Tried this restaurant the other day. The decor is nicer than most other Vietnamese restaurants in the area. The room was large and clean. My wife and I both ordered Pho. She got the combination and I got the Tai. I have to say the Tai meat here is the best so far around DFW area. The soup is very tasty but I think they put a little too much spices. I remembered trying here a couple years ago and did not have a good impression about it. But this time, it passed my OK mark for the environment and Pho.
Address: 1342 East Belt Line Road Richardson, TX 75081-3709
Phone: (972) 680-0001
VL Rating: GOOD
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Grapevine, TX
Grapevine Mills
About 30 minute from Dallas and just a few minutes from the DFW airport. Grapevine Mills is an indoor mall with some outlet stores. This is a plus since summer can be hot here and anything indoor is always welcome. It has over 180 stores to choose from and work is on the way to add LEGOLAND Discovery Center and SEA LIFE Aquarium in the Spring/Summer 2011. It would be great for kids.
There is also plan to build a World Villages of Grapevine next to Grapevine Mills with Asian garden, retail, dining etc... There is also a rumor that it will also include an indoor ski slope called “Texas Alps”. I’m keeping my fingers crossed for the indoor ski slope.
VL Rating: COOL
About 30 minute from Dallas and just a few minutes from the DFW airport. Grapevine Mills is an indoor mall with some outlet stores. This is a plus since summer can be hot here and anything indoor is always welcome. It has over 180 stores to choose from and work is on the way to add LEGOLAND Discovery Center and SEA LIFE Aquarium in the Spring/Summer 2011. It would be great for kids.
There is also plan to build a World Villages of Grapevine next to Grapevine Mills with Asian garden, retail, dining etc... There is also a rumor that it will also include an indoor ski slope called “Texas Alps”. I’m keeping my fingers crossed for the indoor ski slope.
VL Rating: COOL
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Vietnamese Cuisine
Vietnamese migration to the US (and other countries in the world) starting from 1975 when South Viet Nam fell over to the North. More and more Americans are getting familiar to Pho, a National Vietnamese dish that can be eaten during any time of the day. However, I have come to know that many people are still not familiar to Vietnamese cuisine in general. A lot have not even tried it yet even though DFW has the 3rd largest Vietnamese population in the US. I have to admit that not even one Vietnamese restaurant that I have tried here in the US can come close to what I have used to in Viet Nam, but some are pretty good.
One thing to keep in mind about Vietnamese food is that each restaurant has their own specialty. So you have to know where to go and for which food.
Another note is that if a Vietnamese restaurant has dishes that sound and taste like Chinese food, they’re Chinese food.
Important:
Vietnamese food usually need to be eaten in a certain way. Please ask the waiters/waitresses if you have never eaten a Vietnamese dish before.
Below are a few popular dishes. See Wikipedia for a still incomplete but longer list.
1) Pho
Rice noodle in Beef broth.
One thing to keep in mind is if the Pho soup tastes like beef soup, it’s NOT Pho.
Note that restaurants in the US tend to give you a long list of choices of meat. However, the original version is "Tai" only which is Steak meat. Adding any other kind of meat (except for beef ball) will change the taste of Pho. Talking about beef ball, you should try Vietnamese beef balls.
Just like every other Vietnamese dishes, it comes with a dish of raw vegetables. For Pho, it's usually basil, bean sprouts, lime, chili/Jalapeno and saw leaf herb. If this is your first time, I would recommend adding a few of each and eat together with the rice noodle. For the saw leaf herb, you would have to break them up very small (a few time smaller than the basil leaf).
On the table, you should find at least 1 chili paste and 1 hoisin sauce.
I usually mix these 2 in a small dish. Chili paste 3 times more than hoisin sauce.
Some people just use chili paste or just hoisin sauce. This is for dipping the meats that come with Pho.
Pho Bang (Jupiter and Walnut in Garland) is worth a try.
Note that restaurants in the US tend to give you a long list of choices of meat. However, the original version is "Tai" only which is Steak meat. Adding any other kind of meat (except for beef ball) will change the taste of Pho. Talking about beef ball, you should try Vietnamese beef balls.
Just like every other Vietnamese dishes, it comes with a dish of raw vegetables. For Pho, it's usually basil, bean sprouts, lime, chili/Jalapeno and saw leaf herb. If this is your first time, I would recommend adding a few of each and eat together with the rice noodle. For the saw leaf herb, you would have to break them up very small (a few time smaller than the basil leaf).
On the table, you should find at least 1 chili paste and 1 hoisin sauce.
I usually mix these 2 in a small dish. Chili paste 3 times more than hoisin sauce.
Some people just use chili paste or just hoisin sauce. This is for dipping the meats that come with Pho.
Pho Bang (Jupiter and Walnut in Garland) is worth a try.
2) Hu Tieu
Chinese/Cambodia influenced Rice noodle soup. Pork based soup.
This is not for everyone since I still can’t find one that I can call good.
But there is a Hu Tieu place on Walnut in Garland that you can try.
3) Com Tam
Broken rice with pork chop or grilled meat.
I always like the pork chop version but it’s very hard to find one that is truly good.
The one in Saigon Mall food court is worth a try. (Beltline and Jupiter in Garland).
When ever in doubt, pick the grill pork instead.
Also, if the restaurant offer shredded pork meat and skin with Com Tam, give that a try and you wont regret.
It's important that you pour the Nuoc cham (fish sauce) that come with the dish seperately on the rice and mix everything (except for the meat) really well. If this is your first time, pour a little and see how it taste. I usually dump the whole thing in the dish. :-)
Important: Insist on getting the broken rice and NOT the normal jasmine rice. There is a big difference in taste and texture between broken rice and normal rice. That's why we call this dish Com Tam which literally translated "Broken Rice"
Also, if the restaurant offer shredded pork meat and skin with Com Tam, give that a try and you wont regret.
It's important that you pour the Nuoc cham (fish sauce) that come with the dish seperately on the rice and mix everything (except for the meat) really well. If this is your first time, pour a little and see how it taste. I usually dump the whole thing in the dish. :-)
Important: Insist on getting the broken rice and NOT the normal jasmine rice. There is a big difference in taste and texture between broken rice and normal rice. That's why we call this dish Com Tam which literally translated "Broken Rice"
4) Ca Phe Sua Da (literally Iced coffee and milk)
Vietnamese Coffee (French coffee with Condensed milk)
Try it out and you'll know why people calling it Vietnamese coffee and not French coffee with condensed milk.
Ca Phe Sua Da usually come with a tall glass with ice cubes, a filter already filled with coffee and hot water sitting on top of a cup which contain condensed milk. You will need to wait until all the water has dripped down to the cup below. When the water in the filter is empty, remove the filter from the cup and put it on the cover that come with the filter. Use a spoon stir the cup with coffee and condensed milk inside. Stir until all condensed milk has dissolved then pour everything into the glass filled with ice. ENJOY!
Note:
That if you don't like iced drink, you can opt for Ca Phe Sua (Coffee and milk).
Warning:
The coffee is as strong or stronger than most espresso. If you have never drink espresso before, please take small sips and see how it goes.
Try it out and you'll know why people calling it Vietnamese coffee and not French coffee with condensed milk.
Ca Phe Sua Da usually come with a tall glass with ice cubes, a filter already filled with coffee and hot water sitting on top of a cup which contain condensed milk. You will need to wait until all the water has dripped down to the cup below. When the water in the filter is empty, remove the filter from the cup and put it on the cover that come with the filter. Use a spoon stir the cup with coffee and condensed milk inside. Stir until all condensed milk has dissolved then pour everything into the glass filled with ice. ENJOY!
Note:
That if you don't like iced drink, you can opt for Ca Phe Sua (Coffee and milk).
Warning:
The coffee is as strong or stronger than most espresso. If you have never drink espresso before, please take small sips and see how it goes.
See the picture from Wikipedia on how it's supposed to look like.
Wikipedia - Vietnamese Iced Coffee
5) Bun
A kind of rice noodle that is used to eat dry with Nuoc Cham poured over and mixed with beansprouts and fresh vegetables..
Grilled pork is popular but a number of other choices of meat is available including Vietnamese eggroll and Jumbo shrimp (A fresh water shrimp that can be as big as a lobster in size with 2 skinny and long claws. You have to go to Viet Nam to eat this fresh.).
6) Goi Cuon
Vietnamese Spring roll (aka Summer roll)
Contains shrimp, pork (sometimes Cha lua), noodle, fresh vegetables and eaten with peanut sauce.
7) Cha Gio
Vietnamese Egg Roll – Eaten with fresh vegetables and Nuoc Cham.
Use a piece of lettuce as a wrapping paper, put an egg roll inside and add a little bit of each mints that come with it. Carefully wrap the lettuce and dip one end in Nuoc Cham and take a bite from that end. Dip again before taking another bite.
Use a piece of lettuce as a wrapping paper, put an egg roll inside and add a little bit of each mints that come with it. Carefully wrap the lettuce and dip one end in Nuoc Cham and take a bite from that end. Dip again before taking another bite.
Bistro B (Audelia and Walnut in Garland) sells 4 for $1 (for take out only and does not come with anything else beside the egg rolls). It's pretty decent. Eat in is more expensive.
8) Che
Sweet drinks or pudding.
Many restaurants and supermarkets sell a variety of Che.
Check out "Che Hong Kong" in the food court next to Hong Kong Supermarket (Audelia and Walnut in Garland).
Che 3 Mau (3 color sweet drink) is one of the most popular Che.
It is an iced drink with a few kind of beans, jelly, coconut milk, peanuts and others.
Give this a try and you won't regret it.
Check out "Che Hong Kong" in the food court next to Hong Kong Supermarket (Audelia and Walnut in Garland).
Che 3 Mau (3 color sweet drink) is one of the most popular Che.
It is an iced drink with a few kind of beans, jelly, coconut milk, peanuts and others.
Give this a try and you won't regret it.
9) Banh Mi Thit Nguoi
Vietnamese sandwiches which contain homemade pate, butter, soy sauce, Vietnamese ham (Cha lua), other cold cut meat, cucumber, cilantro, Jalapeno and shredded carrot and white radish pickles.
Quoc Bao (Jupiter and Walnut in Garland) is the best around here.
I hope after trying out these dishes, you would be more venturous and try other dishes.
Check out this link for the best Vietnamese in DFW by DallasNews.
Update (2/7/201):
I have recently started a list of my own best Vietnamese restaurants in Dallas Fort Forth. Check it here.
Monday, August 9, 2010
Mckinney, TX
This is my home town. Moved here 5 years ago from NY. Love the environment here. Everything is bigger, cleaner and nicer. This is almost the perfect place to live except it’s a little hot in the summer but luckily it’s not humid. The Winter is super nice here around mid 50s F.Mckinney, TX has been one of the fastest growing cities in the US for many years.
The CNN Money magazine put it in the 100 best place to live in 2009 and this year, 2010, Mckinney is in the top 5 Best Places to live.
Check out this video: http://money.cnn.com/video/pf/2010/07/09/m_best_places_mckinney_tx.moneymag/
VL Rating: Excellence
Master Grill Brazillian Steak House (Frisco, TX)
Went there last week with my family to try it out the first time. I have to say it would be the last. Some of the meats were salty, some were dry and none were good. The décor was nice but that was it. Won’t be coming back again.
VL Rating: Poor
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Stockyards and Fort Worth Water Gardens, Fort Worth, TX
Stockyards
 |
| Cowboy Celebration Parade |
Stockyards is an historic place in Fort Worth that can’t be missed when visiting the DFW area. Every times we have relative come visit, I always bring them there. This time when my family came for 10 days, we went there on July 24, 2010 when they had the Cowboy Celebration Parade. On that day, they also have FREE activities for kids like riding real horse carousel, watermelon eating contest etc…
My nephews and nieces played the Cowtown Cattlepen Maze. They were exhausted after running through the maze for almost an hour…
 |
| Cattle Drive |
Also, twice a day, they have the Fort Worth Herd Cattle Drive through the heart of Stockyards.
Everyone had a great time…
On the way home, we stopped by the “Fort Worth Water Gardens” located at
1502 Commerce Street
Fort Worth, TX 76102
 |
| Fort Worth Water Gardens |
Water cascading from all sides to the pool in the middle below. It is a must see if you’re visiting Fort Worth. The picture on the right does not do justice for this amazing place.
VL Rating: Excellence
SanDisk Sansa Fuze MP3 Player
Bought this player for my brother-in-law to play music in his car. I’m still amazed to see how small and sleek it is. It was easy to put all MP3 files to the player. Just drag and drop the files in and the player recognized all of them automatically. The audio quality was great. I have to say it is as good (or better) as the old iPod that I have. One neat thing about this player is you can add more memory if needed.Information (from Sandisk website):
Capacity Matrix 2GB* 4GB* 8GB*
Hours of Video 6 hours ** 12 hours** 24 hours**
Number of Songs 500** 1000** 2000**
Number of Pictures 1200** 2400** 4800**
Hours of Video 6 hours ** 12 hours** 24 hours**
Number of Songs 500** 1000** 2000**
Number of Pictures 1200** 2400** 4800**
Features:
Plays videos, music, photos and audio books*
Digital FM radio
Voice recording with built-in microphone
Bright 1.9" screen
Up to 24 hours for audio playback and 5 hours of video playback with internal rechargeable battery**
microSDTM /microSDHCTM slot for additional content expansion
Music subscription ready
1 Year Limited Warranty
Dimensions: 3.1 x 1.9 x 0.3 in. (HxWxD)
Digital FM radio
Voice recording with built-in microphone
Bright 1.9" screen
Up to 24 hours for audio playback and 5 hours of video playback with internal rechargeable battery**
microSDTM /microSDHCTM slot for additional content expansion
Music subscription ready
1 Year Limited Warranty
Dimensions: 3.1 x 1.9 x 0.3 in. (HxWxD)
Minimum System Requirements:
Windows® XP or Vista
Linux and Mac OS (under MSC mode)
Windows Media Player® 10 or 11
CD-ROM drive (For all regions except US)
USB 2.0 high power port required for Hi-Speed transfer and charging
Linux and Mac OS (under MSC mode)
Windows Media Player® 10 or 11
CD-ROM drive (For all regions except US)
USB 2.0 high power port required for Hi-Speed transfer and charging
VL Rating: Execelence
Manny's Tex-Mex Grill (Frisco, TX)
Went there the other day with my coworkers for lunch. There were ton of people there. I have to say it is the best of all the Tex-Mex restaurants that I have tried so far. The ‘free’ soup and chips with salsa was great. I ordered 2 beef Enchiladas. My coworkers one ordered a porkchop and the other ordered chicken and beef Enchiladas. They were all great. Definitely will come back again to try something else.Address: 7210 Main St, Frisco,TX 75034
Phone: (972) 377-6765
VL Rating: Excellence
Thursday, August 5, 2010
ASUS O!Play Air (HDP-R3)
I owned WD TV Live before this one and I have to say I like the O!play Air better.
First off, O!play Air comes with built-in wireless N. No need to buy additional adapter. It works fine even with my Wireless G router (but not for large HD Video files). I would expect to upgrade my router to wireless N for large files. It supports a long list of video file format including mkv, avi and rmvb and play DVD folders. It has built in memory card reader and e-SATA input.
So far, it plays every files (Video, audio and jpeg) flawlessly.
Specifications (from ASUS website)
Supported Formats | Video: MPEG1/2/4,RM/RMVB,VC-1,H.264 Video File Extension: .trp,.mp4,.mov,.xvid,.avi,.divx,.asf,.wmv,.mkv,.rm,.rmvb,.flv,.ts, .m2ts,.dat,.mpg,.vob,.mts,.iso,.ifo Audio: MP3,WAV,AAC,OGG,FLAC,AIFF,Dolby Digital AC3,Dolby Digital Plus,DTS Digital Surround,Tag ID3,Dolby True HD (downmix) Image: JPEG,BMP,PNG,GIF,TIFF Subtitle: SRT,SUB,SMI,SSA,TXT |
I/O Port | Input: DC Power In 1xUSB 2.0 Port 1xUSB 2.0 / eSATA Combo Port RJ-45 LAN Port Card readers CF, SD+MMC, MS+MS Duo 802.11n Wireless Networking Output: Composite Video Composite Audio L/R S/PDIF Out HDMI 1.3 |
Accessories | AC Adapter Power Cord Remote Control Composite A/V Cable Quick Start Guide CD (User Manual) |
Dimensions | 181.0mmx125.3mmx47.7mmmm(W x D x H) |
Weight | 479g |
Power | Power Source: 12VDC, 2A Power Consumption: <10W Operating Temperature: 5°C(41°F)~35°C(95°F) |
Supported File System | FAT16/32, NTFS, HFS/HFS+, ext3 |
VL Rating: Excellence
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)