Vịt Đông Quê
Cesar Hernandez ate the duck salad on Story Road and called it a mountain: poached duck, two cabbages, banana blossom, fried shallots, and a ginger fish sauce you pour on yourself.
Why go
The Chronicle's Vietnamese guide reports the duck salad as a veritable mountain of slices of moist poached duck, shredded green and red cabbage, banana blossom, fried shallots and fresh herbs.
1 Poaching is what keeps the duck slippery under the dressing. The vinaigrette arrives to be drizzled by you, punchy
and spiked with ginger, and the herb doing the work is rau răm, which Cesar Hernandez and Soleil Ho call musky
and credit with the depth.1
There are a few tables outside. Most people take it away.
Order this / avoid
- Order: the duck salad. It is the dish the Chronicle sent people to Story Road for.1
- Avoid: arriving with plastic. Cash only.1
- Avoid: Tuesday. Lunch and dinner run Wednesday to Monday.1
What locals & experts say
- San Francisco Chronicle, Cesar Hernandez and Soleil Ho:
Duck salad might sound precious, but at Vịt Đồng Quê, a duck-centric restaurant in Little Saigon, it's anything but.
1 - The same guide, on the herb:
A generous helping of musky rau răm (also known as laksa leaf or Vietnamese coriander) adds depth to the salad.
1
Good to know
- Hours: lunch and dinner, Wednesday to Monday.1
- Payment: cash.1
- The spelling: the Chronicle prints Vịt Đồng Quê. The map pin spells it Vịt Đông Quê. Same address, same duck.
Verdict
should-visit — Two named Chronicle critics put their bylines on one paragraph, and it is the only published judgment on this kitchen anywhere I could reach. It describes how the duck is cooked, which a reader can check on the plate. One source is thin for this rung and the source is a good one. The day the duck stops being poached the reason to drive to Story Road goes with it.