I love pho. Let me make that clear.
A warm seafood pho on a cold day is usually a solution to whatever petty problem is bugging me.
So, sure, it’s weird that for my first “Bite. Me.” blog post on a Vietnamese restaurant in Burnaby, I am not writing about pho.
Maybe that’s because it’s so hard to find one pho that stands above all others, which is part of the goal of this blog – finding those perfect bites that blow away others.
But Vietnamese appetizers – that’s a whole other thing.
There are great spring rolls and salad rolls, and there are terrible ones. My taste buds have had them all, so it’s a lot easier to find those that should be heralded, while phos are usually so close.
So when it comes to Vietnamese appetizers in Burnaby, my go-to place is Broken Rice on Hastings, just west of Gilmore (yes, in the Heights – I understand a lot of my favourites are there).
The problem is that when I went to try yet again the duck confit sliders at Broken Rice for this blog, I made the mistake of being talked into the pork belly sliders by the server.
And now I’m at an impasse – I can’t decide which one is more orgasmic than the other one.
The duck confit sliders are served in three steam bao, with tender duck confit, plus pickled carrots, daikon, cucumbers, onions, cilantro and a ginger hoisin sauce that brings just enough salt to the party to blow my mind.
But then the pork belly sliders landed on my table, with pickled mustard greens, carrots, carmelized onions and a subtle honey sriracha sauce, all served in the same baby-soft baos. The pork belly was cooked perfectly.
So I went back and forth, back and forth, back and forth – panicking the entire time because I couldn’t decide which one was better.
It’s like trying to decide which is your favourite child. (I don’t have that problem because I only have one child, but you get the point.)
I’m just glad I didn’t go to Broken Rice with any of my friends – then I would have had to share.
And that wasn’t going to happen.
*DISCLAIMER: I have not been paid by the restaurant in question for writing this blog. I paid for my meal and the owners didn’t even know I was writing about them.
Follow Chris Campbell on Twitter @shinebox44.
