Pho Saigon Restaurant II, Richmond

I'm on a Vietnamese food kick right now. Not only is it cheap but the food I've had has been some of the most flavorful. I'm in deep need of flavor right now after spending an entire semester stuck in between the cement walls that SF State calls its "student lounge" while eating bagel after bagel because I don't like nacho cheese.

Pho Saigon Restaurant II is located in the Ranch 99 Mall. Unlike the jerks at Daimo, they serve me quickly, act like they understand my order, and give me what I like to eat. I've never had anything else besides Pho from there, because I'm a creature of habit and it's hard to say no to such a great deal. I usually order a medium bowl of Pho with thinly sliced rare steak, well-done brisket, veggies, noodles, and tripe ($4.60!!!). I know, most of you probably don't like tripe (I love it). You can also order it with meatballs or extra steak, depending on what you like.

It takes them about 3 minutes to get my order together and then I am out the door. Even after getting home, the broth is still piping hot (I know because I made it overflow onto my pants one time...It's hot.). In addition to the meat, they give me a big container of hot/sweet chili sauce, Asian basil, bean sprouts, lime, fresh sliced jalapenos, and parsley.

My recommendation is to first put the noodles into the soup so that they can separate. Also, that way one can avoid making the hot soup overflow. I usually put about half of the jalapenos into the soup. Despite looking juicy and delicious, putting all of them can make the soup almost unbearably hot.

Then, I put in the steak one piece at a time--as you have probably figured out by now I hate overcooked meat, and by cooking each piece individually, one can avoid doing so. Eventually, everything gets mixed in, and the flavors meld together perfectly. This is the ultimate comfort food.

Don't go to Daimo! Go here! The food is much better, the people are nicer, and the prices are cheaper! Pho Saigon Restaurant II is located at the Ranch 99 Market off of Highway 80 in Richmond (on the border of El Cerrito). The exact address is 3288 Pierce Street, and the phone number is (510) 528-6388.

They are open Sunday through Thursday from 10:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., and Friday through Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.

Banh Mi Ba Le Vietnamese Sandwich Deli, El Cerrito

I am officially a student again, and I need more cheap food recommendations, pronto. After reading my latest Bourdain book on BART this afternoon, all I could think about were his vibrant descriptions of Vietnamese food. Knowing there was no way I could afford to even drive to Pho84 not to mention buy food, I headed around the corner to a Vietnamese sandwich shop that I had found on Yelp! (sorry, AP, Civic Center days are Thursdays).

Banh Mi Ba Le has some amazing reviews on Yelp!, and while Yelpers are not always trustworthy, I thought I'd at least give this place a try. It's so hot today that I even walked, not wanting to get into my scorching car. Fortunately, this place is even closer than I thought--2 short blocks away from my apartment!

The sandwich deli is pretty much a hole in the wall of a worn down strip mall on San Pablo at Central. There were three older Vietnamese women standing behind the counter and a bunch of Asian people standing in front of the store, so I assumed it had to be good despite its appearance and headed in.

They serve about ten different types of sandwiches, including BBQ chicken, BBQ pork, vegetables, etc. I decided to order a Cha Siu Sandwich. Scared that it wouldn't be enough food for me after seeing the price ($2.25!), I also ordered a green papaya salad ($3, no seriously).

In about 30 seconds, I was handed a plastic bag containing all of my food, and I quickly headed home to start chomping away. After turning on Oprah, I opened up my lightly toasted sandwich. The baguette was crusty on the outside but oh-so soft on the inside; it was clearly fresh. Inside, a bit of the bread had been scooped away to make room for fresh, brightly colored carrot slivers, daikon, cucumber, jalapenos, cilantro, and of course, sweet BBQ pork.

Despite being full after my ridiculously cheap sandwich, I decided that I wanted to eat more anyway and dug into my salad. The papaya salad had raw papaya slivers, carrots, a little bit of flat leaf parsley, and was topped with shrimp. The dressing tasted of a million flavors at the same time--citrus, vinegar, spice (jalapeno, I think), and sweet. The salad on its own was filling enough, so now I sit here typing this, about to go into a food coma instead of trying to remember how the hybridization of carbon and hydrogen molecules works.

Now I haven't been to the Vietnamese sandwich shop at the Civic Center, but the sandwich I had today has got to be up there. I also unfortunately have not had the green papaya salad from Out the Door, but to be honest, at Banh Mi Ba Le I can walk around the corner, not have to worry about annoying mall patrons, and pay a fraction of the price. I'm sure that the salad at Out the Door is better but if you are a student on a budget, or just feeling like having the cheapest meal of your life, go here.

Banh Mi Ba Le Vietnamese Sandwich Deli is located at 10174 San Pablo Avenue at Central in El Cerrito (near the Pacific East Mall and the El Cerrito Plaza). Here is the Yelp! article that led me to them: http://www.yelp.com/biz/fOBypmZMEJ3GoulOSH-Zxg#hrid:Mc8Ab1le53MzAScYuM3GNg/query:vietnamese

Pho 84, Oakland

I've been going to Pho 84 with my family for a few years now, and every time I go, I love it. I somehow convinced Andy to try their food on Wednesday. Every time I've gone in the past, there has been a huge line, so I guess Wednesdays around 6 are a good time to go--even parking was a breeze!

Both of us got drinks--Andy an imported Vietnamese beer and me a mango smoothie. I always have a hard time deciding what drinks to get at Pho 84 because they are all so good--the coffee with condensed milk is always a great choice, probably not for dinner, but it's also a good conversation starter because it's so beautifully presented. I also love the lemonade mixed with iced tea. On Wednesday, though, it was a smoothie day. The mango smoothies are made from fresh mangoes and they truly taste like it. They can be a little bit heavy at times, because I think there is some sort of dairy in it too, but they are overall very refreshing.

Sorry, didn't try Andy's beer...I know I have to be a reviewer but honestly I just don't like beer.

Moving on. Our appetizer of the night was the spicy beef salad. They marinate and grill thinly sliced pieces of beef and lay it on a bed of fresh mint, shredded carrots and jalapenos. It was even spicier than normal last night, but the flavor was still really strong, and the beef tender. Andy wasn't a fan of the mint, so we compromised. He ate all the meat and I ate all the mint...my favorite part.

We also ordered chicken satay and my personal favorite dish of red snapper in a coconut curry sauce with special rice. At Pho 84 you can choose between having regular rice or "special rice." The special rice is I believe cooked in chicken broth, which gives it a bright yellow color, but a lot more flavor than the ordinary rice.

The chicken satay consists of slices of chicken breast in a spicy red chili sauce with tons of green onions on top. It's very spicy, but goes along well with the rice. Andy's friend Dave ate our leftovers and apparently he was sweating like crazy but loved it.

The red snapper is fried and then covered in a coconut curry sauce with onions and fungi (I don't want to say mushrooms here because I think most people will get the wrong idea). The sauce itself is so tasty and addictive--even after the fish was gone, I like saving it to eat over rice. It's a little bit spicy, but not overwhelmingly spicy. You can also tell that everything is freshly made for each order because the fish, despite being covered in sauce, is still crispy.

All in all, it was an as usual wonderful meal at Pho 84. The food was fresh, tasty and flavorful, and the service was good (not outstanding, but good). The cost of eating there isn't as cheap as most Vietnamese places I've been to, but it's definitely worth it for the quality of the food. I highly recommend this place to anyone. Even Andy said he'd love to go again, which is a huge stamp of approval.

Pho 84 is located at 354 17th Street in Oakland, CA between Franklin and Webster.

They are open for lunch Monday through Friday from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
They are open for dinner Monday through Friday from 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. and Saturdays from 12:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.