Pho Grand and Lebron
This is an open letter to one Mister Lebron James aka King James aka the-savior-of-the-knicks-oh-please come!!! There's lots of reasons to come to New York City. Of course there's the fact that it's one of the greatest city in the world. All kinds of industries are based here in the Big Apple, so you could have any number of marketing opportunities. You should come to play for the Knicks because you could go down in NBA history as the guy who delivered multiple championships to the most fervent basketball city in the world. But by far the best reason to come to New York is the food. Yes, that sounds crazy because you could fly anytime you want and your probably spend most of your free time at home with your kids. There is no other place on earth where you get the variety at the kind of quality that we get in New York. And even though NBA players love Cheesecake Factory, you could branch out from that (because we don't even have one...)
Now I don't know what kind of food you can get in Cleveland, but you could ask your buddy Jay-Z about how it is in New York. I heard that his favorite pizza place, Lucali's would kick people out if they hear he's coming. YOu know, since they don't take reservations at Lucali's. See, that's what New York would do for you. And if y'all win 50 games, I'm sure people would voluntarily get up off of their seats and offer it to you if you were to visit a restaurant.
But back to the food topic at hand... you know one of the most common questions stupid New Yorkers asked me when I first moved here to NYC was, "Really? I didn't know there were Chinese people in Tennessee!?" My reply was usually, "Neither did I!! I'm not Chinese! I'm a twinkie." But I'll ask a similary ignorant question in hopes of propping up NY... Are there Vietnamese restaurants in Cleveland? I mean, there probably are some... but they're probably full of self-loathing and cry all the time due to the fact they're Asian and living in a city like Cleveland. No offense to Cleveland. I love Cleveland. They house my favorite baseball team.
Before I moved to New York, I never had a summer roll before. You know, that thing that looks like an egg roll but isn't fried and has shrimp, rice vermicelli, and some herbs. And this restaurant Pho Grand in Chinatown has a good version of it. You can also get an avocado milkshake there. You ain't getting that at a Jamba juice. No sir. Although avocado shakes can be mild depending on the ripeness of the avocados they use. The most important thing to remember is that variety is the spice of life. And where do you go for summer rolls in Cleveland?
In addition to summer rolls and avocado shakes, at Pho Grand you can get Bun or rice vermicelli. They usually top it with some sort of meats like grilled pork chops or spring rolls. Maybe Cleveland Vietnamese restaurants have this but it probably taste better in New York.
And you could wash down the bun with some pho. I don't even know if you like Vietnamese food, Lebron. But if you haven't tried it, I know you'd definitely change your mind if you had some pho. It's this rice noodle dish with a deeply flavorful beef broth. It's awesome.
So in closing, King James, I think even though Chicago is a fun city that offers a great roster, they just fall short because our buildings are taller. Miami might offer no state income tax, but what is a married family man gonna do with nude beaches? And we have Latin fusion food here too. That chef, Aaron Sanchez, he got so good at his craft he doen't even cook anymore, he just does Food TV shows. That's when you know New York has got talent. Our people just get so awesome, they can just focus on being a global icon instead of working on their craft. And while developing into a global icon, all these New Yorkers are eating really well. And it's even possible to eat well with Vietnamese food if one chooses. So come on Lebron!
Pho Grand
277C.
New York, NY 10002
212-965-5366
No offense, but based on that criteria, maybe he should go to Toronto. We have summer rolls, avocado milkshakes, bun and pho.
We don't have a Cheesecake factory either.
Heck based on the food criteria there are a lot of cities he could go to.
just saying
Yvonne
July 6, 2010 2:29 pm
Will you install a Like button like on Facebook? Cuz sometimes there's a post like this one, that I like a lot, but I don't know what to say in a comment so I have to write random words like this to let you know it's pretty darn entertaining!
And snap, ANOTHER Asian food blogger?
Mai
July 2, 2010 2:51 am
@Ben,
haha, yea I kind of figured Cleveland has Vietnamese food. I'm just joking with that shit. If Nashville has it, I'm pretty sure Cleveland hand it too. Singing Lionel Richie in Cleveland is pretty rockin' though.
@Allix,
Definitely, the place is worth a try. I say go for some spring rolls even if you want to get pho
@FN,
But can Jesus give you triple doubles? Nope. He too busy doing miracles and pissing off atheists. Or just too busy not existing...
Danny
June 30, 2010 5:04 pm
Cleveland does indeed have Vietnamese food! Not that I ate it when I grew up there -- I only ate chicken fingers, hot dogs, and mac & cheese.
http://www.asiatowncleveland.com/
I did, however, sing Lionel Richie's "All Night Long" at karaoke night at Bo Loong about two years ago, though.
Ben
June 30, 2010 12:18 pm
Oh man, those pictures look so tasty. I'll definitely have to give that place a try!
Allix
June 30, 2010 4:32 pm
F that, after I wait outside Lucali's on the sidewalk for 2 hrs I'm not giving my seat up to anybody, not even Jesus. And I bet Jesus has a better jumper!
FN
June 30, 2010 4:58 pm