Pho the love of phơ

A couple of years ago, my sweet friend Sarah invited me to have phơ with her for lunch. I had absolutely no idea what this meant or what I was in for, but I love just about all food, so why not add to the list, right?

My first phơ experience was at Phơ Hoa on Olympia's west side. It was love at first taste. I got tofu phơ, because raw meat sort of freaks me out...or it did at the time.   Phơ hoa will always be my favorite phơ, it set the bar for me and never disappoints.

Whenever I go to phơ I have pretty specific expectations, some more necessary than others. First, the broth...the broth needs to be not too salty and not too peppery, but just right. They need to have plastic chopsticks, not the cheap wood kind. They also must have fresh looking basil and musn't go cheap on the jalapenos. Top of the list, Sriracha...they absolutely must have sriracha! It's also a must to have the hot pepper sauce...but I have NO idea what this delicious fiery shit is because it's always in generic bottles. At any rate...not just a confusing paste, but the sauce. Phơ 111 in tumwater has a paste and I'm not down with it. I'm not a super big fan of that place either. Great spring rolls, not excellent phơ.

So, to say the least I've been to a few phơ joints around, and here are my two cents...

Phơ hoa: you already know

Phơ 102 (tumwater, used to be arby's): probably my second favorite...except they don't have plastic chopsticks...which doesn't really matter since I use a fork...the chopstick thing is for Sarah.

Phơ and Baguette (tumwater by freddys):totally awesome but they put big veggies in their tofu phơ, so ask to take those out if you aren't into that...I'm certainly not. The owners are the sweetest people, and I hear their baguettes are to die for...

Little da Nang: excellent! Spring rolls are giant and fresh. Also, the shallots on top of the phơ is signature yum! Their hours online and on the door vary...so don't expect to go before noon...or even 12:30 for that matter.

I think that's good for now...I may add some later. :-)  I hope if you are on a quest for the best phơ that you find this helpful...and that you invite me!

Cheers,
A

Sin-n-Out

Well, of COURSE while in Sin City we went to In-n-Out...it would have been my first meal there if it hadn't closed at 1:30am Friday morning!  We arrived in Vegas about 10pm on Thursday night and everyone (minus me) had a poker tournament to be in at 11pm.  Once my husband and darling friend Lindsay were done I wanted to go to In-n-Out...well...much to my surprise...it's the only "family friendly" burger joint in Sin City, therefore it is NOT open 24 hours...SAY WHAT???  Totally disappointed of course, but we still  made it there...No worries!

Our friends had a very important World Series of Poker Tournament on Saturday afternoon, so Rylan and I gave In-n-Out another shot.  We didn't have a rental car, but we grabbed a cab right outside the resort and told the cabbie our food destination.  The cab ride from the south end of the strip is about $10, but worth every penny!  We arrived at In-n-Out at about 1pm and it was PACKED!  Rightfully so, these people know what's good for them....mentally...not physically.

Rylan scooped up a seat with a couple older gals from Maryland while I waited in line.  I didn't get my usual "animal style" number two, but just the regular number two...which I'm sure makes some people go number two...cuz animal style or not...it's a greasy gob of goodness!!!! (Did I just go a little too far there...hmmm).  Anyhow, a number two straight up is a cheeseburger and fries...you need to ask for onions or pickle if you want it.  Rylan got no onion, but I said "bring it on!"!  They also have fountain 7up which makes Rylan happy...and I had diet coke! 

When I finally got our food, which took about 15 minutes (the line was pure insanity), I was in heaven!!!!  Everything was perfect...just like I remembered.  The burgers are a bit medium well, so if you want ZERO pink, ask for it to be well done.  The burger sauce is to die for, but I'm sure it's just something simple...like thousand island dressing.  And the fries, perfectly mediumly cooked (I just made up the word "mediumly", but it works)...if you like them less or more cooked, you can ask for that.  Everything is freshly made, never frozen, and the fries come from real potatoes...hahaha! What more could you ask for.  I ate EVERY bite!  I didn't get the Neapolitan shake I was dying for, but I knew I'd be stuffed to the brim....turns out I could have shoved more in my gullet but I didn't want to be rolled out of there.

Needless to say, as always, we left with a disappointment scale of ZERO...it was as wonderful as we expected.  While I'm sad they wouldn't let me open a franchise here in Washington...I think it's THAT much more special that I get to have it at least once a year...I'm good with that. :)

Many of you may have heard of the In-n-Out "secret menu"...it's not a secret, but here it is on their website:
http://www.in-n-out.com/menu/not-so-secret-menu.aspx

There are a million places to eat in Vegas...and a burger joint on every block...however...this foodie will recommend In-n-Out every time! 

Cheers,
Andrea

Hash House...a Vegas must go-go

Sometimes when traveling to places we have come custom to visitng often I have some "must eats". The Hash House a Go-Go is a Vegas MUST for me. They call it "twisted farm food" and I call it a little piece of heaven.

Something I learned during this trip is there are TWO little pieces of farm food heaven in Vegas, one in The Quad Casino (f.k.a. Imperial Palace) and one in The Rio, a little off the strip.  This time, we stuck with what we know and went to The Quad.

One thing you must realize is Farm Peeps LOVE FOOD...heck, they are responsible for feeding us so I see nothing wrong with this! With that said, the first time you eat at The Hash House you might be a little surprised at the portion size. Their BLT must be a foot tall, and I'm NOT overestimating! Their Bloody Marys are incredible...and a good hangover remedy. If you plan to eat here...you will likely wait for a table. We've been at "normal breakfast hours" and it's insanely crowded. So keep that in mind as well...do NOT go there in a "hangry" state and expect to get seated and eat right away. They also make everything fresh to order, however, it's definitely not the slowest service. They also won't seat parties that aren't complete, so if you put your name in, don't let someone go down to gamble...you'll then have to wait till they return and hope your table is still available. I think this is silly with technology these days, but hey...not silly enough that I don't come back...every time we visit sin city!

My husband decided to share a meal since neither one of us could succeed in scarfing one whole plate. I let him pick and he went with biscuits and gravy with overmedium eggs and mashed taters...sounds weird...what about hash browns....nope...the mashed taters are where its at. Much to my surprise they also don't charge for an extra plate. BONUS! Aside from feeling a little rushed, the waiter was incredible. Everything was perfect. The biscuits weren't dry or under done, the gravy was certainly homemade, the eggs ordered up just right....and the mashed taters under all that deliciousness....aaaaaamazing! If you aren't starving and are a little "hung"...get O'Hare of the Dog...a 24oz budweiser and a side if bacon....hangover remedy for sure!

Prices are pretty average, but like I said...share...it's totally enough food, I promise! Mmm....I'm getting hungry...

Cheers,
Andrea