who may not know me, i am chinese-american, with vietnamese roots. as a result, i’m always the biggest fan of asian cuisine, but it’s very easy to notice that asian cuisine is hard to perfect and master in an area that is not predominantly asian, like santa barbara. 

obviously, the best way to enjoy food is to have it hot and fresh, but when you only have thirty minutes between your organic chemistry class and your bus departing for los angeles, you really only have so much time to cook before you give up and order your meal on doordash. 

in honor of the start of my blog and my extreme cravings for soup, i ordered a rare beef pho from saigon vietnamese restaurant, a restaurant located in downtown santa barbara. i’ve had food from them in person before, so i had high hopes.

…let’s just say that i shouldn’t have hopes in the first place.

if you are somewhat knowledgeable in your meats, you’ll know that what i received was not a rare beef pho, but instead, a combination pho (consisting of all the meats the restaurant offers). pho is a vietnamese dish typically consisting of rice noodles in a meaty broth, usually paired with bean sprouts, vegetables, meat, and more. slightly irritated (as i am very picky about my cuts of beef), but i still ate what i could. the meatballs are okay and could be juicier, but the real star of the show is the rare beef that gets nicely cooked in the broth, giving it a nice, tender texture. the beef broth is flavorful and deep, with the bean sprouts and onions adding a fresh, crisp flavor. 

but my GOD, were the noodles clumped like hell. and that is the main reason why i never order takeout with noodle soups. nearly impossible to take apart with my chopsticks and my lack of time, my only option was to chomp on the rice noodle block like mochi. not a fan. but everything else was superb! 

join me next time where i hope to properly cook a dish, instead of hopelessly ordering asian food on doordash.