RICE PAPER SCISSORS

In SF, we all have our neighborhood bar, cafe, and eatery. In Vietnam, it all takes place in an alleyway. While in Saigon, we crashed at my mother’s childhood home, located in a a narrow alleyway called Trang Quang Khai, where at any given time, there are three vendors ready to serve people their morning coffee, breakfast or lunchtime fix.

In the mornings we frequented Co My’s stand for cafe sua da (Vietnamese iced coffee), super thick and slow dripped everyday at 6am. It’s essential in this humid and hot weather, where we need little cups of coffee to pick us up throughout the day.

Also popping up every morning is Ba Tiem Se, the neighborhood gossip (and cutest lady EVER.) She sweeps the alleyway at 7am to keep it lookin’ pretty. My mom describes her as being the “radio tower” that beams out local news. Plus she’s so adorbs you can’t help but tell her your secrets.

For breakfast, our neighbors sets up a hu tieu (bean thread noodle soup) restaurant right outside her house. She wakes up at 3am everyday to make a fresh batch of broth.

The south end of the alleyway was so popular three vendors would rotate during the day. For lunch, we visited the com tam stand for a broken rice plate with fish claypot, accompanied by a refreshing cabbage soup.

After we made all the rounds, it’s only appropriate to sit in front of Ba Tiem Se’s house, of course, to digest and listen in to all the alleyway gossip.

— Valerie