Duck curry – Duck Deli

Duck curry - Duck Deli
Cari vit. With potatoes, and served with fresh basil and French baguette. 75,000 VND
Duck Deli, Ho Chi Minh City VIETNAM

Mmm, this duck curry was SO good. I actually loved all the bones and skin still attached to the duck. It’s so much more flavorful and fun to eat that way. And how can you deny the bread in Vietnam?! I definitely gained a few pounds on this trip.

Bitexco Financial Tower
Bitexco Financial Tower.

Chicken adobo- Philippine Airlines

Chicken adobo- Philippine Airlines
With scrambled eggs, sauteed mushrooms, tomato, fruit, sweet roll, dinner roll. Complimentary
San Francisco (SFO) to Manila (MNL), Philippine Airlines

I’m sure most people wouldn’t think of chicken adobo as a breakfast meal item, but it is, lol! I don’t think there’s much difference in the kinds of foods that Filipinos eat for different meals. I’m all for it!

Ayala Blvd murals
Street murals, Ayala Blvd, Manila.

Seafood fried rice in clay pot – Bamboo Garden

Seafood fried rice in clay pot - Bamboo Garden
Fried rice with shrimp, calamari. 114,000 VND
Bamboo Garden, Ho Chi Minh City VIETNAM

Seafood fried rice in clay pot - Bamboo Garden
This dish was OK. The seafood was actually pretty tender and flavorful, but the dish as a whole was kinda boring. They actually just scooped the fried rice into the clay pot before serving. I thought that it was gonna be cooked in it so that there would be crispy rice at the bottom, but that didn’t happen. 😦

Cocktails - Bamboo Garden
Caipirinha: dark rum, lime, and sugar. Two for 85,000 VND
Long Island Iced Tea: tequila, gin, rum, vodka, triple sec, coke, and lemon.

Saigon Opera House
Saigon Opera House (Municipal Theater of Ho Chi Minh City).

Farmers ham sandwich – Cafe France

Farmers ham sandwich - Cafe France
With brie cheese, lettuce, tomato, and raspberry jam on wheat bread. 250 PHP
Cafe France, Ninoy Aquino International Airport (MNL)

This sandwich was a bit different. I had mixed feelings about the raspberry jam. One the one hand, I liked the fruity component, but I also thought that it was maybe too sweet for the sandwich. The balance was off.

San Miguel Light beer - MNL
San Miguel Light beer. Ahh, it’s always a good idea to drink at airports, lol!

Rizal Park
Rizal Park, Manila.

Cabbage salad with boiled duck – Duck Deli

Cabbage salad with boiled duck - Duck Deli
Goi vit. With sweet/spicy dressing, mixed greens, and roasted peanuts. Small 125,000 VND
Duck Deli, Ho Chi Minh City VIETNAM

Wow, this was delicious! I wish I knew what all the stalks and shaved stems were, but they all tasted great with the duck and the gingery fish sauce dressing. The duck had pieces of chopped bones in it, but I didn’t mind at all. I always think that bone-in is more flavorful anyway.

Hotel de Ville de Saigon
Hotel de Ville de Saigon (City Hall) and Ho Chi Minh statue.

Ube ice cream – Philippine Airlines

Ube ice cream - Philippine Airlines
Magnolia brand purple yam flavored ice cream. Complimentary
Manila (MNL) to Ho Chi Minh City (SGN), Philippine Airlines

Ube ice cream - Philippine Airlines
I love ube ice cream! This was definitely no where as good as Mitchell’s ice cream in San Francisco, but I loved that they served a tropical flavor instead of the usual vanilla. And it’s always fun to eat ice cream with a wooden spoon!

Construction mural
Construction mural, Ermita.

Little gem lettuce salad – Incanto

Little gem lettuce salad - Incanto
With lemon-anchovy vinaigrette.
Incanto, San Francisco CA

Sad. This was probably one of the saddest salads I’ve seen in a while. When I chose it, I wasn’t expected a bunch of limp butter lettuce leaves drenched in caesar dressing. Everyone at our table who ordered this asked for some grated parmesan to at least add some texture. This was sad.

Little kid eating his boogers
Little kid eating his boogers on the streetcar. LOL!

Beef noodle soup – Pho 2000

Beef noodle soup - Pho 2000
Pho bo. Sliced beef with flat rice noodles, onions, and chives. Served with basil, greens, limes, and habanero peppers. Regular 65,000 VND
Pho 2000, Ho Chi Minh City VIETNAM

I think I like beef pho better than chicken pho. The broth has a lot more flavor and I think it’s more fun to eat with chopsticks, especially if you have to try and separate the thin slices of beef. This soup was very tasty and such a great value!

Communist flower bed
Communist flower bed, Cong Vien 23 Thang 9.

Sweet and sour pork – Deli Kiosk

Sweet and sour pork - Deli Kiosk
With hard boiled egg, rice, sweet and sour sauce. 180 PHP
Deli Kiosk, Ninoy Aquino International Airport (MNL)

I swear I’ll eat almost anything when I’m hungry. I really didn’t even want this plate at the airport, but I was starving during our layover. It wasn’t very good. I do like hard boiled eggs though.

Drag show in Manila
Drag show at Club Red Banana, Malate.

Fresh fruit and Vietnamese coffee – Pink Tulip Hotel

Fresh fruit - Pink Tulip Hotel
Dragonfruit, papaya, and watermelon.
Pink Tulip Hotel, Ho Chi Minh City VIETNAM

I’m always wary of eating fresh fruit in foreign countries unless it has a peel and I’m the one who peels it myself. But our morning fruit plates were great and we never got sick from them. Phew!

Vietnamese coffee - Pink Tulip Hotel
Vietnamese coffee with milk. They also provide hot water in case the coffee is too strong for your taste.

Vietnamese coffee - Pink Tulip Hotel
Almost done! I love Vietnamese coffee. I always asked for regular milk instead of the condensed milk.

Pink Tulip Hotel guard dog
The hotel guard dog. 🙂

Fresh fruit - Pink Tulip Hotel
Banana, papaya, and watermelon.

Iced Vietnamese coffee - Pink Tulip Hotel
Iced Vietnamese coffee with milk.

Chicken curry – Philippine Airlines

Chicken curry - Philippine Airlines
With rice, steamed vegetables, carrot and jicama salad, dinner roll, and red wine. Complimentary
Manila (MNL) to Ho Chi Minh City (SGN), Philippine Airlines

Meh, this dish wasn’t very good. The chicken curry tasted ok, but I didn’t like the verging-on-slimy texture of it. The carrot and jicama salad was different, and I think it had pieces of ham in it. It was decent. Thank god for free wine on international legs!

Driving from Manila
Driving from Manila to San Pablo City.