Zadin Review

Zadin, a Vietnamese restaurant in the Castro district with many gluten-free options, served us decent or maybe good dishes.  Generally, there were things we liked about most dishes but also things we disliked about them as well.

We had the gluten-free version of the following dishes:

• Goi Cuon Ca – Zadin Fish Rolls.  ("A house specialty. Fried basa, rice vermicelli, mint, cilantro, and red leaf lettuce wrapped in rice paper served with nuoc cham.")  Good.  Of the four items we ordered, this received the most praise (and no negative comments).  The fried fish was still warm (freshly made I assume), though everything else was not (as we expected).
• Bo Luc Lac – Shaken Beef.  ("Filet mignon cubes, wok-seared medium rare with red onions, scallions, and garlic. Served on a bed of spring mix and topped with yam fries.")  The beef was good quality and cooked well, though perhaps was a bit oversalted.  The salad mix and the yam fries were also good and respectable.
• Green Curry Scallops.  ("Seared sea scallops served on a bed of spinach noodles in a spicy galangal coconut green curry sauce. Topped with green papaya, yellow squash, and fried basil.")  Ju liked the green curry sauce over the noodles (and vegetables).  Both Ju and Oj complained the scallops were rubbery, either "inoffensive" (Jui) or so badly cooked they were offensive (Oj).  I didn't have the same complaint; although I admit they weren't cooked excellently, there alright by me and I liked the seared flavor.
• Pho Ap Chao – Pan Fried Pho Noodles.  ("Shrimp and chicken sautéed in a mildly spicy sauce with mixed vegetables served on wedges of Pho noodles pan-fried until edges are golden and crispy.")  Innocuous.  Proteins and mushrooms and stuff on these really odd blocks of noodle-stuff, fried.  Yes, the noodles were solid blocks of noodle-material.  Nevertheless, people liked them.

Although the restaurant was nearly empty when we arrived at 7:15pm on a Saturday night, it was full by the time we left.

The total was $27/person including tax and tip.  We didn't order any drinks.

Original Announcement

Because this was an impromptu outing of Oj, Ju, and I, there was no official announcement.

Comments from Other Attendees

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