These hills that greet visitors on Melbourne’s northern approaches once were dotted with sheep and rocks. Now they are blanketed with houses and huge shopping centres.
For lunch, a taste of Japanese tonkatsu at Plenty Valley.
Not fancy, just crumbed pork with udon noodles, vege and egg in a curry, heated by a cute, gimmicky blue gel tealight.
A filling lunch for $16.80 at Fukutontei.
The lovely ladies here reckon I need something healthier than iced coffee, BBQ scallops and Tiger beer.
Hence: rau má, AKA pennywort or Centella asiatica.
I gave it a go: ever imagined what the water would taste like after you’ve hosed underneath the lawn mower?
I doubt even vodka could save this stuff.
I’m now viewing Australia’s V8 juice in a whole new light …
– Vung Tau, Vietnam 2019
Olivier, Gielgud, Jacobi, This Old Duck: the great performances of our time. The weathered, forlorn face and the old, crooked body … irresistible to the successful young couples in Vung Tau on their weekend break from HCMC – they just have to stop and buy a bag of peanuts or fruit. And insist she keep the change. After they leave, Old Duck cracks a knowing smile and has a little giggle to herself, strategically rearranges her basket of goods, and then returns to pose: forlorn face, crooked body … When she has only a few bags left, a couple will do her a favor and buy the lot. Old Duck then collects her baskets, hobbles around the corner with surprising speed, and returns fully reloaded with peanuts and fruit. The show goes on. Hahaha Bless her soul!
Wood smoke, big pot boiling meat, cool sea breeze: stroll down a narrow hem (laneway) off the busy main road, and discover an open enclave where the locals live, laugh and gather to eat as a community. Hidden in the heart of tourism, Back Beach Vung Tau, Vietnam
Sometimes the “old ways” are best: a cyclo rider and his passenger stop to buy fresh produce from a street fruit vendor’s hand cart. Vung Tau, Vietnam 2019
She’ll be apples: crunchy, not too sweet, and delicious. Vietnam’s little green apples, táo, add “healthy” to the breakfast of iced coffee with sweetened milk, and trà da (weak iced tea). I’ll skip on the little sachet of dipping chili salt mix (muôi ót) that South-East Asians cherish on their fruit.
Mantis shrimp/sea mantis are a popular Vietnamese seafood.
Locals call them tôm tít.
There’s not a lot of meat in them but they are a cheap-ish treat, and usually barbecued, steamed, or pan fried in coconut oil.
I don’t recomment the fried version as I find the oil too sweet, and extracting the meat is a hot, messy, oily affair.
But don’t let me stop you – give them a crack …
Sometimes the words can be more appetising than the pics. I don’t fake my food pics, what you see is what I eat 😁.
Here are 12 scallops and four huge oysters, all barbecued on the shell.
I like mine with a (visually somewhat unattractive) dollop of sweet, home-made mayo/sauce; others prefer savory/chilli condiments.
This has almost become my staple dinner in Vung Tau, Vietnam, thanks to my hotel’s street seafood barbecue.
USD6.90/AUD10. Not bad for “tourist prices”, eh!
Always remember: “Never judge a scallop by its shell.” 🤠
Growing up, my brother and I often sought refuge in Readers’ Digest books.
I’ve found a hard cover classic here – add tropical weather and a big, frosty glass of freshly squeezed watermelon … who’s in a hurry to go back to the political morass of Australia? 🤠
– Vung Tau, Vietnam
You don’t like eating vegies? Then come to South-East Asia: the salads are so good, sometimes I could treat the meat as the garnish. Not this time – I last recall eating pork this tender in Argentina. Oh, and at the Sofitel Wanda Hotel, Beijing. This lunch is charsui Hoi An pork with firewood cooked rice. (I don’t know what firewood does to steamed rice, but the menu says it’s “traditional”. It’s tasty.) USD$1.95, Câm An (a little, street corner eatery known for chicken), Vung Tau, Vietnam
Haxtrax 