Thien An Bo 7 Mon

Several different restaurants in Little Saigon specialize in dining experiences that either aren’t available or nearly as good at typical Vietnamese lunch and dinner establishments. A small local chain called Thien An Bo 7 Mon is one of the best examples – and most potentially appealing to diners who are either new to Vietnamese cuisine or early in learning about its many charms.

As “bo” means beef and “mon” means courses, Thien An specializes in a Vietnamese meal known as “seven courses of beef,” an affordable luxury that explores different ways beef can be prepared, cooked, and served – arguably the ultimate eye-opener for a steakhouse buff open to the possibility that there may be different options for enjoying beef.

The basic format of bo 7 mon courses is the same between local restaurants offering this specialty: some courses arrive alone, some with others. Expect a beef and shrimp salad, beef fondue, sizzling lemongrass beef, charbroiled ground beef sausage meatballs, lot leaf-wrapped beef, steamed beef with shrimp chips, and beef with rice alphabet soup. If you love one of these items, you can order more a la carte, and you may want to: the seven courses are collectively pretty filling, but not so filling that you’ll be unable to eat another thing, or walk out on your own. At a time when all-you-can-eat Brazilian steakhouses charge $55-75, Thien An’s reasonable price tag per person of $32 reflects the differences.