Never have I had a holiday-induced ailment that a steaming bowl of pho at Việt Ái in Florham Park could not cure.
Every element of this soup is purifying, from the star-anise-scented broth made from beef bones (paleos should love this) to the sprigs of fresh basil served on the side so that you, the diner, may add them, thus minimizing wilt time.
Delicate rice noodles swim in the fragrant broth.
They amaze me every time I eat them because in this one rendition, they actually taste like rice.
Việt Ái, whose chef is a native of Việt Nam, opened in 2006
A favorite among the 18 kinds of phở, which all share the classic ingredients of rice noodles and meat, is one accompanied by rolls of grilled beef.
If you order beef only once in the new year, let it be tonight.
In the middle of winter, these delicate rolls taste as if they won first place in a summer grilling competition.
The reason?
Đỗ Ái Khanh, owner of Việt Ái and its head chef, inserts into each roll a sliver of onion and pork fat.
These flavors melt into the meat as it is cooked.
Equally captivating dishes follow.
The peanut sauce that accompanies the summer rolls, for example, is neither vinegary nor gloppy.
The wonder of it is that except for the garnish (omitted for customers with allergies), it is prepared entirely without peanuts.
Sheer alchemy — a mixture of sugar, garlic, oil, hoisin sauce and ground mung beans — produces a sauce as full of peanut flavor as a jar of Skippy.
The rolls themselves, rice paper wrapped around cold, bland shrimp, are not sensational, but as a vehicle for the “peanut” sauce they work just fine.
My dinner companions, a peanut-butter-loving couple (the husband packs a jar when he travels to Europe) agreed.
“I’d love anything with this sauce.”
The wife said.
My sentiments exactly.
The shrimp salad is dressed up with fresh mint leaves and crushed peanuts
Vietnamese food can be as complex as Chinese or Thai, but it is rarely as oily.
One example is Việt Ái’s shrimp salad.
It has been only a month since my last visit, and already I dream about a return trip when I can eat the entire dish.
During my last visit, I had to share it. Fresh mint leaves and crushed peanuts dress up a plate of cooked shrimp with cucumbers, carrots and daikon radishes cut in the shape of French fries.
Shrimp salad made with mayonnaise is nice; this one, just the right mix of sweet and sour, is more refreshing.
In its oil-free way, it is also more satisfying, especially if you like dishes with texture, which this one has, thanks to the crisp cabbage with which all the other ingredients are mixed.
Hotter, in terms of both temperature and seasoning, but equally worth sampling are the chef’s grilled shrimp served on a cloud of steamed rice noodles.
Also excellent:
Ms. Khanh’s cubes of juicy flank steak surrounded by curly leaf lettuce, and a bowl of steaming mussels bobbing in a curried coconut broth in which stalks of fragrant lemon grass float.
Less appealing are some of the more conventional dishes.
Biting into the deep-fried Vietnamese-style spring rolls, the first thing you taste is grease.
It is not old grease, but neither is it a great introduction to the more interesting appetizers on the menu.
The steamed whole flounder was more than one or even two people could finish, but the brown sauce in which it bathed was the rare Việt Ái sauce that lacked flavor.
Better entrees are the salmon served in a tangy brew of soy and fish sauce, and the always-fun-to-eat flat noodles known, appropriately, as chow fun.
There are 18 kinds of phở, including one with rolls of grilled beef
Ms. Khanh, 60, moved from Việt Nam to the United States with her three children in 1988.
After working in Vietnamese restaurants in New York, she and a relative opened Việt Ái in 2006.
Kenneth Quách, one of Ms. Khanh’s children and the manager of Việt Ái, told me over the phone after my visits that the restaurant originally attracted a predominantly Asian clientele, but now it serves a more mixed crowd.
If there is a downside to dining at Việt Ái, where four people can order twice as much as they can eat for less than $100, it is the décor.
It is a work in progress, said Mr. Quách, who foresees additional renovations this year. In the meantime, ignore the dingy rear corridor and limited view (of a shopping center).
The dining room, where comfortable booths have replaced metal tables and chairs, is brightly lit, and as welcoming as any in which customers know they are going to be served interesting and expertly prepared food.
* * *
VIỆT ÁI
189 Ridgedale Avenue
Florham Park
973-410-9400
Very Good
The space
Entering through a rear corridor makes a bad first impression, but do not retreat.
The dining area, however bare-bones, seats 55 people in comfortable booths or tables and exudes the joy of happy diners.
Dining room and restroom are wheelchair accessible.
The crowd
About half Asian; half everyone else.
Regulars, including a few families.
Dress is casual.
Service is swift, attentive and, in a few cases, charming.
The bar
B.Y.O.B.
Do not miss the iced Vietnamese coffee with condensed milk ($3.50).
The bill
Appetizers, $4.50 to $13.95; entrees, $8 to $24; desserts, $2.75 to $3.
Visa, MasterCard and Discover are accepted.
What we liked
Phở or rice noodles with grilled beef; grilled shrimp on steamed rice noodles; shrimp salad; green mussels in curry and coconut broth; chow fun with shrimp; salmon; sautéed beef cubes with lettuce.
If you go
Tuesdays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.; Sundays, 10 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Parking in rear lot.
Ratings
Excellent, Very Good, Good, Fair, Poor.
By FRAN SCHUMERJAN
Source: The New York Times
VIETNAM GLOBAL NETWORK 