Lemon Grass Café

Lemon Grass Café

Written by Beth Wade Monday, 07 May 2007

Vietnamese owners bring native food to Austin

Provide the best service and food possible and the customer will take care of you by returning again and again. That is the philosophy of Lemon Grass Café owners Thein Pham and his fiancée Linh Nguyen.

And serving classic Vietnamese dishes is more than a philosophy at Lemon Grass.

The restaurant, named after a common herb found in many Vietnamese and Thai dishes, has a menu full of authentic Vietnamese dishes, created by Nguyen, who has had a passion for cooking her entire life.

Both Vietnamese, they each moved to the United States 10 years ago and eventually met in Texas.

The pair decided to follow Nguyen’s dream and open a family restaurant after hearing of a Vietnamese restaurant available to purchase. They planned to merge Pham’s business skills and Nguyen’s love of cooking and in November, Lemon Grass Café opened its doors. Today Pham has replaced his corporate environment to work in the front, greeting and serving customers, while Nguyen carefully constructs each dish as ordered.

The egg rolls, fried, and spring rolls, steamed with grilled pork, shrimp, tofu or chicken, (both $1.50) are traditional appetizers, which prepare the taste buds for the next course.

The Lemon Grass Chicken ($6.95), served with rice or vermicelli noodles, is made by stir-frying chicken with lemon grass, hot pepper, onion and garlic. This dish can be extremely spicy, but if requested, it can be prepared to taste.

For those who prefer a little less spice, the Vermicelli with Grilled Chicken ($6.75) is an excellent choice. Served with an egg roll, the dish is a good choice for those who are new to Vietnamese food.

Another classic dish is the Pho ($5.75-$6.50) [pronounced fuh]. This dish is a broth prepared for five to six hours each day and served with toppings chosen when the order is placed. The selection includes steak, brisket, meatball, flank steak, fatty brisket, tendon and tripe. Customers can have as many or as few toppings as they want.

For dessert, Nguyen offers Sinh To or bubble tea ($2.50), a fruit smoothie made with a variety of different fruits and tapioca pearls.

This no-frills restaurant is a great find for Northwest Austin dining. With a menu offering a variety of dishes and options, repeat visits are a must.

Vietnamese Translator

• Pho = beef or chicken broth, originated in Northern Vietnam during the 1880s.
• Mi = egg noodle soup
• Vermicelli = rice noodle
• Cari = curry
• Lemon Grass = a long, thin gray-green leaf with a scallion-like taste. Also used for its medicinal quality.
• Cha Gio = egg roll
• Gui Cuon = shrimp spring roll
• Do Xao = stir fry

Lemon Grass Café, 2501 W. Parmer Lane, Ste. 550 • 491-8640, www.lemongrassaustin.com, Open 7 days a week, Mon - Sat 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. • Sun - noon to 8:30 p.m.

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