Thanh Ha 2, Richmond
>> Tuesday, February 21, 2012 –
Asian food,
dinner,
lunch,
melbourne,
Richmond,
Vietnamese
Hey all! I'm sorry that I haven't been posting as often as I'd like but now that my internet's fixed, I'll hopefully keep the ball rolling!
Anyway, I was first introduced to Vietnamese cuisine a few years ago and instantly fell in love with the freshness of every dish. Mint, basil, bean-sprouts or lettuce are often included in the dishes. And knowing that Jenn's WIAW party is emphasising on vegetables this month, I headed off to my favourite Vietnamese restaurant! Sure enough, there were veggies in every dish!
Prawn Rice Paper Roll
A simple and refreshing dish dipped in a thick sweet peanut sauce. The insides are filled with vermicelli noodles, lettuce and prawns. Most of the Vietnamese rice paper rolls that I’ve had, are often over-stuffed with the vermicelli noodles but this wasn’t. The ratio between the lettuce and vermicelli noodles were well balanced, allowing the prawn to shine.
I couldn't get enough of this sauce! It was thick, sweet and had crunch from the roasted peanuts.
Raw bean sprouts- to be dunked in soup.
Pork and Prawn Rice Noodle Soup
Like a lot of Vietnamese dishes, this came with a plate of raw bean-sprouts for you to dunk into your warm soup. I like my veggies crunchy so, this’ll avoid over-soaked and soggy vegetables! And the broth was bursting with flavour- pure umami! If I caught a cold (touch wood!), forget chicken soup. I’m getting this.
Vietnamese Pancake with Seafood and Pork
This picture did not do justice to the size of the pancake! Even when folded into half, it could easily cover my face!! The thin crispy pancake was generously filled with sauteed onions, bean-sprouts, spring onions, prawns & sliced pork. The pancake by itself is good but the way it should eaten makes it REALLY good!
First, grab a huge lettuce from the pile of fresh greens and any herbs your taste-buds enjoy. For me, it would be mint and basil. Then, place a portion of the crispy pancake and hearty fillings on the lettuce with the fresh herbs.
Wrap, dunk in a sweet sauce and eat. You get the crunch from the fresh lettuce and the thin crispy pancake. There’s saltiness from the fillings and sweetness from the sauce. It was a huge dish but we certainly didn’t have any trouble finishing it!
Thanh Ha 2 is definitely one of the better Vietnamese restaurants I've been to. It's been consistently good with fresh ingredients! Plus, when you're done, just head over to Ikea and get some shopping done!
Richmond, VIC
03 9421 6219
As always, head over to Peas and Crayons and check out the veggies!
The sweet sauce with roasted peanuts must be delicious!!! Peanuts are so versatile, they go well with anything..
@Smitten By Food
Especially roasted ones! Sweet and savoury....
The prawn rolls look fantastic! Another great day of eats!
i'm betting if we all ate vietnamese food at least five times a week, we might all live longer & healthier lives! and yeah, it's amazing how authentic vietnamese food really is both wholesome & flavorsome at the same time :D
@Jessica
Thank you Jessica! :) Yes! The roll was really refreshing and of course, yummy!
@Sean
I believe so too! All that veggies cancel out the pork right? ;)
I love looking at all this food! I've never heard of a lot of these foods.. thats so cool that you get to try sooo many different food! :)
That noodle soup looks incredible! My mom and I loveee stuff like that.. especially during the colder months!
@Shannon
I enjoy trying new food! ;) But of course, I tend to stick to comfort food too!
@Tessa
That would be sooo good especially when the soup's piping hot! :D Hope it's not too cold there!
I've never tried Vietnamese food. I don't think there are any restaurants in our area.
All this food really does look amazing. I love Vietnamese food though. I grew up next door to the sweetest Vietnamese lady who taught my mom how to make a things like lumpia. So good!
I love Vietnamese food, I was introduced to it by a Vietnamese co-worker many years ago. I love the soup I always get extra bean sprouts.
My family always makes spring rolls. We never buy them because I like mine pretty simple - those looks awesome!
@Fran
Do try them if you ever find one! :) The food's really refreshing and most importantly, yummy!
@Laura Watts
Aww, how lucky! :) I'm sure that you have amazing memories eating Vietnamese food!
@Motivated Mommy of two
Extra veggies' always good! :D Especially in the warm broth!
@Julie
Making your own spring rolls is definitely healthier! Plus, you get to suit your own taste! ;)
The Prawn rice paper roll looks great!! I bought Rice Paper this weekend and will be making this soon!
@Sloane
YUM! I'm sure that it will taste yummy! :D Have fun!
Apparently this place does good pancakes. I came here a loooong time ago with mates and we didn't like it as much. I think it was because we ordered the wrong dishes. Next time I'll go there for the pancakes. Prawn rolls look amazing too!