Mekong Kitchen: Vietnamese classics for whatever ails you
Remedies for colds and hangovers are legion in San Francisco, but the spicy oxtail pho from Mekong Kitchen may be the one cure-all to rule them all.
The 3-month-old Castro restaurant makes a gorgeous oxtail broth, full of strong, musky beef flavor and spice that creeps up to a crescendo.
The spicy oxtail pho is one of several re-created Vietnamese classics at Mekong Kitchen, the latest home of chef Tim Luym, known to San Franciscans for his Filipino cuisine at the now-shuttered Poleng Lounge.
Sriracha-glazed chicken wings, flash-fried Brussels sprouts with fish sauce, brisket French dip with “bone broth pho jus.”
The interior is similarly hip, with a gray-and-red color scheme, a menu that identifies gluten-free options, and a beer and wine license that allows the restaurant to spike your young coconut with a soju shot to create an insta-cocktail in the shell.
Traditionalists will appreciate the chicken and beef pho, five-spice chicken and grilled pork banh mi, papaya salad, shaking beef and claypot catfish.
The pair also hopes to feature specials every month that are even more traditional, like banh xeo, a lacy coconut crepe, and, during Dungeness season, a crab noodle soup with a tomato broth called bun rieu.
The spicy oxtail pho started as one of these specials, but proved so popular that it gained a spot on the permanent menu.