Also not sure what J. Gold’s issue with that dish was. Really good dish. Pho without smelling like pho after. Genius.
I got a few pieces of tendon which was nice. I like a little tendon and tripe with my pho.
Your lemongrass chicken looks much more fried than my version at the MB one, very interesting.
great pictures!
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Little Sister Downtown L.A.
Little Sister Downtown L.A. is the newest branch of the original Manhattan Beach Vietnamese / Southeast Asian-style Bistro.
The downtown L.A. location is rather small, taking over a small space near Seven Grand and across from Bottega Louie.
They have 4 types of Banh Mi on the menu, but the one J. Gold and others have talked about is their:
#SGV Special (Vietnamese Cold Cuts, Grilled Pork, Peanuts & Pate):
At first glance, this is a mammoth sandwich. It’s about as big as Gjusta’s (which was huge), and it comes with a housemade Jus Dipping Sauce (so you can try it like a French Dip if you want).
The first bite of this sando is a crazy experience of crunchy Baguette (which is great, because you don’t expect this from a trendy, upscale bistro in Downtown L.A.), then this explosion of Porkiness: There’s the Pork generously laced with fat from the Cold Cuts, and then the Grilled Pork, which is very moist, juicy, but more like Pork Belly / Uncured Bacon Strips than leaner styles of Grilled Pork in many Banh Mi.
It’s tasty at first. But after a couple of bites, none of us wanted any more:
It was overkill. 
The Vietnamese Cold Cuts they use are very fatty (like more than 50% fat). The Grilled Pork is like sauteed strips of Pork Belly (more fat). The Housemade Garlic Egg Yolk Aioli tastes fresh and excellent by itself. But that adds more richness and fat. Then the Housemade Pate just puts the whole thing over the edge. The Pate is fresh and very good. But the sheer richness in this sandwich is overwhelming. We couldn’t finish it.
At $14 (including tax & tip) (more expensive for the other meat choices), it was a study in opulence and excessiveness. It’s one Banh Mi I can’t see myself ordering again.
Confit Duck & Bamboo with Aromatics, Herbs Congee:
The Duck Confit really tasted more like Roast Duck, without the skin… just tender, soft pieces of Duck. Moderately seasoned, lightly salty, well-spiced. The Congee tasted very clean and freshly made. It was slightly thick, but not overly so. And it had more flavor than the Congee I’ve had at random HK Cafes or Sam Woo.
The Pickled Bamboo were sitting in some Red Chili Oil marinade and had a good funk about them, well fermented, surprisingly. The Crullers (“Chinese Savory Doughnuts” on the menu) weren’t as crispy and light as the ones I’ve had at some Taiwanese breakfast places, but they were piping hot, probably freshly made.
Overall, it was a very solid bowl of Congee, and a bit more reasonable in price compared to authentic bowl costs ($10 including tax and tip).
Little Sister Downtown L.A.
523 W. 7th Street
Los Angeles, CA 90014
(213) 628-3146
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Note that the banh mi and congee are not on the dinner menu, i.e. served only before 4:00.
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Really wish this was not true… but oh well
Fried okra was really good. Crunchy and a little spicy.
Tartare. Good. They gave me fresh taro chips hot out of the fryer.
Cold mapo dofu. Good. Didn’t recognize it as what I ordered as the tofu was in big chunks.
Soft-shell crab banh mi. Insane. Man, was I lucky Q was closed.
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that banh mi looks excellent
looks good. I always enjoy LS DTLA. dont go enough
what kind of bun is that on the banh mi? Almost looks like some kind of fried bread.
I have no idea. Not your usual Viet baguette, that’s for sure. Not a brioche bun either, I don’t think.
It had good structural integrity.
Hahahahahahaha!!!
Okay. Fuck that fuckery. I mean, I’m good with the general service charge because of the Byzantine labor laws that complicate compensation of FOH V BOH. I’m okay with doing away with the tipping model altogether. I’m okay with health surcharges.
But there is no reason for this charge that a simple menu price change wouldn’t fix. Damn. I mean the slippery slope argument is a common fallacy . . . or is it?
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They’re not charging sales tax on the surcharge. That probably means it’s not included in their gross receipts, a percentage of which often have to be paid to the landlord per common terms of restaurant leases.
Most likely true, but we all have limits to contorted charges.
One way to look at it is the perceived value all in.
But I do like to see that listed prices track fairly closely to what I end up paying.
And usually these charges are listed in the small print and are not indicated up front.
Not in this case. Same type as everything else on the menu and hard to miss.
I can see the future:
8% living wages service fee
3% rising costs surcharge
2% homeless cleanup surcharge
4.2% RecycLA sanitation surcharge
1% Rodent management surcharge
$1 physical reciept charge
Our staff relies on your genorosity to survive. Surcharges and fees above are not gratuities. Suggested tipping percentages:
19%. 26%. 31%.
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When people engage with a menu, they are usually simply looking for food, not information about surcharges.
Expectations will need to change, but until they do there will be customers put off by the sheer number of surcharges. It’s starting to look like a phone bill.
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Maybe you should make that criticism about a restaurant with more than one surcharge.