Lining the walls are French goods, remnants of the effect of colonization of Vietnamese tastes: You can find beurre Bretel (a classic French butter that is sometimes spooned into a cup of coffee), cans of paté, and boxes of French pastries. And like all Vietnamese foods that resulted from imperialism, beef jerky has become distinctively Vietnamese - with flavors like lemongrass and Vietnamese curry.įor those with a taste for the sour, among the cases of beef jerky are jars of pickles, featuring fruits like unripe ambarella ( coc non), chili green mango, and kumquat. Beef jerky became a part of Vietnamese culture after roughly a thousand years of Chinese domination, beginning in the first century BCE. The history of colonization in Vietnam can be told through Vietnamese snacks available at beef jerky snack shops like Eurasia Delight across from the food court in Grand Century Mall - now considered the quintessential Vietnamese mall in San Jose, edging out the older Lion Plaza.īeef jerky is the main attraction here, with over a dozen different types stored in clear cases surrounding the store. While there are many shops that specialize in che, Nuoc Mia Vien Dong offers a variety of sweets and juices in one shop. The most popular che is the combination or three-color che ( che ba mau), an icy treat layered with green tapioca noodles, yellow mung bean paste, and red beans - the three colors that give the dessert its name. Nuoc Mia Vien Dong also offers sweets like Vietnamese waffles - in flavors such as pandan, durian, and taro - and sinh to, Vietnamese shakes made with fruits like strawberry, papaya, or avocado, as well as che. Sugarcane juice flavored with strawberry, mango, pineapple, and other fruits, is also available, as well as one of their most popular juices: pennywort ( rau ma) sugarcane juice, a leafy green version of the drink known among Vietnamese people for its myriad health benefits. When kumquat is in season, it is squeezed into sugarcane juice. In San Jose, you can find it served with a dozen different flavors at Nuoc Mia Vien Dong, which uses the classic method of mill-pressing peeled sugarcane. Sugarcane juice is a refreshing drink served on the streets throughout Vietnam. The result is a broth that is lower in calories and consistent across all its locations around the globe. Pho Hoa bills itself as a “health-conscious choice,” with broth that is slow-simmered with meat rather than bone marrow. Soon after, Pho Hoa could be found in Canada, Korea, and the Philippines. Founder Binh Nguyen, who expanded Pho Hoa into a franchise, earned an MBA specifically to learn the ins and outs of the business. At the time, Vietnamese immigrants, many of whom had fled communist Vietnam after the war, had little business knowledge. In 1983, Pho Hoa opened in Lion Plaza, the first Asian American mall to open in the South Bay Area. Although customers in search of home-style cuisine may be disappointed to find a streamlined restaurant with a sleek design - and even a hip bubble tea counter - Pho Hoa’s offerings tell a story about the evolution of the Vietnamese-American role in the American restaurant business. Thirty years ago, a pho restaurant inspired a business idea that would eventually become the largest international pho franchise outside of Vietnam.
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