As a disclaimer, each person will have a unique experience at these restaurants, and not one interaction is ever the same.
Note that none of these businesses expected me, nor do they commission any of my reviews.
Thanks again for your time!
[The Story]
Among other things, I had the opportunity to sample the various cuisines that Vietnam had to offer- one of these delicacies was a dish known as
"Com Tam" (Showering Rice/Broken Rice). And having eaten this dish since I was a young child- I would like to believe I've developed a unique understanding of this dish.
I've seen posts of this particular Food Truck on Instagram from peers along with TikTok- so when I saw that they were literally around the corner to my home; I just had to give this place a try!
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[What did We Order]
2x Com Tam Dac Biet (Broken Rice Special)
~This dish contained 5 separate items:
-Suong Nuong (Grilled Pork Spare Rib)
-Bo Nuong (Grilled Beef Rib)
-Cha (Steamed Egg Cake)
-Bi (Shredded Pork Rinds)
-Trung (Fried Egg)
Total: $30.00 even when paying with cash.
~$33.00 if you used a debit or credit card
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The Food: 3/5
Whenever I go to different establishments, I always try my best to get appetizers so that I can see how they operate as well as their approaches to preparing these appetizers.
However, when I had attempted to order their
Xien Thit Nhuong(3x Grilled BBQ Pork Skewers) they had run out.
I then attempted to request an order of their Cha Gio(4x Eggrolls), but unfortunately they were out of this as well.
The young women then decided to tell me that the only thing they had was their Crab Soup for appetizers. Really shocked and a bit upset that they didn't have these items.
Though there were no appetizers that peeked my interests, that did not stop me from ordering their signature plate. It came out within minutes of me placing the order and from what I can tell from the man preparing my dish- most of the items they have are already pre-prepped, all they did was place the needed meats on their grill. This made me even more wary of my plate because according to the reviews- it seemed as if the meats were made to order. A REAL BUMMER.
The items that were on my plate smelled superb and looked rewarding- but the pieces me and my friend had gotten were more on the fattier side instead of meaty. The Cha portion was small but tasty, and the Trung and Bi were in the same boat as the Cha- smaller portion but not as memorable. The plate was filled with rice but the mo hanh they've given on my plate wasn't nearly enough. The best thing that came with the Com Tam Dac Biet was the Pork Soup they give you on the side. Their pickled vegetables could've been more colder in temperature- no Crunch to them
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The Service: 3/5
Upon arriving at the Truck I had to greet the young women myself so that I may order. Moreover, I had to literally order 2-3 items off the appetizer menu until I was told that the only item they had was the Crab Soup- again really disappointing. At least she did not forget the complimentary Nuoc Mat which comes along with an order of a Com Tam. And it was nice that she remembered to offer me a stamp-card, 10 Plates ordered from them will result in a few item of some sort- which item? I'm not sure because I wasn't told the details.
The young man working was cool, when I was taking my pictures for this review he asked if I needed a better picture and attempted to 'fix-up' the plate so that it was more picture worthy. Utensils given but no additional napkins were given, when you offer any Bone-In Item on your menu- I would give additional napkins regardless of me asking.
****
Overall : 3/5
I suppose that the lack of items and lesser pieces of meats were because my friend and I were literally the 2nd party to order from the truck.
I was told from the guy there that they didn't have enough time to prep the appetizers so that's the reason it is not on the menu. I believe a good business idea for them would be to have chalk board or white board that states which items are out of stock so people would know what is availble so that they don't waste their breath. If there was a long line and I had seen that items I wanted weren't in stock, I would think twice before placing my order.
It's a bit overpriced to be a Com Tam Restaurant especially on a truck, but the quirkiness of the Food Truck Concept along with the stamp card, is the 'wow' factor that will keep them busy for the following years- if they can uphold their standards.
The Recommendation:
Ask the employees what they may or may not have in stock- if they haven't already implemented the idea I mentioned. Try their Dac Biet because you'll get all the meats they have to offer if you insist on trying this spot.
Otherwise- go to your local Dine-In Com Tam spot.
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Check out my latest review at Ginkgo Katsu in Garden Grove and drop a reaction or comment on my review. We are students learning everyday- so I would love to learn of your experiences as well! read more