The Koreans make good pho
Every time I ride the bus on Telegraph, Kang Nam Pho stands out to me like a supernova. (There are these “sorta” cosmologically important exploded stars that have been on my mind for quite some time now, which is an excuse for the sparse blogging of late.) I’ve seen Chinese-owned pho places, but they never have a Chinese name. Pin Toh on Shattuck, which used to be Phở Hòa, has pho cooked by Chinese chefs, but it’s a Thai diner (talk about incognito). In my American pho encounters, Kang Nam Pho is the first instance of a Korean-owned Vietnamese diner with a Korean name. They even put the whole “Phở” with accents on their white-on-red sign, next to “강남 윌남국수” (Kang Nam Wilnam guksu, i.e., Kang Nam Vietnamese Noodle). I like this place already.
Their menu is also all in Vietnamese, again, with complete accents albeit some misspellings; there is English description under each name and very little Korean. I vaguely remember bibimbap and bulgogi at some bottom corner of a page, but Kang Nam has things that even a common pho joint wouldn’t always have, such as hủ tíu Nam Vang (kuy teav Phnom Penh) and mì bò kho (noodle with beef stew). The tables are even equipped with green chopsticks, hard-to-eat spoons and sauce bottles. If only the customers didn’t flock every table that day and keep the ladies moving like shuttles in a loom, I would have asked what inspired them to make the place even more Vietnamese than a Vietnamese would, for better and for worse (the spoons…).
After ordering the inevitables, gỏi cuốn to start and phở chín nạm gầu gân sách (brisket, tendon, tripe) to fill, I followed the usual practice of a lone diner: pull out a book and pretend to read while eavesdropping on my neighbors. However, just barely 3 minutes into opening the book, the summer rolls arrived. Casting aside my literate facade, I started rearranging the roll halves for a good pic when the noodle soup swiftly got placed in the way. They did it fast. That’s how pho should be: you got a pot o’ broth, cooked meat, and blanched noodle ready, an order comes, they all go into a bowl. It shouldn’t take more than one minute. The problem is with me: too little time for a good picture and unable to decide what to eat first. The pho won. The rolls wouldn’t get soggy waiting.
This is one of the best pho I’ve ever had (mom-made pho not included). Deep and subtly sweet broth, chewy noodles, lots of tripe and tendon. A clean aftertaste and a warm broth until the last morsel. Little Mom, a frequent pho craver albeit a picky patron, would like this pho. Why didn’t they struct their business a little closer to campus so that I could come here for lunch? Would they serve blanched beansprout or pickle onion if I ask for it? Next time…
Whenever I ride the bus on Telegraph, I contemplate pulling a stop request for a bowl. Perhaps I’ll go tonight in the name of celebrating Little Mom’s birthday. 😀 We’re Vietnamese, but just to go along with this post’s blending spirit: 생일축하해, 엄마! 🙂
Address: Kang Nam Pho House
4419 Telegraph Ave
Oakland, CA 94609
(510) 985-0900
UPDATE: A 5-second roaming on the ‘net reveals that the Koreans like pho (I’m not surprised, they have plenty of beef based noodle soups) enough to make Korean pho restaurants, and generally Korean pho broths are described as more bland (if disliked) or more clean and fresh (if liked) than Vietnamese pho. For Kang Nam, I side with the latter. Which reinforces the consistency of my pho style. Those who have eaten pho with me often shake their heads at my indifference toward the sauces and the herbs: I don’t put veggies into my pho (not a single leaf), and I don’t adulterate my broth with Sriracha or the black bean sauce. I like my pho pure: beef and noodle. More Korean pho samplings are necessary before I can confirm the difference. When the supernovae start making more sense, the new quest will start. But is this quest possible in the Bay Area?
This post is submitted to Delicious Vietnam #16, August edition, hosted by Chi Anh from Door to My Kitchen.
I delight in, cause I discovered exactly what I was taking a look for. You have ended my four day lengthy hunt! God Bless you man. Have a great day. Bye
1Hi there, just became aware of your blog through Google, and found that it’s truly informative. I am gonna watch out for brussels. I will be grateful if you continue this in future. A lot of people will be benefited from your writing. Cheers!
2Great post. I am facing a couple of these problems.
3I really appreciate this post. I’ve been looking all over for this! Thank goodness I found it on Bing. You have made my day! Thx again!
4An impressive share, I simply given this onto a colleague who was doing somewhat analysis on this. And he in actual fact bought me breakfast because I discovered it for him.. smile. So let me reword that: Thnx for the treat! But yeah Thnkx for spending the time to discuss this, I really feel strongly about it and love studying extra on this topic. If possible, as you develop into experience, would you mind updating your blog with more details? It is highly helpful for me. Big thumb up for this weblog publish!
5Wonderful blog! I found it while surfing around on Yahoo News. Do you have any tips on how to get listed in Yahoo News? I’ve been trying for a while but I never seem to get there! Cheers
6Very nice post and right to the point. I don’t know if this is actually the best place to ask but do you folks have any ideea where to get some professional writers? Thank you 🙂
7You have noted very interesting points! ps decent site. “Mediocrity knows nothing higher than itself, but talent instantly recognizes genius.” by Conan Doyle.
8What’s Happening i’m new to this, I stumbled upon this I’ve discovered It positively useful and it has helped me out loads. I am hoping to give a contribution & aid different customers like its aided me. Good job.
9Hi there! Do you know if they make any plugins to help with Search Engine Optimization? I’m trying to get my blog to rank for some targeted keywords but I’m not seeing very good gains. If you know of any please share. Appreciate it!
10Hi there this is kind of of off topic but I was wondering if blogs use WYSIWYG editors or if you have to manually code with HTML. I’m starting a blog soon but have no coding knowledge so I wanted to get guidance from someone with experience. Any help would be greatly appreciated!
11I was reading through some of your articles on this site and I believe this web site is real informative! Keep posting.
12I simply couldn’t go away your website prior to suggesting that I extremely enjoyed the standard information a person supply for your visitors? Is going to be again ceaselessly in order to inspect new posts
13We’re a group of volunteers and starting a new scheme in our community. Your website provided us with valuable information to work on. You’ve done a formidable job and our whole community will be thankful to you.
14Thanks , I’ve recently been looking for information about this topic for ages and yours is the best I have discovered till now. But, what about the conclusion? Are you sure about the source?
15Admiring the persistence you put into your website and in depth information you present. It’s good to come across a blog every once in a while that isn’t the same unwanted rehashed material. Excellent read! I’ve saved your site and I’m including your RSS feeds to my Google account.
16very good submit, i actually love this website, keep on it
17Perfect work you have done, this web site is really cool with wonderful information.
18I love meeting useful info, this post has got me even more info! .
19Everything is very open and very clear explanation of issues. was truly information. Your website is very useful. Thanks for sharing.
20I do not even know how I finished up here, but I believed this put up used to be great. I don’t know who you are but definitely you are going to a well-known blogger if you happen to are not already 😉 Cheers!
21Glad to be one of the visitants on this awing web site : D.
22Thanks for sharing superb informations. Your site is so cool. I’m impressed by the details that you’ve on this site. It reveals how nicely you perceive this subject. Bookmarked this web page, will come back for extra articles. You, my pal, ROCK! I found simply the info I already searched everywhere and just could not come across. What an ideal site.
23Fantastic website. A lot of helpful information here. I’m sending it to some buddies ans also sharing in delicious. And of course, thanks on your effort!
24Sweet blog! I found it while surfing around on Yahoo News. Do you have any tips on how to get listed in Yahoo News? I’ve been trying for a while but I never seem to get there! Thank you
25Very interesting subject, regards for posting.
26I feel that is among the such a lot significant info for me. And i’m happy studying your article. But should observation on few general issues, The web site taste is wonderful, the articles is truly great :D. Excellent activity, cheers
27Rattling nice design and style and good content, absolutely nothing else we need :D.
28Some truly fantastic posts on this site, thank you for contribution. “The spirit is the true self.” by Marcus Tullius Cicero.
29Very interesting info !Perfect just what I was looking for! “…obstacles do not exist to be surrendered to, but only to be broken.” by Adolf Hitler.
30I really like your writing style, good information, appreciate it for putting up :D.
31I’ve been exploring for a bit for any high-quality articles or blog posts on this kind of area . Exploring in Yahoo I at last stumbled upon this site. Reading this info So i am happy to convey that I have a very good uncanny feeling I discovered just what I needed. I most certainly will make certain to don’t forget this website and give it a look on a constant basis.
32Thanks for this howling post, I am glad I discovered this web site on yahoo.
33Outstanding post, you have pointed out some superb details , I besides conceive this s a very great website.
34I’ve been browsing on-line greater than 3 hours today, yet I by no means found any interesting article like yours. It is beautiful worth sufficient for me. In my opinion, if all website owners and bloggers made good content material as you did, the web might be a lot more helpful than ever before.
35Wow, amazing blog layout! How long have you been blogging for? you made blogging look easy. The overall look of your web site is great, as well as the content!
36Thank you for another informative blog. Where else may I get that kind of information written in such an ideal means? I’ve a challenge that I am simply now operating on, and I’ve been on the look out for such info.
37I know this if off topic but I’m looking into starting my own blog and was wondering what all is needed to get setup? I’m assuming having a blog like yours would cost a pretty penny? I’m not very internet smart so I’m not 100 certain. Any recommendations or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you
38Some truly nice stuff on this web site, I like it.
39Real clear site, thanks for this post.
40It is in point of fact a nice and helpful piece of info. I am satisfied that you simply shared this helpful information with us. Please keep us up to date like this. Thank you for sharing.
41Real excellent information can be found on blog. “The fundamental defect of fathers is that they want their children to be a credit to them.” by Bertrand Russell.
42Hi there would you mind stating which blog platform you’re working with? I’m going to start my own blog soon but I’m having a difficult time deciding between BlogEngine/Wordpress/B2evolution and Drupal. The reason I ask is because your layout seems different then most blogs and I’m looking for something completely unique. P.S Sorry for being off-topic but I had to ask!
43I am very happy to read this. This is the kind of manual that needs to be given and not the accidental misinformation that’s at the other blogs. Appreciate your sharing this greatest doc.
44