My only regret about New Saigon was that I only had one stomach to give to the experience, because with what the Zagat's reviewer described as "a menu the length of a Tolstoy novel", we only got four dishes, and even then, we were unable to do full justice to the fourth of the bunch.
I have not been to Vietnam, nor have I have more than a handful of experiences eating in a truly Vietnamese restaurant, but this is a cuisine that I could fall hard for. It has some of the flavor elements that predominate Thai food: Salt, Hot, Sweet, and Sour, but the heat is not as intense, and the intensity of each element seems mellower, softer around the edges--and that softness is because of the abundance of freash herbs and vegetables that accompany each dish.
We opened our meal with crab and shrimp eggrolls, which look much like other egg rolls, except they come with noodles, and then a basket of pickled vegetables, herbs, fresh cucumbers, and then a lettuce leaf to wrap the whole thing up in, as well as a dipping sauce. These were divine. I really enjoy food that has some assembly required, and this is a great way to start the meal--my only regret is that we did not have more people at the table, because at the end of the appetizer, neither of us had much of an appetite left!
The best dish of the meal was the squid salad--the squid it self was beautifully prepared and barely cooked--perfection. It sat atop a large pile of vegetables that had been tossed in a light and delicious nuom pac-based dressing and it was heaven to eat. Everyone who walked into the restaurant passed by our table, and no one could resist commenting on the dish, it was so beautiful to behold. We had beef five ways and peppered shrimp to finish the meal off, and cannot wait until we return to Denver to have a second go at this wonderful restaurant.
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