Lunch Review: Tram's Kitchen

In a perfect world, every city neighborhood would have a restaurant like Tram's Kitchen. It's a truly unpretentious little ethnic diner, serving amazingly fresh, healthy, delicious, authentic Vietnamese cuisine. And the service is so bad, that it's actually part of the place's charm.

Tram's is not a beautiful restaurant, but it does have, uh, "character." It's got strange lacquered art on the walls -- mother-of-pearl horses running through the mountains, or something. I suspect that this is the Southeast Asian equivalent of a Velvet Elvis painting. It's usually crowded -- Tram's isn't the kind of place that catches the eyes of passersby, but the word-of-mouth is strong and the prices are outstanding, so it fills up anyway.

The service is fast, but the owner is something straight out of a "Seinfeld" episode. He's a brusque, no-nonsense man of few words -- all of them barked out in a tone that doesn't suffer fools lightly. Don't seat yourself. Don't ask too many questions. Don't ask for condiments that don't go with the dish.

And by all means, don't fiddle around, chat or go to the bathroom before you order. Decide what you want first. Unless you want him standing over you, impatiently glowering at your hopeless ignorance, you must have your order ready fast.

But as long as you know the rules, you'll do fine -- and get quite a feast for the price, too.

You can get Eggrolls ($1.25) and/or Fresh Spring Rolls ($1.25), but you must order two. You can't get just one -- don't argue. You'll want two anyway -- one of my lunching companions says she's seen people make entire meals out of spring rolls. The spring rolls are filled with equal parts vermicelli noodles and shredded pork, with lettuce and perhaps a little cabbage thrown in, and wrapped in a translucent wrapper. They're not-deep fried, which is nice. They're just as good with tofu, though the strong pork flavor is obviously missing.

The Fried Wonton ($3.95) is a little disappointing, and really is the only thing that obviously isn't good for you. Ours seemed to be fried to a crisp -- like the blackened potato chips at the bottom of the bag -- and even a deliciously sweet orange glaze couldn't salvage them.

Vermicelli with Coconut Milk ($6.00) is a thick, curry-like bowl with the rich flavor of coconut milk dominating. Pork or chicken are fine, but get it with shrimp ($6.75).

"Sate" Soup ($5.50; $6.50) is an outstanding choice for a first-time visitor, though you don't need the large. You get a thick, brown, meaty broth that's spicy -- but not ridiculously so -- filled to the brim with vermicelli noodles, carrots and other miscellaneous vegetables, and your choice of meat. The sweet flavors of fresh basil are also in evidence. In a nice touch, long white bean sprouts are served on the side, which you can add yourself.

Don't ask for dessert. Despite what the menu says, there is no dessert.

Additional Information:

Tram's Kitchen