Chicago has dozens of Vietnamese restaurants, and most of them have the same lineup of soups, sandwiches and rice dishes.
But a newer option in Chinatown offers both traditional dishes as well as an extensive list of seafood dishes, including hot pot, according to NBC Chicago’s Food Guy Steve Dolinsky.
Nearly every table has a wide bowl of pho – the ubiquitous beef noodle soup from Vietnam – at Ocean Grill and Bar in Chinatown, a good half mile away from the center of the action. Their version is quite a bit different from others in town. They start with that signature broth – boiled for hours, infused with ginger, onions, star anise and black pepper – but they also take a few liberties that improve their bowl.
“Here we use fresh noodles. We can’t make it here yet, so we expedite it from California,” said Ricky Dinh, owner of Ocean Grill & Bar. “Normally, other places they use Eye of Round – the cut – but here we use beef tenderloin.”
Beyond the soup, there are dozens of seafood options, most of which are grilled, fried or tossed in a wok. Grilled clams get some punch with scallions, as well as crushed peanuts and fried shallots. Same goes for the large oysters, charbroiled and topped with the same garnishes, served piping hot.
“Since we’re in Chinatown, we do have Chinese dishes for the lobster, ginger-onion, same as the crab,” he said.
In this case, whole crab, which is summarily dispatched of its inedible parts, then dredged in cornstarch and deep-fried until lightly golden. It’s then strained, and tossed into a wok with some traditional Chinese seasonings.
“Oyster sauce, soy sauce, ginger and onions…”
And plenty of garlic. The resulting dish is a messy affair, requiring shell crackers and some napkins. More easily shareable, the do-it-yourself hot pots.
“Hot Pot is not very popular in Chicago yet, but in California, where there’s a bigger Vietnamese population, they’re well-known for hot pot and seafood,” said Dinh.
Dinh says focusing on seafood is a much harder endeavor for a restaurateur, because it requires more volume, and more turnover.
“If you don’t have the customers, there’s no way to keep it fresh,” he said.