Week 15: Vietnam

Week 15: Viet Nam

When discussing Viet Nam, the conversation either starts with or will inevitably lead to the war. In 1965 Australia committed their first combat troops to South Vietnam, to help stem the spread of communism in Europe and Asia. Over 60 000 Australian soldiers did battle, and 521 died during the eventual 13 year conflict. Nearly 50% of the Vietnamese population was internally displaced, and millions were killed. As a result, there were over 800 000 orphans, and after the fall of Saigon, Australia adopted hundreds of orphans and started to accept refugees. This was the first group of Asian immigrants to settle in Australia since the White Australia Policy was abolished in 1973. Today there are 221,114 Vietnamese resident in Australia, of which 21,416 live in Brisbane.

We are fortunate to have the full spectrum of Vietnamese Cuisine in Brisbane: from upscale French-fusion to really basic take-aways. Last night, our adventure led us to Darra, a suburb 14 km west of the CBD. Darra, one of the older suburbs in Brisbane, is the epicentre of the Vietnamese community (18% of the residents in Darra are Vietnamese). I thought it might be prudent to do a recce before dragging family and friends into the unknown. This vibrant little retail precinct could well be somewhere in Hanoi with all the shopfronts signed in Vietnamese: the Vietnamese bakery, Vietnamese seafood market, Vietnamese laundry, newsagents and cafes. After inspecting several eateries down the main strip, I noticed a restaurant hidden at the back of a laneway opposite the train station. With one-way mirrored windows, I had no idea what to expect on the other side. To the left of the restaurant was a room filled with elderly men playing cards, sitting on inverted milk crates, cigarette smoke billowing through the open door, and to the right is Salon Kim, next door to Trang Video. It was about noon on a Tuesday morning. I pushed the door open, and was surprised to find a packed restaurant, humming with the sound of chatter and chopsticks. Scanning the meals on the tables, and sneakily observing the activity in the kitchen, I considered my reconnaissance mission successfully completed.

Vietnamese cuisine is light, refreshing, and deliciously satisfying - ideal for the warmer months. The fundamental features of the cuisine include an abundance of aromatic herbs, fresh seafood and vegetables, rice noodles and rice paper wraps, soup-based dishes and the long-standing French influence. It is considered to be one of the healthiest cuisines in the world, as the emphasis is on freshness, and nothing is cooked in animal fat. The objective of a meal's composition is to create a balance that is beneficial to the body. It centres around five elements: wood (sour) , fire (bitter), earth (sweet), metal (spicy) and water (salty).  And they all came into perfect alignment on Friday night at Nha Hang Thanh Quyen. Here we go: an ngon nhe!

Discovering Nha Hang Thanh Quyen was like winning the Lotto. The food was everything the theory promised. It was fresh and delicious and satisfying and incredibly reasonable. There were nine of us last night (if this was an Arlo Guthrie song, we would have classified as a movement!). This family owned restaurant was full, and there must have been at least two table rotations while we were there. We had a fabulous meal. Thank goodness the menu had English subtitles, but we nevertheless ordered by number. Everyone had a different number, and everyone was happy: Noodles with prawns and pork; vermicelli with spring rolls and sugar cane prawn cakes; rice vermicelli with duck and young bamboo; a delicious starch broth with pork hock and fish cakes;  noodle and mussels soup with coriander and sprouts; chilli and lemongrass chicken with rice;  and roll-your -own rice paper rolls with prawn, mint, bean sprouts, cucumber, crisp lettuce and grilled pork. It's BYO, cash only and closes at 9pm. We were the last patrons to leave, with Mr Quyen waiting at the door to lock up. This humble eatery must be one of Brisbane's best kept secrets.  

Tonight, the Gold Lotto has rolled over to $22 million. I have marked six of the nine numbers from the dishes we ordered last night as my Lotto entry: 35, 40, 41, 38, 39 and 44.......you never know your luck!

Again, we shared many interesting facts......the flag (red with one big golden star, of which the 5 points represent the 5 groups of people: the intellectuals, the military, farmers, businessman and the workers)  the national animal (water buffalo), the geography (Vietnam will fit between Brisbane and Melbourne).....and of course The War.
Homework for week 16: Find Facts on Sudan.

 

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