a very happy baked lobster

D's mother dropped a lobster off at our place some time back. Her fishmonger keeps these monsters for her every now and then. Whenever I get a fat and succulent lobster delivery, it's always Baked Lobster Mornay Day!

Do a thick bechamel-cheddar sauce and pour it all over. I like to pour it all over the pan as well. Top with shredded cheddar and parmesan and bake till golden brown. The lobster doesn't take too long too cook, usually as long at the browning. Add wedges of lemon and serve in the pan. Enjoy. It goes very well with a rocket and cherry tomato salad - or anything else not too complicated as the creaminess of the lobster is rich as it is. Perfect with a crisp white. I like an Aussie Chardo, like a Devil's Lair or a Jamieson's Run.

Bechamel - melt cubes of butter in a pan and add several tablespoons of flour. Fry the roux till the floury smell is gone. Add warmed milk slowly until it becomes saucy. Add cheddar at the end to make it a cheesy sauce.

till next time madame saigon

The People's Committee building (the old Hotel de Ville)

5 things I would like to do again in Saigon

(I would actually like to do everything again, but I'll limit this to just 5)

• eat bahn mi
• eat bun cha
• eat at Square One
• eat bo tung xeo
• go for french spa massage

I would like to finish off my series of Saigon posts by saying thank you to my fellow holiday trippers who made this trip a really enjoyable and a very gastronomically fulfilling one at that.

Of course, a special mention to the four little kiddos who took to the streets with us and ate whatever we ate (which is sometimes not easy for 3, 4, 5 and 7 year olds) So, thank you Emma, Zach, Sophie and Hana.

the ultimate comfort food

Clam rice - A bowl of plain boiled rice topped with fresh baby clams, pork cracklings, vietnamese herbs, toasted white sesame seeds and a dollop of chilli-bean paste. Finished off with a bowl of hot clam juice. Stir it all in till all the grains of rice are coated. It's peasant food, it's comfort food and it's simply sensational.

Tib Restaurant, 187, Hai Ba Trung Street, D3, Saigon

daytime eats in Saigon

French ice cream and vietnamese drip coffee. The perfect way to spend a hot Saigon afternoon. Fanny Ice Cream - 29, Ton That Thiep Street, D1, Saigon

Pho bo in a noodle chain? Why not? Consistent, hygienic, aircon comfort, English speaking waiters. Pho 24, 15 Le Thanh Ton Street, D1, Saigon

natural goodness

More on the Saigon food trail....

Fried rice wrapped in fresh lotus leaf and steamed. Barbecued beef slices over a open fire. The fragrance of the lotus leaf permeates into the rice and instantly hits you as it is opened. With a touch of fish sauce and sliced red chilli, its fried rice paradise.

The beef is perfectly marinated and coupled with the smokiness of the open flame is gastronomic heaven.

All in one seating. More reasons why I love Saigon.

Luong Son Bo Tung Xeo, 31 Ly Tu Trong Street, D1, Saigon

Going French

French food in Saigon? Definitely. The full works as well. Here is what we had at Augustin's (10 Nguyen Thiep, HCMC).

We started off with soups - the ubiquitous french onion soup and a fisherman's soup with aioli. Both were rich and hearty but the latter was extremely flavourful with a heady aroma of seafood. The aioli added another dimension of richness. We then moved on to appetisers. Foie gras pate with pickles and beef carppacio with parmesan shavings. Those two were pretty run-of-the-mill. I didn't enjoy the carpaccio much especially after our friend, Y told us about bacteria and raw meat. (thanks Y :) ) Moving on. For mains, we had the duck breast with wild mushroom cream sauce. This was really good with the meat still slightly pink in the middle. We also ordered the steak in roquefort sauce (this took us by surprise with the chopped steak and the fried sunny-side egg on the mince, nonetheless, it was quite tasty if you get pass the hamburger-like qualities.) Our friend J had the salmon which was a little over done in my opinion. The last main was the lamb cutlets. The breadcrumb crust was really well-received at our table with the garlicky buttery taste. We had the chocolate souffle and molten chocolate cake for dessert. The souffle was excellent with crisp exteriors and a chewy centre. The molten chocolate was a wrong order (as in we didn't order it and yes, it was not that nice as well - and we also found out that they don't believe in 'the customer's always right' philosophy here in Vietnam as it was our second wrong order for the day and second 'customer is in the wrong' situation for the day).

Overall, we enjoyed the value-for-money food at Augustin's. It's straightforward traditional french food that you can't fault. You won't find your upmarket modern adaptations here with its retro two-veg-one carb combinations. As for the service, it can be a little brusque at times, which I presume is probably due to the small seating capacity and the need for fast turnover.