We started with “Camp fire beef (marinated in Vietnamese spices and served in rice paper wraps)”. The meat came raw to the table in a bowl which then had a fire lit underneath for cooking. Our flame was a little bit piddly, though, so it took longer to cook than it probably should have.
I’ve been following Grab Your Fork for years (meaning: years before I started my own blog). I’ve always found myself torn between envy, excitement, and swooning as she’s opened my eyes to magical foods from not only Sydney, but the world over. At the moment, I’m enamoured with her Malaysia travel posts: so much cendol, ais kacang, and kaya toast, all of which I’ve never come across in Dear Old Canberra (or in any of the admittedly-rarely-Asian countries I’ve visited).
After the beef is cooked to your liking, you take a rice paper sheet and top it with shredded lettuce, rice noodles, beef, pineapple, cucumber, and herbs, before rolling it up and dipping it in nuoc cham.
If you’d told me, a few years ago, that I’d be meeting this inspiring and intrepid lady in my own city, that I’d get to spend several hours chatting with her as if we’d known each other for eons (which, through our blogs, might be almost true…), and that she would present me with a bag of goodies The Likes Of Which I’d Never Have Imagined And Which Made Me Chirp And Be Giddy With Glee (more on that in another post, for such bag of wonderment deserves a post of its own), I would’ve told you you’re dreamin’.
Luckily for me, this was no dream.
Not bad for my first ever rice paper roll effort, right? Helen mentioned that this dish normally comes with pickled vegetables. This made me sad, as I love pickles in all shapes and forms. Still, this was probably my favourite dish of the night, even though it needed more zing, pizzazz, and chilli.
And now, for no other reason than to keep you on your toes, I’m going to switch up the captions/text style of the post. This is not a good demonstration of the “consistency” I’ve told my students I expect from them in regards to their essays’ referencing.
Bean Curd with Lemongrass and Chilli
To be honest, I was having too much fun talking with Helen to pay much mind to this dish. Sadly, that simply corroborates the theme of the evening’s food: nothing was really lively or vibrant enough to warrant much attention. I’ve been to My’s Vietnamese several times and have been impressed with their fresh, zippy, and zingy flavours, and yet it seems that in moving (note to Canberrans – the address on the Internet is wrong) to a main-street location, they’ve tamed their menu and flavours to suit unadventurous (mainstream?) tastes.
The tofu was nicely soft and soaked in sauce yet, for a dish named for its lemongrass and chilli, there simply weren’t enough of either of these ingredients. (The leftovers were kinda tempting at breakfast this morning, though.)
Lastly, from the night’s specials: Prawn and Pork Paw Paw Salad
I’ve mentioned before that I’m on the hunt for my Platonic ideal of green pawpaw/mango salad. Thanks to Helen, I’ve realised that what I’m after is Som Tam, the Thai version made with fish sauce, lime, chilli, dried shrimp, and peanuts… all those intense flavours I love. Sadly, this salad was not intense, albeit serviceable. It was simply too mild for my and Helen’s tastes. (But not for My’s tastes, clearly. Oh, chortle.)
I do hope Helen posts a bit of a Canberra round-up once her visit’s over… both because I think she’s got some niftier eating experiences lined up, and because I know her photos from our night together are buckets better than mine!
Thank you for the wonderful evening, Helen. I can’t wait to do it again on your home turf.
One last salad shot, just because.
* Yes, I know there’s doubt as to whether she actually said that. But you know what? It’s also not “Alas, poor Yorick, I knew him well” or “Play it again, Sam”#, contrary to popular belief, so I think we can let sleeping quotes lie.
# I can’t help myself^: the correct lines are “Alas, poor Yorick, I knew him, Horatio” and “Play it, Sam”.
^ I’m sorry! I’m nit-picky! I also can’t abide by incorrect apostrophe usage. I’m sorry!
{ 33 comments… read them below or add one }
Hmmm…that’s a bit sad about My’s but it wasn’t so much an evening about food was it? I do always feel sad though when a menu says Chilli or Ginger or whatever and you don’t get that zing. Such a wasted opportunity.
Exactly – this was an evening about the wonderful company
Do you think having a pet peeve about a lack of chilli is genetic?
Oh such speed! You are a fast one! It was a fantastic evening – I think we talked non-stop, mostly about food, but really is there anything else worth talking about? I don’t consider myself food blogger royalty though. It’s just me!
I eat and I write about it. It’s all about the food.
Our campfire beef was lovely, and whilst the flame was small, at least we didn’t have a pryotechnic display like on the other table! lol. And re: the Marie-Antoinette quote, apparently she referred to brioche, but cake is a tasty translation.
Can’t wait to host you for a dinner in Sydney. Actually we better make that an entire weekend. There’s so much I want you to eat – with gusto!
I couldn’t help writing it up straightaway – I was so filled with happiness when I got home! If you ever do decide to wear your royal crown with pride, I call dibs on being your lady-in-waiting
Or perhaps your official taste-tester, to check for posion? Yes, the official taste-tester. That’s what I want.
That flame at the other table was crazy! At least the slowness of our fire gave us lots of time for photo-taking
A whole weekend in Sydney with you? Really and truly? Oh, gosh, if it weren’t for family commitments this weekend I’d be booking flights already…
Incredibly jealous! Of the company, I mean, although that bean curd has got my mouth watering.
I’ve been such a fan of Helen’s for so long, so I’m just SO SO happy for you that you got to have such a lovely evening together
Wish I’d known she was in Canberra — I would’ve done a bit of ridiculous, geeky, internet fangirly stalking
On second thought, perhaps it’s a good thing i didn’t, lest my perfect police record be tarnished…
I thought your police record got tarnished when the cops found you outside my window, stroking the glass and crying?
Perhaps we should eat bean curd together sometime to stem your envy…
Did/have you tried pho? Everyone raaaves about pho, but my first experience was underwhelming. (Probably because my nearest Vietnamese restaurant is not the best.) So, I’ve never tried it since.
But in general, I just love do-it-yourself food, like the wrapping and cooking-on-the-table you describe. That’s one of my favorite things about Korean barbecue: Slabs of bacon sizzling in the middle of the table, spitting all over, ready to be wrapped in lettuce with bean paste, garlic and kimchi, or dipped in oily sauces. My mouth is watering. I expect a Korean restaurant review shortly, and some pho!
Have I tried pho! Lauren, sometimes I wonder at your perception of me.
I went through a big pho phase several years ago and, in fact, My’s was one of the restaurants whose version I thought up-to-par. It really can be fantastic, but it has to have a proper broth that’s been simmered/flavoured for hours, plentiful chilli and herbs, several kinds of sauces, and super thin fresh meat. I’ve yet to try an offal-based version, though. That’s trickier to find in Canberra!
Mmm, you’ve got me wanting kimchi now…
oooh I was wondering whether anything had changed since they moved locations….must give the new restaurant a try sometime soon!
I’d love to know what you think of it when you do, particularly in comparison to how it used to be!
Waaahhh…. so jealous…. Helen got to meet YOU!
Awww! *blushes*
Sounds like a wonderful evening. I know how much fun it is meeting internet friends! I hadn’t come across grab your fork before, but now have a new blog to add to my reader.
Yes, you and mum would definitely know how fun it can be
I love My’s. It’s a 5 minute walk from my place, so a bottle of wine goes down well
I guess that would make it more of a 15 minute walk back afterwards?
stumblin’ and laughin’
food blogger meet ups are great – it is so nice to meet people you already know so well – and always so much good food involved – I am sure I would love the beancurd as I have an unadventurous attitude to chilli
Oh, if only you lived in Canberra I could have saved you some, and then I would’ve had another blogger meet-up to talk about!
What a fun day!
I think your spring roll looks amazing — good roll job!
Thank you! Helen’s were about a billion times better, though
What a great opportunity. I want that food. I also look forward to checking out her blog. Thanks.
And, don’t be sorry.
When you come visit me, we’ll have even tastier food than that, I promise
Too bad the food paled in comparison to the company. It still looks really good, though!
The food wasn’t terrible, I just wish I’d been able to show Helen a tastier side of Canberra
But I think she’s fared pretty well in the days since!
thats so cool, Grab your Fork was the first food blog I ever followed- loving that shes in canberra!
It’s pretty exciting! Sadly she’ll be back on her home turf soon – but at least we can keep reading her blog
Its so funny when the company completely out shines the food!! Its always great to meet anyone from the food blogging sphere! Everyone is so exceptionally nice, it makes everyone else look like evil wrenches!!
Teehee, I don’t know if I’d go that far – my non-blogging friends are pretty fantastical too! But you’re right that the food blogging sphere is comprised of niceness and wonderfulness
We should all eat cake.
My experience with rice paper rolls is that I’m not very good at making them. I get too excited and try and put in way too much filling then don’t wrap them tightly enough and they explode all over me.
Amen. Ah, see that’s exactly what I was afraid of, so I was quite abstemious with the fillings in my first roll!
That bean curd dish looks so good…it’s too bad it was forgettable =/
I’m jealous of this Helen woman! WE need a delightful dinner together, damnit!
Aww! We do and we will
We’ll do nothing but eat delightful dinners when we’re busking our way around Europe in our prairie-era bonnets, remember?
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