Because today is my sister-in-law’s birthday, her husband treated us to Izakaya Blue Ocean Japanese restaurant (its web site needs a serious redesign). The place was pretty dead for a Wednesday evening. We had some pork dumpling and fried baby octopus for started. They weren’t too bad. I ordered a seafood udon for dinner but ended up switching with Dana for Katsu Don. Dana tries to stay away from egg because Duke seems to get eczema every time she has eggs. I didn’t like Katsu Don that much because it had a sweet taste to it. I never liked my pork, rice and eggs sweet.

It sure felt like hell after shoving down a 10-ounce meat at Ray’s Hell-Burger. Two days ago, the weather was nice so I called up Dana for lunched. We decided to give the much-hyped burger joint (after the Obama visit) a try. We didn’t realized that Ray’s the Steak is now Ray’s Hell-Burger. I had the Soul Burger Number One cooked as recommended: warm red center. I mistakenly ordered B.I.G. POPPA for Dana instead of Big Punisher for Dana. The Soul Burger was big and juicy, which caused the bun to be soggy. It was good, but not extraordinary. I would prefer more greens to go with the big red meat. Dana didn’t like her POPPA too much because the blue cheese was too strong, which overpowered the meat. After lunch, I felt bloated the whole day even though I tried to ran it off.

The nice thing about a grand-opening restaurant is that the people are very passionate. Hoa Vien Quan opened three weeks ago in Eden Center across from Hai Ky Mi Gia. From the server to the owner, they treated us with careful attention like finding a good spot for Cu Dao’s stroller and asking us if we liked the food.

We started off with the server’s recommendation: stuffed escargot (oc nhoi). Buried inside the meat, the escargot was hardly distinguishable from the plain stuffing. I had shaky beef with steamed rice (com bo luc lac) and it was not so bad although I prefer a simpler version with just beef and watercress dipped with salt, pepper and lemon instead of soy bean. My rice dish comes automatically with a bowl of soup, something I have to ask for at other places and even get charge for it. My mother-in-law had grilled pork with vermicelli (banh hoi thit nuong) and she liked it. Dana had Hoa Vien noodle soup (hu tieu Hoa Vien). The soup looked clear and tasted a bit plain, but she also liked it.

The common dishes don’t stand out, but they aren’t horrible either. So if I crave for a Vietnamese dish at one in the morning, I can still get it at Hoa Vien Quan since it opens from 9am-2am. The space is small, clean with simple decorations. The red and peach painting makes the place a bit “sen.” There was also a karaoke machine and it was a good thing that it didn’t turn on while we were eating.

While mooncake comes with all kind of flavors including lotus, red bean, durian, chocolate, ice cream, coffee and shark fins, I still prefer the Vietnamese combo style with sausage, roast pork, salted yolk, herbs and spices. After lunch at Present, Duke, Dana and I went to Eden Center to find a mooncake. We wanted to get just one to try out first before getting a whole box. After looking around a couple of places, we decided to buy one at Kim Phung bakery after the owner proudly bragged that he makes the best banh trung thu and even folks from California ordered his. I have to concur. Other than the egg yolk is a bit salty, the cake was delicious. It tasted just like the ones in Viet Nam I had years ago. Dana and I ate the whole piece late Saturday night. Although the price is a bit expensive ($7.35 a pop), I can’t wait to grab a few boxes for family and for me this weekend.

So Duke, Dana and I hooked up with big brother Hai for lunch at Present Cuisine. Here goes another Asian restaurant with a waterfall fountain. Nevertheless, the sound of the trickling water and the garden-like design gives the restaurant a cool, relaxing vibe.

Looking at the extensive menu, I get a kick out of the fancy names even though I wouldn’t know what the heck they were if I didn’t look at the actual Vietnamese items. For instance, “Silken Shawl Imperial Autumn Roll” is “Cha Gio Re” or “Pig at the Seaside Vermicelli” is “Banh Canh Tom Cua Gio Heo” or “Rick Folks Golden Crepes” is “Banh Xeo.” Didn’t know that Banh Xeo is a rich folks dish until you look at the price: $10.95 for one. We make Banh Xeo all the time at home and we ain’t rich.

Brother Hai ordered Banh Xeo and it sounded pretty crispy when he bit it. He cleaned up the entire plate so it must be good. I have to invite brother Hai to my sister-in-law’s house next time. She makes some killer Banh Xeo. I had at least five with hot sake the other day and it was heaven.

I tried Cha Ca La Vong and it was pretty good. The fish had a tangy flavor and the shrimp paste was not so strong that non-Vietnamese could give it a try. Dana was not satisfied with her Pig at the Seaside Vermicelli though. She thought the broth had a weird sour taste to it. She hasn’t ran to the bathroom yet, so it’s ok.

Although the prices are a bit higher than most Vietnamese restaurants around the area (including Eden), I was impressed enough to come back to check out some more dishes.

As for the services, I was a bit disappointed with the accommodation. I didn’t have a problem that they don’t have baby changing station in the bathroom; however, they couldn’t even provide me a private area to change Duke. I had to go out to the car.

The first time I went to Circle Bistro was for my interview at GW School of Business. Both my boss and I had Idaho trout. Although the fish was mildly marinated, the flavor came through. It has a light-salted taste that complemented the sweetness of the trout. The place had a cozy feel, which was perfect for a bit of relaxing before heading up for the next round of interviews.

The second time I went with a bunch of colleagues and almost all of them ordered the trout. I went for the grilled flat iron steak. Although the steak was a bit salty, it was juicy and tender. The red wine sauce added a nice European flavor to the red meat.

The third time I took my wife out for lunch when she visited me at work. She had the trout and I had the Pekin duck leg confit and we shared the steamed Maine “Blue Johnny” mussels. The duck was a bit done. It would had been a bit juicer if the meat was a bit raw. I had this dish once at Busy Bee in Poughkeepsie and the chef recommended it raw. The duck turned out delicious.

What makes Circle Bistro stands out is that it only serves a few selections, yet everything on the menu is consistence. You can just order anything on the menu and expect it to be decent.

If you thought Pho Hot’s web site is horrendous, wait till you see the actual location. You could actually see some shots in the gallery section. From the big, awful scenic paintings with bright gold frames to fake trees all over the place to cheesy slideshow on TV screens, Pho Hot looks like a staging for cai luong (Vietnamese opera). The decoration was so distracted that I forgot how the food tasted like. I didn’t order Pho. The rice dish was just ordinary and I have no intention of coming back.

The other day I had to order 20 lbs of banh beo for a party. I looked up online to find the phone number for Saigon Café, which locates across from Eden Center. To my surprise its web site comes up first on Google, but I had to look for a minute to make sure I was on the right site. The amateur design of the site has no connection to the restaurant.

I haven’t been back to Saigon Café for a while now so I can’t remember all the details of the place, but its simple yet vibrant interior design appealed to me. I like how a set of tea cups, which seemed be to cut in half, glued to the wall. What ironic about this place is that while the name clearly says Saigon, most of its best dishes are Hue. I tried pho, bun bo hue, banh canh and hu tieu, but none of them stood out. It’s banh bao, on the other hand, is a killer. It also has some mean banh bot loc.

After I made my 20 lbs order, I tempted to approach the owner to talk about redesigning its web site and to use the web as a marketing tool, something most Vietnamese restaurants don’t seem to take advantage of.

How can you tell when an egg is done boiling? I am not sure if you know this trick already, but I just learned it the other day from a my mom’s friend (who learned it from her father) when I boiled a few dozens of hột vịt lộn (balut). For the obvious reasons, you don’t want to undercook or overcook hột vịt lộn.

Before getting to the trick, let me declare that I finally gain back my love for hột vịt lộn. For a period of time, I gave up on hột vịt lộn because of the westerners’ influence and how they have made such a big wuss out of it. A white guy once told me that he couldn’t eat hột vịt lộn because it looks like abortion. That image haunted me for a while. What help me get back to the groove are salt, pepper, lime juice, tons of hot sauce and shots of Patrón. I still can’t eat hột vịt lộn without those ingredients, especially the liquor.

Let’s get back to the egg-boiling trick. My mom’s friend said that if you could pick up the egg with a pair of chopsticks than the egg is ready. Three of us tried it and we all dropped it back into the pot. Half an hour or so later, I picked it up again and I didn’t drop it. It’s a very nifty trick, but I doubt that it would work with many westerners.

I meant to mention this place a while back, but I keep forgetting. Next time you’re in Eden Center, drop by Hai Ky Mi Gia for some delicious noodle soup. In the pre-Duke days, Dana and I went there two nights in a row. The first night, I tried its specialty (yellow and clear-white noodles with the soup on the side). The savory sauce and the delightful broth reminded me of the late night Cho Lon noodles. Although Hai Ky is not comparable to the places in Cho Lon, it is the closest I could find in Virginia. The next night, I ordered the same dish, but with the broth. I like the former better. We’ll definitely be back for more.