MISS SAIGON

I had the opportunity to branch out of my close to home PHO visits and go to a new area and have some PHO with my good friend Michelle and her adorable son Gavin.  She clued me in to her favorite spot MISS SAIGON in Glen Burnie, MD.  I was excited to go somewhere new and to have some good conversation with someone I don't usually get to hang out with.  We went for dinner so when I arrived it was dark so my first views of the place must be taken into consideration that it was dark.

I was able to find the place rather easily with GPS, however it is down a little road kind of in a weird place and I had to deal with the crappy parking, however it may just have been that it was dark and I could not find another spot to park in, however I was not sure if I was going to be towed or not once I returned.  It was not too busy so I believe the parking issue stemmed from the college so close by.

This place is very welcoming from the outside and honestly one of the larger places I have seen so far.  Once inside it was clean and open and there was ample seating.  It was hard to take inside photos as there were some people around so I did not want to seem weird.  We were greeted immediately and given our menus and Gavin got a little high chair.  We were also given water, nothing too fancy but good enough.  The usual condiments were on the table and our soup spoon and chopsticks came individual wrapped, which is much nicer than just being set out.

This menu was nicely shown and the presentation was also very nice.  One of the nicer menus I have seen and this was by far the largest number of PHO options on a menu.  I did notice that the prices were more than I have seen on some of the other posts and reviews for this place.  Michelle mentioned that she had not been to the restaurant for some time and it seemed to have had a bit of a makeover.  This may be the reason for the prices going up.

Maybe, due to the new found love for PHO in the United States, restaurants are raising prices because the demand has raised.  I don't agree with this type of service, however it is just business and since we are still going to pay for it then I can't blame them.

We both ordered the summer rolls and our orders came out along with the toppings for the PHO we ordered.

So, let's talk about the summer rolls.  These were by far the smallest I have seen and I'm glad that we both ordered our own serving because I ate them rather quickly.  The peanut sauce was really flavorful and thick and peanut flavored with a good amount for the rolls that were given.  I usually eat all of the sauce and have more roll, but since these were smaller I had some sauce left.  The flavor was good and there was shrimp and meat inside, however since they were smaller they kind of left me wanting more.



The toppings were ample with a good amount of basil, lime, jalapeños and bean sprouts. Everything was very fresh.  Michelle ordered the PHO GA (chicken) and a small bowl.  I ordered the PHO TAI NAM VE (Eye round steak & well-done Flank )  I wanted to change it up a bit and of course I ordered the big bowl which Michelle did not believe I would finish!

I started with just sampling the broth alone.  It had a good flavor although it was not very hot, it was warm enough to eat but I choose to have it steaming to take in the aroma.  They broth had some onions and scallions and some cilantro however, I really did not taste any off that however it was one of the better flavors.

                                                                            PHO TAI NAM VE

After sampling the broth I grabbed the chopstick and start to break up my noodles, I then added all of the toppings, however I did not add as much Hoisin sauce this time as I did not think it needed it, possibly because of the beef this time instead of the usual chicken I have.  I grabbed my chopsticks and dug in.  However, those chopsticks were so slick that I could not grabbed my noodles it took the timing of my enjoying the PHO off.  I literally had to figure out a different way to hold them in order to be able to eat.  I eventually got it, however those chopsticks were the worse I have ever used.  I finished my whole bowl and as I was sipping the broth and finishing up, the spicy mix of Sriracha and jalapeños was delightful.  

All in all this place was good and I give it 2.5 bunches of basil!