The charm of crunchy-skin grilled fish
Thiên Phú has been in my draft list for over 18 months. I wanted to write a post worthy of their dishes, but a proper post requires proper pictures, and either I was too hungry at the time or I just sucked at taking pictures at the time (I still suck now, but less than before) that every single picture was blurry like a blizzard. I was more concerned about food than food blogging so I didn’t snap many shots and didn’t check the clarity of the shots I took before digging in. I also didn’t know any photo editing. Basically, I was plain dumb.
At many points I thought about abandoning the post altogether, but we had a good meal that time and I even fed the birds in the parking lot while waiting for my friends to come join us. The birds were full, we were full. The restaurant was, as usual, empty except for us (because their menu is catered to large groups and wedding parties), so we got extra attention from the staff. Such memories kept me from deleting the draft that had nothing but terrible pictures. Then my parents came to the rescue when they revisited Thien Phu in the spring and took some luminous shots, like the beef and shrimp salad above and the seafood stir fry on rice below.
The salad, like most Vietnamese salads soaked in that half sweet, half tangy mixed fish sauce, was yummy. The seafood stir fry was nothing beyond expectation, they said, but at the very least, Thiên Phú brown sauce was not fattily thick like that goo in Phở Hà’s pan-fried phở. Dad’s vermicelli with stir fried beef was a good sweep, as evident from its picture.
If you’ve read my blog for long enough, you probably would notice that my dad almost never orders anything but beef, while Little Mom goes for shrimp or fish nine times out of ten. Naturally, Thien Phu ranks high in my parents’ list because their specialties are the 7 courses of beef and the whole grilled fish.
We’ve never tried all seven beef courses at once. We just choose a few that sound most savory, and for this party of 5, something shareable. Like beef that can be wrapped in rice paper and dipped in sauces. The chunky, fatty steamed beef balls (bò chả đùm) was broken into coarser bits to be scooped with a rice crackers or wrapped with lettuce. Razor-thin leaves of still red beef were dunked into heated vinegar for a simple, tender, and tangy completeness of bò nhúng dấm. Halved shrimps joined the beef in a similar fashion to make tôm nhúng dấm. Dad even dipped it in mắm nêm (ground anchovy sauce) to tighten the taste.
Then there’s the good old style of flopping beef slices on a hot black grill pan and hearing it sizzle while loading the wet rice paper with bean sprout, herbs, pickled radish and daikon. I also put a slice of unripe banana in my bò nướng vỉ roll because its cookie-like texture and clinging aftertaste are fun, although they don’t add much to the roll as a whole.
Leaving the blurry images of December 2009, we’re back to the present: grilled beef ball on rice. The marinade was sealed inside its smooth, gritty texture, each ball was so juicy it would shame a plump mango.
The seafood dishes are not subpar either. Loaded with shrimp, squid, and broccoli, mì hải sản (seafood noodle) had the sweetness of hủ tíu Nam Vang (Phnom Penh ka tieu) and the strength (and curly noodles) of ramen. The more broth we drank, the more delicious it got.
But there is one thing that everyone gets when they go to Thiên Phú: the crunchy-skin grilled fish (cá nướng da giòn). The whole catfish is enough for two by itself, grilled hiddenly in the kitchen until its skin breaks a crackling sound and glisters like topaz, then it’s brought out to you topped with crusted peanuts, cilantro and lime wedges. Its flesh stays white, juicy and soft. Roll up a side piece, you can savor its pristine, naturally sweet taste or dip it in nước mắm. The second grilled fish I had here this May was better than the one I had in December 2009, and so were their beef dishes. It’s good to see a good place gets better.
Just watch out for bones.
Address: Thiên Phú Restaurant
11360 Bellaire Blvd Ste 100
Houston, TX 77072
(281) 568-1448
(in the same parking lot as Giò Chả Đức Hương)
Lunch for 5: $76.03
Whoa! This blog looks just like my old one! It’s on a completely different subject but it has pretty much the same page layout and design. Excellent choice of colors!
1Thanks a bunch for sharing this with all of us you actually know what you’re talking about! Bookmarked. Kindly also visit my site =). We could have a link exchange contract between us!
2I believe this website contains some really great info for everyone :D.
3Undeniably believe that which you said. Your favorite justification seemed to be on the internet the simplest thing to be aware of. I say to you, I definitely get annoyed while people consider worries that they plainly do not know about. You managed to hit the nail upon the top and defined out the whole thing without having side-effects , people can take a signal. Will likely be back to get more. Thanks
4I like this web blog very much so much good info .
5As a Newbie, I am continuously searching online for articles that can be of assistance to me. Thank you
6I enjoyed browsing through this website. There is plenty of interesting content here. Really appreciate the detailed explanation.
7Great tremendous things here. I’m very satisfied to see your post. Thanks a lot and i’m looking ahead to touch you. Will you please drop me a e-mail?
8I do not even understand how I ended up here, but I assumed this post used to be great. I do not recognise who you’re however certainly you’re going to a famous blogger when you are not already 😉 Cheers!
9Really nice post! I appreciate you sharing your knowledge. Bookmarked for later reading.
10Hi, Neat post. There’s an issue along with your site in web explorer, would check this… IE still is the marketplace chief and a good part of people will omit your fantastic writing because of this problem.
11I think this is among the most significant info for me. And i am glad reading your article. But should remark on some general things, The website style is ideal, the articles is really excellent :D. Good job, cheers
12This web site is really a walk-through for all of the info you wanted about this and didn’t know who to ask. Glimpse here, and you’ll definitely discover it.
13You made some respectable factors there. I looked on the web for the problem and found most people will go along with along with your website.
14It’s really a nice and helpful piece of information. I am glad that you simply shared this useful information with us. Please keep us informed like this. Thanks for sharing.
15I was curious if you ever thought of changing the structure of your site? Its very well written; I love what youve got to say. But maybe you could a little more in the way of content so people could connect with it better. Youve got an awful lot of text for only having 1 or two pictures. Maybe you could space it out better?
16Very interesting info !Perfect just what I was looking for! “We are shaped and fashioned by what we love.” by Johann von Goethe.
17You got a very wonderful website, Gladiolus I found it through yahoo.
18Good day I am so happy I found your site, I really found you by mistake, while I was searching on Digg for something else, Regardless I am here now and would just like to say thanks a lot for a remarkable post and a all round interesting blog (I also love the theme/design), I don’t have time to browse it all at the minute but I have book-marked it and also added in your RSS feeds, so when I have time I will be back to read a great deal more, Please do keep up the great job.
19Some genuinely good information, Glad I discovered this. “Nothing can resist the human will that will stake even its existence on its stated purpose.” by Benjamin Disraeli.
20Hey there! This post couldn’t be written any better! Reading through this post reminds me of my good old room mate! He always kept chatting about this. I will forward this write-up to him. Pretty sure he will have a good read. Many thanks for sharing!
21Thanks, I have recently been looking for information about this subject for ages and yours is the greatest I have came upon so far. But, what in regards to the conclusion? Are you sure in regards to the supply?
22Nice work on this article. The explanations are very clear. Great work, looking forward to more posts.
23I went over this web site and I think you have a lot of fantastic information, saved to favorites (:.
24Nice article! I really enjoyed reading this post. Keep up the good work!. Very helpful article, thanks again.
25Some really nice and useful info on this site, likewise I conceive the design has excellent features.
26Very interesting topic, appreciate it for putting up.
27It’s laborious to seek out knowledgeable people on this subject, however you sound like you recognize what you’re speaking about! Thanks
28Fantastic goods from you, man. I’ve understand your stuff previous to and you’re just extremely wonderful. I actually like what you’ve acquired here, really like what you’re saying and the way in which you say it. You make it entertaining and you still take care of to keep it smart. I cant wait to read far more from you. This is really a tremendous website.
29Heya! I just wanted to ask if you ever have any trouble with hackers? My last blog (wordpress) was hacked and I ended up losing a few months of hard work due to no data backup. Do you have any methods to protect against hackers?
30I’ve been absent for a while, but now I remember why I used to love this blog. Thanks, I will try and check back more frequently. How frequently you update your web site?
31Somebody necessarily assist to make significantly posts I’d state. That is the very first time I frequented your web page and to this point? I amazed with the research you made to create this actual publish incredible. Excellent process!
32I was recommended this blog by my cousin. I’m not sure whether this post is written by him as nobody else know such detailed about my difficulty. You’re amazing! Thanks!
33Hi there just wanted to give you a quick heads up and let you know a few of the images aren’t loading correctly. I’m not sure why but I think its a linking issue. I’ve tried it in two different web browsers and both show the same outcome.
34Good site! I truly love how it is simple on my eyes and the data are well written. I’m wondering how I could be notified whenever a new post has been made. I’ve subscribed to your feed which must do the trick! Have a nice day!
35Very nice post. I just stumbled upon your blog and wished to say that I have really enjoyed browsing your blog posts. After all I’ll be subscribing to your feed and I hope you write again soon!
36Hiya very nice blog!! Man .. Excellent .. Amazing .. I will bookmark your blog and take the feeds also…I am glad to search out numerous helpful information right here within the put up, we need work out more strategies on this regard, thank you for sharing.
37When I originally commented I clicked the -Notify me when new comments are added- checkbox and now each time a comment is added I get four emails with the same comment. Is there any way you can remove me from that service? Thanks!
38Currently it looks like Expression Engine is the best blogging platform available right now. (from what I’ve read) Is that what you are using on your blog?
39Would you be fascinated by exchanging hyperlinks?
40Do you mind if I quote a couple of your articles as long as I provide credit and sources back to your site? My website is in the very same niche as yours and my users would really benefit from some of the information you provide here. Please let me know if this ok with you. Thanks!
41I’ve been absent for a while, but now I remember why I used to love this site. Thanks, I’ll try and check back more often. How frequently you update your web site?
42I love the efforts you have put in this, thank you for all the great articles.
43Its like you read my mind! You seem to know a lot about this, like you wrote the book in it or something. I think that you can do with some pics to drive the message home a bit, but other than that, this is magnificent blog. A great read. I will certainly be back.
44I’d constantly want to be update on new posts on this web site, saved to fav! .
45I gotta bookmark this site it seems extremely helpful handy
46I love your blog.. very nice colors & theme. Did you create this website yourself? Plz reply back as I’m looking to create my own blog and would like to know wheere u got this from. thanks
47I have been exploring for a little for any high-quality articles or blog posts in this kind of space . Exploring in Yahoo I ultimately stumbled upon this site. Studying this information So i am satisfied to exhibit that I have a very just right uncanny feeling I found out just what I needed. I so much for sure will make sure to don’t put out of your mind this website and provides it a glance regularly.
48Tỷ lệ bóng đá giúp mình thắng khá nhiều lần nhờ tỷ lệ thưởng cao ở casino và cá cược thể thao game bài tiến lên chơi sôi động xổ số miền bắc kết quả chính xác hỗ trợ tốt.
49hi!,I like your writing so much! share we communicate more about your post on AOL? I need an expert on this area to solve my problem. Maybe that’s you! Looking forward to see you.
50