| The months after Christmas are a time for economizing, as the smokin’ credit card bill from holiday debauchery makes its way to the mailbox. I never know how much it’s going to be, only that I’ll have to be sitting down when I open it. In this spirit, I find myself turning to restaurants that are value-conscious, where the food is good, the price is, well, competitive and gluttony isn’t discouraged. Here are a couple of favourites in Chinatown:
SUNNY VIETNAMESE RESTAURANT
I must have walked by Sunny Vietnamese (#201 - 111 Second Ave. S.E., phone 265-2210) a hundred times before finding it, right next to the Golden Happiness Bakery and just east of the Golden Inn. The entrance is easy to miss – it’s upstairs from a driving school and there’s almost no signage. But once you’re in, the service is pleasant, brisk and welcoming.
The real reason to go to Sunny Vietnamese is for the Vietnamese soup, either pho, beef noodle, or hu, rice or egg noodle. The broth appears to be home-made, as it’s intense and flavourful without any of the increasingly common greasy aftertaste characteristic of other less committed restaurants. The Sunny’s special beef noodle soup ($5.50) is a large bowl of beef strips and beef balls, with firm noodles, lots of scallions and the usual accompaniments of sprouts, basil and lime. It’s wonderfully nourishing stuff on a freezing winter’s day. The Cambodian noodle soup ($5.25), characterized by Thai-style coconut milk and lemon grass, contrasts the tartness of the lemon grass and lime with the richness of the coconut milk. With a blast of heat, it’s the perfect blend.
Here’s a little anecdote indicating why Sunny Vietnamese is my new favourite Vietnamese hangout: our order was forgotten by the server for about four minutes and, as a result, three excellent spring rolls arrived, on the house. We didn’t even really notice that we’d been overlooked, but I marvelled at this kind of attention to the patron, which you won’t find in many of Calgary’s more upscale places.
DIM SUM EXPRESS
The notion of all-you-can-eat dim sum is, frankly, worrying. I mean, how much meat and fat and MSG can one liver take? But at Dim Sum Express (#104, 108 Third Ave. S.W., phone 262-2833), for $7.99 including GST, you can gorge yourself at the well-advertised All-You-Can-Eat Lunch Party, where, according to the menu, it’s dim sum vs. your stomach. There are rules, though, before you dig into what proves to be some perfectly serviceable dim sum, especially the sticky rice:
1. You can only order off the lunch menu and the party is only during weekday lunches. No reservations – first come, first served.
2. Certain dumplings can be ordered once per person only (you can eat as much pork liver and pork congee as you like, though).
3. Any leftovers are charged full price. This means that if you fail to finish everything you order, you’re on the nut. Can’t jam in that last fish ball? You gotta pay extra. This encourages (a) intelligent ordering, or in my case, (b) Mr. Creosote-type eating.
4. You only have 90 minutes. Ready, set, go.
I once worked with a guy who said that you hadn’t done dim sum any service unless your head was spinning when you emerged from the restaurant, squinting against the sunlight, and you felt really weird all afternoon. Mission accomplished. |
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