Bun Bo Wait a Minute (Bun Bo Hue)

Hey hey hey!!

How's it going, you handful of people that read my blog. It has been quite some time, I know. But I haven't been compelled to write about anything until recently. So, there isn't a lack of material, just a lack of dedication on my part, and I apologize for that. That being said, let's get into this unexpected adventure I stumbled into on wednesday at lunch.

Based on my friends that said they like it, the area the restaurant was located in and my inability to pronounce the menu item I ordered, I should have known that I was in for something surprisingly terrible. Strolled into this typical Vietnamese restaurant at lunch time; tons of tables, quick seating and full of middle aged business men, and all this with great expectations. All of this was taken in while sitting down since, before I really have time to assess my surroundings, we were seated.

I really thought I was just going to get some Pho (I was getting over a cold, it'll never be a regular lunch choice). But looking through the menu, I couldn't find it and in my futile search, came across Bun Bo Hue. It must have been the comfort of familiarity that made me order it. Actually, that was the case, as well as the perfectly censored description of my soon to be meal. Tell me this doesn't sound appetizing: Spicy Beef and Pork Rice noodle soup. That sounds like a winner, no matter what type of restaurant I'm in. So, I went for it.

Pretty shortly after ordering, bowl of soup was coming to the table and I was excited about trying something new that I was going to enjoy. That excitement and anticipation ended very abruptly when I laid eyes on my "food". When I saw the contents of the bowl, I thought back to the details of the menu and was supremely upset about the lack of specificity.

Rhetorical Pop Quiz...I guess you can answer if you want, and this counts for 100% of you overall class grade. Topic is, what was in my soup.

1.) Fill in the blank - Pork ______. NOTE - There may be more than one correct answer, (I hated test questions like that)

a. Shoulder

b. Butt

c. Blood

d. Part with skin containing hair follicles still attached

I will admit, they all sound pretty strange, however, if C & D didn't pop out at you as the obvious choice...well, you probably would enjoy Bun Bo Hue, or you don't understand how I write. Either of which is perfectly acceptable.

I tried my best to hide my bewilderment...but my reluctance to try the meat was screaming, "HOLY CRAP, WITH DID I ORDER?!?!" After attempting to mask the flavor that my mind was conjuring with hot sauce, I apologized to my stomach and knew I would go through the rest of the day hungry. Now that my 5 steps of grief were through, I put that pig blood on the spladel, (that is what i call the spoon/ladle that Asian restaurants give you with soup), and powered through. Imagine tofu, slightly more dense. That is what it was like, it wouldn't have been that bad...except for the small fact that I knew it was blood. And I'm sorry, but I couldn't even attempts the meat/hairy skin pork. Couldn't do it.

There you have it folks, Bun Bo Hue caught me like Mayweather after touching gloves. Don't worry, there is more fun to be had, you know why??? Cuz I'm starving. Stay hungry, everyone.