Vietnamese Archives - Gil's Thrilling (And Filling) Blog

Pho Nho – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil GardunoNovember 30, 2025December 3, 202512:01 AM

Foodies are a passionate–some would say even snobbish–lot. The most passionate among them are sticklers for authenticity and provenance of ingredients and preparation methods. The plebeian among us who don’t know quite as much had better not represent inaccuracies as truths (much as politicians do) or even use culinary terms incorrectly lest we be excoriated. Tieghan Gerard, a well-intentioned blogger, learned just how passionate savvy foodies can be. Tieghan, the creator of the popular food blog Half Baked Harvest found herself in hot water when she had the audacity to misrepresent a quick noodle soup recipe. More specifically, she dubbed her recipe “chicken pho,” a faux pas on may levels and for many reasons. Readers were quick to point out…

Albuquerque Bakery New Mexico Vietnamese

Le Bakery – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil GardunoJuly 5, 2025July 25, 202512:01 AM

“What colonialism does is cause an identity crisis about one’s own culture.” ~Lupita Nyong’o Academy Award Winning Actress Much as we might believe geopolitics has no place in a food blog, food and geopolitics are undeniably intertwined. Perhaps nowhere is that more evident than in the history of Vietnam. In the 17th Century, France began a trade relationship with Vietnam. Two centuries later, France began the colonization of Vietnam. For six decades, France ruled over the Southeast Asian country, essentially relegating the indiginous population to second-class status, if not servitude. During this time, French influence spread across Vietnamese cuisine, architecture, culture, art and cuisine – an influence which continues to live on across the country today. The French influence on…

Oklahoma United States Vietnamese

Pho Lien Hoa – Oklahoma City

Gil GardunoMay 11, 2025May 20, 202512:01 AM

“Oklahoma, Where the wind comes sweepin’ down the plain And the wavin’ wheat Can sure smell sweet When the wind comes right behind the rain.” ~Oklahoma by Rodgers & Hammerstein The setting for Rodgers and Hammerstein’s revolutionary 1943 Broadway hit Oklahoma showcased wide-open plains and rugged landscapes that painted both a literal and metaphorical canvas. The vastness of the territory mirrored the boundless dreams and limitless energy of its inhabitants. This award-winning musical depicted the ushering in of organized statehood, a challenging transition from mostly unsettled agrarian land. That transition parallels the characters’ personal journeys toward growth and self-discovery. Oklahoma became a timeless classic largely because of the stirring music, but also its celebration of love, community, and resilience among…

Albuquerque Asian New Mexico Rated 25 Vietnamese

SAIGON CITY – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil GardunoMarch 21, 2025February 21, 20267:54 AM

NOTE: Saigon City shuttered its doors on 31 October 2025, but reopened in February, 2026. My brother in blogging Ryan Cook describes his first day in Vietnam: “So, my first stop in Vietnam was the capital, Hanoi. My honest first impressions… what the hell have I let myself in for. Seriously…The roads are chaos! The ride from the airport to the hostel was basically 40 minutes of holding my breath and cringing. How someone wasn’t killed in front of my eyes was a miracle! However, this is something you later don’t even bat an eyelid at after a day or two. Throughout the country, the roads are all complete lawless chaos…BUT it works! Everyone is so insane on the road,…

Albuquerque Bakery Coffee New Mexico Sandwich Vietnamese

Banh Me & You – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil GardunoMarch 12, 2025March 29, 20258:47 AM

According to The Tanner Food Group, a a food consultancy focused on international trade, industry preparedness and regulatory activities, there are now nearly 8,000 Vietnamese restaurants stateside. Food Scientist Michael Murdy, founder of robustkitchen.com attributes the popularity of Vietnamese food to the “wide range of flavors and textures associated,” specifying that “the combination of sour, sweet, savory, and spicy flavors, as well as the use of fresh herbs and vegetables, makes Vietnamese food particularly attractive to people.” From among the nearly 8,000 Vietnamese restaurants on this side of the pond, it’s a good bet many of their menus are graced with banh mi, the sandwich melding French and Vietnamese flavors and techniques. I first encountered the banh mi during one…

2025 James Beard Foundation "Outstanding Bakery" Semifinalist Albuquerque Bakery Diners Drive-Ins and Dives Food Network Eats New Mexico Sandwich Vietnamese

Coda Bakery – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil GardunoNovember 5, 2024July 10, 202512:01 AM

JP, my former boss at Intel used to pride himself on consistently working “half days.” If you’re thinking you’d like a job where you work only four hours a day, you’ve misinterpreted his definition of “half days.” To him, half days is a literal term meaning twelve hours a day. When most of us are done for after only nine or ten hours, he was just starting what he called his “second shift.” Very few of us have the stamina, initiative and especially the passion for what we do to work “half days.” I know restaurateurs for whom half days (or longer) are standard six or seven days a week. Because they spend so much time in their restaurants tending…

Dog Friendly New Mexico Rio Rancho Vietnamese

Pho Garden – Rio Rancho, New Mexico

Gil GardunoOctober 18, 2024October 22, 20249:24 PM

NOTE: In the first few introductory paragraphs below I describe an encounter that took place between two friends. Though that encounter took place several years ago, it perfectly illustrates the idealogical divide that has torn our great nation apart. It should have been a point-counterpoint debate for the ages. My ideologically opposed and perpetually squabbling friends Carlos and Hien were arguing about the concept of American exceptionalism. Carlos took the Reaganesque position that America is the shining city on a hill. “Everything about America is great,” he proclaimed. “We have the highest standard of living and pretty much the best of everything.” Hien mirrored Obama’s stance that America does not have exclusivity in believing itself to be exceptional. Much like…

Albuquerque Asian New Mexico Vietnamese

Pho Ginger – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil GardunoAugust 31, 2024September 7, 202412:00 AM

The Cultural Atlas reveals one aspect of Vietnamese life that is readily apparent to those among us well acquainted with Albuquerque’s Vietnamese restaurant families: “Family is the most important aspect of life in Vietnam. It is much more interdependent and tight-knit than what many Western cultures are familiar with. The cohesiveness and health of the family unit is often a main imperative. The “family unit” itself generally includes a larger nexus of relationships. Aunts, uncles, grandparents and other extended relatives often have very close relationships and provide a central support system.” During our time in the Land of Enchantment, we’ve seen just how interdependent and tight-knit Vietnamese families are. We’ve also experienced how warm and welcoming those families are. We…

Albuquerque New Mexico Vietnamese

Pho #1 – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil GardunoMay 6, 2024May 11, 20242:28 AM

Beef. How do I love thee? Let me count the ways. I love thee to the depth and breadth and height my pho spoon can reach. Okay, I’m no Elizabeth Barrett Browning, but if I were to count the ways I love beef, the count might stop at seven–as in the special seven courses of beef offered at Pho #1. Serving the Duke City for more than two decades, Pho #1 makes an audacious claim by virtue of its name but it’s a claim with which loyalists will agree. It’s an International District gem that continues to thrive in a neighborhood some diners eschew. With more than one-hundred items on the menu–not including the seven courses of beef–Pho #1 offers…

Albuquerque Vietnamese

Viet Taste – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil GardunoFebruary 26, 2024February 27, 20244:32 AM

In the “gobble and go” pace of contemporary American life, it’s sometimes difficult to remember what you ate during your last meal, much less recall the sensory experience of that meal. When that happens to true gourmands, they will actively seek a memorable dining experience in which all five senses are invoked. One of the best restaurants in Albuquerque in which to have such a sensory experience is almost any Vietnamese restaurant. One such example is Viet Taste which opened on April 4, 2007. Even more than most Vietnamese restaurants, Viet Taste exemplifies comprehensive eating, the most sublime form of Vietnamese cooking and eating. This style of eating involves all five senses. In comprehensive eating, you eat with your eyes…

Albuquerque New Mexico Vietnamese

Basil Leaf – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil GardunoSeptember 2, 2023September 3, 20231:09 PM

“Do we really want to travel in hermetically sealed Popemobiles through the rural provinces of France, Mexico and the Far East, eating only in Hard Rock Cafes and McDonalds? Or do we want to eat without fear, tearing into the local stew, the humble taqueria’s mystery meat, the sincerely offered gift of a lightly grilled fish head? I know what I want. I want it all. I want to try everything once.” – Anthony Bourdain Genesis 11 recounts a time when the entire world had a common language and dwelt as one people. Alas, hubris overtook the generations of survivors of the great flood who decided, with great unity of purpose, to build a city named Babel with a tower…