Bong Su Review

Oj, Ju, and many of their friends, including me, went to a Vietnamese restaurant in SOMA, Bong Su, on the day of our company outing to Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

http://www.bongsu.com/

Bong Su was a good place, serving us tasty food with a variety of flavors.

Since we were eight people, we got to order a good fraction of the menu, and I got to try the majority of what we ordered.

Appetizers: 

• "Imperial Rolls: Crisp crab, pork & mushroom rolls served w/ Vietnamese herbs & chili-fish sauce." Good. Warm throughout, with a nicely crispy skin. Worked well wrapped in herbs.

• "Bo Bia: Soft rice paper rolls of steamed lap chang, carrots, jicama, basil & peanuts. Fairly good. I really liked the slice of sausage (lap chang)--I wish there was more than one piddly little bite in each roll. Most of the roll's contents were thin noodles. The peanuts added a nice, surprising crunch.

Entrees: 

• "Mango Tiger Prawns: Black Tiger prawns wok fired w/ mangos & peppers in a black bean sauce." Good. Large caramelized (i.e., sweet) prawns, tossed with peppers and onions in a similarly sweet gooey sauce.

• "Caramelized Black Cod: Alaskan cod caramelized in garlic, black pepper, molasses & onion." Silky, tasty cod in a mild broth that let the fish stand out. Worked well with coconut rice.

• "Madras Curry Chicken: Boneless chicken simmered in Madras curry, potatoes & yams." I didn't get to try the chicken but the curry sauce seemed like a respectable yellow curry.

• "Shaking Beef: Cubed beef tenderloin sauteed w/ garlic & onions. Served w/ a watercress salad." I didn't get to try the beef, but the watercress salad was pretty decent.

• "Hoisin Lamb Chops: Grilled Australian lamb chops served w/ baby bok choy & string yams." The lamb was cooked correctly just to the point of medium-rare. Served with an orange-colored confetti, possibly made from sweet potatoes or carrots. These were crunchy and salty, like an odd form of fries, and somewhat addictive. Also served with decent, standard sauteed baby bok choy.

Side dishes: 

• "Kaffir Long Beans: Chinese long beans wok fired w/ chili & onions." Too salty.

• "Garlic Fried Rice: Wok fried rice w/ garlic & black pepper." A nice amount of garlic--not too much, thus allowing the rice to serve as the base for other dishes with sauces.

• "Coconut Rice."

I didn't see the bill and don't know how much the wine we ordered cost. Under reasonable assumptions I'd say, disregarding drinks but including tax and tip, the total came to $42/person.

Comments from Other Attendees

I read some good things about Bong Su's calamari. I ordered it but it never arrived. I only realized after we left the restaurant that we never received the calamari. It's still on my list to try. -mark

Feel free to add comments here.