Post by bdubdab on Jun 3, 2008 8:05:18 GMT -5
Cafe Tihn Nho is a pho place way out at 5625 Amarillo Blvd E. I got the courage to eat there after seeing that it had 6 perfect inspections on KAMR.
Most people would need some courage just to order here. The pho, which is a vietnamese noodle soup, is showcased with some very interesting ingredients. I decided that I was going to be adventureous, I might as well get the #1: Pho with well done flank steak, soft tendon, tripe (!), and fatty brisket.
The broth of the soup was so good, I was hesitant to doctor it up with lime and soy sauce, which I usually do on autopilot. Instead, I took lessons from glancing to the gentleman to my left-- he made a dipping sauce to the side, and would painstakingly create perfect spoonfuls of all his favorite ingredients from the soup into one bite.
If you are prepared for some interesting textures, none of the meats were bad. . . I was sure I'd catch a strange aftertaste from the tripe, but it was rather tasteless. The flank steak was also bland and innocent. The soft tendon, while providing an interesting gelatenous bite, had a little beefiness to it. However, the star of the bunch was the fatty brisket, which was simply the fat from a brisket. It had a wonderful beefy flavor. I always steal bits of charred fat from the edges of briskets that I cook. I didn't feel guilty eating it this time.
On the side comes a plate of fresh herbs, the only one I could identify for sure was basil. The others tasted familiar and good, thought they looked different that the other herbs I associated with their flavors: cilantro and mint. Some looked like dandilion leaves, which they may well have been. I meant to ask my waiter, who had the gravitas of a possible owner, but we got to talking about other things.
I was somewhat sure that there were no bahn mit on the menu, and I asked him where I could get it. Bahn mit is a vietnamese bbq sandwich on a toasted bagette. They are the cheapest, tastiest lunch that you can get in Houston, where they are quite popular. He said that he had seen places serve them in the past, but figured that the lack of demand for them here caused them to dissappear. Anyway: I would urge anyone to try one sometime if they are down in Houston, or perhaps from a recipe form the food network site, which has a few.
Back to the pho: it is a wonderful, light lunch, and one that I also became familiar with while in Houston. It can also be pretty normal if you stick with just steak as the meat option. The place is interesting, and was busy enough at 2:00pm on a Friday to lead me to believe that the ingredients stay fresh.
I'll be back, but maybe no tripe next time.
Most people would need some courage just to order here. The pho, which is a vietnamese noodle soup, is showcased with some very interesting ingredients. I decided that I was going to be adventureous, I might as well get the #1: Pho with well done flank steak, soft tendon, tripe (!), and fatty brisket.
The broth of the soup was so good, I was hesitant to doctor it up with lime and soy sauce, which I usually do on autopilot. Instead, I took lessons from glancing to the gentleman to my left-- he made a dipping sauce to the side, and would painstakingly create perfect spoonfuls of all his favorite ingredients from the soup into one bite.
If you are prepared for some interesting textures, none of the meats were bad. . . I was sure I'd catch a strange aftertaste from the tripe, but it was rather tasteless. The flank steak was also bland and innocent. The soft tendon, while providing an interesting gelatenous bite, had a little beefiness to it. However, the star of the bunch was the fatty brisket, which was simply the fat from a brisket. It had a wonderful beefy flavor. I always steal bits of charred fat from the edges of briskets that I cook. I didn't feel guilty eating it this time.
On the side comes a plate of fresh herbs, the only one I could identify for sure was basil. The others tasted familiar and good, thought they looked different that the other herbs I associated with their flavors: cilantro and mint. Some looked like dandilion leaves, which they may well have been. I meant to ask my waiter, who had the gravitas of a possible owner, but we got to talking about other things.
I was somewhat sure that there were no bahn mit on the menu, and I asked him where I could get it. Bahn mit is a vietnamese bbq sandwich on a toasted bagette. They are the cheapest, tastiest lunch that you can get in Houston, where they are quite popular. He said that he had seen places serve them in the past, but figured that the lack of demand for them here caused them to dissappear. Anyway: I would urge anyone to try one sometime if they are down in Houston, or perhaps from a recipe form the food network site, which has a few.
Back to the pho: it is a wonderful, light lunch, and one that I also became familiar with while in Houston. It can also be pretty normal if you stick with just steak as the meat option. The place is interesting, and was busy enough at 2:00pm on a Friday to lead me to believe that the ingredients stay fresh.
I'll be back, but maybe no tripe next time.
