Asia Dog

Location: Brooklyn Flea in Williamsburg (asiadognyc.com)

The Vietnamese-style Vinh dog (on the left) was disappointing. The carrots and the daikon weren't pickled long enough and tasted pretty bland.

The Thai-style Sidney dog (on the right) was better. The mango relish is a lovely condiment for a hot dog (though it'd be even better with a homemade chicken sausage). I think the ingredients minus the fish sauce would make a great lobster salad too. Yining immediately agreed that we have to try it.

Regular dogs (beef, chicken or veg) are $4 each or two for $7. Organic dogs are $5 or two for $9.

All told, Asia Dog was not particularly memorable and, by itself, is not enough to drag me off my island. The flavor combinations are thoughtful and interesting but the hot dog is dragged down by the grocery-store quality meat and bun. They should definitely consider making their own sausages. Or, at the very least, sourcing some fresh local stuff.

OBao

Occasion: Lunch with my mom before some furniture shopping
Location: Obao on 53rd between 2nd and 3rd (obaonyc.com)
Edibles: fried tofu app to share; I had the pho and Mom had the Singapore-style laksa with spicy coconut broth

Musings: My mom loves Ariyoshi, and that's where we had planned to go, but it turns out they're not open for lunch on weekends. Boo. We walked in to OBao, a new place in the old work 'hood.

First thing I noticed was that the restaurant is very dim, so if your seat faces the windows, the light will hurt your eyes. You will not want to linger. (Which I guess works in the restaurant's favor.)

As for the food, the fried tofu app was a nice big portion, about 15 cubes piled into a little wok. Good to share. Unfortunately, both noodle dishes were mediocre at best. The broth on the pho tasted like it came from a can and was loaded with MSG. The noodles in my mom's laksa were mushy.

Finally, an Asian restaurant charging $4 for tea is nothing short of highway robbery. Just ridiculous.

If I still worked at the Death Star, I'd probably find myself eating lunch here occasionally, if only for variety's sake. But OBao is certainly nothing to go out of your way for.

Ninh's Vietnamese Sandwich

Occasion: Lazy take-out dinner
Location: Ninh's Vietnamese Sandwich & Bubble Tea on 2nd between 31st and 32nd
Edibles: I had the chicken sandwich; Edward had the beef sandwich and a bubble tea

Musings: The bubble tea was terrible. Tapioca doesn't keep well and a place needs to either have enough business that they go through their batches quickly, or be committed enough to quality to throw them out when they begin to harden, and start over fresh. This place is neither.

The chicken sandwich was okay but they were a bit stingy with the chicken - Baoguette gives you a lot more per sandwich. And there was too much mayo. The beef was pretty tasty.

Because it's so insidiously close to my apartment, Ninh's will probably get some repeat business from me.

Nam Son

(Post #200! Thanks to all my old faithfuls, and welcome to my newcomers!)

Occasion: Pho for Cinco de Mayo! Umm.... yeah.... The crew included Melissa and Tony, Sung and Mike, Alicia and Robert
Location: Nam Son on Grand between Bowery and Chrystie
Edibles: spring rolls; summer rolls; lemongrass noodles with beef and onion; bird's nest stir-fry; a giant burrito-like thing; three orders of pho with "everything" (assorted meats and tripes); spicy noodles; rice crêpes with ham; a colorful shaved ice dessert

Musings: All that and assorted beverages, for an amazing $17 per person after tip and tax. Thanks to Robert for sharing his pho place, and introducing us to many other Vietnamese culinary delights besides. (The restaurant recs were really flying! My fellow diners could teach a class on where to get good Southest Asian food in NYC. Mike and Sung, it was great to meet you and I can't wait to try Wondee Siam #1.)

My favorites were classics: the spring rolls, wonderfully crunchy and piping hot, and the pho. On the pho, don't be fooled by the bargain basement price of $6.25 - the bowl is absolutely HUMONGOUS and more than enough for three or more to share. The broth was great, and though I couldn't positively identify all the animal parts I fished out, hey, that's the spirit of adventure.

The lemongrass noodles with beef were good - I'd get them again, with a group. The flavors and textures in the rice crêpe dish struck me as kind of odd; it might be an acquired taste. I'd pass on the bird's nest stir-fry, which struck me as pretty ho-hum. But, all in all, it was a fantastic meal. Two thumbs up. [Postscript: I woke up the next day, still full.]

The carnage:

Omai

Occasion: Dinner with my girls - PA (in town from Kampala!), Abby, Elizabeth, and even Catherine escaped the Death Star in time for dessert

Location: Omai on 9th Ave between 19th and 20th (omainyc.com)

Edibles: crispy spring rolls; seared monkfish app; grilled rib app; coconut curry shrimp; red snapper in chili lime sauce; satay beef with string beans and yam; sticky rice; banana bread with vanilla ice-cream for dessert

Musings: Omai is one of those restaurants where you just can't go wrong; everything on the menu is completely scrumptious. If you have the chance to go with a slightly larger party (6-8 people), they can do a chef's tasting for something like $35 per person that includes almost everything on the menu. You'll see what I mean.

The monkfish in particular is not to be missed. I'm also addicted to their sticky rice. (On the rare occasions that they run out, I'm devastated.)

The restaurant is tiny, candle-lit and charming. Try to talk the waitress into seating you in one of the cozy window booths - it's the perfect place to catch up with old friends, over superlative food.

Baoguette

Occasion: Take-out dinner for one, since I was in the area returning books at the Epiphany Branch of the NYPL (conveniently open until 8pm on Mondays)

Location: Baoguette on Lex between 25th and 26th (baoguette.com) [Note: there are two other locations in the city, with more to come]

Edibles: bbq chicken bánh mì sandwich with pickled matchsticks of daikon and carrot and long fronds of cilantro

Musings: Comparable in size and price to a Subway sub, this sandwich is LEAGUES better. Soft yet chewy bread, spicy, tender chicken, some crunch and freshness from the veggies - YUM. Casual food at its very, very best.