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| - Yet another Vietnamese restaurant that is 5 minutes away from the 2 other Vietnamese restaurants on South Boulevard. Initially, I was pretty excited that Doan's was opening. Word came around that the owners were from the west coast, Seattle specifically. I thought that would bring some competition to the table and maybe, just MAYBE, I'll have a good go-to Vietnamese restaurant on my side of town. I tried Doan's within the first few weeks of its grand opening. Then again with some friends and again with my parents, and again and again with more friends. I know restaurants cannot be judged based on grand openings. They need some time to readjust and perfect the details. Well it's been about 10+ visits and sorry, I give up.
My girlfriends and I stopped by Doan's last night after a long day of shopping. We wanted something warm to ease the chills randomly rendered (in Charlotte anyway) by mother nature. As I browsed through the menu, I thought of my previous visits. I've tried the pho before and it lacked flavor and ingredients. There was barely any meat, just noodles and broth. I've tried the Bun Bo Hue (a spicy lemon grass based soup) and there wasn't even the slightest bit of Bun Bo Hue flavor in that broth. It tasted like chicken soup with noodles and peppers. I've tried the Com Dac Biet (which is the specialty broken rice dish) and it was TINY. With all of that in mind, I went with Banh Canh, which is another traditional Vietnamese soup. Banh Canh normally comes with lots of seafood items such as crab meat, shrimp, fish balls, etc. All I got was.. fish balls. I have so little expectation for Doan's that all I hoped for was that the broth was decent enough to consume.. and it was! yay!
Needless to say, Doan's does not hold up the caliber of a Vietnamese meal. I must say, the first time I tried their Bun Bo Hue, it was AMAZING! A few months afterwards, I ordered it again and they decided to take out some of the meats and veggies that the dish comes with and oh, removed the flavor too. I never know if I'll get the same thing I ordered last time. I love supporting my Vietnamese community, but I honestly never know what I'll get when I stop by Doan's.
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