Best for: Vietnamese
Location: Kaneohe
I go to Kaneohe for two things: to visit my friend Lauren, and to go the cemetery with my family. When I'm there for the latter, we usually end up having dim sum at Joyful Garden, a decent Chinese restaurant in one of the many strip malls in the neighborhood. Joyful Garden can't compare to Jade or Kirin, but it's the best on that side of the island, and I'm always down for dim sum after staring at graves.
Last weekend we had planned to do another round of dim sum after visiting my grandparents, but - what the hell - Joyful Garden was closed! What kind of Chinese restaurant is this?? Another family parking their car saw our distraught faces and explained that someone had committed arson at the restaurant. Poor Joyful Garden! I'm sorry I called you "decent" earlier!
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| Look at all that sriracha! |
While I pondered why someone would torch a restaurant, my famished parents quickly led the way to the next door restaurant called Little Saigon. Fortunately, I can easily prepare my stomach for spring rolls and pho.
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| Spring rolls ($3.75) |
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| Green papaya salad ($6.75): freshly shredded green papaya, boiled pork, shrimps, mint |
We shared spring rolls, and I ordered a banh xeo. Both were pretty good; I've had much better at Super Pho, and I think the rest of my party agreed, with their own dishes. The best dish was my mother's (why does she always order the best thing?): a lemon beef salad, which consists of eye round steak slices cooked medium-rare, onion flakes, and shredded white cabbage, tossed in lemon savory salad dressing. It was refreshing and exactly how a salad should taste (meaty!).
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| Lemon beef salad ($7.50) |
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| Banh xeo |
The prices were cheap, as Vietnamese food always is since it hasn't become ultra hip yet like Thai and Japanese food. Fine with me.
