Yongkang Street (永康街) is home to a couple of long-established Vietnamese eateries, the two branches of Thanh Ky (誠記越南麵食館), which sit across from each other and would appear to hold a neighborhood monopoly on Vietnamese fare.
But a tiny restaurant around the corner on Lishui Street (麗水街) has also been reeling in customers with a hankering for noodle salads and pho.
Low prices and a homemade touch attract a steady flow of diners at Fengyan Vietnamese Shop (鳳燕越南店), named after its owner, Ruan Feng-yan (阮鳳燕).
Ruan, a 31-year-old native of Ho Chi Minh City, came to Taipei in 2001 after marrying her Taiwanese husband. After a stint of odd jobs that included working at hair salons, she found her niche running a pho stand at the Jingmei Night Market (景美夜市) and moved to the Yongkang Street area four years ago.
She does all the cooking at a makeshift outdoor kitchen outside of a 3-ping (10m²) dining nook that seats a dozen people and always seems to be full during meal times.
For first-timers, she recommends the beef noodle pho (清燉牛肉湯, NT$90) and rice noodle salad with sirloin beef (涼拌沙朗牛肉米線, NT$100).
The rice noodle salad won me over immediately for the generous portion of freshly crushed peanuts sprinkled on top. I also liked how Ruan pan-seared the beef slices, which tasted as if they had been barbequed on a grill. The bean sprouts provided a crunchy texture, while fresh basil and mint leaves added zest.
The rice noodle salads can also be ordered with pan-fried pork chop (涼拌香煎豬排米線, NT$90), garlic chicken slices (涼拌香蒜雞米線, NT$80), vegetable greens (涼拌蔬菜米線, NT$80) or seafood spring rolls (炸海鮮春捲,米線, NT$90). These items are also available as a la carte appetizers for NT$50 each.
The beef pho, which can be ordered with either thin or thick rice noodles, has all the requisite ingredients: a fragrant broth with hints of citrus, strips of rare lean beef, onion and fresh basil. Lemon wedges are available but aren’t offered.
Other varieties of pho include seafood (清燉海鮮湯米線), chicken (清燉雞肉湯米線) and vegetable greens (清燉蔬菜湯米線), which are all NT$90.
A coconut curry broth is available for an additional NT$10.
Ruan also offers a full selection of rice plate lunches. The Vietnamese home-style curry chicken (越南家鄉咖哩雞肉飯, NT$110), a drumstick stewed in a yellow curry sauce with yams and taro and a drizzle of coconut milk on top, makes for a hearty meal.
The green papaya salad (涼拌木瓜絲, NT$50) and chilled vegetable green salad (涼拌蔬菜, NT$50), both made with a sweet and sour vinaigrette, are simple but refreshing choices to keep in mind as summer approaches.
The sparse furnishings of Fengyan (fluorescent lighting, plastic stools and night market tables) are a far cry from the more refined vibe at Thanh Ky. But the space is clean and air-conditioned, and the modest atmosphere suits the food.
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