Brodard - Garden Grove

I'm always up for a good adventure, and eating my way through a new country is second to none. I've become pretty fluent in foodie, and I'll sample just about anything from just about any street. After all, no new country is complete without at least one healthy helping of food poisoning. If you don't drive the porcelain bus at least once in China or regurgitate at least one helping of street-cart Thailand rice, you need to stop ordering room service at the Ritz and get out a little more.

Now I've tasted so many things from so many places. At first I was struck by how different each item was, but I see how much of the world is the same. Look at the Mexican family values and see the embodiment of Confucian filial piety. Wash the marinara from the spaghetti and make Chinese beef noodle soup. Take the frijoles and arroz out of a Mexican chimichanga, and it's just an Asian egg roll.  

Sorry Mexico, but no one rolls like the Vietnamese. These Grilled Pork Spring Rolls have a soft Spam-y texture crumbling with sweet, grill-kissed flavor, freshened by lettuce, carrots, cucumber, and crunchies, all encased in a chewy wrap. The chef's special sauce is exceptional beyond belief, a hot, salty, savory gravy mix.

Everyone goes to Italy for the pasta, but I wonder if the Vietnamese are disappointed when they try it. I'll never say no to a peppy pesto or the popular pomodoro, but I don't know if anything comes close to a good bowl of Bun. The skinny strings of vermicelli mix with tender grilled pork, crispy, meaty eggrolls, and raw veggies julienne. And no bun is complete without a sassy sweet n' sour fish sauce mixed right in.

Somewhere between the spring rolls and the bun, you're bound to get a little thirsty. You have to ask for ice water in authentic Asian restaurants, and you often don't get it anyway. But who needs water when you have Green Tea Boba? Marie Antoinette said, "Let them eat cake". Marie Asian-nette said, "Let them drink boba".

Many cultures will clash, but they always find a way to combine. Vietnamese cuisine is not without a strong French influence, and I don't object one bit to the French colonization of desserts. Brodard boasts masterwork Macarons in 19 flavors, including a luscious lavender vanilla, sweet red velvet, classic green tea, and lychee and mango-passionfruit, a tart, fruity finish for a fantastic meal.

I write this post with my iPad in my lap, about to embark on a new adventure to fill my bucket list in Belize. Belize won't be on my bucket list for much longer now, and after a meal at Brodard, Vietnam has moved itself to the top. It'll be a while before I can afford an Asia-trip, but I'll definitely fly down the highway to Garden Grove a little more often than I thought.