Tonkin

There we were, my son and I, traveling aimlessly down Main Street.  Well, not really...  It was after getting haircuts (which were matching by the way, LOL), we were hungry with no real ideas as to where to eat.  Pathetic, I know.  So I had just passed King Edward when I noticed that a Vietnamese restaurant had replaced Honolulu Cafe.  Interestingly named Tonkin and with a grand opening discount, I made an immediate left turn into a parking spot.  Hey, I'm Chinese - I couldn't pass up a discount AND a free parking spot. It's against my upbringing. So walking into the place, with all the various choices of tables, my son points to the one right in front of the window.  It was a strange half-booth facing the window which was horrible for pictures!

Oh well, whatever, a happy kid in a restaurant = I can eat in peace.  We started with the Banh Mi Dac Biet which featured dense, yet crusty bread.  The ingredients were plentiful and complimentary.  I particularly liked the impacful amount of pate.  So many places either omit it or merely smear a minimal amount.  In addition, there was no absence of fish sauce which added even more punch to an already flavourful combination.  As for my bowl of Pho Dac Biet, it was served in a modern square bowl.  The broth was meaty, dark and rich.  It was not really all that sweet, rather it was more savoury.  There was no absence of meat, but the rare steak was somewhat chewy.

Lastly, we had the Grilled Chicken on Rice.  Being chewy and moist at the same time, the rice was very good.  However, the chicken was dry and bland with no real distinguishing flavours.  To my son's dismay, the fried egg had a completely cooked yolk (which kinda defeats its purpose).  Despite the poor rice dish, the other 2 items we had were pretty good.  Not bad.

The Good:
- Friendly people
- Okay pricing

The Bad:
- Food is not bad, but not outstanding either