Lan Viet Market (October 26, 2012)

Lan Viet Market

North Market

59 Spruce Street

Columbus, OH 43215

614/227-4203

http://www.northmarket.com/meet-the-market/merchants/lan-viet-market

If you’ve never been to the North Market, you’re probably not from Central Ohio, but you should definitely make plans to visit and patronize the 35 (more or less) local vendors who offer everything from fresh fish and poultry to popcorn, gourmet ice cream, BBQ, flowers, baked goods, and a variety of international foods.

Lori and I had just finished up long and stressful weeks at our respective jobs and even the thought of having to make a decision about where to eat was daunting. As luck would have it, just few weeks ago, I had put my North Market gift certificates that I received for Christmas last year in the car so I wouldn’t forget to use them before they expired at the end of the year. 

Taking a couple laps around the market, we finally decided to have some Vietnamese fare at Lan Viet Market.  This was my second visit to Lan Viet Market and only my third Vietnamese experience (having lost my virginity at Saigon Palace in downtown Columbus about eight years ago…well, you know what I mean).

The menu at Lan Viet Market is only a bit intimidating as each item is written in Vietnamese, but an English description is also provided.

I selected the Com/Bun Thit Nuong ($7.00) which was the daily special.  Served in a large bowl, it was a feast of grilled pork (marinated in Vietnamese seasoning sauce), with broken rice, vermicelli noodles, lettuce, tomatoes, bean sprouts, cucumber, cilantro, and sauce.

 

 

Rather than sit on the wooden stools provided at Lan Viet Market, we took our dinners to the second floor overlooking the market below.  The meal was fabulous and, although the bowl was rather large, the portion was just right…and it appeared to be a generally healthy meal as well.  The marinated pork was seasoned just right and was very tender.  The other elements of the dish were perfect complements to each other.

With our drinks ($1.00 each for a bottle of water and a can of Diet Pepsi), our entire meal was a consumer-friendly $16…and with my gift certificates, it only cost a single dollar!

I was a bit disappointed that some of the tables upstairs hadn’t been cleaned off.  I mostly attribute this to lazy diners who chose to leave their disposable “to go” containers and used napkins on their tables rather than availing themselves of the trash containers that were no more than ten feet away. 

Our relaxing dinner complete, we went back downstairs (after discarding our disposables) and re-entered the now quiet market as most vendors were closing or already closed for the day.  Fortunately, Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams (http://www.jenis.com) had not yet closed up shop!  I opted for a single scoop of the Brown Butter Almond Brittle in a sugar cone ($4.50).  The sweet treat was the perfect ending to my meal.

When you visit the North Market, don’t forget to get your parking ticket validated to take advantage of the $1/hour rate (up to two hours).